Training Teachers to Support Students’ Mental Health
The School District of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The School District of Philadelphia, with support from CDC, created a COVID-19 Mental Health Training Academy to equip school staff with skills to help address students’ trauma and support their mental health.
The School District of Philadelphia launched a COVID-19 Adolescent Mental Health Training Academy in early 2021. The Academy equips teachers and school staff in the district’s high schools with the skills they need to support student mental health and address trauma following the COVID-19 pandemic.
The training academy includes six sessions: trauma-informed care, grief and loss, implicit bias, supporting LGBT+ students, and being an askable adult.
More than 300 teachers and school staff have received training, providing safer and more supportive learning environments during a critical time for the district’s 34,000 students.
“Before this training, when students would come to me and share certain experiences, I would feel uncomfortable. Now, I feel like I can give them the tips and tools that I got from this series to care for themselves mentally and emotionally.”
– School Nurse, Philadelphia Public Schools