Educators as Architects of Change

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Before we begin, a quick note that the Hogg foundation has an open funding opportunity for the Libraries Supporting Community Mental Health Initiative. To learn more about this opportunity, visit our website at hogg utexas. Edu Funding Opportunities and now we bring you episode 188 of of into the Fold. A classroom is more than desks and whiteboards. It's a place where young people learn how to solve problems, how to collaborate, how to face challenges. And sometimes it's where they first encounter the tools they need to care for [00:00:45] Speaker B: their own mental health. [00:00:49] Speaker A: In schools across Texas, educators are being asked to do something extraordinary support learning while also responding to rising levels of anxiety, trauma and emotional distress among students. But what if schools weren't just responding to these challenges? What if they were designing new systems to meet them? This episode explores how educators can become architects of change, building environments where social emotional well being is part of the foundation of learning. Hi, welcome to into the the Mental Health Podcast. I'm Mike Evans and I'm glad to have you with us as we continue our season long exploration of growing capacity for change. This episode is part one of the research, innovation and education arc of our season. Over these three episodes we focus on how individuals, organizations and communities bridge the gap between research and practice, exploring how promising ideas are tested, refined and implemented in real world settings for today, educators as architects of change and so I [00:02:06] Speaker C: think the old way of coming to [00:02:08] Speaker D: school and you behave or you have [00:02:12] Speaker C: a punishment has to shift. And we very much have to have our educators trained and buy into the [00:02:20] Speaker D: fact that we can reteach social emotional skills and behavior in the same way [00:02:27] Speaker C: that we teach academics. [00:02:28] Speaker D: If we can teach them to read, [00:02:31] Speaker C: then we can teach them what to do with those emotions. We can teach them what to do with that behavior. [00:02:37] Speaker A: One of the ways the Hogg foundation supports innovation is through the Reliable Flexible Funding Initiative, or rff, which funds capacity building projects across Texas that test new approaches to improving mental health and well being. One of those projects is happening in ARP Independent School District, a rural district in East Texas. Their project, called ARP Creating Pathways to Social Emotional well Being for All Students, takes a whole system approach to student mental health. It combines sensory based regulation spaces, training for educators and families, and expanded access to mental health services. [00:03:30] Speaker B: Joining us today is Beth hines, principal of Arp Elementary School. In 2023, Arp ISD was a recipient of a Reliable flexible funding grant from the HOGG Found. Beth, thank you so much for being with us today. [00:03:49] Speaker D: Absolutely, thanks for having me. [00:03:53] Speaker B: So let's start with the Big picture. Across the country, schools are increasingly being asked to respond to students mental health needs. From your perspective as a school principal, what are educators seeing right now in terms of student emotional and behavioral challenges? [00:04:18] Speaker D: I think more than ever before, especially post pandemic, we're seeing an increase in students inability to regulate their emotions. [00:04:29] Speaker C: They have very limited executive functioning skills [00:04:33] Speaker D: like conflict resolution when they're coming to [00:04:36] Speaker C: school, as well as an increase as [00:04:38] Speaker D: a result of those things, an increase [00:04:40] Speaker C: in physically aggressive behaviors. And I'm talking about like our littlest [00:04:45] Speaker D: learners from pre K kinder one where we used to not see such big [00:04:51] Speaker C: behaviors from them, we're seeing across the [00:04:55] Speaker D: board huge increases in those numbers. And teachers are struggling to keep up [00:05:01] Speaker C: with the ever changing needs of those students. [00:05:05] Speaker D: They, they come to us from their teacher prep programs and they know how to teach content and they know classroom management and they know, you know, all the skills needed to make them a successful teacher. But many times they don't have the tools to be a counselor or to teach students those social emotional regulation skills [00:05:26] Speaker C: that they need without additional training. And so that's one of the things [00:05:31] Speaker D: that this grant has given us the [00:05:33] Speaker C: opportunity to do, is to provide that training to our teachers. Trauma training, social emotional skills