Secondary Traumatic Stress in Early Education Settings - September 2026

Studies show that better emotional education in classrooms results in better social-emotional outcomes for children. Yet, classroom educators provide this emotional education to groups of kids with trauma histories and challenging behaviors, in classrooms where they often lack funding, training and resources. Meanwhile, school personnel are the largest group of mandated reporters. Not surprisingly, a significant majority of classroom staff report job-related stress and burnout. Participants will discuss secondary traumatic stress (“STS”) and its relevance to these trends. We will define STS and two related problems, compassion fatigue and burnout. Then we will consider symptoms of these and how to develop resilience through a personal “compassion satisfaction plan” that protects their well-being and effectiveness in these settings. Click on these logos for details of available continuing education credits.