Tagged With "ACEs in Higher Education"
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5 Tips for Supporting College Age Students' Mental Health [blogs.psychcentral.com]
By Andrea Schneider, PsychCentral, February 7, 2020 Did you know that the second leading cause of death in people ages 15-22 is suicide (ACHA, 2020)? Those are some sobering statistics. After a recent move from S CA to N Ca, I am currently serving in a new role in which I am the Lead Counselor on a college campus for this age range. Unfortunately, those statistics don’t lie. I am deeply involved in creating new programs, strategies, and direct clinical support for the students my campus...
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A New Documentary About Breaking the Cycle of Trauma is Launching This Fall!
We are thrilled to announce the premiere of Wrestling Ghosts , a documentary about breaking the cycle of trauma, at the LA Film festival on Sept. 27th. “Incredible. Haunting and strange and beautiful and incredibly moving.” -Dan Cogan, Founder Impact Partners Wrestling Ghosts follows the epic inner journey of Kim, a young mother who, over two heartbreaking and inspiring years, battles the traumas from her past in order to create a new present and future for her and her family. In this...
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Behavioral Medicine journal seeking manuscripts on resilience
An exciting opportunity for the ACEs community to submit a manuscript on resilience for a special issue of the journal Behavioral Medicine.
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Broadening Your Network and Identifying Partners for More Resilient, Healthier Communities
Who should you partner with to create lasting change through resilience in your community? The Building Community Resilience (BCR) initiative aims to address, prevent, and reduce the effects of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and adverse community environments (ACEs) on children’s health and wellbeing ( The “Pair of ACEs” ). An essential element of the successes of BCR’s five test sites around the country has been strategic collaborations. In your work to build resilience, identifying...
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From Convict to College Student (theatlantic.com)
California’s public universities are starting to embrace a program that helps transition people from prison to campus. A program at San Francisco State University has quietly been helping former prisoners earn college degrees for decades. Now, it’s gaining wider attention as schools around the state begin to look for ways to help formerly incarcerated men and women gain access to higher education. In 1967, John Irwin, who had been incarcerated before becoming a sociology professor at SF...
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How One College Has Set Out to Fix ‘a Culture of Blatant Sexual Harassment’ [chronicle.com]
As the #MeToo movement has gathered steam, women have gone public with accusations of sexual misconduct by professors at dozens of colleges. But one institution in particular has faced reproach as a hotbed of abusive behavior. The Berklee College of Music was described in a recent Boston Globe article as having a "a culture of blatant sexual harassment." The Globe’s characterization did not surprise students or faculty members at the college, many of whom said they knew or had heard about...
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Legislation Signals Growing Support for Significance of Trauma Indicators [CaliforniaHealthline.org]
As a college student, Rob Bonta had a summer job working as a counselor for troubled kids. Now, two decades later he is bringing legislation to address some of the needs he saw then. “I worked with some of these kids as a counselor out of college, and I’d walk them home and hear some of these stories,” Assembly member Bonta (D-Oakland) said. “Shootings they heard. Or shootings they witnessed the night before.” It was the summer of his junior year at Yale, when...
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Minority college students might not get mental health help despite needs, study finds (nbcnews.com)
Asian American, Pacific Islander and multiracial college students are more likely than white students to have considered or attempted suicide despite reporting lower rates of psychiatric diagnosis, a new analysis has found. The research, published last month in the journal Psychiatric Services , analyzed survey responses from more than 60,000 college students at 108 schools. It found that while minority students generally reported lower rates of psychiatric diagnoses and symptoms of mental...
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Movement-Making in Buncombe County (NC): Opportunity-Based Narrative and Creation Spaces
Mobilizing action can be intimidating. Creating a movement even more so. John Hagel provides the following definition of a movement: “an organized effort mobilizing a large number of independent participants in a grassroots effort to pursue a broad agenda for change.” He indicates that there are two key ingredients in movement making: 1) compelling narratives and 2) fostering creation spaces. In Buncombe County, we are experimenting with both of these notions. Opportunity-based Narrative A...
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New bill would require California colleges to let homeless students park overnight (mercurynews.com)
According to several recent surveys, around one in five — or about 400,000 — California community college students has experienced homelessness in the last year. Thousands more are at risk of becoming homeless. Calling that number “shocking, alarming and tragic,” Assemblyman Marc Berman, D-Palo Alto, on Tuesday outlined a new bill — AB 302 — that would force community colleges to allow homeless students to sleep inside their vehicles in campus parking lots overnight. “Shame on us if we turn...
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Number of university dropouts due to mental health problems trebles [TheGuardian.com]
The number of students to drop out of university with mental health problems has more than trebled in recent years, official figures show. Data from the Higher Education Statistics Agency (Hesa) revealed that a record 1,180 students who experienced mental health problems left university early in 2014-15, the most recent year in which data was available. It represents a 210% increase from 380 in 2009-10. The figures have prompted charities, counsellors and health experts to urge higher...
