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Dear Members,

In light of the recent tragic events in Lewiston, it is essential that we come together not only to support our students but also to care for one another. Our role as educators extends beyond the classroom, and our compassion and guidance are needed now more than ever.

There are no words that can convey the depth of grief and horror that we feel. Our hearts go out to the families and friends who have lost loved ones and to those who have been injured in this senseless act. We all share in this devastating loss. We must commit to doing all we can to make this something that won't happen again. And we will.

As you work through your emotions, here is a set of guidelines to help provide the necessary support and comfort to our students, tailored to their developmental needs:

Be Available and Patient: Take the time to listen and be available for your students. Let their questions be your guide in determining how much information to provide. Understand that children and youth may not always express their feelings verbally. Look for subtle cues, such as their presence while you engage in daily tasks.

Developmentally Appropriate Explanations: Recognize the varying needs of different age groups. For early elementary school children, offer brief, simple information balanced with reassurances of their safety. Mention concrete safety measures like locked doors, playground monitoring, and emergency drills.

Engage in Honest Discussions: Upper elementary and early middle school students may be more vocal in seeking information. Assist them in distinguishing between reality and fantasy and discuss the efforts of school and community leaders in providing safety.

Empower High School Students: High school students often have strong opinions and ideas about safety and violence. Emphasize their role in maintaining safe schools by following guidelines, reporting concerns, and accessing emotional support.

Review Safety Procedures: Ensure that students are aware of school and home safety procedures. Help them identify trusted adults they can turn to if they feel threatened.

Observe Emotional States: Watch for changes in behavior, appetite, and sleep patterns as signs of anxiety or discomfort. Seek professional help promptly for children at risk of severe reactions.

Limit Media Exposure: Encourage healthy media consumption. Monitor what students view online and guide them away from developmentally inappropriate content. Be mindful of conversations and comments that may be misunderstood by children.

Maintain Routine: Promote a sense of security by adhering to a regular schedule. Encourage adequate sleep, balanced meals, and physical activity. Support students in their schoolwork and extracurricular activities without overwhelming them.

Remember, these guidelines apply to us as educators as well. To best care for our students, we must first care for ourselves. Let us support one another during these challenging times, sharing the burden and finding strength in our unity as educators.

Additionally, you have access to more support through MEABT to speak with health professionals to support you through this time. Please, do not hesitate to reach out to us for any support needed, be it in the classroom, the halls, or in your personal lives.

Thank you for your dedication to our students and to each other.
FMI: MEABT licensed clinicians School Crisis Guide
Stay Safe,
Grace Leavitt, President
Maine Education Association

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Support Following Tragic Shooting - Maine Education Association

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Dear Members, In light of the recent tragic events in Lewiston, it is essential that we come together not only to support our students but also to care for one [...]

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Schools experience a wide variety of crises that have the potential to harm the mental and physical health, learning environment, and safety of students and educators.

School crises can be on a large scale, such as severe
violence, hostage situations, and natural disasters that require an emergency response from the community.

Or, they can be more individualized, such as a car accident or the unexpected death of a student.

In NEA's School Crisis Guide, we offer a step-by-step outline of what to do before, during, and after any school or community crisis like a natural disaster.

Prevent: Avoid the occurrence of incidents or lessen the harm done by unavoidable incidents.

Prevent: Plan for worst-case scenarios, including a continuous cycle of planning, practicing, and evaluating actions aimed at an effective response to an incident.

Respond: Steps to minimize harm to people and property during a particular incident.

Recover: Restore learning and teaching environment after an incident.

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A step-by-step outline of what to do before, during, and after any school or community crisis.

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NEA: Grief and Loss Resources for Educators and Students

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NEA: Grief and Loss Resources for Educators and Students

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NEA: How to help your school community through grief and loss

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NEA: How to help your school community through grief and loss

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A Clarke County, Georgia, school bus driver contracted COVID-19 from one of his passengers and thinks he passed the virus to his grandson, who was hospitalized because he has the lung disease Cystic Fibrosis. A fourth grader who made a strong bond with his teacher through their shared sense of humor lost that beloved educator and friend to COVID-19 over the holiday break. The school community worked tirelessly to help that class cope with their grief. Many other educators have similar stories of loss, grief and trauma from the past year, but the usual process of grieving - and helping others grieve - has been hampered by the strong emotions, fears and social limitations the current pandemic has brought with it.