training. [00:05:41] Speaker D: How do you teach that to a [00:05:43] Speaker C: four year old that doesn't have the words to always tell you why they're [00:05:47] Speaker D: feeling what they're feeling? And then also in addition, we've created [00:05:53] Speaker C: a refocus and reset room. The first one is the refocus room, which is a sensory room. And then the second one is a behavior classroom that we call the reset room. So the behavioral challenges have kind of [00:06:07] Speaker D: necessitated the need for those things so that we can keep them at school, we can help them regulate, give them their tools that they need to do [00:06:17] Speaker C: that, and then get them back in [00:06:19] Speaker D: class so that they can learn. [00:06:20] Speaker C: Because if they're not emotionally regulated, they [00:06:24] Speaker D: can't learn to read, they can't learn to add. So now we're kind of backtracking and giving them what their body and emotions need in order to learn. [00:06:36] Speaker A: Okay. [00:06:37] Speaker B: And so. When schools begin recognizing these needs, I guess the next question for me is like what, what, what can we realistically build inside a school system to support students? [00:06:59] Speaker D: So what we've attempted to do on our campus is create a tiered response, just like we would for academics. When you talk about what students need [00:07:10] Speaker C: academically, we have a multi tiered response [00:07:14] Speaker D: where we have whole group instruction, we have small group instruction, and then based on individual need, they may get pull out programs and such. So we've done the same thing with [00:07:24] Speaker C: their social and behavioral needs, but we've made that part of our tiered process. And so whole group instruction for our [00:07:33] Speaker D: students is in the classroom capturing kids hearts, building those relationships, teaching those character words like responsibility and kindness and self control and doing that with all students. Then we have small group intervention, which is where our refocus and reset room comes in for those students that are struggling in the classroom to keep them, [00:07:59] Speaker C: keep their hands to themselves or get along with others. [00:08:04] Speaker D: While that may be age appropriate, it's not always a desired behavior in the classroom as you can imagine. And so we schedule times for them to come out of the classroom when they're not upset so that we can teach them what does this look like? Let's practice it in like role playing, [00:08:26] Speaker C: setting them up, taking turns, things like [00:08:29] Speaker D: that in a low stress environment, one on one or small group situation. [00:08:33] Speaker C: And we do that in our refocus [00:08:36] Speaker D: room, which is our first tier of intervention for behavior and emotional needs. [00:08:42] Speaker C: And then the next tier of intervention [00:08:44] Speaker D: would be do they need one on one intervention? [00:08:49] Speaker C: Do they need to come out and [00:08:50] Speaker D: just have a sensory break? Do they need to come out every day? Do they need, do they need to come out multiple times a day? What are they needing? We're trying to use this in a preventative way to find out what they need and give it to them before they need it. [00:09:05] Speaker C: For example, we had a little friend who in pre K was having an [00:09:11] Speaker D: enormous meltdown to the point of throwing [00:09:13] Speaker C: chairs every single day around 10:15. Well to find out he was really hungry. [00:09:21] Speaker D: Lunch was not until about 11. And while most of us, you know, [00:09:26] Speaker C: we understand, hey, lunch is coming up, lunch is coming up. [00:09:29] Speaker D: At 4 years old, if their body [00:09:30] Speaker C: is hungry, we all get hangry, we [00:09:33] Speaker D: all get grumpy when we're hungry. And so it was a simple tweak [00:09:36] Speaker C: of let's come out, it's not snack time, we don't want to eat a snack in front of the whole classroom. So he comes out at 10 o' [00:09:44] Speaker D: clock every day because if 10:15 is [00:09:46] Speaker C: his meltdown, we want to reach him [00:09:47] Speaker D: before that need hits. [00:09:49] Speaker C: And so at 10 o' clock he comes out, he goes down to the [00:09:51] Speaker D: refocus room, he talks about his emotions and how do you feel when you get upset? What's an appropriate response? And he does that while he's eating a snack. So he's getting what his body needs, he's getting instruction in what his emotions need. [00:10:05] Speaker C: And then he goes back to class. We have not had any major issues since that time. And so it's just preventatively finding things out. And that's a very simple example. I wish they were all that easy [00:10:18] Speaker D: to figure out what they need. [00:10:20] Speaker C: Sometimes it's trial and error, sometimes it's [00:10:22] Speaker