A new policy brief (attached) issued this week by the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) forcefully develops the case for trauma-informed approaches to address the opioid crisis—to prevent and treat addiction—based on strong evidence that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are at the root of the crisis. CTIPP is a national organization that advocates for trauma-informed prevention and treatment programs at the federal, state and local levels. Successful strategies to...

Sound Discipline is hiring 3 Professional Development Facilitators - 2 in Seattle and 1 in Spokane. Applications are due by July 10. Please see the link below for complete details. Thanks! http://www.sounddiscipline.org/sd-careers/

"We're committed to lifting up the work around healing, belonging and inclusion," said Joey Bravo, program associate at The California Endowment (TCE).  Joey and his colleagues with TCE's Center for Healthy Communities supported the creation of a series of videos that capture the groundbreaking efforts of the San Diego Unified School District's campaign to create trauma-informed schools.  In this series of videos, SDUSD's transformation of their discipline policies...

School's Out Washington is presenting Sound Discipline's Building Resiliency Workshop on June 5th. Price: $59.00 Monday, June 5th 9:30am - 12:30pm Location: 2100 Building, Community B 2100 24th Ave S, Seattle Register at this link - https://www.schoolsoutwashington.org/products/building-resiliency-working-with-students-exposed-to-stress-and-trauma-seattle-jun-5 Participants will learn the impact of trauma and insecure attachment on developing brains, tools for building children’s resiliency...

In 2013, for the first time, a majority of public-school students in this country—51 percent, to be precise—fell below the federal government’s low-income cutoff, meaning they were eligible for a free or subsidized school lunch. It was a powerful symbolic moment—an inescapable reminder that the challenge of teaching low-income children has become the central issue in American education. The truth, as many American teachers know firsthand, is that low-income children can be harder to educate...

As superintendents, we each have had the experience of being stunned, troubled, and moved to action by the rates at which schools were dispatching young people—especially boys of color and special-needs students—to the juvenile-justice system. And each of us has found that big changes in outcomes were possible. How? By moving away from simplistic zero-tolerance policies, toward an understanding of social-emotional learning and the underlying causes of disruptive behavior, and by changing...

New report from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Focus on Prevention: Strategies and Programs to Prevent Substance Use http://store.samhsa.gov/shin/content/SMA10-4120/SMA10-4120.pdf

Information is the most powerful and effective tool we have because it has the power to touch hearts, change lives and transform communities. Teri Barila has been reaching out with impact in the community of Walla Walla and the transformation is real. I attended the last few minutes of a monthly CRI meeting today where our community gathers together to share stories about the monumental strides that are being made in Walla Walla. The feelings of those in the room overtook me as I stood...

Sound Discipline is delighted to be able to host a screening of the movie "Resilience" on May 1st. We’ve been supporting schools and families with trauma informed practices to build resilience for 10 years. This one hour film by Jamie Redford illustrates the impacts of chronic stress on children’s brains. Following the movie there will be a panel sharing the work being done by school leaders and Sound Discipline to build resilience and counteract the impact of stress. May 1, 6:00-8:30pm. $5...

In Martin Luther King Jr.’s last book published before his assassination, he reflected on the civil rights movement and asked, “Where do we go from here? Chaos or community?” That same question resonates today, said Howard Pinderhughes , PhD, during the 2017 UCSF Last Lecture , in which he highlighted the importance of community and social justice in tackling health care challenges. Now in its sixth year, the UCSF Last Lecture has become an annual tradition in which a UCSF faculty member is...

Beyond Paper Tigers Conference 2017 Wednesday, June 28 & Thursday, June 29, 2017 A fast-paced information and strategies conference for parents, educators, clinicians, mental health workers & law enforcement. Learn how to effectively use cutting-edge brain science to address the overwhelming effects of chronic stress and trauma in the development of children. Beyond Paper Tigers 2017 provides a universal approach to this global concern. Follow the link below to register for the...

“Resilience” Documentary at Kamiak High School April 26 @ 7:00 pm - 9:00 pm Free Watch the new documentary “Resilience”: The Biology of Stress and the Science of Hope” in the Performing Arts Center (PAC) at Kamiak High School on April 26. This documentary chronicles the promising beginnings of a national movement to prevent childhood trauma, address toxic stress, and greatly improve the health of future generations. This is the much awaited follow-up to “Paper Tigers”, a documentary about...