Kristy Wells, UNH TRRE resident, is working towards completion of her M.Ed. in elementary education with dual certification in special education as a member of cohort 4. Her TRRE residency placement at Lancaster Elementary School is part of the School Administrative Unit 36 located north of the White Mountains. She co-teaches in a kindergarten classroom with the support of her TRRE teaching mentor, Kristen Foss. Wells is also enrolled in the UNH Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (TIPP) Graduate Certificate Program.
Wells demonstrated a strong desire during the application process to improve her understanding of students’ behavior as a form of communication and a desire to implement social emotional learning into her teaching. Previously as a paraprofessional and substitute teacher, she worked with students on the autism spectrum, collected behavioral data to establish IEP goals and facilitated inclusion in classrooms. Upon acceptance to TRRE, Wells learned she was eligible to apply to the TIPP Graduate Certificate program. She has jumped into TRRE and TIPP whole heartedly benefiting both her rural residency and her trauma informed care studies.
TIPP is a collaboration between the UNH Departments of Education and Social Work with the Institute on Disability designed to prepare graduate social work and special education scholars in research-based practices and systems change strategies to improve outcomes for children and youth with significant support needs. These needs include children and youth with emotional and behavioral challenges, developmental and intellectual disabilities, autism, sensory, and other learning disabilities. Applicants to TIPP must be enrolled in a master’s degree program and, in Well’s case, TRRE fulfilled the requirement. TRRE’s integration of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and social emotional learning into coursework and TIPP’s focus on trauma-informed practice are focused on improved outcomes for students and the two programs combined reinforce Wells’ views in education.
“Both programs uphold the belief that there are better ways to serve students in schools than what has been practiced historically,” said Wells. “TRRE and TIPP both share focus on implementation of UDL, ecological model-based decision making, and the newest research in brain-based learning theories. These programs are preparing me as a teacher to be a part of a movement that will create positive change in our public education here in New Hampshire.”
Dr. Mary Schuh, TIPP program coordinator, said that Wells is a fantastic addition to the program and the learning community. “Kristy offers much value to our TIPP learning community. Her knowledge and experience with rural education, Universal Design for Learning, and community supports is a gift to the other scholars in the program. Kristy’s perspective and feedback are essential to our ability to sustain and strengthen the TIPP graduate certificate.”
Based on her own personal experience, Wells understands the value and importance of teachers and the unique position they have to help students in ways that go beyond the curriculum. “Too many students are labeled as behavior challenges without any effort to find the source of the lagging skills that have become a barrier to their learning,” said Wells.
Dr. Schuh emphasizes the importance of consistently looking through a trauma-informed lens to make sure each and every student is given the tools to make them successful.
“We consistently ask the questions “are special education interventions such as segregation, low expectations, restraint, and seclusion trauma inducing?” (yes) “How can we work toward becoming trauma sensitive schools if we don't also work on eliminating the interventions that induce trauma within our educational systems?” “How can we ensure that all students, including students with complex challenges, are fully included in their neighborhood school and general education classes and use approaches such as Universal Design for Learning to make trauma sensitive schools a reality?””
How does Wells manage enrollment in two graduate programs? The coursework for both graduate programs is rigorous. With the current COVID-19 pandemic, coursework is fully remote at this time. Wells will complete the 15-month TRRE program in Sept. 2021. TIPP scholars are expected to complete the program in 2.5 years or 5 semesters. With online courses and the flexibility of TIPP, graduate students like Wells find it to balance their workload.
Wells completed a trauma responsive school implementation assessment in October and presented the findings to the SAU 36 District Leadership Team in January. In the process, Wells is creating many important connections that will help further her career in education down the road after completing her graduate work with both TIPP and TRRE.
TIPP scholars may be eligible for a $16,300 scholarship.
For more information about the Trauma Informed Policy Practice Graduate Certificate, visit the UNH Education website or email Dr. Schuh at mary.schuh@unh.edu.
Published: January 25, 2021
Co-Written by: Jennifer Baker, TRRE Program Coordinator and
Mary Schuh, Ph.D., TIPP Program Coordinator
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