Teachers at every grade level and in every setting are trying to manage and teach students with an increasing diverse range of needs. This paper describes a collaborative study to observe, record, and assess the impact and outcomes of an integrated approach for teaching skills of self-discipline to students considered to be academically at-risk. In this study, strategies are developed and assessed for democratic management in collaboration with one classroom teacher. The approach emphasizes teaching students fundamental processes for making decisions that are helpful and can contribute to a productive and safe learning community. Specific strategies are designed to help students learn personal responsibility for their own behaviors. The objective was to examine the impact that teaching appropriate decision making skills would have on sustaining a productive learning environment. The study assesses the impact that having regular class meetings will have on helping students remember and use appropriate decision making skills. Following the interventions, teachers report that the class was easier to manage than previous classes. Ensuring flexibility for meeting individual needs by avoiding prefabricated programs was essential for any successful outcome to the study. (Contains 12 references.) (JDM)