Loper Elementary administrators
aren’t waiting for issues to come
to them. Throughout the
semester, both students and staff
have proactively trained to
respond to a variet
y of needs.
Social worker Trudi Wolfe - a
licensed school counselor and
licensed school social worker with
over three decades of experience
who’s in her first year with
Shelbyvil
le Central Schools - is
training teachers in trauma-
informed school practices.
The training includes recognizing
and responding to the concerns
and behavior resulting
from
trauma to better support
students.
“Mrs. Wolfe’s trauma-informed
training has been one of the most
helpful and relevant professional
developments that I have
attended,”
art teacher Eric Sutton
said. “We learned about Adverse
Childhood Experiences: these
could be abuse, neglect, or
household dysfunction. Notably,
these are present both in our
student and staff populations.
What looks like defiance could
most likely be trauma behavior.
Taking a step back, breathing, and
staying calm in adverse situations
are some of t
he skills that I took
with me.”
The efforts are also geared
toward students, who are
participating in a school-wide
program that will support their
academic endeavors.
“A comp
rehensive school
counseling program is where the
program is built on the needs of
students through the data we
collect,” Wolfe said.
“Tools for Life” lessons, specific for
each g
rade level, are held on a
rotating basis during library time.
Topics include bullying,
generosity, identifying feelings,
anger management, and ways to
resolve conflict. Meeti
ngs with
individuals and groups of
students offer coping and social
skills.
“We are beginning the process for
a regulation room so that when
students become dysregulated,
they
can take a break to engage in
calming activities so they can
return to the classroom better
ready to learn,” Wolfe said.
Students will also participate in an
end-of-year survey, an
d
administrators will use the data to
plan for the following year.
“Our students come from varying
backgrounds and have a diverse
amount of needs,” Principal Adam
Harpring said.
“Using this data, we
are able to narrow down what our
students need in order to help
them become successful socially,
behaviorally, and academically.”