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TIES

TIES is a pilot project designed to bring trauma-informed services to early elementary school classes, grades Pre-K through grade 1.

The goal of the program is to bring early intervention to children who exhibit symptoms of chronic stress, or trauma, in the classroom-symptoms that interfere with the child's ability to learn, such as disruptive, defensive, or withdrawn behavior. For children in need of treatment, Crittenton can work collaboratively with the school and the child's family to build an integrated environment that helps the child develop self-regulation skills. Crittenton will assist each school in creating a healing environment.

Schools will receive training; have a resource liaison available for consultation and parent education; and receive a therapeutic toolbox for the classroom.

Training for school faculty includes:
  • An overview of the ACE study, with emphasis on the ACE data and its alignment with documented health crises for WV citizens.
  • An understanding of the structural, biological, and functional impacts of impaired neurocognitive development due to chronic trauma.
  • An explanation of the ARC trauma treatment framework.
  • Examples of symptomatology, trauma indicators and behavior, intervention techniques and scenarios that explore traumatic triggering in children and resiliency building.

What will the resource liaison provide?
  • An on-call consultant for the teacher.
  • Classroom observation to help the educator evaluate environmental issues that may trigger a child.
  • Presentations to parent groups affiliated with the school.
  • Conversation to create a common language of trauma-informed practice for educators and parents.
  • Help to form partnerships between teachers and parents/parent groups to reinforce the work of resiliency building.

Crittenton can provide professional services for children/families in need of assessment and/or treatment. The pilot project locations are in communities where Wellspring Family Services provides the trauma-informed services for families. In this way, what is learned as a self-regulation skill in the classroom is reinforced in the home environment.

For more information on TIES, contact .

Crittenton staff will use the CLASS®, Classroom Assessment Scoring System, which evaluates the activity of the classroom over a number of domains. In addition, the participating school is encouraged to include its own assessments, such as reduced absenteeism or reduced disciplinary actions.

Yes. There is a similar model used in Head Start developed by the Crittenton Children's Center, Head Start Trauma Smart, that has been used with positive results in Kansas and Missouri.

Services de santé de Genève, Inc. is a trauma-focused,nationally accredited behavioral health agency. Crittenton has been serving children and families in Geneva for 120 years. Crittenton is licensed by the WV Department of Health & Human Resources, accredited by the Council on Accreditation and a member of the WV Child Care Association.