1st Edition

Racial Trauma in the School System Naming the Pain

By Connesia Handford, Ariel D. Marrero Copyright 2022
    154 Pages
    by Routledge

    154 Pages
    by Routledge

    Racial Trauma in the School System provides foundational and clinical information for school-based mental health professionals to better understand and address the nuanced experience of racial trauma in their school.

    The book focuses on conceptualizing racial trauma and the impact it has on a child’s development and academic functioning, providing information on how to look at racially based experiences through a trauma-informed lens. Examining a wide range of racial and ethnic identities, chapters explore critical issues such as ethno-racial identity development and diagnostic classifications to help readers develop a conceptual lens to guide their approach. The clinical application of theory to practice is emphasized using complex case studies and the explanation of practical interventions. This text is the first of its kind to focus exclusively on discussing the impact of racial trauma on children and to discuss the intersection between identity and racism in the school system.

    Geared toward school-based professionals, this book considers racial trauma across a wide range of contexts and clinical presentations for other mental health professionals to adapt and apply the content to their clinical practice.

              PART I: Conceptual Foundations

    1. What is Racial Trauma?
    2. The Impact of Racial Trauma on Identity Development
    3. Culture in the School System
    4. Adjusting Your Clinical Lens
    5. PART II: Clinical Application

    6. General Guidelines for Addressing Racial Trauma
    7. Racial Trauma and the Mental Health Professional
    8. How to Assess for Racial Trauma
    9. Racial Trauma and Consultation
    10. Advocacy in the School System
    11. PART III: Special Topics

    12. Guidance for Caregivers
    13. Social Media and Racial Trauma
    14. Racial Trauma and Police Brutality
    15. Racial Trauma in Immigrant and Refugee Families
    16. Racial Trauma and Play Therapy
    17. Racial Trauma and Bibliotherapy

    Biography

    Connesia Handford, PsyD, is a Black psychologist working in Austin, Texas. She specializes in addressing Black mental health and racial trauma across the developmental life span.

    Ariel D. Marrero, PsyD, is a Latinx psychologist working in the San Francisco Bay Area. She specializes in the intersection between a child’s mental health needs and their overall school functioning.