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Ph.D. Students Face Mental Health Challenges
Science By Elisabeth Pain Approximately one-third of Ph.D. students are at risk of having or developing a common psychiatric disorder like depression, a recent study reports. Although these results come from a small sample—3659 students at universities in Flanders, Belgium, 90% of whom were studying the sciences and social sciences—they are nonetheless an important addition to the growing literature about the prevalence of mental health issues in academia . One key message for scientific...
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Peer mentor uses her own ACEs story to teach med residents how to help traumatized patients
When O’Nesha Cochran teaches medical residents about adverse childhood experiences in patients, she doesn’t use a textbook. Instead, the Oregon Health & Science University peer mentor walks in the room, dressed in what she describes as the “nerdiest-looking outfit” she can find. And then she tells them her story. “My mom sold me to her tricks and her pimps from the age of three to the age of six,” she begins. “I could remember these grown men molesting me and my sisters. I have three...
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Stop condemning high schools for college graduation rates (hechingerreport.org)
The higher education research group Wisconsin Hope Lab defines food insecurity as “the limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods.” According to a new study they published in March, two in three community college students they surveyed are food insecure — an increase of 50 percent from their 2015 report. And students are not just lacking in food; many don’t even have a kitchen. The same group confirmed the findings of two studies that estimated an average of...
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Taking ACEs to School: Trauma-Informed Approaches in Higher Education
“What happened to you?” isn’t just a question for therapists to ask their troubled clients. It’s a question that should inform the work of physicians, nurses, lawyers, educators, social workers and public health advocates from the time they are learning their professions to each real-world encounter. That’s the hope of the Philadelphia ACE Task Force (PATF) , whose workforce development group released a toolkit to help faculty across a range of disciplines weave content on adverse childhood...
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The Loneliness of First Year College Students
College isn't all fun and games. Loneliness is prevalent, especially for students with high ACEs/
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The long-term cost of college? For blacks and Hispanics, it’s not just about money (heraldsun.com)
College might be a ticket out of poverty, but for blacks and Hispanics making the climb, it might not be a ticket to good physical health, UNC-Chapel Hill researchers say. In fact, yardsticks like blood pressure and blood chemistry indicate students who start from “higher levels of disadvantage” may “actually experience a cost” to their future health from the stress surrounding the experience, a team led by post-doc Lauren Gaydosh and sociology professor Kathleen Mullan Harris said in a...
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The Most Anxious Generation Goes to Work (wsj.com)
New college graduates report higher levels of anxiety. How managers can help them steer past fear and improve work performance—and how young workers can work to calm their anxiety and be more effective. Michael Fenlon’s company is one of the nation’s biggest employers of newly minted college grads. He’s watching a tidal wave approach. College presidents and deans tell him repeatedly that they’ve had to make managing students’ anxiety and other mental-health issues a priority. “They’re...
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The Trauma the Threat of the Coronavirus is Causing on Campuses
Here is the promised link to the piece I wrote on the psychological impact of the coronavirus on campuses. The impact is vastly more than physical but we are just paying attention to the physical aspects of the situation. While that matters greatly, the psychic consequences -- the trauma -- is real and needs to be addressed. Hope the piece helps educators at all ages and stages. https://nebhe.org/journal/im-worried-higher-education-isnt-focused-at-all-on-covid-19s-psychological-toll/
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The University Elephant in the Room: Where’s Community Engagement Headed? (nonprofitquarterly.org)
The theme was lofty: True Stories of Engagement: Higher Education for Democracy . But bringing those words to life has not been easy, as became clear when more than 500 university staff and faculty gathered at Campus Compact’s biennial conference in Indianapolis last month to discuss the state of the field of community engagement in higher education. For the uninitiated, Campus Compact is a national organization dedicated to promoting community engagement by universities. The organization...
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A Better Normal, Tuesday, June 2nd at Noon PDT: Higher Education and Trauma During COVID-19
Please join us for the ongoing community discussion of A Better Normal, our ongoing series in which we envision the future as trauma-informed. College graduates across the world have been celebrating their big day virtually this month, missing out on the right of passage that marks their stepping into new realms of adult and professional life. Many students and recent graduates are feeling the negative impact of the current pandemic: being housing displaced, adjusting to virtual classrooms,...
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Higher Education’s Role in Promoting Racial Healing and the Power of Wonder (criticalimpact.com)
As protests erupt across the country and around the world demanding justice for George Floyd, a black man who was killed while in Minneapolis police custody, higher education must play a leadership role in addressing the issues at their center—racism and white supremacy. The devastating video that shows Mr. Floyd pleading for his life follows high-profile news reports of the killing of Breonna Taylor, a young black woman who was shot in bed by Memphis police engaged in a botched search for a...
