The Story Of Byng Public Schools
Byng Public Schools, which serves approximately 1,800
students across fi ve school sites in rural southeast
Oklahoma, was seeking a more collaborative and costeff
ective partnership with an occupational therapy (OT)
provider when it turned to PresenceLearning in the
2016-17 school year.
The district had previously contracted with a local, onsite
agency to deliver OT services. “I wanted there to be more
collaboration and communication as part of the therapy
process,” said Sherri Coats, M.Ed., Director of Special
Services at Byng Public Schools. “It was important to me
that therapists were a real part of our team and were
spending time updating and consulting our teachers
about the progress of their students.”
In the initial year of its implementation, PresenceLearning,
alongside the district’s onsite paraprofessionals, delivered
services to 35 students in grades K-10 via its secure,
proprietary online platform. It additionally helped to
properly assess students and, in some cases, dismiss them
completely from OT services once they met their goals.
“Prior to PresenceLearning, I felt like students were being
carried through the therapy process longer than they
needed to be,” said Coats. “Now, I feel like the needs of
students are being met appropriately.”
“Our initial OT from PresenceLearning who has been
with us from the beginning, has been so terrific. She
immediately felt very much like part of the team,” said
Coats. “She is always great about communicating with
teachers both by email and phone, and she even attended
one of our district meetings despite living more than
two hours away. During that meeting, she provided our
special education staff with training on sensory needs
and primitive reflexes and how they can use various
strategies to help students in the classroom.”
During the actual therapy sessions, OTs from
PresenceLearning use easily-accessible and cost-effective
materials as they engage students, including those with
autism, in a variety of activities to build underlying skills
and improve fine, gross, and visual motor function for
the educational setting. Examples of activities include
having students use scissors while maintaining a thumb
up position, rolling and pinching Play-Doh, practicing
certain body motions and yoga poses, and even having
students participate in relay races during group sessions
in which they have to carry cotton balls with a clothespin.
“I love that Mary is willing to see students in groups of
two if the students’ needs and the skills being worked on
are similar,” said Coats.
“During both individual and group sessions, we always try
to make it fun for the students,” said Mary Kitchen, one
of the PresenceLearning OTs who serve students in the
district. “During the sessions, the paraprofessionals and
I are always collaborating and problem solving to figure
out the best strategies for the students. We are constantly
working hand-in-hand and are on the same page. The
paraprofessionals are also great at taking everything we do
in the sessions back to the classroom so that students are
continually practicing strategies throughout the week.”
“Previously, our teachers often didn’t even know what
skills their students were working on during therapy,” said
Coats. “This has been a huge change with PresenceLearning.
Now, teachers are always informed and when they
have questions or want to discuss ideas, Mary is the first
person they call.”
“Throughout the years, we’ve seen a lot of gains with our
students, notably with one student who has autism,”
added Coats. “Our success has been a team effort and
PresenceLearning has played a big part in it.”
