CWCKC will provide services to children ages 5-13 impacted by trauma: 1) reducing time out of school for all students by lowering the rate of in and out of school suspensions; 2) reducing disruptions in the classroom due to trauma-related behaviors and incidents; 3) increasing the consistent use of school-selected strategies by classroom teachers to serve students impacted by trauma; 4) increasing student achievement among students impacted by trauma; and 5) improving the awareness and understanding of the parent community about the impact of trauma and our schools' approaches to serving students impacted by trauma.

Trained Staff

A majority of students at CWCKC are living in poverty from across the KCPS district boundaries. Some students live with trauma in their home or neighborhood; experience food insecurity routinely; have little or no quality early childhood education before entering kindergarten. Because of the increase in students with intensive social emotional needs, CWCKC added a Director of Student Support to guide the implementation of trauma-informed programs to help families meet basic needs and train teachers to respond to families in crisis.

The staff is trained in brain-based, trauma-informed practices to create a school and classroom environment that increases the sense of belonging and develops strong caring communities.

'Unmoored' Children

The world is a stressful place right now, given the global health crisis and protests over racial injustice and other issues. Academic losses, lapses in social emotional development and mental health impacted by isolation during the last couple of years have had a significant impact on children. Child psychologists and mental health experts say it is important for educators to nurture emotional connections.

A recent nationwide Gallup poll found that nearly 3 in 10 parents said their child is experiencing emotional or mental harm because of social distancing and school closures. "'Unmoored' is the best way I can describe it," said Michael Rich, associate professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School.

According to the most recent Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center, the state of Missouri had one of the highest rates of two or more childhood adverse traumatic experiences in the United States: 348,698—-26%. These experiences can have negative and lasting effects on a child's well-being and have been linked to increased risks of obesity, alcoholism and depression, according to the Foundation's research.

Locations

Click on the window icon (upper right corner) of the map below to expand. List of all program locations is included with expanded view of map. Locations are also listed on this page below the map.