Charles City teachers receive trauma training

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

On their first day back to school, the teachers in Charles City were students.

Nearly 250 educators from pre-kindergarten through 12th grade received a day of youth mental health first aid training in the Charles City School District on Friday.

“We’re learning about youth mental health first aid,” said Charles City K-4 success coach Marie Conklin. “Just like you might of to first-aide training for CPR and things like that, this is more about the mental health side of things.”

About 20 percent of children ages 13-18 have or will have a serious mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Conklin said the training is about “starting to understand our students, and maybe some of the things that they’re dealing with.” It’s about how to get support for students, or how to provide support if it’s not required of a professional.

“This is one piece of a bigger puzzle that we’re doing as a district,” Conklin said. “We’re moving toward a trauma-informed approach. A lot of our students have experienced trauma and this is really about getting to know our students.”

The seven and-a-half hour program put on by the Cedar River Area Education Agency provides resources for students in the district. The staff was given a five-step action program to help see signs.

“Yes, we do have counselors and we do have professionals, however there are some things that we can do as we interact with kids on a daily basis that don’t require professional training,” said Conklin, who added that this is a way for teachers to reach students before they get to the point where they need professional help. Teachers can notice the signs and symptoms sooner, and figure out the best avenue for the students.

“There are a lot of studies out there that are showing us that having one positive, non-judgmental adult in your life can positively effect student outcomes,” she said.

Sixteen professionals from across the state trained staff members at Charles City on Friday. While the teachers in Charles City will prepare for school with professional development all this week, the students will return on Thursday.