Crisis Recovery (Grief, Loss, and Hate-Based Incidents)
-
The Department of Student Success & Health crisis recovery team supports school communities as a general consultant to all issues pertaining to tragedy, death, and any event causing community impact. Our team will assist school administrators and Senior Directors to assess support needs and deliver the appropriate level of crisis recovery response.
When the incident is related to a hate-based incident, the SSH Dept partners with the MTSS Dept Restorative Justice team to coordinate response.
Where to Start?
-
Please call or text (503)939-3283. If you call during the night, someone will get back to you by 7:00 am the following morning.
The Student Success & Health Crisis Recovery Team can:
- Assist building administrators with crafting trauma-informed communication to building staff and the school community.
- Serve as a conduit between community-based agencies.
- Support school-based support staff (counselors, social workers, psychologists) in providing individual and/or group counseling for students
- Arranging virtual or in-person sessions with Trauma Intervention Program (TIP) responders.
- Assist staff in having classroom conversations with students
- Provide direction and guidance to the administrator during crisis response and via phone or email as a follow-up.
- Provide resource materials, including but not limited to; information about grief, loss, and race-based traumatic stress for students, staff, and families.
- This team continues to build out supports in response to hate-based incidents.
For Support, Contact:
Planning Tools
-
This document is intended to be used as a tool for resiliency and healing following a critical incident. While this document outlines national best practices in recovering from a critical incident, individual school communities will ultimately require customization to be truly responsive to their students, family, and staff.
Communication
-
School Level
Teacher Script and Resources
The following letters are to be used to create your own communication to students, families, and the community. Please cut and paste sections to your own letterhead.
Parent/Guardian Letter Communicating a Crisis
Parent/Guardian Letter Followup
Parent/Guardian Letter Concerning Suicide
Parent/Guardian Letter Concerning a Violent Death -
District Level
When a tragedy occurs in any of the Portland Public Schools, the Senior Directors, Director of Security 皇家华人, Executive Director of Community Involvement and Public Affairs, and Principals immediately begin notifying and supporting school personnel in responding to the tragedy. The appropriate Senior Director and the Director of Student Support keep the Superintendent and Chief of Staff informed. Administrators are advised to have written building-level School Emergency Response Plan Identifying school-level crisis teams and to hold annual reviews of plans with all staff.
Resources
-
Grief, Loss and Race-based Traumatic Stress Hotlines
(available for anyone to reach out with mental health questions or concerns- you do not need to be in crisis-Interpretation 皇家华人 Available)
(24 hours a day 7 days a week-Interpretation 皇家华人 Available)
-
Grief and Loss Resources
(Kairos PDX and Dougy Center)
(Spanish)
(Spanish)
(Dougy Center)
(Dougy Center)
(Very Well Mind)
(Grief Speaks)
(National Hispanic and Latino MHTTC Network)
(Dougy Center)
(Dougy Center)
(Center for Complicated Grief)
The Three Tasks Facing Children in Grief (pdf)
-
Grief and Loss Webinars/Podcasts
(University of Missouri professor and researcher who introduces the concept of suffocated grief for Black and Brown youth)
(Author of Grieving While Black; an AntiRacist Approach to Grief and Sorrow)
(Brenae Brown)
(National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement )
(Center for Complicated Grief)