Perceptions of We Can! Building Relationships and Resilience: A School Wide Trauma-Informed Training, from Trainers and Recipients

The awareness of and response to the deleterious effects of childhood trauma within education have increased over the past decade. In this article, we will describe a tier 1, universal, trauma-informed training co-created with school personnel called We Can! Building Relationships and Resilience, and share qualitative results from two subgroups: trainers and recipients of We Can!. The trainers were a group of school personnel, comprised of principals, school counselors, and teachers, who were trained in We Can! and then delivered the training to their colleagues. Recipients were school personnel (teachers, administrators, paraprofessionals, staff) who received the We Can! training from the trainers. Five themes emerged from the trainers: the importance of teaching about the brain; the mindset shift; shift in student behaviors; evolution of being leaders; and areas for improvement. Four themes emerged from the recipients: understanding student trauma; student support; school climate; and We Can! curriculum. The similarities and differences across the groups are discussed as well as how these findings align with stages of systemic change. Additionally, suggestions for trauma-informed implementation in education are provided.