The National Education Association is one of the 12 organizations that founded the Coalition to Support Grieving Students, which is now 29 organizations strong with more than 100 who promote the program. The Coalition has partnered with NEA to create resources and tools for teachers and school support staff, like paraeducators, custodians, bus drivers, and cafeteria workers, who are unable to adequately offer help for grieving students, families and colleagues if they don't know how -- especially in a pandemic where social distance prevents the human connection and healing power of a hug or a reassuring hand on a shoulder or even a shared cup of coffee.

"There are a lot of people who have been touched by death during the pandemic, and people working in schools have often been faced with it - all of it in an atmosphere where there is so much else that we have lost," says David Schonfeld, director of the National Center for School Crisis & Bereavement (NCSCB) at Children's Hospital in Los Angeles.

Pandemic Grief Poses Unique Challenges

Schonfeld notes several people in each school community likely have suffered a loss during the pandemic. In one area where he offered guidance, students and staff reported over 100 school community members had died from COVID 19.

And while Schonfeld and NCSCB have worked in communities with losses from other devastating tragedies, such as the Parkland High School shootings, the 9-11 attack and major natural disasters, bereavement during the pandemic has been different, he says.

"I don't think you can compare events that cause the loss of life and say that one is worse than another. If a child loses a parent, it is just as difficult no matter what the circumstances," he says. "But the pandemic has been different in many ways because it didn't end at a specific date, it doesn't allow for the support we can normally provide, it's global with everyone affected and there is so much loss of all types."

The pandemic has put unusual stress on the human resources and finances of schools which limits their ability to respond and creates difficult work situations or layoffs - adding to the unique stress that grieving causes and often complicating it, he says.

He believes the toll on educators also has grown because of ongoing "secondary losses" with the isolation and concerns about health, finances or the inability to get support because of social distancing or because they are overwhelmed by work or their own emotional concerns.

"There is a gap in supporting adults in a school system anyway, and that gap has been even more evident during the pandemic," Schonfeld says, noting that it heightens the anxiety of educators already facing unusual personal and job-related challenges. Counseling departments and other resources providing support to students and staff that often are already undervalued may be seen as areas where staff and budget cuts can be made.

Strategies to Help Students, Families, and Colleagues

To help address the issue, the NEA Education Support Professional Learning Network held a webinar for nearly 700 attendees which focused on supporting educators through grief and loss. During the session, educators asked about issues ranging from concern about a student who is not verbalizing their emotions, supporting a colleague who is grieving, or reaching out to a struggling parent, all while juggling heavy school workload and individual stress levels.

Thomas Demaria, a psychologist specializing in grief who led the seminar, says grief in the past year has reached deeply into most school communities. Support professionals often come face to face with the issue in their key positions in clerical services, custodial and maintenance services, food services, health and student services, paraeducators, security services, skilled trades, technical services and transportation services.

He recommends educators help others in the school community by being patient and attentive to others' needs, but also by taking care of themselves.

The fundamental concepts about bereavement still apply, Demaria says. Grief is a normal, healthy emotion but a very individualized process that follows no particular pattern nor schedule and can be triggered in a variety of ways. He said people should understand that it may not end at a specific time but that we "just carry it differently" over time, and that we should neither gloss over the grief in ourselves or others or let it be consuming.

Some strategies for handling grief include acceptance and allowing grief to "come and go like waves in the ocean." It also helps to share memories and emotions and avoid "thought traps" such as regretting a conversation or blaming oneself or others.

"We have all gone through a lot during the pandemic," Demaria says. "We all went through a lot of losses at a lot of different levels, and the most important one is when we lose someone we love or someone who is close to us. We have to recognize how hard that is, give it time and give ourselves a chance to heal -- and with others we have to make sure people get the support they need."

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How to Help Your School Community Through Grief and Loss | NEA

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Countless people have been touched by grief during the pandemic, and people working in schools have often struggled with it - in an atmosphere where there is so much else that we have lost.

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Coalition to Support Grieving Students: Not sure what to say?

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Coalition to Support Grieving Students: Not sure what to say?

