Infusing a Trauma- and Assets-Informed Approach into your Daily Work with Students and Parents

Format

Workshop

First Presenter's Institution

New Phase Counseling & Consulting, LLC

First Presenter’s Email Address

newphasecounseling.consulting@gmail.com

First Presenter's Brief Biography

Amie Myrick, LCPC specializes in working with traumatized populations. She currently works as a Senior Program Analyst at the nonprofit organization National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), overseeing multiple national projects funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) aimed at reducing and preventing substance use, overdose, and the impact and occurrence of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and increasing capacities for local health departments and first responders. Amie is an ACE Master Presenter in the state of Maryland and a national HOPE facilitator and technical assistance provider. She worked at a non-profit, outpatient mental health center for 10 years, where she served as the Director of Education and Training. During her time there, she collaborated closely with the Harford County Child Advocacy Center as a therapist, supervisor, clinical coordinator, and member of the multidisciplinary team. Amie has presented at local, national, and international conferences for over 15 years on topics related to trauma and advocacy. In addition to her clinical and training work, Amie is a research and training consultant for groups interested in infusing trauma-informed approaches into their work, building parenting and therapist-based skills, and learning more about comprehensive treatment for populations affected by trauma. She is the co-author, author, and co-editor of theoretical and empirical peer-reviewed journal articles and several books on working with traumatized and populations in need.

Location

Session 1 (Verelst)

Strand #1

Home: Family & Community Engagement

Strand #2

Health: Mental & Physical Health

Relevance

Although students are regularly in front of school staff, parents are a big part of the puzzle too. Both students and parents benefit from a holistic approach in which professionals assume everyone is doing the best they can, each individual possesses unique strengths, and past experiences can influence present interactions. When professionals are intentional about enhancing connection and designing an environment that consider individuals' strengths, needs, and goals, the outcomes can be powerful for everyone involved.

Brief Program Description

Although many are familiar with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and impacts on development, fewer are familiar with research on positive childhood experiences (PCEs) or incorporate it into daily work with students and parents. Session attendees will review research surrounding childhood experiences, discuss ways in which a trauma- and assets-informed approach benefits students, parents, and professionals, and learn skills to incorporate this approach into their work.

Summary

School professionals are tasked with managing many challenges situations throughout the day. The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study led people to start talking about the connection between childhood adversity and a host of health and social outcomes throughout development. From the ACE study emerged the notion of trauma-informed care, which highlights the importance of realizing trauma can affect people and groups, recognizing the signs of trauma when they occur, responding to trauma appropriately, in a way that does not retraumatize the person. While there are many resources that speak to the importance of trauma-informed care, fewer resources give practical applications of trauma-informed principles to real-life situations. Additionally, experts have suggested that trauma-informed care is just the beginning, and that a strengths-, or assets-informed approach must also accompany sensitivity and responsiveness to trauma.

In this interactive session, attendees will first learn about the ACE study and the Positive Childhood Experiences (PCE) study and discuss its implications for the school setting. The remainder of the session will center around learning and practicing skills aimed at promoting emotional and physical safety for students and parents, increasing collaboration, facilitating situations in which both students and parents can feel empowered to participate in decision-making and action planning, recognizing and leveraging family strengths, and taking a holistic and equitable approach to managing challenging situations. Attendees will be encouraged to identify and plan for integration of at least one new skill into their daily work within 30 days of the session.

Evidence

https://positiveexperience.org/resource/transforming-practice-with-hope/

https://positiveexperience.org/resource/positive-childhood-experiences-and-adult-mental-and-relational-health-in-a-statewide-sample/

https://www.cdc.gov/cpr/infographics/6_principles_trauma_info.htm

https://www.nctsn.org/sites/default/files/resources/fact-sheet/trauma_informed_schools_for_children_in_k-12_a_systems_framework.pdf

https://traumaawareschools.org/

Learning Objective 1

Describe the significance of adverse and positive childhood experiences.

Learning Objective 2

Discuss the benefits of a trauma- and assets-informed approach when working with students, parents, and other professionals.

Learning Objective 3

Learn trauma- and assets-informed skills and practices to incorporate into your work in the next 30 days.

Keyword Descriptors

adverse childhood experiences, positive childhood experiences, parent engagement, parents as partners, strengths-based approach, trauma-informed, asset-informed

Presentation Year

2023

Start Date

3-6-2023 10:15 AM

End Date

3-6-2023 11:30 AM

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Mar 6th, 10:15 AM Mar 6th, 11:30 AM

Infusing a Trauma- and Assets-Informed Approach into your Daily Work with Students and Parents

Session 1 (Verelst)

Although many are familiar with adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and impacts on development, fewer are familiar with research on positive childhood experiences (PCEs) or incorporate it into daily work with students and parents. Session attendees will review research surrounding childhood experiences, discuss ways in which a trauma- and assets-informed approach benefits students, parents, and professionals, and learn skills to incorporate this approach into their work.