Introduction

With all of the challenges facing educators right now, we need spaces for rest, reflection, togetherness, and hope.  In this Community of Practice (CoP), we will envision, experience, and co-create a thriving learning community—with a focus on care, compassion, and connection. 

Our goals for the community of practice include the following: 

• To deepen our understanding of the science of social and emotional well-being
• To experience greater well-being as adult learners in community
• To share ideas and best practices for supporting our students, colleagues, and ourselves

Each session will feature:

• An inclusive, welcoming ritual
• A featured practice or reflection
• An opportunity for small group networking and support
• A time to share thoughts and questions with the larger group
• An optimistic closure

 

Session Topics

Session 1: What is Our “Why”?

How am I drawing on my strengths in service of all students and adults I lead? How am I celebrating and centering my students’ voices and my colleagues’ leadership?

Session 2: Care

What strategies and supports help me to navigate challenging emotions and experiences with kindness and care? 

Session 3: Compassion

How can I extend compassion to myself and my students?

Session 4: Connection 

How can I help to create inclusive spaces where my students and colleagues experience a sense of safety, trust, and connectedness?

Session 5: Hope

How can I nurture a “will” and a “way” forward in my work as an educator?

 

Logistics

When and Where Will the Community of Practice Take Place?

The fourth Wednesday of each month (January-May), 3:30 - 5:00 p.m. (Pacific Time)—January 25, February 22, March 22, April 26 and May 24. All sessions will take place on Zoom and will last approximately 90 minutes. We ask that those who enroll do their best to attend every session for continuity of community.

We plan to offer additional CoPs over the next few years. If you would like to be notified as we launch new programs, please sign up here.

Who Should Join the Community of Practice?

• Pre-K through 12 classroom teachers, paraeducators, and out-of-school-time providers
• Pre-K-12 school mental health professionals and counselors
• Pre-K-12 school and district-level administrators
• Pre-K-12 teacher and administrator educators
• Other higher education lecturers or professors are welcome to register, but please be aware that the course is geared primarily towards Pre-K-12 educators

What is the Cost to Participate?

The cost to enroll in the Community of Practice is $99/person. 

The Greater Good Science Center is funded entirely by donations and grants—we do not receive any financial support from the University of California, Berkeley. However, we are able to offer many of our GGSC resources for free because we charge for some of our programs and courses. We do our best to make our courses and events affordable for everyone, but realize that “affordable” can mean vastly different things depending on individual or geographic circumstances. If this rate is prohibitive and you need additional support, please reach out to us at ggsceducation@berkeley.edu to discuss payment options.

 

Community Facilitators

Amy L. Eva

Amy L. Eva, Ph.D., is the associate education director at the Greater Good Science Center. As an educational psychologist and teacher educator with over 25 years in classrooms, she currently writes, presents, and leads online courses focused on student and educator well-being, mindfulness, and courage. She is also one of the key developers of the website, Greater Good in Education, which features science-based practices for creating kinder, happier schools.

During her twelve-year tenure as a teacher educator, she became particularly passionate about educator self-care and resilience. Her new book, Surviving Teacher Burnout: A Weekly Guide To Build Resilience, Deal with Emotional Exhaustion, and Stay Inspired in the Classroom, features 52 simple, low-lift strategies for enhancing educational professionals’ social and emotional well-being.

As a researcher, Amy has published in the areas of teacher education, metacognition, adolescent mental health, and mindfulness-based interventions with marginalized youth. She has also written numerous articles for Greater Good Magazine (as well as Edutopia, Mindful, and The Huffington Post).

She received her Ph.D. in Educational Psychology (Human Development and Cognition) from the University of Washington where she worked with high school students in language arts classes, helping them to draw on their emotional responses to poetry to guide their understanding and enhance their appreciation of literature.

Allison Briscoe-Smith

Dr. Briscoe-Smith earned her undergraduate degree from Harvard University and her clinical psychology Ph.D. from University of California Berkeley. She then went on to continue her specialization in trauma and ethnic minority mental health through internship and postdoctoral work at University of California San Francisco/San Francisco General Hospital.

She has combined her love of teaching and advocacy by serving as a professor, by directing mental health programs for children experiencing trauma, homelessness or foster care and developing her own consultancy. Much of her work has been with schools, higher ed, philanthropy and health care organizations, as a clinician, consultant and trainer. She also provides training and consultation to organizations and systems determined to create spaces of healing and belonging. The opportunities for her to serve have included everything from consulting with children’s media to providing coaching to executives in large organizations.

She currently serves as the Diversity Lead of Student Life at the University of Washington, as the founder and principal of Soft River Consultation and as a Senior Fellow at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center where she focuses on developing and implementing the science of bridging (connecting across our differences).