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A Little Bit of Rob, Barbara J Turner

A Quilt For Elizabeth, B.R. Tiffault

A Terrible Thing Happened, Margaret Holmes

After Charlotte's Mom Died, C. Spelman

Alice's Special Room, Dick Gackenbach

Animal Crackers, Bridget Marshall

Badger's Parting Gifts, Susan Varley

Bear's Last Journey, Udo Weigelt

Daddy's Chair, S. Lanton

Don't Despair on Thursdays: Children's Grief Management, Adolph Moser

Double Dip Feelings, Barbara S. Cain

Everett Anderson's Goodbye, Lucille Clifton

Feelings Inside You and Outloud Too, B. Pollard

Geranium Morning, S. Powell

Grandad Bill's Song, Jane Yolen

Grandma's Scrapbook, Josephine Nobisso

Healing Your Grieving Heart For Kids, Alan Wolfelt

How I Feel: Coloring Book For Grieving Children, Alan Wolfelt

How To Get Rid of Bad Dreams, Nancy Hazbry & Roy Condry

I Get So Mad, Melody House

I Heard Your Mommy Died, M. Scrivani

I Heard Your Daddy Died, M. Scrivani

I Know I Made It Happen, Lynn Blackburn

I Miss You: A First Look at Death, Pat Thomas

I Was So Mad, Mercer Mayer

I Wish I Could Hold Your Hand, Pat Palmer

I'll Always Love You, Hans Wilhelm

It Must Hurt a Lot, D. Sanford

It's Not Your Fault, J. Flynn

Lifetimes, B. Mellonie & R. Ingpen

Lifetimes: The Beautiful Way to Explain Death, Bryan Mellonie

Liplap's Wish, J. London

Lost and Found: Remembering a Sister, Ellen Yeomans

Love is a Family, Roma Downey

Molly's Mom Died, Margaret Holmes

My Grandma Leonie, Bijou Le Tord

My Grandson Lew, Charlotte Zolotow

My Many Colored Days, Dr Seuss

Sad Isn't Bad: A Good Grief Guidebook, Michaelene Mundy

Samantha Jane's Missing Smile, Julie Kaplow and Donna Pincus

Saying Goodbye To Daddy, J. Vigna

Some of the Pieces, M. Madenski

Someone Special Died, Joan S. Prestine

Sometimes I Feel Like a Storm Cloud, Lezlie Evans

Stacy Had a Little Sister, Wendie C. Old

Tear Soup, Pat Schwiebert and Chuck Deklyen

The Accident, Carol Carrick

The Brightest Star, K.M. Hemery

The Dead Bird, M.W. Brown & R. Charlip

The Fall of Freddie the Leaf, Leo Buscaglia

The Garden Angel, Jan Czech

The Hurt, Teddi Doleski

The Invisible String, Patrice Karst

The Memory Box, Kirsten Mclaughlin

The Saddest Time, Norma Simon

The Snowman, Robin Helen Vogel

The Tenth Good Thing About Barney, Judith Viorst

Timmy's Christmas Surprise, Karla Wheeler

Toby, Margaret Wild

Today I Feel Silly, Jamie Lee Curtis

Tough Boris, Mem Fox

When Dinosaurs Die: A Guide To Understanding Death, Laurie Krasny Borwn & Marc Brown

When Someone Dies, Sharon Greenlee

When Something Terrible Happens, Marge Heegaard

Where's Jess?, Joy Johnson

Why Do People Die?, Cynthia Macgregor

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A Little Bit of Rob, Barbara J Turner A Quilt For Elizabeth, B.R. Tiffault A Terrible Thing Happened, Margaret Holmes After Charlotte's Mom Died, C. Spelman Alice's Special Room, Dick Gackenbach Animal Crackers, Bridget Marshall Badger's Parting Gifts, Susan Varley Bear's Last Journey, Udo Weigelt Daddy's Chair, S.

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American Psychological Association- Grief: Coping with the less of your loved one

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American Psychological Association- Grief: Coping with the less of your loved one

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Grief is the anguish experienced after significant loss, usually the death of a beloved person.

Grief often includes physiological distress, separation anxiety, confusion, yearning, obsessive dwelling on the past, and apprehension about the future. Intense grief can become life-threatening through disruption of the immune system, self-neglect, and suicidal thoughts.

Grief may also take the form of regret for something lost, remorse for something done, or sorrow for a mishap to oneself.

Adapted from the APA Dictionary of Psychology

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Grief is the anguish experienced after significant loss, usually the death of a beloved person.

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NEA Webinar- Our Bodies: Are we paying attention to the signals? 

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NEA Webinar- Our Bodies: Are we paying attention to the signals? 

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Our Bodies: Are We Paying Attention to the Signals?

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Avoid the Burnout:  How Taking Care of You is the First Step in Meeting the Needs of the Student