Our guest Diane Wagenhals is a Program Director for Lakeside Educational Network. Her current responsibilities include overseeing programming and authoring curriculum for the Lakeside Global Institute. Lakeside manages therapeutic schools and s

Integrating Social and Emotional Learning and Academics

Mar 7th, 2024 50m 14s

The Takeaway “SEL has five major components: self-awareness, self management, social management – the skills we use to manage relationships — and responsible decision making. There used to be this notion that you had your cognition — your rati

Moving from Visioning to Conversation to Action

Feb 15th, 2024 51m 13s

The Takeaway The Michigan Elementary Middle School Principals Association (MEMSPA) facilitates conversations among school communities to bring together the vision and voices of many districts. Such communication establishes a plan for a better

Following a Compassionate, Holistic Approach with Students

Jan 18th, 2024 56m 14s

Summary Our discussion explored visioning and building schools through a more holistic, compassionate approach to working with students. The Rainbow Community School in Ashville, NC, was used as a case study. Drs. Renee Owen and Christine Mason

Taking Care of Teachers, So They Can Take Care of the Kids

Dec 14th, 2023 1h 3m

Guest Dr. Debra Gustafson is the Associate Superintendent for the Geary County Unified School District 475 in Juncture City, Kansas. Deb’s primary responsibilities focus on providing leadership and expertise in developing, achieving, and mainta

Developing Culturally Sensitive and Responsive Educators

Nov 16th, 2023 1h 6m

Guest Gary R. Howard, Ph.D., has been supporting individuals and organizations in the deeper work of personal, professional, and systemic transformation for the purpose of achieving social justice and equity in our schools and our nation. Howar

A Servant Leader Approach to Enhancing Well-being in Schools

Oct 10th, 2023 58m 1s

Guest Dr. Kelvin Butts is the Superintendent of Benton Harbor, MI, area schools and a lifelong educator, having served as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal. Summary Our discussion touched upon trauma and mental health issues in the

How a School Leader Creates the Conditions for Healing

Sep 25th, 2023 52m 34s

Guest Anitra Gallegos is the Principal of the Panorama Middle School in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Summary As a passionate and dedicated principal, Anitra is committed to addressing trauma and creating a culturally responsive and trauma-inform

Nurturing Student and Educator Well-Being

Sep 14th, 2023 46m 13s

Our Guest A lifelong educator, Michelle Trujillo M.Ed is a Co-Founder of the Center for Learning and Well-Being and is known to make a tangible, sustainable, and positive difference through her books, speaking engagements, and interactive works

Reducing the Trauma of Native Youth Through Tribal-Directed Education

Aug 17th, 2023 42m 40s

Guest Melanie Johnson, Sac and Fox Nation, M.Ed., CPS, is the Director of the Whole Child Initiative for the National Indian Education Association. Melanie has worked with tribal communities and organizations for over 20 years. Melanie is a Cer

The Critical Need to Reframe the Discussion – and Training – About Race

Jul 13th, 2023 38m 23s

Guest Afrika Afeni Mills, MEd, is the CEO of Continental Drift, LLC, an author, Education Consultant, and Adjunct Professor at Boston College’s Lynch School of Education and Human Development. She has been an educator since 1999 with a backgrou

The Impact of Poverty and Bias on Student Learning

Jun 20th, 2023 36m 35s

Our guest Horacio Sanchez, President and CEO, Resiliency Inc. Horacio Sanchez is a highly sought-after speaker and educational consultant, helping schools learn to apply neuroscience to improve educational outcomes. He presents on diverse top

Trauma in Schools - Season 2 Welcome

Jun 19th, 2023 15m 14s

Summary Equity, inclusion, and justice should be critical goals of education today. To effectively work toward achieving them, though, the mental health and overall well-being of children and school staff must first be addressed. Following the

Balancing Students' Academic and Social/Emotional Needs

Apr 19th, 2022 42m 6s

If COVID has an upside, it’s that it has brought attention to the emotional needs of students (and faculty members). Indeed, if a student doesn’t feel emotionally safe in the classroom, their ability to learn is severely impeded. And if an educ

Reducing Trauma’s Impact Through the Three Rs

Apr 12th, 2022 44m 1s

One of the clear takeaways from our series on trauma in schools is that few teachers and administrators receive training on student trauma before they find themselves in front of their kids. Most professional development in this critical area i

Trauma within Indigenous Populations (Part 2)

Apr 5th, 2022 41m 8s

One way trauma grows in the Native American child is through schooling. Native American children attend either schools made up primarily of Native students, or they attend U.S. public schools with the potential for more of a mixed population. A

The Trauma within Indigenous Populations (Part 1)

Mar 29th, 2022 45m 14s

One of the aspects of trauma that needs to be fully recognized is its intergenerational potential: the trauma that a student carries with them can often be further weighted by what their parents and or ancestors experienced. This is particularl

Taking a Systematic Approach to Achieving Equity in the District

Mar 22nd, 2022 37m 5s

When we think about trauma and adverse childhood experiences, the conversation understandably gravitates to one of what happened to the student. That approach can focus us externally on the damaging experiences and events themselves. Dr. Scott

Trauma in Schools #30: Nurturing the Emotionally Safe School Environment

Mar 15th, 2022 35m

Most attempts at large-scale change in education fail because of incoherent planning, lack of buy-in of stakeholders, and poor execution. Another big reason for failure is pace: leadership tries to do too much too quickly. Moving too fast can b

Heart Centered Learning: A Compassionate Approach

Mar 8th, 2022 42m 58s

If our students need to be in a psychologically safe place before they can succeed academically, today’s guests — Drs Yvette Jackson and Michele Rivers Murphy — will argue that the same logic of “first this and then that” also applies to the fa

Coaching to Address SEL, Racism and Trauma

Mar 2nd, 2022 38m 31s

Our study of trauma in schools has naturally focused on students. For example, the discrimination and racism that many live with in their neighborhoods aren’t experiences they can easily leave at home. That those experiences negatively impact a

The Imperative to Focus on the Whole Child

Feb 22nd, 2022 33m 55s

Christine LeGuizamo is a licensed social worker serving as the Program Director of Mental Health at New Harmony High School in New Orleans, Louisiana. New Harmony is a growing charter school with a mission to "Foster an interconnectedness of pe

Creating Caring School Environment for Students

Feb 15th, 2022 37m 31s

We’ve talked about the concept of the "trauma-informed school” several times during this series. But how can educators go about establishing the right caring environment to maximize student learning? As our guest, Godwin Higa, a consultant for

Helping Parents Become their Child's Calm Center

Feb 8th, 2022 35m 31s

One of the stakeholders in the larger community that is seeking to alleviate student trauma plays a huge role — perhaps the biggest role: parents. In this episode, we'll hear from Ruth Freeman, a licensed social worker, and the CEO and Founder

Teaching, Learning and Trauma

Feb 1st, 2022 39m 8s

The essential theme underlying this series is highlighted right in the podcast’s subtitle: a whole community approach. That means, to effectively identify and lessen the impact of student trauma requires mental health practitioners, faculty mem