Putting Thoughts into Action
It's fair to say that 2020 changed all of us. For me, it was a call to action through writing. While the pandemic would eventually leave us, the mental health fallout and exhaustion in America's schools would require more time to fix then a virus.
I saw the need to provide educators with operational frameworks and specific plans on how to make the changes schools desperately wanted. Check out some of my passion projects below!
I saw the need to provide educators with operational frameworks and specific plans on how to make the changes schools desperately wanted. Check out some of my passion projects below!
Current Publications:
After the Mask: A Guide to Caring for Students and Schools
Here it is – expert insight, honest conversation, and deeper understanding regarding the pediatric mental health crisis that has been growing since the early 2000s. Educators, perhaps more than ever, need definitive guidance to address the social, emotional, and academic setbacks of recent years. After the Mask integrates high-level science with the expertise and perspective of educators to provide evidence-based strategies that enhance student well-being – without asking you to be a healthcare provider or social worker. After the Mask: A Guide to Caring for Students and Schools peaked at #1 Best Seller on Amazon.com!
Here it is – expert insight, honest conversation, and deeper understanding regarding the pediatric mental health crisis that has been growing since the early 2000s. Educators, perhaps more than ever, need definitive guidance to address the social, emotional, and academic setbacks of recent years. After the Mask integrates high-level science with the expertise and perspective of educators to provide evidence-based strategies that enhance student well-being – without asking you to be a healthcare provider or social worker. After the Mask: A Guide to Caring for Students and Schools peaked at #1 Best Seller on Amazon.com!
Upcoming Publications:
Measuring the Impact of Embedded SEL Curriculum:
Despite the best intention of school districts and educators, the day to day implementation of social emotional learning is often a "one off" experience. Important topics regarding resilience, mental health, and peer pressure are sandwiched into low yield assemblies or bland videos in the middle of English class. This unintentionally creates an awkward setting and devalues the importance of the topic. To no surprise, anxiety rates, depression, and suicidal ideations in school-aged children continue to rise. Let's do something different.
Investigative Question: Does an evidence-based curriculum, written to support common vulnerabilities and mental health strain in secondary students, demonstrate a positive and measurable impact upon student self-esteem, self-efficacy, and relationships when assessed longitudinally?
UPDATE: This project encompasses 34 schools and more than 700 students. The study is completed and will undergo outside peer review in May of 2022. Submission for publication will closely follow!
Despite the best intention of school districts and educators, the day to day implementation of social emotional learning is often a "one off" experience. Important topics regarding resilience, mental health, and peer pressure are sandwiched into low yield assemblies or bland videos in the middle of English class. This unintentionally creates an awkward setting and devalues the importance of the topic. To no surprise, anxiety rates, depression, and suicidal ideations in school-aged children continue to rise. Let's do something different.
Investigative Question: Does an evidence-based curriculum, written to support common vulnerabilities and mental health strain in secondary students, demonstrate a positive and measurable impact upon student self-esteem, self-efficacy, and relationships when assessed longitudinally?
UPDATE: This project encompasses 34 schools and more than 700 students. The study is completed and will undergo outside peer review in May of 2022. Submission for publication will closely follow!
Leaving Broken For Joy – Action Items for Staff Burnout
"Other duties as assigned" has become the bulk of the school day for most educators in North America. Many signed up for teaching because they felt a call to better the lives of children, but that call is becoming increasingly more silenced. The workflow demands of school life has become enormous. Something has to change – and let's not it be the mass exodus of teachers from the classroom. Leaving Broken For Joy takes deep dive into the fallout of caretakers, risk factors for burnout, and most importantly, five action items that improve the daily life of teachers for the long term. Taken from the world of healthcare, these action items are not meant to be another self care band-aid, but rather a change in operations that restores the joy of teaching. Re-emphasizes the purpose of teaching. And all the while, still respect the responsibilities of teaching.
NOTE: This book is on track to publish in early Fall of 2022! Return to the website for pre-order opportunities!
"Other duties as assigned" has become the bulk of the school day for most educators in North America. Many signed up for teaching because they felt a call to better the lives of children, but that call is becoming increasingly more silenced. The workflow demands of school life has become enormous. Something has to change – and let's not it be the mass exodus of teachers from the classroom. Leaving Broken For Joy takes deep dive into the fallout of caretakers, risk factors for burnout, and most importantly, five action items that improve the daily life of teachers for the long term. Taken from the world of healthcare, these action items are not meant to be another self care band-aid, but rather a change in operations that restores the joy of teaching. Re-emphasizes the purpose of teaching. And all the while, still respect the responsibilities of teaching.
NOTE: This book is on track to publish in early Fall of 2022! Return to the website for pre-order opportunities!