As previously reported, the inaugural HEA Leadership Summit was held on January 3 at the Richards Street YWCA with the theme “Creating Educator Communities of Care.” In the months following the summit, HEA is continuing this work by sponsoring six workshops across the state to support educators. In March and April, face to face workshops were held at Leeward Community College, the University of Hawaii at Hilo, University of Hawaii Maui College and at Kauai Community College.
Each session at the face-to-face workshops started with Kaiser Permanente’s Education Theater’s Resilience In School Environments: Understanding and Practice (RISE UP) Staff Lounge, a virtual mental health and resilience professional development program for school staff and part of the Thriving Schools Resilience in School Environments (RISE) initiative. The RISE UP team employed theatre, experiential learning, mindfulness practices, and arts integration techniques to engage participants in the discovery and implementation of resilience-building tools. Participants practiced resilience tools and techniques to support staff and student health, as well as foster connection and supportive relationships with colleagues.
The second and third sessions featured Dr. Troy Hutchings, internationally recognized researcher, writer, and speaker in the areas of professional ethics, educator misconduct, and frameworks for an ethical and legal teaching practice. He is the Senior Policy Advisor for the National Association for the State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (NASDTEC). Dr. Hutchings guided an interactive discussion on creating Communities of Care by connecting educator ethics and teacher well-being. Dr. Hutchings was joined by Raymond (RJ) Rodriguez, Specialist with the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board, to pinpoint ways local teachers can connect ethics to well-being at their school sites and among their faculty. Educators left each workshop eager for more sessions with these two skilled presenters.
Two virtual follow-up sessions will occur in the Fall with Dr. Hutchings and Mr. Rodriguez, to focus on specific scenarios that educators encounter and ways to address issues while maintaining personal well-being and good mental health.
HEA is grateful to financial sponsors of these workshops: Kaiser Permanente Foundation, Hawaii Community Foundation, and the Atherton Family Foundation. We also thank the Hawaii Teacher Standards Board for endorsing our workshops featuring Dr. Hutchings and Mr. Rodriguez.
