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Self-Care for Teachers
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Supporting Resilience Skills in Children
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Systemic Trauma: How Helping Systems Sometimes Hurt
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Systemic Trauma: How Helping Systems Sometimes Hurt
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Systemic Trauma: How Helping Systems Sometimes Hurt
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Education's Mr. Fix-it [The Christian Science Monitor]
Mike Lamb, Washington, DC Executive Director of Turnaround for Children , alerted me to this interesting Cover Story in The Christian Science Monitor about how Scott Gordon, chief executive officer of Mastery Charter Schools comprised of 21 charter schools in Philadelphia, has shifted his “no excuses” approach to a “trauma-informed” approach to discipline. The article by Sarah Garland reports: Classrooms and hallways are still orderly, but suspension is now a last resort. Mastery instead...
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Explaining behavior: Professionals seek to address students' trauma [thenotebook.org]
The biological mother of "Jailyn" had turned her over to her cousins when she was several months old and they became her custodial parents. That is, until the custodial father fatally shot the mother while the girl was in the house. Now living in foster care, she has angry outbursts in the classroom that include screaming at her teacher and kicking objects. When she hears a loud noise, she thinks it’s a gun. Her 6th-grade teacher says she is slow to complete schoolwork, appears disorganized,...
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Floating: The Power of Sharing Your ACEs
I met the most amazing woman this morning at the food co-op. She was sitting by herself, enjoying her breakfast, so I sat with her and asked her if she had any plans for the summer. “I don’t really know…I’m floating right...
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FREE SCREENING: "CRACKED UP" film in Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia
If you will be in Philadelphia, October 11, 2019, Don't miss it!
Tickets are going quickly. Reserve your free seat (at the EventBrite link below) now!
The film "Cracked Up" features Darrell Hammond's childhood struggles with trauma and their lifelong impacts. From IMDb, It's the "incredible story of actor, comedian, master impressionist and Saturday Night Live veteran, Darrell Hammond."
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From Awareness to Action, with Voices of Lived Experience: Wisconsin’s Collective Impact Initiative
Perhaps it wasn’t the optimum time to update the network’s vision and values statements: a virtual meeting held in the midst of a global pandemic. But a record number of people—51, compared to the typical 30—tuned in for the May 1 Wisconsin Office of Children’s Mental Health (OCMH) Collective Impact Council, and they gave the new values statement, which highlights inclusivity and collaboration, an enthusiastic thumbs-up. At the virtual table were members from key state departments—Children...
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Generational Poverty: Trying to Solve Philly’s Most Enduring Problem [Philly Mag]
Mattie McQueen was about five years old when her mother offered a surprise: “Let’s all go for ice cream.” McQueen and three of her siblings scrambled out to Mom’s old blue station wagon. They talked, on the way, about what flavor of ice cream they’d get, till Mattie noticed they weren’t traveling the usual route to Dairy Queen. “Don’t worry,” her mom replied. “We’re going for ice cream.” Minutes later, she parked and led them into an office waiting room. “I’ll be right back,” she said. She...
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Gov. Wolf: Office of Advocacy and Reform Announces Plan to Build a Trauma-Informed Pennsylvania [phila.gov]
The Office of Advocacy and Reform (OAR), established by Governor Tom Wolf’s 2019 executive order to protect Pennsylvania’s vulnerable populations, today announced the launch of a volunteer think tank comprised of 25 experts representing a diversity of fields and backgrounds who will develop a plan to make Pennsylvania a trauma-informed state. “The people of Pennsylvania are compassionate, thoughtful and resilient. We take care of each other, and that drive to protect our families and our...
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Healing 10: Catalyzing a Movement in Camden, NJ
James Williams, New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, addresses the Take Back Our Health Conference in November 2018. Photo courtesy of Kate Daugherty. In 2017, two youth-focused Camden, NJ, organizations were angling for the same pot of grant money—funding for a youth-led initiative to learn about community health concerns and develop projects to address them. But instead of scrabbling for the grant as rivals, Hopeworks and UrbanPromise became one another’s cheerleaders. In phone...
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Healing Hurt People - Philadelphia ER's & Behavioral Health Connect to Help [cleveland.com]
The " Healing Hurt People program, or HHP, an ER-based violence intervention program. HHP works on the public health-based notion that violence, like other diseases that spread, can be prevented. It targets services to those at highest risk, patients...who are being treated for violent injuries in the city's emergency rooms" Supported financially by Dr. Arthur Evans , commissioner of the city's Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, this model brings trauma...
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Helping Kids Succeed: The Power of Grit
Dr. Harold Kolepwicsz, President, Child Mind Institute presented on "GRIT" at the 2015 National Council on Behavioral Health conference today. Dr. Kolepwicz discussed "GRIT" the new hot topic in developmental psychology. He described what...
