Using Trauma-Sensitive Strategies to Support
Family Engagement and Effective
Collaboration
December 3, 2015
2:30 pm – 3:45 pm ET (11:30-12:45 PT)
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Using Trauma-Sensitive Strategies to
Support Family Engagement and
Effective Collaboration
The National Center on
Dispute Resolution in Special Education
December 3, 2015
3 R’s of Trauma-Informed Care
Realizing
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• the prevalence of trauma
Recognizing
• how trauma affects all individuals
involved with programs, organizations
and systems, including the workforce
Responding
• by putting knowledge into practice
SAMHSA, 2013
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Understanding Trauma
What is trauma?
Trauma is a response to a perceived threat
to survival or emotional well- being of an
individual or large group, such as a
community or a culture.
Trauma leads to adverse brain, bodily and
psychological changes that damage self,
relational and spiritual development and
impair living, learning and working.
Definition from Monroe County ACCESS Research to Practice
Subcommittee, 2011
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A
traumatic
stress response
occurs when our
ability to
respond to the
threat is
overwhelmed
Complex Trauma & Toxic Stress
Complex
Trauma
Toxic
Stress
Trauma
•Physical or sexual abuse
•Severe neglect
•Abandonment
•Emotional/psychologic
al abuse
•Domestic violence
• Poverty
• Racism
• Discrimination
• Disparities
• Community Violence
• Accidents
• Natural/Manmade
Disaster
• Serious illness
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Impact on world view

I am not safe

I cannot trust others

I cannot trust myself

I cannot depend upon others

I am not worthy of care

I deserve the bad things that happen to
me

It’s my fault
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Adverse Childhood Experiences
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What is an ACE?
Services,
support & resilience
can change this life course
• Recurrent physical
abuse
• Emotional abuse
• Sexual abuse
• Alcohol/drug abuser
in household
• Incarcerated household member
• Household member
with chronic
mental illness
• Violence between
adults in the home
• Parental separation
or divorce
ACES and Health & Social Problems

COPD

Ischemic heart disease

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
Risk for intimate partner
violence
Any cancer

Multiple sexual partners

Stroke

Smoking

Diabetes

Unintended pregnancies

STDs

Early initiation of smoking

Depression


Suicide attempt
Early initiation of sexual
activity
Adolescent pregnancy

Alcohol abuse


Illicit drug use

Injected drugs
ACES and School Performance
Students dealing with trauma:

Are 2 ½ times more likely to fail a grade

Score lower on standardized assessments

Have more receptive & expressive
language difficulties

Are suspended or expelled more often

Found eligible for special education more
frequently
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The Impact of Trauma on
Survivors
FIGHT
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F
L
I
G
H
T
Impact of Trauma
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Thinking
Brain
Emotional
Brain
Instinctive
Brain
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Individual reacts as though
a “there and then” experience
is happening “here and now”
Common Post-traumatic Triggers

Therapy & therapists

Being asked questions

Self-disclosure

Being put on the spot

Being center of
attention

Recall of traumatic
event

Anniversaries

Not allowed to speak

Being ignored

Emotions, vulnerability

Unfamiliar stimuli

Performance demands

Having to say “Yes”

Night time, sleep

Loud noises

Authority figures

Being told “No”

Males/females

Confrontation

Criticism, feedback

Intimacy

Home/family

Commitment

Eye Contact
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Survival Response



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Fight

Individual struggles to regain or hold on to power,
especially when feeling coerced

Mislabeled as: Non-compliant or combative
Flight

Individual disengages, “no shows”, or “check outs”
emotionally

Mislabeled as: Uncooperative or resistant
Freeze

Individual gives in to those in positions of power, does not
or is unable to speak up

Mislabeled as: Passive or unmotivated
Our interpretation guides our intervention
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Current problematic behaviors and
symptoms may have originated as
legitimate and even courageous
attempts to cope with or defend
against trauma.
SEEKING TO COPE
Trauma & Parenting
A personal history of
trauma can:

Compromise parents’ ability to
make appropriate decisions
about their own and their
children’s safety

Interferes with their ability to
form and maintain secure and
trusting relationships (with their
children, partners, and service
providers)
Source: NCTSN, Child Welfare Training Toolkit, 2010
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Trauma & Parenting cont’d
A personal history of
trauma can:

Impair parents’ ability
to regulate emotions

Lead to maladaptive
coping strategies
including substance
abuse

Cause parents to be
triggered by children’s
traumas and system
interventions
Source: NCTSN, Child Welfare Training Toolkit, 2010
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Family Experience
Service
system not
designed for
families
Parents must
serve as
advocate,
case manager
and navigator
Additional
burdens which
are
unrecognized
and/or
unappreciated
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Families of color,
non-English
speaking and
those with
limited
education or low
income face
added burdens
Key Trauma Informed Concepts
SAMHSA, 2015
Underlying
Question
What
happened to
you?
Symptoms
Adaptations
to traumatic
events
Healing
Happens
In relationship
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Creating a Trauma
Sensitive School
“SCHOOLS CAN NO LONGER LIMIT
INTERVENTIONS TO INDIVIDUAL CHILDREN
WITH KNOWN TRAUMA HISTORIES BUT MUST
CREATE INSTRUCTIONAL FRAMEWORKS THAT
INTEGRATE A TRAUMA SENSITIVE APPROACH
INTO ALL ASPECTS OF THE SCHOOL DAY”
Susan Craig, Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt
Trauma Informed
Approach
District
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• Policies &
Procedures
• Code of Conduct
School
• Universal Strategies
• School Climate
Individual
• 1:1 Interactions
• Supports/Interventions
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Shared
understanding
Anticipate &
adapt to everchanging needs
Embraces
teamwork &
shared
responsibility
Trauma
Sensitive
School
Explicitly
connects
students to
the school
community
Supports all
students to
feel safe
Address
students’
needs
holistically
Source: Helping Traumatized Children Learn 2, 2013
How to become Trauma Informed

