Social Emotional Well-Being

Communities and schools are facing unprecedented challenges as they respond to the compounded difficulties of a global pandemic, an economic recession, and civic unrest in response to structural racism. These challenges also offer unprecedented opportunities to re-envision and renew the capacity of our schools and communities to be welcoming, supportive, inclusive, and equitable environments. To meet these challenges, individuals must start with the inner work of healing their own hearts and minds, finding the capacity within themselves to support healing for students, families, peers, and communities.

It is unrealistic to expect that students will return to instruction as they left it months ago. Students have experienced an extremely stressful, and for many, traumatic experience while isolated from school, friends, and community. Some students have had positive experiences during school closures, learning, growing, and discovering new identities as activists, caregivers, and leaders in their communities. Schools should support and nurture new skills and mindsets. Students known to be vulnerable, as well as those not previously on district and school radars, may return to instruction anxious, fearful, withdrawn, grieving, and/or unprepared to self-manage new or exacerbated negative behaviors. And some students have thrived in an on-line environment, as school anxiety has lessened. Schools and districts must be prepared to meet students where they are, regardless of the circumstances in which they find themselves.

The following considerations are intended to assist in creating a welcoming and caring school community that ensures its members are met with compassion and the support they need to achieve and thrive. Academic learning cannot be effective until the basic human needs for physical and emotional safety are met. This is an embodied practice. Breathe, notice, feel, and be present. Except where otherwise noted, the considerations outlined below are relevant for students and staff, and regardless of whether instruction is in-person, remote, or hybrid.

COMPREHENSIVE SCHOOL COUNSELING PROGRAM

School Counseling Programs in New York State are required to have the components described in The New York State Education Department Commissioner's Regulation Part 100.2(j) Guidance Plan. This regulation, in place since the 1970's, requires each public school district, “shall have a guidance program for all students” that is reviewed annually and updated as necessary, filed in district office and made available for review by any individual. Rome City School District School counselors work together with students and parents to promote personal success by enhancing the development of academic skill, interpersonal skills and self-understanding. As leaders and advocates, school counselors work as collaborative members of the educational team to examine the changes in educational policies and regulations and seek solutions to help each child maximize their educational experience. In partnership with school district leaders, teachers, student support personnel, families and community stakeholders, school counselors work in the spirit of collaboration to promote the academic missions of their schools as well as the goals of the New York State Department of Education. For a complete copy of our Comprehensive Counseling Plan, please visit our website at: https://www.romecsd.org/CSCP

MENTAL HEALTH AND TRAUMA-RESPONSIVE PRACTICES

Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and trauma can have a negative impact on young people’s social emotional well-being, and consequently, their capacity to learn. Students and adults are grappling with new and exacerbated traumas that can have far-reaching impacts on health and educational outcomes. In addition, anxiety and depression may present or worsen in response to these additional stressors and traumas. Trauma-responsive practices help shift negative reactions to inappropriate student behavior to thoughtful responses that consider the root causes of behavior and help to support individual student needs to address those causes.

MULTI-TIERED SYSTEMS OF SUPPORT (MTSS)

MTSS is an evidence-based approach to comprehensive program delivery that addresses academic and behavioral challenges including proactive activities for all students (universal interventions), targeted activities for students identified at-risk (secondary interventions) and intensive activities for students identified at high risk (tertiary interventions). MTSS is grounded in the belief that all students can learn, and all school professionals must be responsive to the academic and behavioral needs of all students. MTSS focuses on evidence-based practices, relies on student progress data to inform instructional decisions, and ensures that each student, based on their unique needs, receives the level and type of support necessary to be successful. It is an important means of addressing equity and most importantly, ensures that all young people are provided with the support they need to thrive. The supports represented in the universal tier are foundational to secondary and tertiary supports. In general, universal interventions should be effective for most students, but targeted and intensive supports will be needed to address student needs that could not be met with universal interventions. A strong foundational tier helps ensure that schools are not over identifying students and adults for tier 2 and 3 supports, which allows them to more strategically allocate resources for the higher tiers. An example of aligned social emotional well-being supports in chart format is included on page 42 of Social Emotional Learning: Essential for Learning, Essential for Life (http://www.p12.nysed.gov/SEL).

SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING (SEL)

The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) defines SEL as, “the process through which children and adults understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.” By developing core intra- and inter-personal competencies, including self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making, students and adults build capacity to thrive by building a variety of protective factors, including increased resilience, stronger empathy, heightened self-efficacy and agency, and more. SEL is not synonymous with mental health, but it does provide a foundational set of competencies that serve as tools to navigate challenges in healthy, productive ways. SEL must be culturally and linguistically responsive and sustaining to equitably meet the needs of our young people and adults. Transformative SEL elaborates on the core competencies from an educational equity lens and envisions their operationalization to better prepare young people and adults for critical, active citizenship, and considers the roles and implications of culture, identity, agency, belonging, and engagement. Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) and Project-Based Learning (PBL) offer opportunities for young people to shape their own learning and can support transformative SEL. A variety of resources for understanding SEL, including developmentally appropriate benchmarks and a whole school implementation guide are available on NYSED’s SEL web page (http://www.p12.nysed.gov/sss/sel.html).

RESTORATIVE PRACTICES

The Rome City School District will be considering all options related to the implementation of restorative practices within your school community invites an opportunity to reflect on school culture, discipline policies, practices, and disparities, and how policies and practices may contribute to the school to prison pipeline. Addressing behavior that is inappropriate from a whole child perspective requires students’ and adults’ acquisition of, and practice in using, all five SEL core competencies, and is strengthened by an understanding of and sensitivity toward Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and trauma-informed practices. Restorative practices are processes and approaches designed to build community and meaningful relationships, develop shared values, help students better understand their behavior, how it impacts themselves and others, and ultimately to use that self- and social awareness to repair damage caused to relationships as a result of inappropriate behavior. It focuses on strategies and skills such as understanding and managing one’s emotions and behavior, negotiating conflict constructively, building empathy, making constructive decisions about personal behavior, and realistically evaluating the consequences of one’s behavior. Replacing traditional discipline with restorative alternatives offers opportunities for youth to learn from mistakes and may reduce disciplinary disparities and negative outcomes.

STUDENT WELL-BEING

Improving school climate promotes critical conditions for learning, including an engaged school community responsive to culture, race, ethnicity, language, and socio-economic status; safe and inclusive academic environments that recognize and value the languages and cultures of all students; caring connections, trust, respect, and activities and curricula that engage and challenge young people. All these conditions are improved by socially and emotionally competent adults and young people in the school community. The Rome City School District is committed to:

• Providing an orientation or transition period to support the social and emotional well-being and resiliency of students before beginning to phase in academic content. We will encourage connection, healing, and relationship-building;

• Using community-building circles to ensure all voices can be heard;

• Fostering increased resiliency for students to help prepare them for the possibility of additional transitions between in-person and remote learning;

• Creating safe, supportive, engaging learning environments that nurture students’ social and emotional learning;

• Strengthening our Community Schools partnership and footprint with Connected Community Schools;

• Nurturing adult-student relationships to ensure that every student has a trusted adult at their school, and that the adult checks in on the student regularly, regardless of the mode of instruction;

• Offering opportunities for movement and physical activity to the extent possible. Social emotional and physical well-being are interconnected;

• Regularly obtaining information and feedback from our students and our school community;

• Leveraging transformative SEL to support the work of anti-racism and anti-bias;

• Supporting access to mental health and trauma supports for students;

• Leveraging the expertise of all school community members to support students;

• Providing professional learning to support all staff in developing a deeper understanding of their role in supporting student social emotional competencies and well-being;

• Scaffolding SEL to best support the developmental needs of students at all grade levels, from Pre-K through high school;

• The continued implementation of explicit SEL lessons and embed opportunities to develop and practice SEL competencies within academic lessons;

• Embedded SEL and trauma-responsive practices in restorative discipline policies;

• Considering ways to mitigate the absence of school social activities, like sports or clubs, with socially distanced or online replacements;

• The consideration of teaching teams that work with the same cohort of students, with teacher teams meeting and communicating regularly;

• Considering a case-management style of checking in on students in the cohort;

• Continued collaboration with community partners such as afterschool program providers, tapping into their expertise to provide additional support services, to increase the school’s capacity to meet student needs and know students and families, including their strengths, needs, and aspirations.

ADULT WELL-BEING

Adults within the Rome City School District must take care of themselves and our peers, both for their own well-being and so that they may be better able to help young people heal. Adults in the school community have experienced stress, anxiety, grief, and trauma. It is important to consider the impact this will have on their return to an in-person or remote school environment. Additionally, adults need access to professional learning opportunities that can better prepare them to support their own well-being as well as the well-being of the students and families they serve. Before school reopens, and throughout the school year, we will consider the following:

• The fact that school leadership is faced with overwhelming challenges. We will provide district/school-level supports for school leaders, especially those new to their roles, to provide mentorship;

• Building school community structures that encourage human connection, and that acknowledge it is necessary for us to take care of our physical and emotional safety and comfort before we can effectively teach and learn.

