I'm a Teacher, NOT a Therapist! Empowering Educators Serving Kids w/Trauma

Full-Day 10/24/24

Lunch Break: 11:30am CST

Time: 6:30a - 2:00p PST / 7:30a - 3:00p MST / 8:30a - 4:00p CST / 9:30a - 5:00p EST

Platform: Zoom (Email with registration link will be sent roughly 1 week prior to training date from email address: [email protected])

• Administrators
• Teachers
• Ed Assistants
• Mental Health Providers
• School Law Enforcement/Resource Officers
• Other Providers

This session provides a comprehensive & actionable response that is both grounded and compassionate.

• CLARITY regarding the difference between the roles , approaches, limitations & opportunities of educators and mental health staff in serving trauma-impacted students

• NEXT-LEVEL DIVE into what the neuroscience and other related fields show us about how to impact the nervous system, brain and body impacted by trauma for improved regulation, development & learning

• EXAMINATION of powerful ways in which thoughtfully designed educational practices can have a truly therapeutic impact on the brain and nervous system of a child with trauma impacts, resulting in behavioral growth and access to a brain that is capable of learning

• APPLICATION - how to plan actionable strategies & practices to incorporate into the educational day that will have ongoing impact for students without demanding more time and work from staff

“I’m a teacher, not a therapist!” These words rang out again as I sat in a team meeting of professionals gathered to determine what the next steps would be for JJ. I’d heard them so many times, I realized that I’d become numb to them, accustomed to moving on, trying to keep the team focused on positive steps to take for JJ.

This time was different, though. This time, as the discussion continued, I trailed off into silent conversation with myself… “What did she mean, exactly? -- ‘I’m a teacher, not a therapist!’ I need to look deeper, JUST LIKE I DO WITH THE TRAUMATIZED CHILD... What is this teacher really trying to say? What underlying private logic leads to this statement?”

It didn’t take deep reflection to arrive at a pretty good idea of what was being conveyed. Clearly, this wasn’t a black-and-white statement; it was her way of saying something much deeper. I recognized the real statements: “I haven’t been trained in mental health practices; how can I know how to respond to a mind and body that’s in constant distress?” and “I don’t have the skills I need to respond to this child’s needs.” and “This is not what I expected when I became a teacher; I’m afraid I won’t be able to do this well and I’ll look like a failure!”

She felt overwhelmed and underprepared. She found it inconceivable to consider the idea that she, the teacher, might hold potential to serve JJ’s cognitive AND emotional needs every single day in a manner that could be BOTH therapeutic AND appropriate as an educator.

I realized that, had someone presented this case to me as a teacher 20 years earlier, before studying what neuroscience and the mental health fields have revealed about trauma-informed practices, I, too, would have shied away from serving JJ. I, too, would have had no sense for the many ways in which I truly qualified to meet JJ’s needs. I would have been the one appearing to be insensitive, inflexible, and even uncaring.

But I was not that person, and neither was she. She was a sensitive, flexible, caring teacher who simply wasn’t aware of the immense power she possessed, given the right skill growth and shift of lens, to play a powerful role in helping JJ to heal from the trauma to which he’d been exposed to go on to become a positive and contributing member of his school community, and the larger community of society.

I realized this teacher needed, and DESERVED, a response to her statement that acknowledged the real concerns and fears that lay beneath her words. She needed, and deserved, to have someone explain why it was that she, as a teacher and not a therapist, possessed the ability and tools to play a uniquely powerful role in seeing JJ experience healing from the trauma that was causing life to feel like a constant threat.

This workshop-style training is intended for educators - administrators, classroom teachers, school counselors, educational assistants, behavior specialists, etc.

Participants will experience a combination of didactic instruction, visuals, and examples, followed by hands-on creation of a plan to take back to their particular setting to implement with students who struggle due to trauma impacts or other causes of chronic challenging behavior.

Rick Bowman’s qualifications include the following:

• M.A. in Clinical Psychology
• Certified Trauma & Resilience Practitioner – Clinical (CTRP-C®)
• Certified HeartMath® and “The Resilience Advantage” Trainer
• Certified "The Resilient Heart" HeartMath Trauma Practitioner
• Certified Trainer in Collaborative Problem Solving®MGH (Think:Kids, Massachusetts General Hospital)
• K-12 licensed school administrator in the state of Oregon

Rick’s background includes leadership positions in the U.S. Military, business, mental health and education. He’s functioned as a clinical consultant for mental health clinics and human service agencies, and has also provided speaking/consultation internationally in Russia, Cuba & Jamaica. He’s held positions of Clinical Psychologist, Community College Professor, Assistant Principal, Alternative Education Coordinator, Student Services Director, and Assistant Executive Director of a non-profit organization providing educational services to students with severe emotional/behavioral challenges.

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Doris Bowman’s qualifications include the following:

• M.S., Education / Special Education
• Advanced Certified Trauma & Resilience Practitioner – Education® (CTRP-E)
• Advanced Certified Trauma & Resilience Practitioner – Clinical (CTRP-C®)
• Certified HeartMath® and “The Resilience Advantage” Trainer
• Certified "The Resilient Heart" HeartMath Trauma Practitioner
• PCI Certified Parent Coach®
• Certified “Stress & Well-Being Assessment” Provider (HeartMath Institute)
• Certified special educator & administrator in the state of Oregon
• Certified Trainer in Collaborative Problem Solving®MGH (Think:Kids, Massachusetts General Hospital)

Doris has co-authored Going to Bed is Easy Now, and “Going to School is Easy Now”, the first two in a series of children’s books designed to support children with challenging behavior (www.easynowbooks.com). She has over 20 years’ experience working with and supporting children/youth with challenging behaviors and their families.

Bowman Consulting Group provides training, consultation, coaching & advisement on topics of:

• Trauma-Informed Practices, Systems and Structures for Schools & Mental Health Agencies
• Trauma-Informed FBAs & Behavior Plans
• Neuroscience of ACEs, Toxic Stress and Trauma
• Collaborative Problem Solving®(MGH) Introductory & Tier 1 Trainings
• Resilience Practices (Evidence-Based & Actionable) for Leaders, Staff & Students/Clients
• “The Resilience Advantage” Training for Organizations of all Types
• Actionable Trauma Stewardship for Leaders & Staff
• HeartMath Institute Practices & Strategies for Self-Care, Health & Wellness
• “Stress & Well-Being Assessment” Certified Provider for individuals and organizations

Event Venue

Online