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Holocaust survivor families yield new insight into trauma across generations [philly.com]
Thank you to ACEs Connection members Bea Hollander-Goldfein and Nancy Isserman for this story. In the 1980s, most of the research Bea Hollander-Goldfein was reading about how Holocaust survivors were faring psychologically focused entirely on the damage the Nazis had done. That didn’t ring completely true to Hollander-Goldfein, a psychologist whose parents were both survivors. She saw problems, but also successes. In 1988, she gathered a team of 16 — six were children of survivors — to study...
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How Do ACEs Impact Health Outcomes?
The original ACE Study from Kaiser Permanente began when two Medical Doctors were researching dietary habits and obesity concerns in southern California. As we now know, there was a direct correlation between a person's ACE score and the likelihood of...
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How Pittsburgh PA is mobilizing to create trauma informed communities [post-gazette.com]
The 2900 block of Webster Avenue in the Hill District doesn’t look like it’s suffering. Most of the properties are in decent shape, and day in and day out, it’s fairly quiet. Rhonda Lockett, a lifelong resident except for a stint in Washington, D.C., said most of her neighbors go to church and many are educated and employed. Yet 75 percent of the block — 36 households — have agreed to open their doors and their lives to community organizers, medical and behavioral health professionals and to...
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"How Stress Is Making You Lose Your Mind" and a Key way to Combat it!
With recent brain science research, specifically focused on trauma and toxic stress, we now know how much stress can impact the functioning of our brain. While there are multiple levels of stress, some actually being good for us, the ways...
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Hughes leads meeting on trauma in schools [PhillyTrib.com]
By Stacy M. Brown | September 7, 2018 State Sen. Vincent Hughes issued a passionate plea to experts at Temple University to help serve and protect victims of trauma in grade schools in Philadelphia and across the commonwealth. “Too many kids are walking into too many toxic schools, too many toxic situations — from domestic abuse to gun violence — to get an education in [an atmosphere] that’s toxic for educators to work in,” said Hughes (D-7) during a recent hearing at the university with...
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I Faked Happiness Every Day. Then a Drug Addiction Story Saved Me.
From the viewpoint of anyone else on this planet, I had the world. I was a Villanova cheerleader, had a master’s degree, countless friends and family, vacation home on the Vineyard, Kappa Kappa Gamma… the list goes on. While it may seem to many people that the most difficult question I would face every day would be what I was going to wear, for me the real question was, How in the world am I going to get out of bed today and pretend to be happy? My mother is a nurse practitioner and my...
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Large proportion of Shelby County, TN, adults endured ‘adverse' experiences as children, survey finds [CommercialAppeal.com]
Another city (Memphis) does its own ACE survey. (You have to subscribe to the Commercial Appeal to read the entire story.) For the survey results, go to the ACEs Task Force of Shelby County site . The key findings are: 52 percent of...
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Leading Organizations Partner on a Campaign to Heal Childhood Trauma [prweb.com]
“Calo Programs partners with three non-profits, on a five-city, childhood trauma awareness bus tour, ending on Capitol Hill in Washington DC. Calo Programs , innovators in healing the effects of early life trauma in young people, is partnering with three of the nation's leading authorities on attachment, trauma and adoption: the American Adoption Congress (AAC), the Attachment & Trauma Network (ATN) and the Association for Training on Trauma and Attachment in Children (ATTACh). Together...
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Leaning into Conversations about Race and Trauma
As far back as I can remember the concept of race has played a significant role in my life. My mother has told me that one night while I was reading an American Girl Doll book about “Addy,” an African-American girl who was a slave on...
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Letters: Relieve stress for Philly teachers, too [philly.com]
Kerri McGinley, PhD a former teacher and principal with the SDP, thoughtfully responds to my letter to the editor regarding the end of kindergarten suspensions with her own letter (below). Dr. McGinley urges all to consider teacher stress too. Thank you Dr. McGinley for raising this important point, reminding us that addressing employee stress and secondary traumatic stress is an imperative if we are to develop the trauma informed education and other systems we strive for. Ease teachers'...
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Local Researchers' study shows: Trauma support for welfare recipients helps them earn more [medicalxpress.com]
People on welfare can earn more money in their jobs—and potentially leave the program—if the trauma they've faced since childhood is addressed, Drexel University research shows... "Financial education without the trauma-informed peer support had virtually no impact on improving income and in promoting health," said Mariana Chilton, PhD, director of the Center for Hunger-Free Communities and professor in the Dornsife School of Public Health. "Once the trauma-informed peer support was mixed...
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MARC Booklet 2016: Features Philadelphia
Please find attached the 2016 booklet for the Mobilizing Action for Resilient Communities (MARC) project, including Philadelphia and the other 13 communities that have been selected to participate in this 2 year learning collaborative. This is a great summary of the work happening in all 14 communities across the country. I look forward to working with you all as we share and build upon the great work happening in Philadelphia!
