The HOPE (Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences) team at Tufts Children’s Hospital interviewed Audrey Smolkin, executive director of the Center on Child Wellbeing & Trauma, on how the Center came to be, how it addresses the needs of children and families in Massachusetts and the purpose of the Center’s website. Audrey shares, “The mission of all of our work, HOPE, and the Center on Child Wellbeing & Trauma needs to be focused on creating an even playing field where we are really all starting from a position of health and ability to contribute to each other.” Read the HOPE interview.…
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The Center for Child Wellbeing & Trauma is collaborating with the Departments of Children and Families and Early Education and Care to assemble a cohort offering free trauma-informed and healing responsive self-assessment and coaching opportunity to congregate care organizations.
In partnership with the Center on Child Wellbeing and Trauma, the Worcester Trauma, Resiliency & Racial Equity Training Institute offered a series of opportunities to learn to use trauma-informed knowledge and skills to promote racial equity and resilience in Worcester this winter.
The sessions covered three areas:
The Center for Child Wellbeing and Trauma's partnership with Thriving Minds is already making an impact! This collaboration works with school districts and partners to promote and support trauma-responsive and healing-centered practices. We are currently working with 12 schools and districts that serve more than 43,000 students in Massachusetts:
On November 4, 2021, the Center on Child Wellbeing and Trauma (CCWT) kicked off our first Community of Practice Cohort in collaboration with seven Family Resource Centers (FRC) located throughout the state. The CCWT did an assessment and is coaching the FRCs in becoming more trauma-informed and responsive. Learn more about our Assessment and Coaching expertise.
The sites that participated in FRC Cohort Community of Practice are:
Many children began school this year having experienced significant trauma from the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Schools must respond to this need by providing thoughtful, effective supports that focus on helping students heal from trauma.
The Office of the Child Advocate, in partnership with Commonwealth Medicine, UMass Chan Medical School, is launching the Massachusetts Center on Child Wellbeing and Trauma with funding included in this year’s state budget. The Center will support child-serving organizations and systems in becoming trauma-informed and responsive through training, technical assistance, communities of practice, and other support.