Okay, so I know Mister Rogers may strike many of us as quaint, yesterday, trite, or maybe even scary (eek! those sweaters!), but I recently read his book and found many little nuggets that I thought many of you might find inspiring or fun as well and a lot of them are key to healing from adverse childhood experiences. Here ya go: 1. A life of spiritual wholeness is represented by looking inward with our hearts (inner disciplines affect how we see others), looking outward with our eyes (how...

"How are you feeling today?" "What's your goal for today?" "Who can you ask for help if you need it?" This may sound like an unusual start to your next staff meeting, but these questions, and the purpose for asking them, is deeply rooted in trauma theory and what we know about the importance of connections when healing from trauma. I've been a distant fan of the Sanctuary Model for several years now, learning about it through my work with ACEs Connection as well as my work with systems eager...

By Arielle Dreher, The Spokesman-Review, July 19, 2019 Spokane County Sheriff’s Deputy Dan Moman and Frontier Behavioral Health mental health clinician Holly Keller were riding around on their shift this summer when they got an urgent call. The family of a man who had run into traffic before had called 911 to report he was running away from home, and deputies who had already responded to the situation said he was not following commands. Moman and Keller rushed to the scene. When they...

By Danielle Fox, Center for Health Journalism, August 8, 2019 Engaged journalism is the key to sustainability and gaining trust in our communities — it’s not feel-good journalism, it’s necessary journalism, Ashley Alvarado, director of community engagement at Southern California Public Radio (KPCC), recently told a room full of reporters at the 2019 National Fellowship. Alvarado and ProPublica engagement editor and reporter Ariana Tobin relayed lessons from the field about how engagement...

By Larry Gordon, EdSource, August 15, 2019 In David Kirp’s new book “The College Dropout Scandal” (Oxford University Press), the UC Berkeley emeritus professor of public policy calls low college graduation rates “higher education’s dirty little secret.” Nationwide, only about 3 out of 5 incoming freshmen graduate within six years. The rate is dramatically worse at some schools in California. He says those statistics result from “a dereliction of duty that has gotten too little public...