“From Awareness to Action: Advancing Trauma-Responsive Practices in Schools“
Missed the Webinar? Watch it Here:
Build on What Works—Take the Next Step Toward a Trauma-Responsive School Culture
Following the powerful discussion in our March webinar, we’re diving even deeper into the practical realities of trauma-responsive education—because understanding trauma is only the beginning. Now it’s time to move from awareness to action.
Join us for Part 2 of our special educator series featuring expert educator and speaker Joe Antonelli, in partnership with The WhyTry Organization and the National Alternative Education Association (NAEA). Whether you joined us last time or this is your first session, you’ll walk away with new insights, fresh strategies, and renewed energy for supporting your students and yourself.
This session goes beyond the classroom to explore how school-wide culture, staff well-being, and intentional daily interactions can foster real, lasting behavior change.
What You’ll Learn:
- How educator stress, burnout, and past trauma impact student responses—and what we can do to interrupt that cycle
- What the brain needs after escalation, and how to co-regulate in those critical 22 minutes
- How to recognize the “Four F’s” (Fight, Flight, Freeze, Fawn) in real time—and tailor your responses accordingly
- Ways to increase staff buy-in around restorative and trauma-responsive practices
- How to create a safe, consistent school culture beyond the classroom—during transitions, in the office, and across campus
- How to collect behavior data without losing the heart of relationship-centered education
Whether you’re an administrator leading systemwide change or a classroom teacher managing daily behavior challenges, this conversation will leave you equipped and inspired.
Let’s continue the conversation—and take the next step, together.
Meet our panelists:
Joe Antonelli
Joe Antonelli is a veteran school administrator with deep expertise in behavior, trauma-informed practices, restorative approaches, and de-escalation. He has served in continuation high schools, trained educators nationwide, and consults with schools and districts across the U.S. Joe is a long-standing board member of the California Continuation Education Association and a two-time Administrator of the Year. He teaches in the graduate education program at the University of Redlands and is a PhD candidate in Forensic Psychology, focusing on the link between childhood trauma and adult criminal behavior. He authored Bottom Up, created the course Trauma and Behavior for Educators, and co-authored a resilience-focused paper with Stanford’s Gardner Center. Joe currently serves as an administrator in the Corona-Norco Unified School District in Southern California.
Jason Johnson
Jason Johnson is a licensed school psychologist and Director of Training & Research for WhyTry, where he consults and trains educators nationwide on resilience-based strategies to support student success. A nationally recognized expert in resilience education, he has spoken at hundreds of conferences and led WhyTry program implementations in schools, healthcare, corporate settings, and the U.S. Military. Passionate about helping students overcome challenges, Jason is dedicated to creating a culture of resilience in education.