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Four Core Approach
Mansfield Hall’s Four Core Approach addresses the essential domains of an authentic college experience (Living, Learning, Giving, and Engaging), as well as the requisite skills needed for a successful transition to adulthood.
A positive college experience effectively balances the development of academic skills, independent living skills, social skills, and vocational skills and must include executive functioning and self-advocacy skills across all domains.
This holistic approach recognizes that each domain is interdependent with the others, and students must develop skills in each core area to reach their true potential.
Our team works closely with each student to identify, set, and achieve their own individualized goals. This coaching relationship is central to the Mansfield Hall experience.
Our Academic Team help students improve their academic, self-advocacy, and executive functioning skills as they learn how to navigate collegiate-level coursework. Our Student Life Team supports students as they build a healthy and interconnected social experience and our Independent Life Skills Coaches work with students to develop their independent living skills. Additionally, our Community Outreach Director works to connect students to volunteer opportunities and community events, as students build a resume of experiences, practice the skills of employability, and actively give back to the larger community.
Most importantly, our Four Core Approach is an integrated and holistic approach grounded within an authentic collegiate community. For our students, it is essential to support skill acquisition and generalization within an immersive and real-world context. We value inclusion and diversity and are constantly working to integrate our students in the larger community. Mansfield Hall students have consistent access to participate in traditional and inclusive college experiences with peers of all kinds, and these connections to real-world social interactions provide the core of an authentic and dynamic college experience.
Learn more about our Four Core Areas:
Pathway To Independence Model
Mansfield Hall’s Pathway to Independence Model is a Community and Coaching Model that focuses on the whole student through the Four Core Areas of Learning, Living, Giving and Engaging.
Our approach is rooted in the belief that at the heart of independence is interdependence and connections. The ability to meet our needs and thrive in the world as adults grows out of our ability to be in relationship, ask for help, be comfortable navigating different environments, and having people around us we trust and care about and who care about us. As we establish this in the Mansfield Hall community we can then support students to extend their sense of safety and belonging into their respective college communities.
Our Coaching Model is anchored in community, driven by empathy and empowerment, and provides the framework from which students are able to take risks and meet new challenges. The process of increasing self-awareness, recognizing areas of growth, goal-setting, and overcoming obstacles, develops both increased agency and self determination as well as greater skillfulness in many areas of adult development – from managing one’s living space to effective self advocacy on campus and in the workplace.
The Mansfield Hall Pathway to Independence Model is designed to empower students to take ownership of their own lives through building their capacity for resiliency, self-determination, self-advocacy, advanced academic studies and independent life skills. It is a student-centered model grounded in community engagement and relationships based on active listening, emotional connection, partnership, and guided discovery. Our model is designed to help students identify, articulate, and pragmatically work toward their own goals – while still providing staff support in areas which students are not-yet able to address.
Student MAP
The heart of our model is the MAP (Making Action Plans), which is created by students with support from staff and overseen by the Director of Student Life and Academic Director.
This document outlines a student’s goals in our four core areas. The goals are individualized, and will vary considerably depending on the student’s personal needs and readiness. This tool is used to strengthen our student’s capacity to take ownership of moving from pre-contemplation and contemplation to preparation, action, integration, and generalization of new skills and increased self-determination.
The coaching process that this tool represents is guided by a student’s innate capacity and desire to grow, their participation in our community and curriculum, and our staff’s commitment to support students through positive, intentional action within the context of supportive relationships.
Assessment Tools
In addition to students receiving real-world feedback in their college classes, we utilize two primary assessment tools at Mansfield Hall. The purpose of these assessments is threefold:
First, the assessments provide us with valuable information on the individual strengths and lagging skills of each student. This information provides us with a present level of functioning and a foundation for individualized goal setting with a focus on independence.
Second, these assessments are administered bi-annually, providing us with valuable progress monitoring data. We use this data to help determine if our students are meeting their individual goals.
Third, the assessments help us to determine what supports and services may be needed to most effectively meet each of our students’ needs.
We use two primary assessment tools at Mansfield Hall:
In a nutshell: We utilize data to tell us where each student is right now, goal-setting to map out where they are going in the future, a community and coaching model to help them get there, and additional assessments and data to monitor their progress along the way.
To learn more about Mansfield Hall’s Four-Core Approach, Pathway to Independence, MAP, and our Community and Coaching Model, please Contact the Admissions Office.
Feeling overwhelmed in college- but not sure why? you’re not alone.
The key isn’t just “pushing through”, it’s learning to recognize what’s happening before you hit that wall, and having systems to reset.
That might look like:
• stepping outside for a walk
• box breathing between classes
• putting on a guided meditation
• reaching out to someone you trust
Small supports = big difference over time.
At Mansfield Hall, we help students build the awareness and tools to regulate, recharge, and navigate college in a way that actually works for them.
What’s one thing that helps you reset when you’re overwhelmed?
#CollegeLife #StudentMentalHealth #ExecutiveFunction #StressManagement
Excellent week across the board!
People Ops team member Jo touched down in Madison, receiving a warm welcome with coffee and a trip to see the Capitol building. VP of Program Ops Hayley grounded herself and took in the beauty of the Statehouse. Pancakes were served, and Burlington student Nikhil took the stage to perform with his choir.
A great week to zoom out and back in- and reflect on all the things we have to be grateful for!
#collegesupport #neurodiversity #worklifebalance
College can be energizing… and draining.
If you’ve ever felt socially exhausted, you’re not alone.
Understanding your limits (and what helps you recharge) can make all the difference.
#CollegeStudents #Neurodiversity #StudentWellbeing
Hangin` in there until spring weather kicks in!
This week at Mansfield Hall our Eugene, OR students did some rock climbing, Burlington, VT connections students took an outing to the bowling alley/arcade, while others took a trip to a local sugar house to learn about all things maple syrup. Students in Madison, WI continued their endeavors to learn about all things maintenance...and they make it look fun!
Happy Friday Friends- enjoy the weekend.
Mansfield Hall had the joy of hosting some professionals at our Madison, WI location recently, which included a student panel.
One of the questions asked was: What do you like about Mansfield Hall?
The answer: how inclusive it is.
No one gets to choose the brain they have, but we do get to choose the world we create. We choose to accept, celebrate, and work toward a world that’s more inclusive of every brain and the incredible things they can do.
Happy World Autism Awareness Day. We see you, and we celebrate you for all that you are and all that you can be!
❤️MH
#autismawareness #neurodiversity #collegesupport
Sensory overload happens when your brain receives more sensory input than it can comfortably process.
Our nervous systems are constantly taking in information, but when there’s too much coming in (or it’s coming too fast) our systems can become overwhelmed.
We get it, and it can be managed with small, intentional supports like reducing input, creating predictable routines, and building in quiet recovery time.
