How to Build and Use a Standard Treatment Protocol in Multi-Tiered System of Supports (MTSS)

Picture this: you have a headache, so you reach for a painkiller. For most of us, that's the end of it. The Tylenol kicks in, the headache fades, and we move on with our day. But every now and then, the medicine doesn't do the trick. That's when you need something more — a cold compress, a quiet room, maybe a visit to the doctor.

This is exactly how Krissy Martin, Director of MTSS and Exceptional Children at Roanoke Rapids Graded School District in North Carolina, describes a Standard Treatment Protocol (STP) one of our favorite episodes of the Schoolin' Around podcast. It's one of the clearest ways we've heard to explain a tool that can transform how your district supports students.

  • 26 min

Making an Impact with an MTSS Standard Treatment Protocol

Schoolin' Around

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If your teams ever feel like they're pulling interventions out of thin air, an STP brings order, consistency, and confidence to the work. Let's walk through what it is, how to build one, and how to use it well.

What Is a Standard Treatment Protocol?

A Standard Treatment Protocol is a "one-size-fits-most" approach. It's a set of research-based interventions your district turns to first when students show common difficulties — whether in academics, attendance, or behavior.

Think of it as the standard prescription. Just as a doctor starts with a proven treatment before exploring something different, your teams start with the STP because it has worked again and again.

This is also why the Ultimate Guide to MTSS names Standard Treatment Protocols as part of Component 6: System-Level Infrastructure and Collaboration — the "invisible" backbone that makes everything else in your MTSS practice work.

STP vs. Problem-Solving Protocol: What's the Difference?

Both are key parts of the MTSS framework, but they serve different purposes. Knowing when to use each is the secret to working efficiently.

Here's how Krissy frames it: most people with a headache take a painkiller, and it works. But some folks need a cold compress or a gentle massage — something different. The same is true for students.

Your teams always start with the Standard Treatment Protocol. Only when that proven approach doesn't move the needle for an individual student or small group do you shift to the problem-solving protocol for more intensive, personalized support.

How to Build a Standard Treatment Protocol

Building an effective STP takes time. As Krissy puts it, you have to make sure it actually works — try it once, then confirm you can replicate the results. For Roanoke Rapids, this was a two- to three-year journey. Here's the process.

Step 1: Map Your Resources

You can't build a protocol until you know what's in your toolkit. Start by taking inventory of the programs and tools already available across your district.

For Roanoke Rapids, that included:

• 95% Phonics Core Program — explicit phonics and phonemic awareness instruction
• mCLASS — assessment and progress monitoring
• Wonders — a K-5 reading curriculum
• UFLI Foundations — a structured literacy resource

Step 2: Use Data to Identify Gaps

With your resources mapped, lean on your data. Universal screening helps your teams pinpoint exactly where students are struggling. Once you identify the gap, you can match it to the right tool.

For example, if a student needs help with decoding, blending, and multisensory instruction, 95% Phonics becomes a go-to. And if most students respond to it, you've found a winning standard. If a group doesn't respond, you might layer in a different resource like UFLI.

Step 3: Vet Programs With Your Teachers

This is where buy-in begins. Don't just Google a phonics program and roll it out district-wide. Instead, let your teachers test-drive it.

Roanoke Rapids gives teachers a real window — three to six months — to try a resource and report back. When the district adopted a new math curriculum, it was a two-year process with multiple stages. Teachers shared what they liked, what they didn't, and whether the data backed it up. That feedback drives purchasing decisions.

Step 4: Replicate and Refine

A true standard is something you can repeat with confidence. Once a tool proves effective for most students, it earns its place in your protocol. And here's a bonus: every time you find a custom solution that works for a student who didn't respond to the standard, you can fold that into your menu of next steps for future students.

How to Use a Standard Treatment Protocol

Building the STP is half the battle. Using it well is the other half. When a student isn't making expected progress, follow a clear sequence rather than jumping straight to a brand-new intervention.

1. Start With the Standard

Begin with the proven protocol. It's worked before, so it's your best first bet.

2. Check the Cause Before You Change Course

If a student isn't progressing, make sure you've correctly identified the problem. As Krissy says, if your doctor treats your ear when the issue is your knee, you won't see progress. Confirm the root cause first.

3. Change the Dosage Before the Intervention

This is the move that saves time and resources. Instead of swapping interventions right away, adjust the intensity first:

• Increase frequency: Move from twice a week to four times a week.
• Extend duration: Stretch sessions from 20 minutes to 25.
• Check fidelity: If it's working in four classrooms but not a fifth, examine how it's being delivered.
• Consider attendance: A student who's been absent or pulled from sessions hasn't truly received the intervention.

Think of it this way: instead of switching medications, sometimes you just need to take two Tylenol instead of one.

4. Then, and Only Then, Change the Intervention

If you've intensified support and confirmed fidelity, attendance, and root cause — and the student still isn't responding — it's time to try something different. That's when the problem-solving protocol takes over.

The Power of Teacher Buy-In

Here's a truth every district leader knows: a protocol only works if your teachers actually use it. That's why collaboration is the engine behind a strong STP.

Roanoke Rapids builds buy-in through regular PLCs organized by grade level and department. During these meetings, teachers share insights, surface challenges, and weigh in on what's working. Because they're on the front lines, their feedback is invaluable.

And here's a reassuring point: not everyone has to use the exact same tool. As Krissy explains, one teacher might find success with Tylenol while another swears by Advil — and that's perfectly fine, as long as students are getting results. Honoring teacher preference and teaching style builds ownership, strengthens collective efficacy, and keeps your protocol grounded in classroom reality.

What a Strong Standard Treatment Protocol Delivers

So what does all this work add up to? For Roanoke Rapids, the results speak for themselves.

• K-3 literacy growth that outpaced the state. According to their DIBELS 8 data, the district outpaced North Carolina in K-3 literacy growth — in every grade and every student group.
• A near-ideal tier distribution. For the first time since at least 2022, the district tiered students for reading using overall composite scores instead of cherry-picking individual skills to keep group sizes manageable. The result? A tier distribution closer to the ideal triangle — roughly 80% in Tier 1, 10–15% in Tier 2, and 5% or less in Tier 3 — than it had ever been.

There's also a system-level payoff. With a strong STP in place, the district can respond in real time. When a proven intervention isn't working for most students, that's a signal it may be an implementation issue rather than an intervention issue — a distinction that helps leaders target support where it's needed most.

⬇️See Roanoke Rapids' Standard Treatment Protocol in Action

Building an STP That Lasts

Ready to build or strengthen your district's Standard Treatment Protocol? Keep these final pieces of advice in mind:

• Be patient. This is a multi-year, ever-evolving process. As Krissy says, you're never truly finished — benchmarks shift, curricula change, and staff turns over.
• Build capacity across your team. When you invest in teacher knowledge, your protocol survives staffing changes and keeps moving forward.
• Foster collaboration across schools and grade levels. Encourage vertical alignment so what works in kindergarten can inform first grade, and what works at one campus can lift another.

A well-built STP gives your teachers a clear answer to "What do we try next?" — and gives your students faster, more consistent support. That's a win for everyone.

Want to put this into practice? Explore these resources to get started:

• Fillable Template: Standard Treatment Protocol
• Elementary Reading by Skill: Sample Standard Treatment Protocol
• Podcast: Making an Impact With an MTSS Standard Treatment Protocol
• Guide: The Ultimate Guide to MTSS