32 Referrals a Day. Then They Changed the System.
Now It's Near Zero.

Three Rivers K-8 in Sunriver, Oregon was averaging 32 discipline referrals every single day. Low-income student population. Resistant parents. Faculty at odds with administration. EDCO didn’t change the students. They changed the structure.

About Three Rivers School

School Facts:

Implementation:

  1. Administration and teachers at odds on discipline management
  2. No formal systematic plan to guide teachers
  3. Parents not unified — at odds with the school’s administration
Three Rivers was struggling with a low-income student population — 67% on free or reduced lunch. The parent base was resistant to change. The faculty was inconsistent, and school morale was depressed.

What EDCO Implemented at Three Rivers

Comprehensive Behavior Management

A school-wide system replacing the patchwork of individual teacher approaches. Every staff member operating from the same framework — consistent rules, consistent consequences, every day.

Comprehensive Classroom Management Processes

Teachers trained on classroom-level management strategies — how to prevent disruption, respond to it systematically, and keep instructional time protected.

Parents as Partners

A dedicated program to bring the parent base into alignment with the school. Turned resistant parents into partners — reducing the conflict between home and school that was fueling ongoing discipline problems.

Training Format

- In-school seminar format — no travel required
- Two six-hour sessions for faculty
- One-on-one breakout sessions for the Dean and Principal
- Five follow-up consulting visits throughout the school year

32 → ~1

Daily discipline referrals — reduced to 3% of original volume

<10%

of students involved in discipline referrals

↑ Scores

Reading and math increased after implementation

3 Systems

Behavior + Classroom + Parent — all aligned

Sixty-seven percent of students were on free or reduced lunch. The parents were resistant. Staff morale was low. Administration and teachers were misaligned. These are the exact conditions that make most discipline initiatives fail.
EDCO’s system produced a 97% reduction in daily referrals anyway. Because the system doesn’t depend on ideal conditions. It depends on structure — and structure can be built anywhere.

What Every Principal Can Take From This

The Parent Problem Is a Systems Problem

Three Rivers had resistant, adversarial parents. The fix wasn't a meeting or a newsletter. It was a structured Parents as Partners program that gave parents a clear role in the system. Once the structure existed, resistance dropped.

Faculty Alignment Comes Before Student Behavior

Administration and teachers were at odds before EDCO arrived. That misalignment was the root cause — not the students. Once staff were unified under one framework, student behavior followed.

Discipline and Academics Move Together

Reading and math scores increased after the discipline system was implemented. That is not a coincidence. When disruption drops, instructional time returns — and students learn.

If Three Rivers Could Do It, So Can Your School.

Start with a free Discipline Strategy Session. We’ll look at what’s breaking down in your building and show you exactly what a fix looks like. No pitch. No pressure. No obligation.