Start With The Adults: Thriving Leaders And Teachers In K-12 Education

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Loading... Loading... K-12 education is at a juncture as the pandemic's impact compounds challenges, like student mental health issues, increased workload for staff, and leadership turnover. This has led to higher staff burnout and many teachers are looking for other professions: 55,000 vacant positions and 270,000 positions filled by underqualified teachers, in 2023, teacher vacancies grew by 35%. Are there principles from the field of positive psychology that leaders can use to create environments where educators not only stay but also thrive? Imagine a school where every employee feels engaged and happy to be at work; where every student felt cared for; where leadership, teachers and students all worked together to drive well-being, connection and excellent educational outcomes. School Wellbeing Solutions (SWBS) works with school districts around the nation to make this a reality for schools. Rooted in positive psychology, the science of thriving, SWBS helps school leaders build environments where every staff member feels supported and energized, ensuring they can give their best to students every day. Martín Blank, the leader behind School Wellbeing Solutions, founded the company after 16 years as an educator and administrator in public schools throughout the United States. He recognized that a barrier to academic success was often a student's inability to handle stressors and emotions. "In 2006, I began teaching in the San Francisco East Bay area, and I noticed my students were experiencing chronic stress and had challenges dealing with their emotions," says Blank. "I trained in effective stress-management practices with the International Association for Human Values and started teaching them to students across the U.S." Blank then developed the Astronauts Social Emotional Learning Program in the San Francisco Bay Area, which was quickly adopted by several California schools to support student wellness. After a successful program launch of the program supported by foundation funding, Blank was awarded the Christopher Peterson Memorial Fellowship to pursue a Masters in Applied Positive Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, one of the world's leading institutions in this field of study. During his time in the program, Blank learned from leading researchers, offering him a nuanced understanding of the core principles of positive psychology and how individuals and organizations can use them to build better, more resilient cultures. After graduating and developing powerful interventions that boost wellbeing, Blank went back to schools at the start of the pandemic to support student mental health. As he reflects, "Stressed-out teachers didn't have the capacity to truly support student wellbeing. They were too stressed out, often because of the action or inaction of their administrators. Teacher-administrative relationships were strained, the work was increasingly bureaucratic, and work environments were often toxic for most employees, and this was all preventing adults from doing the work they were passionate about. This is still the case in many schools." Blank's mission was clear: to transform education by improving the wellbeing of educators and leaders in schools. But he realized that to create lasting improvement in schools, one-off self-care or resilience training wasn't enough. He needed to work with leaders to develop systems that supported the sustainable wellbeing of employees. Blank founded School Wellbeing Solutions, a company dedicated to supporting the happiness, well-being, and resilience of adults in K-12 education. He hired world-class positive psychology coaches and created the Resilience Journey for Leaders, a 4-month professional development program designed to improve the culture and dynamics of top leadership teams, including superintendents, principals, assistant principals, and central office supervisors. Positive psychology is the study of well-being. It is a fast-growing sub-discipline of psychology. Chris Peterson, one of the founders of the field, said "positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living” (Peterson, 2008). Rather than focusing on disorders, what's wrong, and what needs to be fixed, positive psychology asks, "What can you add? What is good about this? How can you use strengths to help you get to where you want to be, whether that's individually, in relationships with others, or in larger institutions like schools?" The Resilience Journey for Leaders is unique in that it focuses on the science of wellbeing at the leadership team level, going beyond the self-care programs that are traditionally offered in the workplace. It's also unique in that it's not a blanket training program but provides personalized support for leaders through one-on-one coaching sessions, leveraging biofeedback technology for stress management, mindfulness, and tools to avoid thinking traps. The program boosts psychological safety and trust in teams. It also empowers and guides leaders to make higher-quality, data-driven, district-wide decisions that create better work conditions for their staff. Martín Blank's programs are designed around three core pillars: (a) boosting the resilience of leaders through emotional intelligence, stress management, and mindfulness; (b) promoting healthy team dynamics rooted in trust and psychological safety; and (c) creating effective and sustainable systems for a healthy workforce. Blank shares, "We can't just start with the kids. We have to look at the well-being of adults, which is often a function of the quality of their work experience. We all know that miserable people make other people miserable. When leaders and their teams are thriving, they are in the best possible position to foster conditions for everyone else to flourish. Training for improved teacher retention needs to start with the mental and emotional conditions of the people driving the interventions. Otherwise, it's all bandaids and lip service. Let's truly support those at the top. Happy leaders are more equipped to create systems that enhance the quality of work experience for everyone." School Wellbeing Solutions welcomes all school leaders to embark on a journey to enhance student and staff well-being. School Wellbeing Solutions offers support for leaders at any stage, from those new to positive psychology to those seeking to expand their existing practices. Their mission is to collaborate with schools to create a future where well-being, resilience, and joy thrive within every learning environment, so that school leaders feel energized, capable, and centered; teachers feel respected, acknowledged, and heard; and, as a result, every single student feels supported and cared for. Learn more at www.schoolwellbeingsolutions.com or email them at info@schoolwellbeingsolutions.com. Summary: Many K-12 educators and staff are leaving the profession earlier than expected. This creates challenges for schools in finding qualified replacements. There are several factors contributing to this trend. The demanding nature of teaching can be emotionally draining, and working conditions in education can sometimes fall short of other industries. The recent pandemic has brought these issues to the forefront. It has also shown many educators the importance of factors like autonomy, feeling valued, and having professional respect in the workplace. Educators are increasingly looking for more than just a good salary. They value well-being, a sense of purpose, and opportunities for professional growth. This shift means that schools with negative work environments may struggle to retain staff, even if they offer competitive pay. The emotional investment required in K-12 education can be unique compared to other professions. This can contribute to workforce challenges in the field. Image Credit: School Wellbeing Solutions This post was authored by an external contributor and does not represent Benzinga’s opinions and has not been edited for content. The information contained above is provided for informational and educational purposes only, and nothing contained herein should be construed as investment advice. Benzinga does not make any recommendation to buy or sell any security or any representation about the financial condition of any company.