How trauma-informed schools are helping students and communities
by Amy Wilson and Mary Tobolski
As social workers in Oak Lawn, Ill., we’re so glad that our district —Ridgeland School District 122 — begun working towards becoming a trauma informed school system during the 2016–2017 school year, after joining the Partnership for Resilience. The Partnership for Resilience is an organization that aims to integrate education, health and community resources to address childhood trauma, access to primary care and family engagement.
During the 2016–2017 school year, District 122’s Resilience Team worked to educate staff members on Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACES), collect data in regards to student success and staff job satisfaction, and implement staff self-care. We also organized a viewing of Dr. Marjorie Fujara’s webinar “It’s Not Rocket Science, It’s Brain Science,” invited Dr. Frank Belmonte from Advocate Children’s Medical Group to speak on the topic of ACES and their effect on a child’s brain, implemented school-wide discussions at weekly morning meetings on the topic of resilience, and held a district-wide screening of Paper Tigers, a documentary which chronicles the lives of four teenagers attending Lincoln High School in Walla Walla, Wash. Lincoln High School was the first school in the country to incorporate trauma-informed practices, which led to an overwhelming decline in suspensions, expulsions and improved outcomes for students within the first few years of implementation.
In order for a trauma-informed school to operate with fidelity, it is crucial for all staff members to be trained in regards to ACES and their effect on the brain. Through the opportunities provided to our district last year, all certified teachers, related service providers, and support staff participated in training. After attending an AFT-sponsored Great Lakes Union Leadership Institute course on the Union Solution to Students’ Stress and Trauma, we were charged with the task of developing an action plan for future trauma-sensitive work within the district. During this time, we realized that some of the very first people our students interact with (at times, before even stepping foot in a classroom) — our bus drivers and cafeteria staff — had not been trained on this topic.
To that end, we consulted with Ridgeland School District 122’s Director of Teaching and Learning, Sheri Maher, to deliver a training to our cafeteria staff. At this training, we reviewed the goals of the Resilience Team, provided an overview of ACES and their effect on the brain, and discussed the concept of “everyday gestures” and how they can help heal the effects of trauma. “Everyday gestures” is a concept of the Changing Minds Campaign, developed through the U.S. Department of Justice, Futures Without Violence, and the Ad Council. “Everyday gestures” are five gestures — celebrate, comfort, collaborate, listen and inspire — which, when implemented by a supportive, caring adult in a child’s life, can help a traumatized child’s brain to heal and thrive.
During the training, we stressed the impact and importance of our district’s cafeteria staff. For some students, receiving their breakfast each morning in the cafeteria may be the very first time that day they have interacted with a warm and caring adult. Free breakfast and lunches provided at school may be the only healthy meals a child receives on a particular day. And most importantly, our cafeteria staff are consistent people in the life of our students, and the way in which they interact with our students can make a world of a difference! Overall, the training session received positive feedback from attendees, and several expressed interest in additional training on the subject.
As Ridgeland School District 122 moves into its second year as a trauma informed school, the Resilience team’s goals include implementing trauma-informed classroom practices, preventing the negative effect of secondhand stress on staff health and wellness, and increasing parent engagement. Various staff self-care opportunities have been implemented in individual school buildings within the district, which include staff shout-out boards, recognizing staff members of the week, scheduling staff outings, and hosting health and wellness screenings within each building.
In regards to parent engagement, representatives at both the elementary and middle schools have attended Triple P Positive Parenting Program trainings in order to implement parenting seminars on child and teen behavior. Additionally, our schools have increased the number of activities that promote parent attendance. These activities range from social activities, like family game nights, dances/socials, and paint night, to academic activities such as curriculum night, in which parents are invited into classrooms to participate in activities and learn about classroom curriculum.
We hope these efforts will increase and improve home/school communication and engagement, and encourage educators to approach students with a caring and concerned mindset. Rather than teachers asking “What is wrong with this student?” they have been encouraged to instead consider “What happened to this student?” The shift in the culture of the district is already observable, and District 122 plans to continue this work for years to come.
Amy Wilson is an elementary school social worker and Mary Tobolski is a middle school social worker within Ridgeland School District 122 in Oak Lawn, Illinois.