Acknowledges the prevalence of
traumatic events and toxic stress in
students’ lives

Creates a flexible framework that
provides universal supports and is
sensitive to the unique needs of
students

Mindful of avoiding re-traumatization
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NOTE: Trauma Informed Care is NOT a
program – It is an ongoing process that is
unique to the strengths and needs of
each school/district and community
Core Values of TraumaInformed Care
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
Safety: Ensuring physical and emotional safety

Trustworthiness: Maximizing trustworthiness,
making tasks clear, and maintaining
appropriate boundaries

Choice: Prioritizing developmentally
appropriate choice and control for the student
& family

Collaboration: Maximizing collaboration and
sharing of power with the student & family

Power restoration: Prioritizing student & family
empowerment and skill-building
Source: Community Connections
Create Safety & Trust




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Be warm, respectful, and non-threatening
Listen openly and do not judge
Clarify the process

Carefully introduce self, process, and possible options

Do not assume that parent/caregiver has been given
accurate information

Do not assume parent/caregiver knows what is
expected of him/her and what he/she should expect

You may need to repeat information several times
Gather information in a private area
Create Safety & Trust cont’d


Role model and facilitate calm
interactions

Empathize with parents/caregivers and ask how
you can help

Remain calm, quiet and present when
interacting with parents who become agitated

Offer concrete suggestions to calm (“Would you
like to take a short break?,” encourage them to
take a walk)

Let them know you available when they are
ready
Follow through on commitments
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Build Collaboration, Foster Choice,
& Restore Power
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Balance the need to obtain information (i.e.,
filling out the paperwork) with families identified
needs
 Parents/caregivers often need help negotiating
other “systems”




Responding to individual’s concerns provides an
opportunity to demonstrate commitment and potential
capacity for help
Identify & problem-solve barriers
Maximize choice and control (i.e., time to meet,
location)
Trauma Sensitive IEP Process


Comprehensive history

Clues to gaps in child’s development of
skills

Information about trauma triggers
Evaluation


Team meeting


Understanding interface between trauma
and student’s cognitive and learning
profile
Trauma lens for understanding child and
family
Holistic IEP planning
Federation for Children with Special Needs
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Self-reflection - Individual
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
What are your beliefs about disability and special
education services? What effect does this have on
your contribution to IEP development?

What role should the parent(s) play on the team?
Observer? Provider of information? Decision
maker?

Who should be responsible for making decisions?
Parent(s)? Specific team member(s)? Team as a
whole (including parents)?

What value do you place on the collaborative
process?
Dabkowski, 2004
Self-reflection - Team
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
Has the team reached consensus on each of the
preceding issues? (Individual level questions)

How does the team respond to diversity of opinion
on these issues? Are conflicts resolved?

In general, how might lack of consensus on any of
these issues affect parent participation in your IEP
meeting?

Do the attitudes and beliefs held jointly by the
professional team members enhance opportunities
for parent participation or diminish them?
Dabkowski, 2004
Let’s hear from you…
Please respond in the chat box:

How can the information presented
on ACEs, toxic stress and trauma
informed practices be useful to you in
your work?
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Final Thoughts
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
Understand that parents’ anger, fear, or
avoidance may be a reaction to their own
past traumatic experiences and not a
personal “attack”.

Remember that traumatized parents are not
“bad” and that approaching them in a
punitive way, blaming them, or judging them
likely will worsen the situation rather than
motivate a parent.
Final Thoughts cont’d
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
Build on common ground - parents’ desires to
be effective in keeping their children safe
and continuing their education while
minimizing disruption.

Be patient with yourself and the families with
whom you work
References
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The Heart of Learning and Teaching: Compassion,
Resiliency, and Academic Success
www.k12.wa.us/CompassionateSchool/Resources.aspx
Helping Traumatized Children Learn
http://traumasensitiveschools.org/
Reaching and Teaching Children Who Hurt by Susan Craig
The National Child Traumatic Stress Network
www.NCTSN.org
ACES too high
http://acestoohigh.com/
Contact Information
Elizabeth Meeker, PsyD
Director, Training & Practice Transformation
Coordinated Care Service, Inc.
1099 Jay Street, Building J
Rochester, NY 14611
(585) 613-7645
[email protected]
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Upcoming Webinar:
Moving Beyond Disputes: Mobilizing and Orchestrating a “Village”
When Extensive Change is Required
Dr. Ann Turnbull
Keep on eye on the CADRE website for more details!
www.directionservice.org/cadre/turnbullwebinar2.cfm
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