What is Executive Function Case Management? Executive Function Case Management (EFCM) provides a more comprehensive and increased level of coaching support for clients and/or parents looking for a higher level of support, monitoring, prompting, advocacy, collaboration, and/or accountability. In addition to the direct 1:1 coaching, EFCM also provides the following elements of support:
The coach initiated prompting and check-ins outside of the direct 1:1 sessions to allow for increased external accountability and in-the-moment motivation and support.
Coaching for parents/family members (if applicable) as needed to support client progress and to help parents navigate the challenges that come with advocating, guiding, and supporting a child with complex needs, not to mention the challenges of parenting a child who wants to be independent but does not yet have the skills to be independent.
Facilitated family meetings to provide an opportunity to reflect on and discuss goals, and progress, celebrate success, name and clarify expectations and roles, and allow for transparency among/between family members. This is also an excellent opportunity for the client to practice self-advocacy.
Collaboration and communication with established members of the client’s team and/or recommendations for other related services/additional professionals who could support the client (i.e., therapists, teachers/professors, tutors, advisors, advocates, neuropsychologists, special education services, disabilities services, etc.)
Who would benefit from EFCM?
Students of all ages and learning profiles can benefit from this service; however, students who benefit the most from this service are students who have complex learning profiles ( i.e, high-achieving students with learning disabilities and/or ADHD; students with EF skill deficits and anxiety/depression; twice-exceptional(2e) students, etc.). In addition to EF skill deficits, these students have additional challenges that impact their ability to meet their academic and life goals.
Examples of students and families who have benefited include:
- Students with EF skill deficits, whose grades are failing, and who have not yet qualified for a 504 or an IEP and whose parents want support in navigating the challenges that their student is facing while also having their child receive coaching;
- Students who are going to college for the first time or who have been in college and need support with academic and life skills to achieve their goals while living independently on a college campus or at home;
Because of the coach’s work with both the child and the parent, EFCM can be transformative in terms of skill-building and achieving goals and even more so for the dynamic of the parent-child relationship. This coaching model transfers the responsibility and burden of monitoring and enforcing to the coach, which allows the parent to be a cheerleader and caregiver while still ensuring that the child is working towards an age-appropriate level of independence. This allows the parent to focus on cultivating a relationship with their child that is grounded in recognizing strengths and in celebrating success rather than one that is focused on persistent challenges and nagging.