FREE Virtual MTSS Mini Summit Behavior at the Core
Join us for Summer Professional Learning | June 3, 2026 | 12:00–4:00 PM ET
Free Half-Day of Virtual Learning Focused on Behavior at the Core
Join our free virtual Mini Summit on June 3, 2026, from 12:00–4:00 PM ET, where educators will explore how behavior is deeply connected to every aspect of a student’s experience, from academic engagement to attendance and graduation outcomes. 🍎
Led by experienced school and district leaders, each session highlights how strong, integrated behavior systems create the conditions for student success and equips you with practical strategies you can apply right away.
Want to get an idea of what the Summit is all about? View the 2025 Mini Summit and the 2024 Mini Summit.
Mini Summit Schedule at a Glance
Wednesday, June 3, 2026 🍎
*Subject to change

Opening Session
12:00 – 1:00 PM ET
Break
1:00 – 1:15 PM ET
Breakout Sessions
1:15 – 2:15 PM ET
Branching Minds Spotlight
2:15 – 2:30 PM ET
Break
2:30 – 2:45 PM ET
Closing Session: Panel Discussion
2:45 – 4 PM ET
Hear from the Mini Summit Speakers
Hear from Trudy Bender and Dr. Brian Gaunt as they share why behavior is central to student success and what school and district leaders can expect from the MTSS Mini Summit.
Behavior: The Core of Student Success
Student behavior is often treated as separate from the core work of schools, with behavior systems focused on reacting to discipline problems. In reality, “behavior” affects nearly every outcome districts care about.
Drawing on decades of experience helping districts scale MTSS and PBIS, Dr. Brian Gaunt will reframe behavior support as a proactive, worthwhile investment rather than an unavoidable cost. Learn how integrated academic and behavioral supports can help your district drive stronger engagement, attendance, and long-term student success.
Dr. Brian Gaunt
VP of Learning Engineering, Branching Minds
Beyond Planners and Post-Its: Practical Tips for Teaching Executive Functioning
Dr. Rebecca Branstetter
School Psychologist & Founder of The Thriving Students Collective
If You’re Waiting for a Referral, You’re Waiting Too Long: Screening-Based Tiering for Behavior Support
A referral model for behavior support tells you who needs help after problems arise, and it often misses altogether the students who are quietly disengaged. Universal behavior and SEL screening helps teams spot needs earlier and respond more consistently.
Learn how to use screening data alongside attendance and discipline indicators to strengthen Tier 1 supports, identify students for Tier 2 and 3 behavior intervention earlier, and build a proactive system that helps prevent and mitigate behavior issues before they escalate.
Kelsea Combs
Director of Positive School Climate and Culture, Howell Public Schools, MI
Ashley Pennell
Senior CSM & Enablement Lead, Branching Minds
Getting Serious About School Climate: Using Data for Measurable Improvement
Improve your climate, improve your outcomes. A positive school climate sets the stage for more effective teaching and learning, higher attendance, improved behavior, increased graduation rates, and increased teacher retention. And, a focused effort to improve school climate and connectedness bears dividends in all areas of life, not just within the school but across the communities that our schools serve.
In this session, we will discuss how to use data to accurately assess school climate and to guide interventions at the universal, targeted, and individual level.
Trudy Bender, Ed.S., NCSP
Sr. Manager of Thought Leadership Content, Branching Minds
From Screening to Safety: The Infrastructure Most Districts Are Missing
Districts invest heavily in supporting student behavior, yet still watch students struggle or fall through the cracks. Screening data sits unused. Interventions aren’t delivered consistently. Threats are documented in three different places, or none at all. These fractures are rarely due to practitioner commitment; it's about infrastructure.
In this spotlight conversation, Branching Minds CEO and Co-Founder Maya Gat walks through how Branching Minds addresses operational gaps: automated tiering that surfaces the right students at the right time, guided intervention tools that ensure targeted support, and meeting automation that reduces administrative burden. And when behavior escalates to its most serious form, Canopy Case Management ensures that suicide risk screenings and behavioral threat assessments are documented, tracked, and followed through with the consistency that high-stakes cases demand.
Maya Gat
CEO & Co-Founder, Branching Minds
Maureen Halton
Product Marketing Manager, Branching Minds
Attendance Intervention Panel Discussion
Attendance is core to student success in every area, yet chronic absenteeism is often treated as an isolated compliance issue rather than a signal for support.
In this closing panel, we will discuss how to identify root causes, build momentum across schools, and implement practical behavior and attendance strategies that improve outcomes over time.
Dr. Amber Humm Patnode
Director, Proving Ground, Center for Education Policy Research (CEPR), Harvard University
Robyn Brandon
Reading Specialist, Danville Public Schools, VA
Scott Hale
Assistant Superintendent, Greater Johnstown School District, NY
Note: This event is NOT eligible for CEUs/PDUs/CPDU/CLE credit. We will, however, provide certificates of attendance to registered live attendees. As with all professional development hours delivered, we recommend that you verify ahead of the workshop that the content will qualify for professional development in your school, district, county, or state with your supervisor, human resources department, and/or principal or superintendent’s office. Unfortunately, we cannot issue certificates of participation to those who watch the recordings on-demand (i.e., after the live event).
Highlights from the 2025 Mini Summit
Get a glimpse of the 2025 Mini Summit opening session and the buzz the Summit sparked across social.
Buzz from the Summit
"The sessions today had practical application. The content was relevant and informative."
"Every session provided information that will be helpful to my school."
MTSS Facilitator, Freeport Public Schools, IL
"ALL of the sessions attended had PHENOMENAL information and speakers!"
"Reinvigorating! So glad I was able to attend."
School Psychologist, Guilford County Schools, NC
"The expert advice was invaluable, and the resources were abundant."
"There were lots of tangible resources. I made new connections!"
"The Summit was wonderful! The speakers shared great practical and relevant content."
"I enjoyed the high quality of presenters. The level of expertise was really impressive."
"I LOVE the passion for learning I witnessed today."
"I learned something new each session that allowed me to continue learning."
Related Behavior Resources
Guide
The Tier 2 Behavior Intervention Guide
Behavioral challenges may be growing, but so can your team’s capacity to support students. This guide is here to help you do just that.
Download guide

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