Students learn best when they feel safe, supported, and understood

District 62 includes schools serving students who are navigating trauma from violence, loss, housing instability, and unmet mental health needs.

Too many students carry grief, trauma, and stress into the classroom without the support they need to succeed. When schools respond to trauma with punishment instead of care, learning suffers and students fall behind.

As a father who has lost a child and a community leader who has built real healing programs, I support a trauma-informed, healing-centered approach to education that helps students heal, supports educators, and keeps schools focused on learning.

This is not just a district issue—it is a Georgia issue. Students across our state are carrying trauma into classrooms every day, and schools need the tools and resources to respond effectively.

Core belief:
Schools should respond to trauma with care, not punishment.

Key Policy Priorities:

• Improve counselor-to-student ratios:
  Invest in more school counselors, social workers, and mental health professionals so students receive timely access to support.

• Trauma-informed training for school staff:
  Provide statewide training for teachers, administrators, and support staff in trauma-informed practices, de-escalation, and restorative approaches.

• Individualized Healing Plans (IHPs) with a 48-hour response:
  Establish Individualized Healing Plans (IHPs)—short-term, supportive plans similar to IEPs—for students returning after serious trauma, violence, loss or grief. Schools would initiate an IHP within 48 hours of a student’s return to ensure timely counseling, academic flexibility, and family engagement.

• Reduce punitive discipline, expand restorative supports:
  Prioritize restorative practices that address root causes of behavior and keep students engaged in learning.

Statewide Impact

Trauma-informed schools with IHPs improve attendance, reduce suspensions, support educators, and help students succeed academically and emotionally across Georgia.