SEL Summit in the City Recap

Our SEL Summit in the City was a huge success! Two days of learning, laughing, confronting… We gathered together in-person for reflection, restoration and FUN! The event was crafted to honor the needs of all stakeholders who support school communities. Mindful Practices provided comprehensive resources and support uniquely designed to increase Social Emotional Competence (SEC), connectedness and the collective well-being of adult Stakeholders.

This is the most meaningful thing I’ve done this year?”

– Dr. Blaise Aguirre           

SEL Summit Highlight Bar

Our featured speaker, Dr. Blaise Aguirre, founding Medical Director of Harvard McLean Hospital’s 3East Continuum Adolescent DBT Program inspired us to rethink our definition our personal well-being and it’s importance to our overall health. He challenged participants to dunk their faces into bowls of ice water as a way to reset the nervous system and clear our minds. He then provided us with practical techniques to make supporting our personal well-being sustainable.

Dr. Blaise Aguirre

Dr. Blaise Aguirre discusses mindfulness, BPD, teen suicide & the clinical techniques he practices daily.

Pharlone Toussaint inspired us to focus on a healing centered school year, rather than a trauma informed one. Her activism drew us in to acknowledge that systematic racism exists and challenged us to use an abolitionist approach to creatively come up with new ideas to challenge negative views. She spoke of challenging our practices, policies and procedures to ensure that we are coming from a place of human connection and love.

Abolitionist Panel

Abolitionist Panel Lead by Pharlone Toussaint

“Attending the workshop really touched me profoundly. Mindful Practices allows educational leaders and educational instructors a space to reflect on their daily processes and interactions with all stakeholders. As a school leader, Mindful Practices allowed me the space to reflect on my practice and allowed me to deconstruct views and thoughts that did not serve me as an individual and/or as a school leader. I was able to connect to ‘ME.’ I was able to take out the time to make a commitment to myself and to others. The commitment allowed growth as a person and as a leader.

– Dr. Jones
Assistant Principal
Nancy B Jefferson HS

A CPS graduate, Lashawnda Kilgore, shared her inspiring story of being a student in foster care navigating through the educational system. She offered words of encouragement to educators for the new school year. Lashawnda demonstrated that the educators in her life supported her through trauma and supported her to become the woman and scholar she is today. She is just a few months away from defending her PhD at the University of Missouri in Family Communication. Look her up on Apple Podcasts to hear about her journey – Healing is the New Normal.

LaShawnda Kilgore

LaShawnda Kilgore speaks about overcoming trauma and healing through the power of education.

Summit participants participated in break out sessions including hip hop yoga, painted masterpieces with our CPS art teacher Aaron, and joined more in depth conversations with our speakers. At the end of each day, we all enjoyed some appetizers, put our dancing shoes on and reflected on each day of learning with new and old friends. We hope you join us next summer!

“Dr. Treadwell’s words during the opening remarks were inspiring. She let us as educators know that we “must be willing to be a currency of connection”. The breakout sessions were meaningful with one even allowing for us to reenact moments in our personal and professional lives that called for us to have difficult yet necessary conversations.

– Stephanie Miller-Henderson
CPS School Counselor

SEL Summit Highlight Bar 2

Want to participate in the next SEL Summit? Have questions? Send us an email to Mindful Practices and let us know! hello@mindfulpractices.us.