D: trying different times or different needs and [00:10:24] Speaker C: finding out what that is. [00:10:26] Speaker D: And then for our most at risk students, when we have tried all of [00:10:35] Speaker C: the refocus breaks and things like that [00:10:38] Speaker D: this year, we've been able to create a reset room, which is a behavior classroom staffed with a certified teacher. And we can use that for our [00:10:47] Speaker C: special ed students that we've done everything else for. I want to backtrack just a little [00:10:52] Speaker D: bit and say that our refocus room, [00:10:55] Speaker C: which is the sensory room, I'm very [00:10:57] Speaker D: proud that we've been able to keep that for gen ed and special ed students. A lot of times with the funding and the resources that districts have, it [00:11:07] Speaker C: becomes a special ed only thing. [00:11:09] Speaker D: But thanks to the grant funding that we have, we've been able to keep it open to everybody. [00:11:17] Speaker B: Okay. And so that's where your project really begins to take shape. So your program arp creating pathways to social emotional well being, or at least that's how it is known to us here at the Hogg Foundation. It uses a kind of multi tiered system of support approach. So can you just walk us through those tiers and what it all means in practice for your students? [00:11:54] Speaker D: Sure. So the first tier is the refocus room, which is a sensory room. It's broken up into two different areas because students have different needs. We have a more active side of [00:12:06] Speaker C: the room where we have a crash [00:12:08] Speaker D: pad and a rock wall and other [00:12:11] Speaker C: a trampoline and things like that. [00:12:13] Speaker D: For those students that need more input in their body in order to regulate themselves, we have that area of the room. And so one of the things we do is we teach them to recognize what their body needs. But we're also guiding them along that [00:12:29] Speaker C: way and prescribing them what they need. [00:12:32] Speaker D: For example, if they come in worked up and they really want to be on the trampoline, but we know that [00:12:37] Speaker C: when they get back to class, they have a test. We may give them a timer and [00:12:42] Speaker D: they may be on that trampoline for two minutes to get some of that energy out. But we know that what they really [00:12:47] Speaker C: need is to come into this more [00:12:50] Speaker D: calming side of the room and do some more regulation type things so that [00:12:55] Speaker C: when they go back to the classroom, we've set them up to be ready to test. So the other side of that room [00:13:01] Speaker D: is a more calming area. We have a bubble tube, we have a compression canoe. [00:13:05] Speaker C: We have things like that for tactile things, different sensory boards, light, it's a [00:13:12] Speaker D: dimmer part of the room with the lights dimmed and more like a glowy, calming feel. [00:13:19] Speaker C: And so that room is where we talk about. [00:13:23] Speaker D: They go for breaks. [00:13:25] Speaker C: If they are a student that has [00:13:28] Speaker D: ADHD or even ADHD characteristics, maybe they [00:13:32] Speaker C: haven't been diagnosed yet, they're allowed to [00:13:35] Speaker D: visit that room on either scheduled breaks, which is the goal. We want to schedule it so that we can kind of preemptively head off some of those undesired behaviors. But then we also, the flip side [00:13:48] Speaker C: of that, we use it in reaction to those moments. [00:13:52] Speaker D: Because if we can get them to verbalize, I need to cool off, I need to calm down and use that as a tool, then we can prevent [00:14:00] Speaker C: more office led consequences that may or may not work for kids. [00:14:07] Speaker D: Really what we want to do with this program is teach them the tools that they need and how to handle those emotions before it rises to the [00:14:16] Speaker C: level of a consequence. Which is why we've been able to separate out the behavior classroom into a [00:14:22] Speaker D: room across the hallway so that they're understanding the difference between I'm using this [00:14:29] Speaker C: room to help me regulate my emotions as a tool. [00:14:32] Speaker D: It's very much play based, but it is still a learning tool versus the [00:14:38] Speaker C: behavior classroom where, hey, I've had trouble [00:14:41] Speaker D: with using this tool, I'm not using it appropriately or it's not working for me yet. And so then the consequence side of [00:14:48] Speaker C: it is more the behavior type classroom [00:14:51] Speaker D: where that becomes their home room. And we're working with them in a [00:14:55] Speaker C: very [00:14:58] Speaker D: structured way to get them back into the classroom. [00:15:01] Speaker C: They all have, if you're. If they're in that classroom, they have [00:15:04] Speaker