Trauma-Informed Programs Based in Schools: Linking Concepts to Practices and Assessing the Evidence

When children experience stress and adversity
in their homes and communities, schools become a
critically important setting in which to intervene and
foster their resilience. Changing practices within schools
so that vulnerable and traumatized children are better
understood and more compassionately served is a goal
shared by many school professionals, yet schools remain
poorly equipped to address the needs of these children.
Any number of school-based programs have the potential
to benefit children with an elevated risk for academic
difficulties and mental health disorders, although
questions remain as to which programs are most
promising, effective, and sustainable. Questions also
remain about which programs best serve diverse
populations and which have potential to reach the largest
number of children, including those who do not
outwardly manifest behaviors consistent with an
underlying disorder but nonetheless require support. In
this review, we take stock of existing programs used in
schools to address the social, emotional, and academic
needs of children with trauma histories. We summarize
components of a various trauma-focused programs,
categorized as: (a) individual and group-based approaches,
(b) classroom-based approaches, and (c) school-wide
approaches. For each category, we review and comment
on the state and quality of research findings and provide illustrative examples from the literature to show how
programs address trauma in the school context. Findings
of the review suggest that empirical evidence currently
favors individual and group-based approaches, although
classroom-based and school-wide programs may be better
positioned for integration, access to services, and
sustainability. Implications and recommendations center
on future research, practice, and policy.