Resilience and Positive Youth Development Among Somali, Latino, and Hmong Teens

Minnesota English Learner Education ConferenceNovember 14, 2014

Khalid Adam, Michelle Allen, Martha Bigelow, Jenna Cushing-Leubner, Mikow Hang, Luis Ortega, Shannon Pergament, and

Suzanne Susens

Training for Resiliency in UrbanStudents and Teachers

Who is Project TRUST?Project TRUST Collaborators

Somali Latino and Hmong Partnership for

Health & Wellness (SoLaHmo)

• Luis Ortega, MEdCommunity lead

• Khalid Adam• Mikow Hang• Shannon Pergament,

MPH, MSW

University of Minnesota

• Michele Allen, MD, MS University lead

• Martha Bigelow, PhD• Grad student• Jenna Cushing -

Leubner• Khalid Adam• Program coordinator

St. Paul Public Schools

• Como HS teachers: Bob Prifrel, Suzanne Susens

• Harding HS teachers: Luke Leba, Jennifer Funkhouser

Community Advisory Board

• Somali/Latino/Hmong parents

• Somali/Latino/Hmong students

• St. Paul Public Schools teachers

• St. Paul Public Schools administrators

What is Project TRUST?

• A teacher PD opportunity-• A research study• Goal: Support teachers in creating stronger

relationships & connections with youth & promoting resiliency (Somali, Latino, and Hmong students, useful for all students)

• Skills/application oriented• Strengths-based

Why focus on resilience?

• Key to school success and healthy development of high school students

• Assets-oriented thinking

• Foster connections to non-parental adults

Some ways people are resilient

• “optimism” (focuses on having personal agency and feeling capable of making changes in your life that are possible and realistic)

• “bouncing back” (focuses on an ability to bounce back from adversity, including cognitive adversity or putting in ”academic sweat” to solve a problem)

• “against all odds” (focuses on coming from “at-risk” environments and still finding ways to thrive)

Why focus on Somali, Latino, & Hmong students?

• These communities disproportionately experience negative social factors detrimental to long-term health and academic achievement.

• A focus on resilience for SoLaHmo students means that all students will benefit.

Why focus on teachers?

Teachers can….• Role-model responsible behavior• Provide support as non-parental adults• Increase perception of school as a caring

environment• Ensure that the youth sees self as valuable

with assets to share

Ways teachers foster resilience

• convey mutual respect• build confidence through participation• positively set and reinforce boundaries• model and reinforce interpersonal skills• establish trusting relationships• communicate high expectations and reinforce

skills

How did Project TRUST Develop?

• We began with interviews & focus groups with youth workers, teachers, students & parents

• Our community advisory board helped us set priorities for the curriculum

• We ran a “mini-pilot” with 7 high school teachers last spring

Where are we now?• In the middle of a 3 year grant funded by the

National Institutes of Health

• 9 session curriculum is part of PLC work which started end of September

• Dissemination of project progress and findings

Project TRUST PD Topics

• Facilitating a sense of belonging in school• Connecting with students, families and

communities• Supporting multiple perspective-taking• Developing growth-mindsets• Growing active listening skills• Strengthening high expectations for learning

Key Features

• Long-term• Embedded through PLCs and your own

practices• Focus on linking students’ lived experiences

with teachers’ day-to-day• Combines reflection, tapping colleagues’

knowledge & experience, & inquiry/action

Let’s have a Project TRUST experience!

Reflective & Inquiry/Action-Oriented

• Think about a time when you were faced with a challenge. How did you get through it?

• What strengths did you develop that you tap into still today to help you be successful?

Use the notecard in front of you.

Connect with a colleague

• What strength did you develop?

• What resource did you realize you had access to?

• How do you use those strengths or resources now?

Strengths, Resources, and Assets

• Share an insight from your own or your partner’s reflection

• Think about how you could play a role in developing strengths, resources or assets among your students.

Connections to Class

• Based on what we heard, what can we use in class?

Questions?/Contact

• Michele Allen: miallen@umn.edu; 612-625-4760• Luis Ortega: lortega753@gmail.com; 651-248-3861