D: reintegration plans that are based individually on what they need, where they're earning time [00:15:10] Speaker C: back into the classroom so that they [00:15:14] Speaker D: can be more successful there. [00:15:17] Speaker C: So another part of that is we've [00:15:19] Speaker D: partnered with Daybreak Health. [00:15:21] Speaker C: That's kind of the second tier of support, which is training for our staff [00:15:26] Speaker D: and training for our families. [00:15:28] Speaker C: We're able to push out training from them specific to an individual family needs, or we're able to push out trainings that they provide just to all of our parents. [00:15:41] Speaker D: And we do both of those options. Sometimes we send it straight to a [00:15:45] Speaker C: family that has a direct need and [00:15:47] Speaker D: sometimes it's shared with the whole community [00:15:50] Speaker C: just as a resource for them. Another thing that Daybreak does for us is they, because we're a small rural [00:15:59] Speaker D: school, we do not have like an LPC on staff. [00:16:02] Speaker C: We have a school counselor who is amazing, but sometimes our friends need more than that. [00:16:08] Speaker D: And so Daybreak steps in and fills that gap. [00:16:11] Speaker C: A lot of our families don't have the time, resources, or transportation to always [00:16:17] Speaker D: run into Tyler, which is the closest, [00:16:21] Speaker C: bigger city to us, and get the [00:16:25] Speaker D: therapy help that they need. It's either causing them to take off work and they're at risk of losing [00:16:29] Speaker C: their job, or they don't have the right insurance for the counselors they want to see. [00:16:35] Speaker D: So Daybreak partners with us, and it's very prescriptive as well, where we fill [00:16:40] Speaker C: out a referral form and they basically match. They have a nationwide system of counselors [00:16:49] Speaker D: where they match that family with a counselor that is specializing in whatever they're [00:16:54] Speaker C: going through, whether it be trauma or abuse or, you know, whatever that friend is needing. [00:17:04] Speaker D: Or maybe it's just social skills. We've tried all of the Refocus room social skills, and we've been teaching them for a while, and it doesn't seem to be so sticking or making an impact. [00:17:14] Speaker C: Then we can have a professional, a licensed professional come in and do some counseling one on one with that student. [00:17:20] Speaker D: And so we love being able to [00:17:22] Speaker C: offer that resource as part of this grant. [00:17:26] Speaker D: That's, that's part of what our partnership [00:17:28] Speaker C: is, is we used a lot of that money for that. [00:17:32] Speaker D: And then the last access, more level [00:17:38] Speaker C: of care that we're attempting to provide is [00:17:43] Speaker D: obviously our teachers need access to these strategies within their classrooms. [00:17:49] Speaker C: And so we're creating like a supply [00:17:52] Speaker D: closet within the sensory room where they can check out sensory toys or sensory boxes built individually for kids in their classrooms that they can take to their rooms and use. So what they're learning in the Refocus room will then transfer into the classroom and, and decrease their time out of the classroom. [00:18:12] Speaker C: So that's one of the things that [00:18:13] Speaker D: we want to expand into. The partnership with Daybreak helps with transportation because we've fixed a small room on campus where students can do that therapy there in the school. [00:18:26] Speaker C: Parents can come and join them in [00:18:28] Speaker D: that room, or they can join them by zoom. [00:18:31] Speaker C: And our counselor oversees that. So, um, we're very excited and proud of the growth that we've made. It's. It's one of those things with it [00:18:42] Speaker D: being a five year grant, we're ever growing and ever building what we're able to offer. [00:18:48] Speaker B: Sure. Yeah. And so you mentioned Teachers now teachers have to demonstrate their, their individual resourcefulness on a pretty constant basis. But I guess what's one of the things that's special about what it is that your school is doing is that it's really building a supportive structure that has teachers backs. And so, yeah, so they're not just individually responding to crises, but rather, you know, they have an entire structure of support to fall back on. [00:19:35] Speaker C: Yes. Yeah, I do think that's one of the things that we've been able to [00:19:40] Speaker D: offer even more this year with the addition of the behavior classroom being staffed [00:19:45] Speaker C: by a certified special ed teacher. [00:19:48] Speaker D: She also works and coaches with those teachers. So she's learning all of the strategies to help these students. [00:19:55] Speaker C: But, but then she's also checking in on our students that visit the Refocus room. She goes by and she checks in in the classrooms and she talks to those classroom teachers about what they're seeing, [00:20:06] Speaker D: what are they noticing, what do they need help with and then helping us continue to build more individualized plans for each one of those students as well as stepping in and if that teacher is open to coaching, coaching that teacher up and giving them the skills that [00:20:22] Speaker C: they need to work with that student [00:20:24] Speaker D: in the classroom or even modeling it [00:20:27] Speaker C: within the classroom, showing them what that looks like. Hey, little Johnny has been working on this tool in the Refocus room. So I'm going to come in and I'm going to hang out with him this morning and when it comes up, [00:20:38] Speaker D: we're going to model for you what he's been practicing so that you can [00:20:42] Speaker C: see how we're helping him. [00:20:45] Speaker B: Okay. And so this episode belongs to our research, innovation and education arc of episodes. Research, innovation, education being one of the main strategic focus areas of the Hogg Foundation. And so sometimes people hear the word innovation and think about technology or large scale experiments. But in your case, innovation really looks more like designing systems that help students regulate emotions, learn coping skills and access care. What I would really like to know is what you have learned so far about just what it takes for schools to successfully build this kind of mental health support system. [00:21:47] Speaker C: Sure. [00:21:48] Speaker D: I think the first level of support that schools need for that is number [00:21:54] Speaker C: one, to recognize that as a need. [00:21:57] Speaker D: There are a lot of campuses, a lot of educators, principals and teachers alike that still have a more old school [00:22:04] Speaker C: mindset where you come to school to learn, you're going to sit down, you're going to do what I say and [00:22:10] Speaker D: you're going to respect me because that's this environment. And realistically the world is not like that anymore. [00:22:17] Speaker C: Our kids are taught from an early [00:22:19] Speaker D: age to question the world around them, [00:22:21] Speaker C: which by the way, is not a bad skill to have. But we also have to learn how [00:22:26] Speaker D: to do it appropriately. [00:22:27] Speaker C: And so I think the old way of coming to school and you behave [00:22:33] Speaker D: or you have a punishment has to shift. And we very much have to have [00:22:40] Speaker C: our educators trained and buy into the fact that we can reteach social emotional [00:22:47] Speaker D: skills and behavior in the same way that we teach academics. If we can teach them to read, then we can teach them what to do with those emotions, we can teach [00:22:56] Speaker C: them what to do with that behavior. [00:22:59] Speaker D: And so that shift training with teachers, you have to have administration that buys into what you're selling. [00:23:05] Speaker C: As a principal, I couldn't do this program without the support of the people [00:23:11] Speaker D: that are higher than me and then believing in what we're doing. [00:23:14] Speaker C: And so that is huge. [00:23:16] Speaker D: So number one, just that mindset shift that this is a need and this is something that we can do and [00:23:22] Speaker C: we can offer and then support from [00:23:26] Speaker D: the higher ups and then funding. As a small rural school, even though my superintendent and my assistant superintendent fully believe in everything that I'm doing, I don't know that we would be at the level of implementation we are right [00:23:41] Speaker C: now without the funding from outside of the school because we have such limited [00:23:48] Speaker D: resources from the state and they're all allocated and how you're supposed to spend them. Right. [00:23:53] Speaker C: And so the budgets for something like [00:23:55] Speaker D: this in a small district are not always feasible to implement the plans that we're wanting to plan. So you've got to have the buy [00:24:04] Speaker C: in and then you've got to have the training. [00:24:06] Speaker D: It's got to be sustainable. Which is why this grant, being a five year grant, is so meaningful for us because it allows us to get a good solid foundation built before we lose that year to year funding. [00:24:21] Speaker C: And hopefully by the time the end [00:24:23] Speaker D: of that five years is done, we have the big components purchased, we have the big pieces in place, and then we can realistically sustain it longer than that. [00:24:36] Speaker C: I think that's huge. [00:24:37] Speaker D: One of the things I'm very proud [00:24:40] Speaker C: of as a result of this grant, [00:24:43] Speaker D: I was invited to speak at the [00:24:45] Speaker C: mental health conference at UT Tyler last [00:24:48] Speaker D: year and they recognized our work in our district. A couple of local districts came by, visited the room and were so excited about what we were doing. [00:24:59] Speaker C: And one of them, last week, I [00:25:01] Speaker D: was able to attend their groundbreaking or their ribbon cutting ceremony where they had created one as well. [00:25:08] Speaker C: She was inspired by what we had done. She went out and sought out her [00:25:12] Speaker D: own grant and was able to do [00:25:14] Speaker C: it on her campus. [00:25:15] Speaker D: And so that's what this whole thing is all about. Right? Is doing what's best for. And that's why I'm so passionate about [00:25:21] Speaker C: it, is that it can be a [00:25:25] Speaker D: small model for other students to other campuses to regulate. [00:25:29] Speaker C: Sorry, I'm super excited right now. [00:25:32] Speaker D: So other campuses can replicate what we're doing and it can impact even more students. So it's really mind blowing how impactful this can be when it's done correctly. [00:25:48] Speaker A: Yeah. [00:25:48] Speaker B: And so for other educators who may be listening, I'm sure that a lot of what you're talking about will already sound pretty familiar to a lot of them. But what advice would you give for anyone who may be thinking about just trying to walk down a similar path? [00:26:11] Speaker C: I would say start collecting data. [00:26:15] Speaker D: Now. That's what has spoke the most for my campus teachers and for my campus administrators. [00:26:23] Speaker C: When I had the data to show [00:26:24] Speaker D: this is our number of referrals, this is how it breaks down per grade level. This is what these referrals are for. And if we can reteach some of these behaviors, then look at this number percentage decrease, you can see. And so when you start talking about impacting the entire campus culture with one program that makes sense to a large amount of people. [00:26:49] Speaker C: And so we, I would say data collection is huge. [00:26:53] Speaker D: And then don't stop that. Once you start the process, you have to continue tracking that data because the success stories are what makes this sustainable. The number of students that we have taken from repeated suspensions, repeated iss, repeated removals from class. And now they are working successfully in [00:27:15] Speaker C: the classroom and only need, you know, [00:27:17] Speaker D: one or two check ins a week or they only need a refocus room break once a day. But they're spending their year in the classroom versus a year ago where they [00:27:28] Speaker C: spent most of the time out of the classroom. [00:27:32] Speaker D: That is what you need to get the momentum going and to get the buy in going. [00:27:38] Speaker C: So don't disregard the data side of it and then do your research. [00:27:44] Speaker D: Talk to your campus, find out or your district administrators, find out what the funding availability is. Can they help staff it? If you can get a grant to [00:27:53] Speaker C: build it and then find local grants, there's grants through universities such as UT [00:28:00] Speaker D: Austin, there are grants through the state, there are federal grants. [00:28:04] Speaker C: And so doing that work and not [00:28:06] Speaker D: being afraid of it. [00:28:08] Speaker C: I know personally as a teacher and [00:28:11] Speaker D: then principal, I was scared of grant writing. I thought it was some big huge thing that I couldn't do and the process is actually relatively simple. You just put your thoughts and your [00:28:24] Speaker C: hearts and your dream on paper. And then we were lucky and were able to get the first grant we applied for. But if you don't, I would say [00:28:34] Speaker D: don't give up, keep looking because there's a niche for you and if you're really passionate about making this happen, there's [00:28:41] Speaker C: a way to make it happen. [00:28:42] Speaker D: If all else fails and you can't get the grant money, then start budgeting for it and start building small. You can start with sensory items in your office. As the principal, like, I don't have [00:28:56] Speaker C: a room, I don't have staff, I don't have supplies. [00:28:58] Speaker D: Great. Take a couple hundred dollars, spend it on some sensory things and when they come to visit you, spend that time reteaching those social skills yourself. And it's the buy in from your teachers because you've put in the work will be the payoff. [00:29:14] Speaker B: Okay, so I'm going to get you out of here on this last question. You're at about the midway point in your grant from hog and if you could just tell us about just future milestones or goals, things on the horizon that have you excited and then if anyone just would like to know more about the many things happening in our ARPISD where they could go to find that information, [00:29:50] Speaker D: sure. So at this point we've got both