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Mayoral Primary One Week From Today
What do the democratic candidates for mayor in Philadelphia think about Trauma-Informed Care, Mental Health/Substance Use Reform, Transformation of the Child Welfare System? Watch the footage from the 2015 Health and Human Services...
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Mental Health Happy Hour
This is a good story about mental health. Let’s say a bunch of social workers, nurses, trauma specialists, philanthropists, non-profit professionals, writers, EMTs, and data crunchers walk into a bar. Knock knock, no joke, this actually happened in December 2019. Mental health professionals begin to schmooze over spinach mushroom rolls, cheese and hummus platters, and ginger brew. Sounds good right. There’s so many reasons to luv Philly. The event was sponsored by the Scattergood Foundation...
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Moore student uses her fashion designs to cope with PTSD and the effects of abuse [philly.com]
The first piece in Lilah James’ Moore College of Art senior fashion collection is called “Shame and Guilt.” About 50 yards of black tulle, including a cathedral-style veil, obscure the body. Faint metallic writing, excerpts from the designer’s journal, cover the fabric layers: Shame …. I really tried to be happy… James’ seventh and final look, “Flashbacks,” is a form-fitting black dress, low cut with a slit to the thigh, adorned with a flowing black cape. The covering is accented with fabric...
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New Initiative Expands Holistic Approach to Trauma at Drexel’s 11th Street Health Center [DrexelNow]
Physical and behavioral health problems associated with trauma can linger long after someone experiences abuse, neglect, discrimination or violence, a growing body of evidence shows. With that knowledge in mind, a movement called “trauma-informed” care is making headway at schools, hospitals, social service organizations and health clinics across the country, including the Stephen and Sandra Sheller 11th Street Family Health Services Center of Drexel University.
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New Philadelphia mural brings childhood trauma into view [WHYY.org]
Children's Crisis Treatment Center, a leader in the Philadelphia ACE Task Force and trauma-informed movement, unveiled a powerful new mural which highlights their approach to providing trauma-informed therapeutic services for children and families. A fanciful and colorful vision now adorns a Philadelphia office building, but its message is intended to bring more awareness to the serious issue of childhood trauma. Mural Arts Philadelphia and the city’s behavioral health department Tuesday...
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New strategy may place more social workers in schools by September [thenotebook.org]
More than 20 additional social workers could be assigned to District schools this fall under proposals being discussed by District officials, Community Behavioral Health, the Department of Human Services, and Mayor Kenney's administration. The discussions have been strongly encouraged by several City Council members and by the newest School Reform Commission member, Estelle Richman. Under the program, the social workers would become part of school staff, helping educators recognize the...
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North Philly to Oxford [philly.com]
On a sunny afternoon in early September, so hot the public schools dismissed early, Hazim Hardeman strolled into the neighborhood where he grew up, wearing a white T-shirt emblazoned with “North Philly” in large red letters across the front. It was here, in the Raymond Rosen housing development, that Hazim fell in love with sports, music, clothing. Here, where he spent hours each day on the basketball court, indulging boyish dreams of stardom, and nights at his best friend’s house nearby.
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On the Path to Health Equity: When Foundations and Corporations Support Trauma-Informed, Cross-Sector Networks
Ann Marie Healy used to travel around Pennsylvania talking to community members about “smart” land use planning. Through her work with 10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, a non-profit devoted to revitalizing cities and towns, “we would meet with people to share what we had learned about how to approach planning in a more strategic manner.” In one small town, residents questioned the relevance of the pitch. “Isn’t what we’ve learned locally just as important as what experts have found works...
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On The Table Community Conversations Coming to Philadelphia - May 23, 2017
On the Table Philly is a forum designed to engage area residents in an open dialogue, foster new relationships and inspire solutions to strengthen communities. On May 23, 2017, Philadelphia area residents will gather in small groups across the region to share a meal and discuss the opportunities and issues we face in our region. These conversations can inspire new ways we can work together to make our communities stronger and more dynamic. The Philadelphia Foundation and the John S. and...
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Ordinary Magic-Resiliency Research - The Power of Connection
Resilience and Positive Psychology The message from three decades of research on resilience underscores central themes of the positive psychology movement (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000; Snyder & Lopez, in press). Psychology has neglected important phenomena in human adaptation and development during periods of focus on risk, problems, pathology, and treatment. Attention to human capabilities and adaptive systems that promote healthy development and functioning have the potential...
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Organizations develop a Funders Guide to Trauma-Informed Practice
Responding to the overwhelming demand of funders in the Delaware Valley to better understand the impacts of trauma on our region and how they can apply trauma informed practices to their own work, Philanthropy Network Greater Philadelphia, the Thomas Scattergood Behavioral Health Foundation, and United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey partnered to produce this hands-on resource that will help funders : Understand the science behind trauma, adverse childhood experiences,...