October 24, 2023, New Brunswick, New Jersey 

Pathways to Resilience provides a national forum to help states and communities advance healing-centered, trauma-responsive policies and programs across sectors. With a growing understanding of the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and the benefits of protective factors and primary intervention strategies on mitigating the impact of trauma and toxic stress, an increasing number of states are creating dedicated offices, leadership roles, task forces, and committees to address trauma and advance strategies to promote resilience and healing. To leverage existing efforts and expertise and support growth in this area, we serve as a convenor of state and national leaders in a collaborative effort to document, build upon, and share best practices.

On October 24, 2023, Pathways to Resilience convened a Roundtable comprised of state leaders working to address and prevent trauma and promote healing and resilience within their states. In partnership with the New Jersey Department of Children and Families’ Office of Resilience and with support from Aurrera Health Group, the Burke Foundation, and the Turrell Fund, Pathways to Resilience hosted representatives from 18 states for a national dialogue.

Variability in State Infrastructure to Support the Work

States represented at the Roundtable have each adopted a unique approach to addressing ACEs and trauma and promoting resilience and healing. Participants hold an array of roles in different offices and agencies across states. Roundtable participants represented Departments and Agencies of Health, Children and Families, Mental Health and Addiction Services, Human Services, and Governor’s Offices. Some participants lead large teams, and others operate as an office of one. Many have a specific focus on trauma and resilience built into their title and office, and others are tackling these issues as parts of task forces or special initiatives. There is no one-size-fits-all approach, and each participant brought an important perspective and experience to the conversation.

A Necessary Dialogue

The energy in the room was one of excitement, collaboration, and community. Participants expressed a deep gratitude for a space to share their struggles and successes with peers. Participants were eager to dig into important conversation topics, learn from their colleagues across the country, and explore solutions and strategies within the following areas.

Investing in the Workforce

A major issue facing many state leaders today is the workforce shortage and staffing retention crisis. Universally concerning, regardless of sector or agency, staff are experiencing burnout, high turnover, and increased critical incidents. State leaders brainstormed solutions.

  • Seek and respond to input from staff. Hosting focus groups, surveys, and soliciting anonymous feedback can provide insight about gaps in resources, conflicts and crisis, and staff needs. Productive follow up – or at least sincere acknowledgement – is paramount to ensure staff feel heard, valued, and supported.
  • Consider implementing Critical Incident Stress Management teams. Having dedicated staff or external resources to provide support during critical incidents can diffuse crisis moments, support staff, and take the pressure off staff to coordinate support for one another.
  • Provide safe, supportive supervision. Staff may feel the burden of moral injury and carry secondary traumatic stress or burnout from witnessing challenging situations. Using supportive supervision to help shift the perspective from “I am failing to fix this” to “I am providing the best care within this context, time, and resources” can alleviate some of the emotional burden on staff.
  • Reduce barriers to using resources. Developing a clear, easy-to-use portal, hand out, or email listserv with information about employee wellness resources (such as health insurance benefits for wellness, trainings and workshops, free online mindfulness exercises, etc.) can encourage staff to use these resources.
  • Create formal and informal systems of caring for staff. Creating space during the workday to access resources; offering work hours for training, professional development, and supervision; and implementing real-time crisis management systems can make a big difference in supporting the workforce. These formal and informal strategies also illustrate a respect for boundaries and contribute to a healthy work environment.

Opportunities for Cross-Sector and Cross-System Collaboration

State leaders want to build and sustain cross-sector and cross-system collaboration and break down silos in the process.

  • Formalize partnerships. Many collaborations are relationship-based and may dissolve when a specific person transitions from a role or agency. Formalizing relationships, such as through a Memorandum of Understanding or Memorandum of Agreement, may help to sustain collaboration across agencies.
  • Maintain consistent contact. Engaging with partners and key collaborators at regularly scheduled intervals, regardless of deadlines or deliverables, can help deepen relationships, expose additional opportunities, and build networks.
  • Consider non-government partners. Keeping tabs on the business and nonprofit sector can open the door to new potential partnerships and expanded capacity.
  • Emphasize collaboration in strategic planning. Intentionally building cross-sector, cross-system initiatives and partnerships into strategic planning can inspire collaboration.
  • Designate experts. Having an agency staff who, by role or by expertise, is known as the go-to person for a topic, can promote cross-systems collaboration if agencies and systems are encouraged to reach out to them.

