Building a Practice to Support Educator Wellness and Trauma-Informed Classrooms and Campuses Training

How to access the program/practice?

To find trainers and training opportunities, contact your education service center (ESC) region or local education agency.  

What is the program/practice? 

This two-part training is a whole school approach to creating trauma sensitive schools by focusing on research and strategies to support practices for educator wellness and trauma-informed classrooms and campuses. This training is specifically designed to educate about trauma-informed care. 

Who is the program/practice for? 

This training is intended for all educators including professional educators in the classroom and those who directly support classroom teachers including both school level and district level administrators.  

How is this program/practice implemented? 

The South-Southwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC) trained state and regional educators to become facilitators of the “Building a Practice to Support Educator Wellness and Trauma-Informed Classrooms and Campuses” Training curriculum and provides ongoing coaching to these leaders. To find trainers and training opportunities, contact your education service center (ESC) region or local education agency.  

Continued opportunities for this training will be offered as demand allows. For more information, contact: southsouthwest@mhttcnetwork.org 

What is the practice that is supported? 

According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) a trauma-informed approach is the ability for all parties to recognize and respond to the impacts of trauma on children, staff, caregivers, and service providers. Given the impacts and prevalence of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) including experiencing violence; schools play an important role in providing systems of support for children who have experienced trauma. The purpose of a trauma-informed approach is to create a school-wide environment that addresses the needs of students, staff, administrators, and families who may be at-risk of experiencing symptoms related to trauma.   

What outcomes does the program/practice produce? 

• Improve student behavior and attendance 
• Improve student attitudes towards teaching, learning, and school climate 
• Increase school staff knowledge about addressing wellness and trauma and 
• Decrease trauma related symptoms in students 

What is the evidence? 

Tabone, J. K., Rishel, C. W., Hartnett, H. P., & Szafran, K. F. (2020). Examining the effectiveness of early intervention to create trauma-informed school environments. Children and Youth Services Review, 113, 104998. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2020.104998 

In this study, evaluators analyzed the effectiveness of a trauma-informed early intervention program aimed at reducing the symptoms of trauma among elementary aged students. Classrooms receiving the intervention program and classrooms in the control group (94 total classes) were compared using a baseline observation before implementation and a follow-up observation at the end of the school year. The results of the study showed that classes receiving the trauma-informed intervention had a significant increase in emotional support by the end of the school year while the control groups had no increase in the same domain. Classes receiving the intervention also saw improvement in instructional support and classroom organization while the control groups saw a decline or no change in both of those domains.  

McIntyre, E. M., Baker, C. N., & Overstreet, S. (2019). Evaluating foundational professional development training for trauma-informed approaches in schools. Psychological Services, 16, 95–102. https://doi.org/10.1037/ser0000312 

This study examined the extent of knowledge growth of teachers after attending a 2-day foundational professional development training on trauma-informed approaches within their school settings. Using a pre and posttest design, the results showed that teacher’s knowledge of trauma-informed approaches increased significantly after the training. The results showed that 70% of the 183 teachers in the study had mastered the content after the training compared to 20% before the training. The results also showed that knowledge growth in training was also positively associated with a teacher’s acceptability of trauma-informed approaches and their perception of systems fit. 

Dorado, J., Martinez, M., McArthur, L., & Leibovitz, T. (2016). Healthy Environments and Response to Trauma in Schools (HEARTS): A Whole-School, Multi-level, Prevention and Intervention Program for Creating Trauma-Informed, Safe and Supportive Schools. School Mental Health, 8. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12310-016-9177-0 

Researchers evaluated the effectiveness of a tiered trauma-informed program at elementary and middle school campuses. The evaluation examined the change in knowledge for teachers and staff, student engagement, and the impact of intensive treatments for students referred. The results showed that after educator training and the trauma-informed program being on campus for at least one school year, educators’ knowledge in five domains increased, including how to help traumatized children learn in school. Student engagement also improved which was shown by an increase in the percentage of time students were on task and a decrease in student misbehavior. That results also showed that students receiving intensive interventions had significant improvements in their ability to adjust to trauma.  

What are the costs associated with implementing this program/practice? 

Please contact your ESC region or LEA for the most up to date cost commitments for this training.  

What resources are helpful for understanding this program/practice? 

• South Southwest MHTTC Website: https://mhttcnetwork.org/centers/content/south-southwest-mhttc 

Any training or interventions from this list should be used in accordance with established staff development standards and adopted professional development policies of the Local Education Agency (LEA) per §21.451 and §21.4515 of the Texas Education Code (TEC), as well as the LEA’s grief and trauma-informed care policy and procedures in accordance with §38.036 and §38.351. While this training satisfies the statutory training requirements of §38.036, it is best practice for staff to receive ongoing training which may include job embedded professional development, coaching and annual training opportunities.  

Rating: Research-Informed 

Secondary Components: Early Mental Health Prevention and Intervention; Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports