Serving Students better at STREETS - Trauma Informed Staff Training
Every student has the right to learn but not all have the same starting line. Help STREETS staff get training to assist students in overcoming the obstacles of tragedy, hunger, poverty, abuse & neglect.
Leader
STREETS Ministry
Location
430 Vance Avenue Memphis, TN 38126
About the project
Each day, nearly 400 students walk through the doors of STREETS. Each carries with them a life-story, filled with hurts and happiness. Some of these members wear their hearts on their sleeves, others have been hurt too many times and refuse to trust anyone. That is where the STREETS' staff goes to work.
The STREETS service team (staff and volunteer mentors) are committed to providing the best service possible for our members. For many, that means learning how to recognize the signs of trauma in the student's behavior and helping that student reach a place where they are able to learn from and engage with their peers and environment in a healthy way. Our goal is to equip each student to achieve his/her full potential.
By giving to this project, you will help the STREETS service team (staff and volunteer mentors) receive Trauma Informed Care Training from the Memphis Family Connection Center so we can better serve the kids who count on us. The MFCC works to strengthen families and children by addressing the far-reaching effects of loss and trauma through family care and training. STREETS staff and volunteer mentors will be trained to empower, connect, and correct the children they serve.
The Steps
1. STREETS will secure a matching grant from the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis - COMPLETE 12/17
2. STREETS’ Executive Director will coordinate a training schedule with MFCC’s Director of Operations.
3. STREETS’ Site Directors will assemble their teams for training. Staff members will have three 4-hour sessions
4. STREETS' Staff will coordinate opportunities for volunteer mentors to participate in 15 hours of training, recognizing that holding training more than once will allow more mentors to participate.
5. STREETS' Staff will coordinate opportunities for non-mentor volunteers to attend 3, 1-hour session options.
Content includes:
-Defining trauma and traumatic experiences our children may have experienced,
-How trauma affects brain function, behavior, and learning in children,
-How childcare workers can use trauma-informed responses to improve outcomes for children.
Training will occur over an 18 month period to:
-Allow for higher dosage of content so practices become part of STREETS’ culture,
-Train new employees and volunteers that join us later in 2018,
-Make training a standard budget line item, ensuring that it continues.
Why we‘re doing it
We love our neighborhoods and the children we serve. We believe every child deserves every opportunity to reach their full potential. We've seen their hardships and we know many of them have faced more hurt and loss in their young lives than we can comprehend. Pursuing this training will help us give them more than a meal and a safe place to come after school. This training will help us learn how to equip each child with the coping skills and perseverance they need to succeed in life.
Providing our service team with resources to serve students in high-poverty communities will empower the children we serve and help us retain healthy, effective staff members and volunteers. Research states overwhelmingly that those living in poverty are more likely to experience trauma, often multiple times. Staff must be equipped to address the effects of this trauma, developing each child’s sense of safety, love, and belonging, and priming them to reach their highest potential. Training will give our service team specific communication and teaching skills that have been developed for the trauma affected child. Over time, we believe training staff and volunteers in these methods will improve outcomes for students, and satisfaction and retention for our service team.