Charlottesville City Schools is committed to social and emotional learning and trauma-responsive practices.  We recognize that many of our students have encountered significant challenges  that require understanding and care. Trauma-responsive practices try to identify the underlying issues that drive a child’s behavior and to build supports that will help the child succeed.

Consequently, we have begun seeking resources and training for our staff and helped establish the Greater Charlottesville Trauma Informed Community Network. This network is comprised of schools, agencies, health-care professionals and others, united by the following mission: to improve trauma-informed care by educating professionals and the community on the impacts of trauma and by advocating for trauma-sensitive systems of care.

Among our initial efforts to incorporate trauma-responsive practices, we have offered multiple staff and community-partner screenings of films such as Paper Tigers, trainings such as “Barking Dog,” and presentations such as “Trauma-Informed Practices in the Classroom.” In March 2018, we cosponsored a community workshop called “Trauma in the Context of School Safety.”  Jim Sporleder (featured in Paper Tigers) was the keynote speaker for our staff-wide convocation in August 2018.

• Social-Emotional Learning
• Staff Supports such as Counselors, Social Workers, and Psychologists
• Systems of Supports
• Wellness at Charlottesville City Schools

To learn about the impact of a shift toward trauma-sensitive practices at our alternative academy, see “Lugo-McGinness Academy.”