TRENDS & RESOURCES

Building Trauma-Informed Schools

and Communities
Meg Walkley and Tory L Cox

raumatic events such as the school shootings in Sandy Hook and Columbine naturally call national media attention to the
need for support services to assist the affected
children and families. Much less in the media eye
are the children attending school each week
affected by toxic stress and trauma as a result of
adverse childhood experiences such as chronic
neglect and family violence. Regardless of the root
of the trauma, those working in a capacity to support chudren can benefit from gaining a deeper
understanding of how trauma affects chud development and what intervention efforts have been
effective in helping chOdren heal. In addition, student support staff can be instrumental in advocating
for changes in school and service system policies
and protocols that exacerbate, rather than anieliorate, the experiences of trauma-affected children.
This article focuses on the impact of trauma on
development and the promise of trauma-informed
schools. It examines how this approach may hold
the key to improving the emotional and physical
safety of students, while also improving academic
and behavioral outcomes.
TOXIC STRESS AND TRAUMA

Childhood stress can be thought of as a continuum. On one end is normative, developmentaDy

appropriate stress that helps buud resiliency and
coping skills. Examples of this would be a child
having to wait to open presents or having to make
a choice between two favorite activities. On the
other end of the continuum is traumatic stress,
which can be defined by its unpredictability and
the feelings of horror and helplessness it elicits.
Physical abuse, domestic and community violence, motor vehicle accidents, chronic painful
medical procedures, and natural disasters are all
potentially traumatic experiences. On the continuum near the trauma end is toxic stress, stress that

doi:10.l093/cs/cdt007

O 2013 National Association of Social Workers

is so emotionally costly that it can affect brain

development and other aspects of a child's health.
Toxic stress can occur when a child experiences
strong, frequent, and prolonged adversity; for
example, when a child is being raised with
severely depressed or drug-addicted parents or a
child is suffering from emotional or physical
neglect (Garneret al., 2012;Lieberman, 2012).
IMPACT OF TRAUMA AND TOXIC STRESS
ON DEVELOPMENT

Research from across disciplines underscores the

impact of trauma on all aspects of a child's development. Neuroscientists studying the impact of
trauma on brain development have determined
that these experiences actually alter brain structure.
Dr. Bruce Perry, director of the Child Trauma
Academy, explained: "When a child is threatened,
various neurophysiological and neuroendocrine
responses are initiated. If they persist, there will be
'use-dependent' alterations in the key neural systems involved in the stress response" (Perry, 2000,
p. 50). This, in part, is responsible for the hypervigant "fight, flight, or freeze" state of many
trauma-affected children. These easily oventimulated children have difficulty with emotional selfregulation and struggle to put feelings into words.
Anger, often accompanied by physical aggression,
may be their most readily expressed emotion
(Cross, 2012; Perry, 2006). Significant adversity in
childhood is also linked to impaired cognitive and
physical development. A key research finding is
that the more advenity a chUd faces, the greater the
odds of long-term developmental consequences.
Thus, children living with caregiver mental illness,
substance abuse, and neglect are put at even greater
risk when also affected by school or community
trauma (Shonkoff & Richmond, 2008). It is important for school support staff to understand that
trauma-affected children are often mislabeled with

123

attention deficit disorder, oppositional-defiant disorder, conduct disorder, and other diagnoses that
prevent exploration of effective interventions for
healing from the trauma (Perry, 2006).
EFFECTIVE INTERVENTIONS

