In this episode Chris Leonard, Thrive’s Chief Learning Officer, spoke with Alina Liao, the founder and CEO of Zenit, a ”radical wellness” company whose philosophy is that everything we do must advance the wellness of all our stakeholders.Highli

Post-Covid Challenges and Remedies

Dec 20th, 2022 57m 16s

In this episode Chris Leonard, Thrive’s Chief Learning Officer, recently spoke with power couple, Michael and Nita Creekmore about their firsthand knowledge of the current challenges that students, teachers, and parents are facing and clear ide

Preparing School Staff for the Challenges of the Upcoming School Year

Aug 28th, 2022 37m 49s

In this episode Chris Leonard, Thrive’s Chief Learning Officer, recently spoke with Dr. Michael J. Hynes, Superintendent of the Port Washington School District in New York and an award-winning educator who advocates for a holistic approach to e

How Teacher Coaching Improves School Climate & Culture

Apr 25th, 2022 25m 40s

In this episode of Conversations About Student Mental Health, Chris Leonard tackles the question of how to prepare teachers to support the growing social and emotional needs of students. Chris talks with Steven Cates, an interventionist at Sout

Creating a Mindset Shift: Mental Health Climate & Culture in Schools

Mar 18th, 2022 59m 8s

This episode of Conversations About Student Mental Health explores the mindset shift that is necessary to create a culture and climate of mental health and wellness in your school. Making this shift is one of three critical facets of maximizing

Speeding Access to Acute Mental Health Care with XFERALL

Feb 14th, 2022 43m 55s

It’s no secret that the mental health needs of youth have been intensifying. Getting young people the treatment they need in a crisis has become a greater challenge because of the length of time they must spend in the emergency room (often more

COVID 2022: Teacher Perspectives

Jan 12th, 2022 30m 29s

As the COVID pandemic rages on, students are facing significant challenges, including:Overcoming learning lossDramatic increases in mental health issues among children and teens (leading to rising rates of emergency department visits and suicid

Fostering Positive Relationships Between Parents, Schools and the Community

Oct 22nd, 2021 41m 45s

In the past 18 months, many students experienced gaps in academic, social, and emotional development. Parents are worried about what their children have missed and how their school will ensure stability and readiness for what comes next. Needle

School Refusal Series Part 2: What Parents Can Do

Jul 30th, 2021 41m 38s

In this episode, Chris Leonard shares advice for parents to help their school-refusing child get back to school. Chris and his guest also touch on how schools can partner with parents to form a team to help a student get back on track.This time

School Refusal Series Part 1: Re-Integrating and Retaining Students After COVID

Jun 8th, 2021 47m 17s

After more than a year of hybrid and remote learning, students have experienced a new normal of staying home. School professionals are concerned that a wave of school refusal will hit us this fall. How can we prepare?In this episode, Chris talk

Demystifying Mental Health with Coaching for School Staff

Apr 7th, 2021 45m 44s

As we return to full-time, in-person learning, educators expect even more students to struggle with anxiety, depression, and other mental health issues that interfere with their ability to learn and succeed in school. It's clear that there is a

Starting the Conversation About Race, Equality and Bias in Schools

Jan 11th, 2021 48m 29s

Dealing with race, equality, and bias is a problem that continues to confound Americans, in large part because we are not even comfortable talking about it. Yet our children and teens are watching events unfold in the world and they have questi

Nancy Sulla on Engaging Students in a Hybrid Learning Environment

Aug 4th, 2020 37m 4s

We've all seen the national news reports declaring this spring's remote learning a disaster. Students and parents were worried about not feeling engaged, lacking socialization, and being just plain bored. Although schools are trying to create s

Dealing with Grief

May 27th, 2020 47m 22s

The COVID-19 outbreak has brought grief to the forefront, because nearly all of us are grieving right now. Many of us have loved ones who have died. Others have lost jobs, missed out on graduation ceremonies, or lost the daily social interactio

Coping With Fear & Anxiety

Apr 15th, 2020 34m 24s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks about how to understand and manage the anxiety many of us have been struggling with during the pandemic crisis. His guest is John Reilly, a clinical social worker and certified psychoanalyst with 30 years of

Social Media & Student Mental Health Q&A

Mar 26th, 2020 18m 54s

In this episode, Chris Leonard answers questions about what schools can do to encourage healthy social media usage by their students, and prevent the problems that arise from harmful behavior on social media. The questions were submitted by sch

The Anxiety Epidemic & Teacher Burnout

Feb 17th, 2020 37m 53s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with two experienced special ed teachers about how teachers can support the growing number of students with mental illness... and how school districts must support teachers. Jessica LaForgia and RJ Laxamana

Strategies for Funding Student Mental Health Programs

Jan 6th, 2020 17m 6s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with Pat Hovey, a leader and innovator among NJ Directors of Special Services. Pat has worked to implement and fund successful programs for students with mental health problems in several New Jersey school d

Navigating the Holidays: Supporting Students and Staff

Dec 16th, 2019 21m 46s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with Dr. Mary Rose Scalo, a former Director of Special Services in Wayne and in Parsippany. Chris and Mary Rose discuss strategies for dealing with the heightened stress experienced by students, families, an

Solving School Avoidance: Strategies for Schools

Sep 23rd, 2019 18m 54s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with Linda McGovern, a mental health clinician embedded full time in the Randolph, New Jersey public school district. Linda has worked effectively with many students struggling with school avoidance, and off

School Refusal: A Parent's Perspective

Aug 22nd, 2019 16m 7s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with a parent of a student who struggled with school avoidance. This is an increasingly common problem faced by students, families, and school districts, and one that’s challenging to overcome. Laura describ

A Proactive Approach to Preventing School Tragedies

Jul 31st, 2019 18m 34s

In this episode, Chris Leonard talks with Robert Ferullo (Principal of Weehawken High School and former Special Education Supervisor) about the proactive steps schools can take to prevent tragedies such as shootings and suicides. This can be a

What is the School’s Role in Addressing Student Mental Health Issues?

Jun 3rd, 2019 16m 52s

This first episode sets the stage for Conversations About Student Mental Health. Chris Leonard, clinical social worker shares some advice about the role of the school in addressing student mental health. Discussing such topics as:What is the sc

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