• Offer ongoing and embedded opportunities for adults to develop and strengthen their own social and emotional competencies;

• Offer all staff opportunities to heal together, to build strong, mutually supportive relationships, and to process their own emotions, including bus drivers, cafeteria workers, office workers, nurses, pupil personnel services staff, and administrators;

• Offer professional learning opportunities to all staff. Address critical topics related to personal, student, and community well-being, including trauma-responsive practices, social emotional learning, restorative practices, mental health education, culturally and linguistically responsive-sustaining practices, implicit bias and structural racism, and facilitating difficult conversations about race;

• Prior to the re-entry of students, invite the staff into the building to talk about differences, losses, and newness of preparation for teaching and learning;

• Regularly obtain information and feedback from our staff;

• Support access to mental health and trauma supports for adults in the school community;

• Leverage Transformative SEL to support the work of adult anti-racism and anti-bias work.

• Nurture SEL competencies to improve cultural and linguistic responsiveness and sustainability;

CONNECTED COMMUNITY SCHOOLS – LINK

Our community is very fortunate to have a nationally recognized community schools program, Connected Community Schools. In the words of their Director, Melissa Roys, their mission reads:

“We had a simple idea and were given a path to get there. If we were able to bring together the entire community, including agencies, services, organizations, businesses, places of worship, individuals, teachers, administrators, union members and leaders, investors and other people with the same mission, could we help students become successful, productive and engaged healthy citizens? I believe the desire to help is contagious. I also believe that anything anyone is in need of is already here and available, but some need assistance getting it. If we were to add a little fun and a few exciting educational experiences along the way, and invite families into our schools for dinners and celebrations, would we see some positive transformation and a fresh sense of belonging to this new community – a community that works collectively, collaboratively and not competitively? It has worked. We are improving students’ lives on many levels and seeing family struggles dissipate. Needs were discovered and addressed. Experiences were shared. Knowledge was passed on. Doors were open, and arms have been outstretched to embrace. We haven’t solved all of the world’s or area’s problems and struggles, but daily we are seeing results; and we did it as a community, and we will continue this work as one large connected community.”

This partnership has proven to be invaluable to our students, families, and staff. Through our LINK system (Leaders In Network and Knowledge), students and families have access to a significant number of supports, including, but not limited to:

• Mental Health

• Housing

• Family Supports

• Academics

• Behavior

• Nutrition

• Health Insurance

• Health Care

• Substance Abuse/Vaping

• Transportation

• Clothing

• Legal Assistance

• Employment

• Financial Planning

• Holiday Assistance

Any family/staff member in our community seeking support in any area for their student is encouraged to speak with their school counselor so that we can make the necessary “LINKS” to provide the support.

On our website, https://sites.google.com/romecsd.org/romereopening/mental-health, we have developed a resource page for students, staff, and families that is specifically related to the local resources that exist to help endure the COVID-19 crisis. The webpage provides our community with information on mental health resources and substance abuse resources. We encourage our students, staff, and community to visit the site if they believe there is any form of mental stress being experienced in their household.

RESOURCES

• Guidance Programs and Comprehensive Developmental School Counseling/Guidance Programs Commissioner’s Regulation §100.2(j) ~ (http://nyssca.org/wp-content)

• Social Emotional Learning: A Guide to Systemic Whole School Implementation ~ (http://www.p12.nysed.gov)

• Reunite, Renew, and Thrive: Social and Emotional Learning Roadmap for Reopening School ~ (https://casel.org)

• NYSED Social and Emotional Wellness Resources ~ (http://www.p12.nysed.gov)

• Advancing Adult Compassion Resilience: A Toolkit for Schools ~ (https://compassionresiliencetoolkit.org)

• SEL Online Learning Module: Creating a Well-Rounded Educational Experience ~ (https://www.air.org/resource)

• NYS Mental Health Education Resource & Training Center ~ (https://www.air.org)

• NYS Safe and Supportive Schools Technical Assistance Centers ~ (https://www.nys-ssstac.org/)

• Mental Health Education Literacy in Schools: Linking to a Continuum of Well-Being Comprehensive Guide ~ (http://www.nysed.gov/common)

• Connected Community Schools Self-Referral LINK ~ (https://connectedcommunityschools.org/selfreferral)

CONTACTS

Ms. Amanda Jones Ms. Melissa Roys

Director of Counseling Services Director – Connected Community Schools

409 Bell Road, Rome, NY 13440 509 N. James Street, Rome, NY 13440

amjones@romecsd.org ~ 315.338.6518 melissaroys@romecommunityschools.org

https://www.romecsd.org/counselingservices https://connectedcommunityschools.org/