Consortium on Trauma, Illness and Grief in Schools

School is a primary resource for students, offering continuity, safety, information and support for their growth and success. Many young people turn to trusted teachers and other school professionals for support and help in understanding challenging events in their lives.

School personnel are often a frontline resource for students experiencing trauma, illness, death and loss - both at the time of immediate crisis and in subsequent years. By being knowledgeable and informed, school professionals are prepared to respond and intervene effectively during these times of crisis and to support resiliency.

At times, a crisis will occur that will impact large numbers of students, or even a whole district. It is at these times the back-up support network through TIG can be initiated, allowing TIG-Trained staff from other districts to provide support to impacted students, colleagues and communities. Common training in the TIG Core Curriculum is the first stage in the development of this infrastructure.

This training aims to support district teams through increasing their knowledge capacity around the essential elements of a trauma-informed system and how understanding these critical areas can be applied to their daily practice and organizational culture.

TIG 5 Day Core Curriculum Training

December 9
Grief and Loss; Trauma (Amy Scheel Jones)

Many children will experience the death of a loved one during their formative years. Grief manifests itself in various ways and everyone expresses grief differently. Grief can affect children’s emotions, attitudes, social interactions, sleep, appetite and overall health all of which can impact their ability for attention and retention.  Sometimes, entire schools can experience grief as a result of the death of a student or faculty member.

Learning Objectives

• Develop an understanding of how grief and loss impact children’s learning and behavior
• Demonstrate knowledge regarding the identification of grief reactions (typical and atypical)
• Generate additional ideas to support student-centered response plans
• Develop an understanding on how best to address memorials and commemorations
• Develop an understanding of the impact of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma and how to build a plan to address needs

The research around trauma and adversity has exploded in recent years.  We know recognize that it is likely students in school have been exposed to some sort of trauma in their lifetime. This trauma can be detrimental to the students’ academic achievement, social/emotional development and postsecondary readiness. Learn how you can best support individual students living with and experiencing trauma and adversity. Learn how you can be an instrumental leader regardless of your role in school, in creating and/or maintaining a safe, supportive, trauma-sensitive school.

Learning Objectives*

• Develop an understanding of how trauma and adversity impact student’s bodies, learning and behavior
• Demonstrate knowledge of the principles trauma-informed schools
• Generate additional ideas to support student-centered response plans using the ARC Model
• Develop an understanding of the impact of compassion fatigue and vicarious trauma and how to build a plan to address needs

January 7
Suicide Prevention and Intervention; Chronic and Acute Illness (Jones)

Children and teens spend significant time in school. Teachers and others who interact with students daily are in a prime position to recognize the signs of suicide risk, and to make appropriate referrals. School personnel need effective training to help them build the skills and confidence to identify and assist vulnerable youth in seeking help.

Learning Objectives:

• Demonstrate knowledge of common risk factors and warning signs for suicide in children and adolescents
• Develop framework for assessment and intervention
• Identify attributes of an ongoing student-centered response plan
• Develop an initial understanding of suicide-safe messaging

Beginning school, transitioning to primary or secondary school, or coping with interrupted schooling can be challenging for any child and their family. This can be made more difficult when your child has a health condition. To achieve the best possible educational outcomes, a child with a chronic health condition needs on-going and coordinated support from their family, school and medical providers.

Learning Objectives:

• Demonstrate knowledge of stresses that an individual, family, and or school staff may experience related to serious illness
• Develop an understanding of factors that support positive adaptation to serious illness
• Generate additional ideas to support student-centered response plans related to illness or injury

April 1
School Violence and Threat Assessment; Infrastructure Development and the Back-Up Support Network (Jones)

No one factor in isolation causes school violence, therefore stopping school violence involves using multiple prevention strategies that address the many individual, relationship, community, and societal factors that influence the likelihood of violence. Prevention efforts should ultimately reduce risk factors and promote protective factors at these multiple levels of influence.

