Seeing Students Sooner: Turning Early Identification into Meaningful Support

Seeing Students Sooner: Turning Early Identification into Meaningful Support

Every student deserves the opportunity to be seen, understood, and supported before challenges become barriers to success. But early identification is only the first step. The real impact comes from building systems that help educators translate screening data into meaningful action.

Join Amanda Casagrande, Ed.D., District Social-Emotional Learning Specialist for Stamford Public Schools (CT), as she shares how her district uses a strength-based approach to identify student needs, build educator buy-in, and ensure every student receives the right level of support. Drawing from her experience leading MTSS and behavioral and mental health initiatives across the district, Amanda will share practical lessons for moving from screening to intervention while creating a culture where data informs, not replaces, strong educator relationships.

Whether you're launching a universal screening initiative or refining your existing processes, you'll leave with actionable strategies for building sustainable systems that help schools identify student needs earlier and respond with confidence.

Continuing Education Credit:
Participants who attend majority of the live session will be eligible to receive CEUs. Additional details regarding CE credit requirements and documentation will be provided during the webinar

Learning Objectives:

• Explain how universal behavioral and mental health screening supports early identification within a Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS).
• Describe strategies for building educator buy-in and fostering consistent implementation of behavioral and mental health screening practices.
• Apply a systematic process for reviewing screening data, prioritizing student needs, and aligning supports with identified strengths and areas for growth.
• Identify practical leadership strategies that help ensure students receive timely, appropriate supports while strengthening collaboration among educators, families, and support staff.

About the Speaker:

Amanda Casagrande, Ed. D, is the District Social-Emotional Learning Specialist for Stamford Public Schools in Connecticut, where she leads districtwide initiatives to strengthen social-emotional learning, Multi-Tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), and positive school culture across PreK–12. With more than 20 years of experience in education, Amanda has served as a classroom teacher, school-based intervention specialist, and district MTSS leader, helping schools implement data-informed systems that support both student well-being and academic success.

Throughout her career, Amanda has focused on building sustainable practices that empower educators, strengthen family partnerships, and ensure every student receives the support they need to thrive. She holds a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership and is passionate about helping schools create strength-based systems that identify student needs early and translate data into meaningful action.