Amplifying the Role of Communities and Individuals with Lived Experience

With a national focus on the importance of community members and individuals with lived experience in program development and implementation, state leaders at the Roundtable had an array of examples and suggestions for engagement.

  • Be aware of your position. Many communities are mistrusting of government entities. Leverage community partnerships and build your capacity to be a good, trustworthy partner as a state government representative.
  • Train professionals and people with lived experience. Provide learning opportunities as an incentive for people with lived experience who want to become more engaged and gain skills. Offer clear pathways to licensing for peer support specialists. Provide trainings and professional development for government employees to better hear and respond to individuals with lived experience.
  • Make accommodations. Offer flexible hours to accommodate the needs of different individuals. Provide incentives that people identify as helpful, which might include grocery gift cards or cash stipends. Encourage virtual and in-person engagement. Offset the cost of travel, parking, and public transportation. Provide meals.
  • Include and engage with youth. Youth leadership initiatives can go a long way in tipping the scale to positive engagement with community. Uplift, empower, and acknowledge the voices of youth by holding in-person town halls, explicitly soliciting youth feedback, and providing skills-building opportunities.
  • Provide opportunities for meaningful engagement. Formalize the role of individuals with lived experience in such a way that they are able and encourage to contribute meaningfully to initiatives. Acknowledge and act on recommendations. Highlight successful partnerships.

Strategies to Scale and Sustain Initiatives

Many leaders discussed concerns about the sustainability of their work. Key strategies emerged from the conversation.

  • Braid and blend funding sources. Ideally leaders are identifying and utilizing a variety of funding sources, including state appropriations, federal matching and grants, and philanthropic partners.
  • Leverage finite resources to build capacity. Time-limited funds such as Opioid Settlement dollars or American Rescue Plan Act funds are often used to stand up the preliminary years of a new program or initiative. There is an opportunity to infusive trauma-responsive principles and practices into these initiatives.
  • Identify an external champion. Some initiatives, Pathways to Resilience included, enjoy the support of external champions like Governors Spouses. Through their own initiatives and networks these champions can help raise awareness of trauma-responsive, resilience-building work.
  • Develop legacy-building materials. Ensure that the work of an office or initiative outlasts its administration by developing a multi-year strategic plan and data reporting on outcomes. This helps illustrate the value of the initiative and may open opportunities to replicate or scale up the initiative.
  • Be intentional in your infrastructure. New offices or executive roles may consider the placement of an office or role to demonstrate the importance to the leader or support long-term sustainability. For example, an office or role housed under a specific governor may attract significant attention by media, the public, and other stakeholders, although it may not successfully withstand changes in administration. As another approach, an office or role housed in an agency or department may withstand political changes and easily integrate into related workstreams, but it may not have significant political clout.

The Need for State Leadership Learning Collaboratives

State leaders expressed a deep desire to continue building connections, sharing successful strategies, and brainstorming innovative solutions to expand adoption of trauma responsive policies and programming. Many state leaders lack peers in their states and want to forge stronger connections across states.

In response to this interest, Pathways to Resilience is delighted to announce the State Leaders in Trauma and Resilience Learning Collaborative – an opportunity for state government leaders across the country to come together and discuss their successes and challenges, learn more about topics of interest, and collaborate. This collaborative community will convene virtually each quarter. State leaders who are interested in joining the Collaborative should email Lauren Block, Director of Pathways to Resilience, at Lauren@Aurrerahealth.com.

Read more from the Roundtable: Delaware First Lady Tracey Quillen Carney on Building Hope and Resilience