Across the country, schools and districts are grappling with an epidemic of stress, trauma and adversity that affects our classrooms and school communities. Each year, more than 10 million children in the U.S. endure abuse, violence, natural disasters and other adverse childhood events. Roughly two-thirds of school-aged children will have been exposed to a traumatic event by the age of 16.
As a result, superintendents, assistant superintendents, administrators and principals are being asked to lead school systems amid continual disruption, stress, trauma,and tragedy. Because our schools face a new reality, school leaders must bring together a unique set of leadership skills that cultivate a safe and resilient school community that adequately supports staff and students affected by trauma.
Impact of trauma in schools
The effects of unaddressed trauma are evident in nearly every facet of a school leader’s day. For students, trauma is linked to emotional difficulties, behavioral challenges, lower test scores, higher rates of exclusionary discipline and high rates of absences.
Unfortunately, the effects of trauma don’t stop there. There is growing recognition of the secondary effects of child-traumatic stress on school staff. These include higher rates of educator burnout, turnover and absenteeism, all of which have significant financial implications.
To counteract the consequences in our schools, leaders must acquire the necessary skills to lead their school communities through small and large crises, as well as to establish a resilient environment that adequately addresses the needs of staff and students affected by trauma.
These essential skills prioritize deepened supportive relationships with staff and students and can be learned and strengthened with practice and intention. Below are three steps leaders can take to become more trauma-responsive in their leadership approach.
3 essential skills for trauma-responsive leadership
1. Inspire a vision of a trauma-informed school environment: Trauma-responsive leaders should establish and communicate a vision of a trauma-informed school environment. This includes deepening a collective understanding of the consequences of trauma and a growing understanding that schools cannot meet their academic mission unless all school stakeholders feel safe and supported.
Leaders might consider revisiting their school’s values and mission statement to better align them with the trauma-informed principles of safety, trust and transparency, collaboration, empowerment and representation and inclusion.
2. Intentional collaboration: Trauma-responsive leaders recognize that our brains are wired to seek conflict over collaboration and that this instinct can be exaggerated in stressful environments. To combat this instinct, trauma-responsive leadership emphasizes the importance of intentional collaboration through connection, seeking mutual interests and empowering others.
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When students, staff and family experience a sense of mutuality and feel their voice is being heard, conflict can become an opportunity to collaborate and problem-solve. Trauma-responsive leaders recognize that focusing on shared interests instead of competing positions leads to shared goals, better solutions and stronger relationships.
The work can create a climate of connectedness and cooperation that can operate more effectively and supportively in the midst of stress, crisis and uncertainty.
3. Self-awareness and regulation: At a time when students and staff have learned to expect the unexpected, consistency, predictability and honesty are even more imperative to establish a climate of psychological safety. This can be particularly challenging in the midst of stress or a community-wide crisis.
Trauma-responsive leaders must be experts in both self-regulation and co-regulation strategies to effectively support others and promote a safe and calm environment. Trust cannot be present without transparency, and leaders must reinforce their ability to be honest and willing to discuss topics that might initially be uncomfortable to address.
Better prepared to lead
A trauma-responsive leadership approach has the power to not only improve the collective understanding of how trauma impacts students, but also enhance leaders’ ability to engage with students and staff who’ve been exposed to trauma.
I have seen the impact firsthand when leaders successfully bring trauma-responsive skills together with insight and intention. They create a safe and resilient school community that can alleviate the consequences of stress and trauma and are better prepared to lead through crisis or disaster.