Early prevention and intervention are essential

considerations for programs designed to be responsive to trauma-affected children. Positive, nurturing experiences in early childhood build the
foundation for lifelong leaming and good health.
Conversely, adverse experiences during the time
that the brain is most rapidly developing lead to
the most severe impact on development (Perry,
2009; Shonkoff & Richmond, 2008). Schools
interested in becoming trau ma-responsive must
partner with early care and education programs to
design a continuum of support services across the
prenatal through college age spectrum. In addition,
assessment at any age must include a thorough
exploration of an individual's early childhood
experiences and, if applicable, interventions that
respond to the developmental impact that likely
occurred at the time of trauma exposure. The very
same traumatic experience v^ill affect a toddler and
a first-grader differently, and, thus, different interventions will be required. A teenager who was
affected by trauma in her younger years will need
interventions designed to address how trauma
affected that earlier stage of development. To this
end, Perry and his colleagues at the Child Trauma
Academy have developed the Neu rose quential
Model of Therapeutics (Perry, 2009). Based on
Perry's research and others. Multiplying Connections, a trauma-informed training initiative, created
the mnemonic CAPPD that can be used to guide
schools interested in creating more trauma responsive systems. That acronym is summarized below:
Calm: aims to keep boih you and the child{ren) you
work with in a relaxed, focused state.
Attuned: asks you to be aware of children's nonverbal
signals: body language, tone of voice, emotional state.
These signals tell you how much and what types of
activity and learning the child can currently handle.
Children affected by trauma often experience both life
and their trauma in the niidbrain, the sensory part of
the brain, rather than in the "thinking/learning" neocortex. Consequendy, it is helpful to leam to connect
with the child(ren) who have experienced trauma on
an emotional, sensory level before moving to a cognidve level.
Present: requires that you focus your attention on the
child(ren) you are with, that you be in the moment.

124

Pervasive mistrust of others is a key characteristic of

children who have experienced trauma. Despite their
wariness, these children need to and, with support, can
form secure reladonships with loving adults.
Predictable: asks that you provide children with routine,
structured, and repeated posidve experiences that they
need to thrive. Children who have experienced traunia
view the world as scary and unreliable. Being predictable
in your acdons and roudnes will help children feel safe.
Don't let Children's Emodons Escalate Your Own:
requires you to remain in control of your emotions and
of your expression of them. When children lose control and become angry, frustrated, overly excited, or
scared, our own emodons can spiral out of control as
well. When this happens, we can escalate the situadon
and trigger further trauma responses in children.

These and other guidelines in developing traumainformed schools such as the 18 teaching suggestions
in Making SPACE for Leaming (Australian Childhood Foundadon, 2010, pp. 6566) can help innovative leaders v^nth implementation. As v^dth any
new idea that requires a paradigm shift, school communities may not fully embrace this approach at first.
CHALLENGES WITH IMPLEMENTATION

There are inherent challenges in altering the traditional approaches to student behavior in school settings. Change can be difficult at any level, but in
complex systems it is time-consuming and requires
commitment across all levels (Barrow, McMuUin,
Tripp, & Tsemberis, 2012). A primary challenge is
the existing organizational cultures of schools, with
their oral histories and shared traditions that are
clung to fervently by long-time teachers and staff
(Hodas, 2006). "That's not the way we do things
here" can present a significant barrier to adopting
new approaches such as trauma-informed schools.
Another challenge noted by Hodas (2006) is the
belief that addressing students' traumatic experiences is the equivalent of "being soft." This perception can add another issue for school personnel who
believe in a discipline-oriented or more confrontational style of interaction with students not responding positively to a normative classroom setting.
Hodas (2006) cited the challenge of staff who
interact direcdy with children and youths being
iU-equipped to handle the depth of feelings and
mental health needs of those suffering from trauma.
Recommendations include providing intense training, supervision, ongoing technical assistance, and
continual staff development on subjects such as brain
development and trauma (Oehlberg, 2008). Ensuring that the cultures of the students, the school, and

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VOLUME 35, NUMBER 2

APRIL 2013

the community are integrated in the new paradigm

is another important element in implementation
that can derail an otherwise well-formed plan
(Barrowetal., 2012).
Other challenges include a lack of recognition of
the individual and collective needs of the population served
the trauma histories and experiences of identified children
the potential positive or negative impact of
each helping adult
the intentionality of students' behaviors
the countertransference by staff, teachen, and
administrators (Hodas, cited in Hodas, 2006).
Commitment to adopting a trauma-informed
approach wiU require the full support and commitment of the leadership at each school, starting with
the principal or coprincipals. Principal Jim Sporleder of Lincoln High School in Walla Walla,
Washington, led his school's transformation by
using a trauma-informed approach during the
2010-2011 school year (Stevens, 2012). Based on
data gathered and compared with the previous
year, suspensions dropped from 798 to 135 (85
percent reduction), expulsions dropped from 50 to
30 (40 percent reduction), and written referrals
were cut in half from 600 to 320 (Stevens, 2012).
This significant reduction in discipline issues is one
of the positive outcomes noted when school leadership, despite challenges in implementation, commits to a change in school climate and culture
through trauma-informed approaches.
Stevens (2012) wrote that, although site-based
decision making is needed to meet the specific needs
of each school's population, district and board of
education approval is also needed to begin implementation. Buy-in needs to occur firom all aspects of
the school and its community to improve site-based
student learning outcomes (Stevens, 2012).
IMPLICATIONS FOR SCHOOL SOCIAL WORK