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How to Be a Truama-Informed Department Chair Amid Covid-19 [chronicle.com]
By Manya Whitaker, The Chronicle of Higher Education, July 27, 2020 As a faculty member preparing for the fall semester, I’ve been thinking a lot about trauma-informed teaching amid Covid-19. But I’m also one of those academics who wears multiple hats — in my case, department chair and interim director of a multicultural center. And I’ve realized that I need to offer trauma-informed leadership, too. Perhaps the most difficult aspect of being in a management position right now is balancing...
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Free 2020 Virtual Trauma-Informed Care Conference
Each year, STAR hosts a Trauma-Informed Care Conference to help educate the next generation of leaders and build a strong network of Trauma-Informed professionals in the state of Georgia. The conference will be held on Saturday, October 3rd from 10:00am- 1:00pm EST and Sunday, October 4th , 2020 from 2:00pm-5:00pm EST conducted virtually via Zoom.
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The Black Experience in Higher Education
By October 23, 2020, A Special Series. Higher education has not been exempt from scrutiny during America's current racial reckoning. Far from it, as people increasingly question whether colleges and universities have failed in their stated mission of increasing equity in society. [ Please click here to read more ]
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How counseling aims to help CSU freshmen graduate in four years [edsource.org]
By Larry Gordon, EdSource, December 17, 2020 Right out of high school and not sure where the advising office is, let alone how to register for classes, freshmen need special care at California’s big public universities. Without it, they are at higher risk of not making it back for a second year. That’s why about a quarter of the 23 campuses in the California State University system recently overhauled their academic advising to first-year students. [ Please click here to read more .]
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Local Organizations Join Together To Build HOPE and Resiliency in San Diego’s Children
April is National Month of Hope. While hope is something we all need right now as we surpass one year of the COVID pandemic, HOPE (Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences) means something different in our work as ACEs Aware grantees. The YMCA of San Diego County , San Diego State University Social Policy Institute , San Diego Accountable Community for Health (SDACH) and American Academy of Pediatrics – California Chapter 3 are combining efforts as ACEs Aware grantees to work with...
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Mother Nature’s Buffer Against Adverse Childhood Experiences
Earth Day has blossomed into a month-long celebration in April focusing on getting outdoors, appreciating nature and coming together as a community all of which are important in our work as ACEs Aware grantees. Recently, “spending time in nature” was added to the list of ways to practice self-care in relation to Adverse Childhood Experiences. The idea behind the self-care practices is to regulate an overactive stress response which can be heightened due to exposure to ACEs and lead to toxic...
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Free Mindfulness Apps Worthy of Your Attention (mindful.org)
There’s no shortage of mindfulness and meditation apps these days, promising to help you combat anxiety, sleep better , hone your focus, and more. In fact, the Wall Street Journal reports that more than 2,000 new meditation apps launched between 2015 and 2018, and offerings have only increased as a result of higher demand during the pandemic—according to the New York Times , mindfulness apps surged in 2020. We took the overwhelm out of finding the most valuable and easy-to-use mindfulness...
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Me & My Emotions: A New, Free Resource for Teens
The pandemic has had a lasting effect on youth mental health. Moved by a desire to reduce youth’s toxic stress and increase their resilience, The Dibble Institute, in partnership with a team of students and alumni from ArtCenter College of Design and author Carolyn Curtis, PhD, is releasing Me & My Emotions —a new, free adaptation of our beloved Mind Matters Curriculum. The mobile-friendly Me & My Emotions website features engaging graphics and bite-sized lessons teens can access and...
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All Foster Kids in California Can Now Attend Any State College for Free (thenmessenger.com)'
A student walks near Royce Hall on the campus of UCLA on April 23, 2012 in Los Angeles, California. Under a new law, foster children in California will have their tuition covered if they attend a state or community college. Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images To read more of Christopher Gavin's article, please click here. Children and teens in foster care across California will be able to attend state and community colleges free of charge under legislation signed into law this week. Through the...
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Creating Resilient Communities in 2024: The Year of Cultivating Resilient Networks Through Healing Centered Cultural Wisdom
As we head into our full CRC curriculum this January, we invite current and future CRC Accelerator participants to join us with collective care and self care in mind.
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California PACEs Connection Members: We'd Like to Learn More About Your PACEs Initiative Impact
In an effort to keep our free programs accessible to California during a critical time in the PACEs movement, we'd like to learn more about the role PACEs Connection programs have played in your California PACEs initiatives and the impact of your programs.
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CRC Accelerator Hiatus Reminder & April “Hour of Power” to Support CRC Participants With Only One Event to Completion Learn CRC Fellowship Next Steps
As we’ve recently announced, the CRC Accelerator is taking an indefinite hiatus, but this moment of growth is anything but goodbye. Two years into this unique program, we are aware of the incredible impact access can have on PACEs initiatives and we now have a CRC Fellowship that grows with each CRC graduate.