Learning Objectives

• Demonstrate knowledge regarding the essential elements of safe school
• Correctly identify categories of threat
• Develop an understanding of the components of effective threat assessment
• Generate additional ideas to support student-centered response plans
• Develop an understanding on steps schools can implement to initiate threat assessment practices

The goal of TIG is to prepare school districts to have appropriate mental health support in place when they must respond to events involving trauma, violence, illness and death. Through the TIG Consortium, member districts may receive support from trained responders through the network during times of a district- or school-wide crisis. Details of this Back-Up Response Network and crisis planning are explored.

Learning Objectives

• To understand the rationale of TIG Back-Up Support
• To understand the structure and process of the Back-Up Support system
• To identify roles & responsibilities
• Develop initial TIG Implementation plan

May 28 & May 29
Group Crisis Response Skills (Critical Incident Stress Management, based on SAMSA) (Barb Ertl)

Psychological trauma and acute psychological crises are virtually epidemic. Large-scale crises can include: accidents, disasters, terrorism, political unrest, economic fluctuations, school violence, workplace violence, or traumatic loss such as suicide. Traumatic response can follow experiencing these or other events that impact school communities. Group Crisis Response skills are integral in mitigating negative effects and monitoring individuals over time. Designated by SAMHSA as the only evidence-based crisis response model, Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) is a comprehensive, practical, integrated, systematic and multicomponent approach to responding to traumatic events. Certification in delivery of three Group Crisis Response skills is received.

Learning Objectives

• To understand key aspects of responding to trauma vs. grief
• To understand when a Crisis Management Briefing is used and how to conduct
• To understand when a CISM Defusing is used and how to conduct
• To understand when a CISM Debriefing is used and how to conduct
• To employ a model of strategic planning for cris response

 

Suggested Team Members: (Consistent team members need to attend all 5 training days)

Administrators, School Resource Officers, Counselors, Psychologists, Nurses, Pupil Services Directors, Teachers, Special Ed Staff

Each participant will receive a TIG binder and training materials, access to additional digital resources, a TIG identification lanyard, and a fully stocked TIG To Go Bag.

Register Now!

  Presenter 
  Amy Scheel Jones, MS Ed.
  Senior Consultant, Practice Transformation
  Coordinated Care Services, Inc. (CCSI)

Before her time at CCSI, Amy worked as a School Counselor for over 10 years where here interest in prevention, resiliency, and fostering well-being was born.  Her current work includes sustainable system transformation grounded in trauma-responsive principles.  Specifically, Amy oversees the Consortium on Trauma, Illness, and Grief in Schools (TIG), a regional collaboration of comprehensive training and an integrated crisis response network serving participating districts for over 18 years.  The value of community education informs every aspect of her work.  Amy specializes in training and consultation on the impact of childhood adversities (ACEs), successfully applying trauma-responsive practices, resilience development, the behavioral health system transformation, suicide (prevention, intervention, and postvention), and strategic planning for crisis response. She received her BS in Human Development and Family Studies at Cornell University followed by her MS in Education in Counseling from SUNY Brockport.

 

  Presenter 
  Barbara J. Ertl, MS, LPC, NCC
  International Critical Incident Stress Foundation, Inc.

Barbara J. Ertl, MS, LPC, NCC has over 30 years of experience as a school social worker. In that capacity, she served as the director of a crisis team that responded to a multi-district area. She provided leadership to the General McLane School District (Edinboro, PA) following the highly publicized school shooting there. Barb has consulted with school district personnel throughout the United States and Canada on the development of crisis plans and intervention/recovery strategies. Barb is a Certified Trauma Specialist and a Fellow of the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. She is the senior partner in a private consulting firm that specializes in crisis preparation, response and recovery for school and other community settings (healthcare, industrial, institutional and governmental). Additionally, Barb has been an ICISF instructor since 1994 and on the faculty since 1999 when she co-authored the school curriculum. Barb has 24 years of public safety experience encompassing fire, EMS and law enforcement. Barb is a very proud Marine Corps veteran.

 

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