rooms created. [00:29:54] Speaker C: We have a refocus room and a reset room. [00:29:57] Speaker D: It's about refining our systems. [00:29:59] Speaker C: At this point we really want to [00:30:02] Speaker D: get our resource closet up off the ground and running so that it's fully [00:30:08] Speaker C: stocked, it's organized, and those kits are [00:30:11] Speaker D: put together so that teachers can come in for, tell us what they need [00:30:15] Speaker C: and they can leave with resources in [00:30:16] Speaker D: their hand in that moment. We also want to do a little bit more work in the refocus room [00:30:24] Speaker C: in, you know, painting on the walls and things like that to visually [00:30:32] Speaker D: outline the different areas of the room so that students really know, hey, this is the calming area, this is the active [00:30:39] Speaker C: area, things like that. So just improving those rooms, improving what we've got, refining it and then having it ready to go for teachers to use those resources. [00:30:53] Speaker D: Those are the big goals in the next couple of years for us and making sure that that's finalized. If they want to know more about [00:31:03] Speaker C: it, they're always welcome to come to our campus. [00:31:06] Speaker D: ARP elementary. I'd be happy to show them the refocus room. [00:31:10] Speaker C: Or if that's not feasible, they're welcome to email me. [00:31:13] Speaker D: My email address is beth lpisd.org and I would love to talk to them more about it or send them pictures [00:31:24] Speaker C: or information, [00:31:27] Speaker D: whatever they need. [00:31:28] Speaker B: Okay, wonderful. Well, listen, Beth, you know the Hawk foundation is proud of all of its grantee partners. We are especially impressed by the things that you've helped to set in motion in your part of the state. We really do appreciate you taking the time today and just thank you so much. [00:31:50] Speaker D: Absolutely. Thank you so much for having me. [00:31:53] Speaker A: As we wrap up, a quick reminder that this episode is part of our new season theme Growing Capacity for Change across four Community Partnership, Policy and Research Innovation in Education. We're exploring how people all across Texas are growing their capacity toward a better, more lasting mental health landscape. If you missed the most recent arc of episodes policy, it's in our back catalog and I hope you take the time to check it out for your listening interest. Here are some snippets from those three conversations. [00:32:33] Speaker E: Students have stories to tell and by doing, by sharing these stories, we are able to really connect with each other on such an empathetic level. That's the thing that we need so much right now, is just community, is connecting hearts and minds together, knowing that we are not alone, that every, every student has someone around them who will listen to their story, learn from that and then be able to inspire others. [00:33:04] Speaker F: Stories are incredibly powerful because right now we are living in a very powerful group of people's imagination. We're living in a very powerful group of people's story. And if we want to rewrite that story, we have to start sharing our own stories and really wage the battle of big ideas and talk about our lived experiences and our perspectives and the policy changes we want to seek. As a result of the lived experiences and the stories that we all hold, [00:33:32] Speaker G: the system will keep on working and keep on functioning as it does. But there's not going to be change unless someone or people are holding that system accountable to actually put, put the reform into place. Because it's very easy to say, you know, we're going to commission this report after a disaster happens. But the follow through, the implementation, the integration of having a better and more improved system that is key here for any community and for any policy making body. [00:34:06] Speaker A: If you haven't already, check out our previous episodes this season and follow along as we continue to tell stories that connect and inspire and that does it for this episode. We're so glad that you could join us. Production assistance by Cheyenne Salazar, Kate Rooney and Daryl Wiggins and thanks as always to the Hog foundation for its support. If you have comments or anything that you would like to share about the podcast, feel free to reach out to us at into the Fold at awesome utexas. Especially thoughtful comments will be acknowledged during an upcoming episode. You're My Hour Mental Health Matters. Please leave us a review and subscribe to us on your preferred podcast platform. And don't forget to check the show notes for related content, including past episodes. Opening music by Chill Background via Pixabay Transition music by Jasmine Trom on via Pixabay Taking us out now is Anna's Good Vibes by our good friend Anna Harris. Thanks for joining us.