Because the development of a trauma-informed

system requires collaboration between all who
touch the life of a child, school social worken are
well suited to take a leadership role in moving their
school communities forward. Fint, school social
worken can take the initiative to become traumainfomied practitioners. Then, school social workers
can assist their school communities in developing

trauma-responsive practices. The state of Washington is a frontrunner in bringing a trauma-info mied

lens to education through its Compassionate
Schools Initiative. The Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Office created a handb o o k tided The Heart of Learning and Teaching:
Compassion, Resilience, and Academic Success (Wolpow,

Johnson, Hertel, & Kincaid, 2011) that can be a

resource, available via free download, for those
schools wishing to adopt a compassionate approach
to learning and teaching. Information from the
guidebook has been expanded upon to create
the "10 Principles of Compassionate Schools"
(Washington State Superintendent of Public
Instruction Office, 2011):
1. Focus on culture and climate in the school and
community.
2. Train and support all staff regarding trauma
and learning.
3. Encourage and sustain open and regular communication for all.
4. Develop a strengths-based approach in working with students and peers.
5. Ensure discipline policies are both compassionate and effective (restorative practices).
6. Weave compassionate strategies into school
improvement planning.
7. Provide tiered support for all students based
on what they need.
8. Create flexible accommodations for diverse
learners.
9. Provide access, voice, and ownenhip for staff,
students, and cormnunity.
10. Use data to identify vulnerable students and
determine outcomes and strategies for continuous quality improvement.
School social workers can coordinate the building
of collaboration between parents, foster parents,
K-12 schools, public health, chud welfare, early
childhood education, mental health providers, and
others involved in serving trauma-affected children. The Principles of Compassionate Schools
can be used to assess current policies and practices
within the school and community and dtermine
where changes need to be made.
One such collaboration effort coordinated by a
credentialed school social worker is in process in
a rural county in northern California. The need for
a more qualified workforce has been identified as

WALKLEY AND COX / Building Trauma-Informed Schools and Communities

125

key to che community becoming more responsive

to the social and emotional needs of local children.
To this end, a cadre of multidisciplinary local trainers is being developed to oifer research-in formed
training at no or low cost to participants. Many
school personnel, including administrators, school
social workers, school counselors, after-school program coordinators, and teachers, are involved in
this effort. In addition, the collaborating organizations are pooling funds to bring renowned experts
in the field of children's mental health to help educate the multidisciplinary group of participants.
Ongoing professional learning communities are
being established to further the skill and knowledge base of trailing participants.

CONCLUSION

Whether in urban, suburban, or rural settings,

trauma-infonned schools and O-to-5 programs
have the capacity to meet the needs of children
and youths suffering from the effects of familial
substance abuse, community and neighborhood
violence, child abuse and neglect, forced separation
through foster care or parental incarceration, and
other traumatic experiences. By ensuring the emotional and physical safety of all students inside the
school, on school grounds, and on busses, "the
power of relationships will be acknowledged and
practiced. . . [in] a school climate of respect and
generosity of spirit" (Oehlberg, 2008, p. 3).
As the nation attempts to understand its most
recent school shooting, the effects of trauma are
felt on a grander scale. Perhaps this change in interactions with children and youths will help ameliorate the hurt and pain that many students carry
during and after they finish their K-12 educational
experience. It might also prevent actions intended
to seek vengeance on a school site where wounds
were reopened or initially inflicted. S

Traumatic Stress Web site: http://w\v\v.3aets.org/

index.html
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Earls, M. F., Mcguin, L., etal. (2012). Early childhood
adversity, toxic stress, and the role of the pediatrician;
Translating developmental science into lifelong health.
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Meg Walkley, MSIV, is a children and family support specialist, in a partnership betunen First 5 Humboldt and ihe
Humboldt County Oce of Education, 901 Myrtle Avenue,
Eureka, CA, 95501; email: mwalkley(^mmboldt.k12.ca.tts.
Tory L. Cox, LCSW/PPS,
is clinical assistant professor,
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APRIL 2013

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