Presenters: Liz Hansen, Patricia Heindel, William Trusheim, Alicia Raia-Hawrylak
Affiliations: SEL4NJ, SCCI, NJASECD, Academy for SEL in Schools, NJSCI
Description: This presentation will provide an overview of resources that are made available to schools through several of our partner organizations. We will feature SEL4NJ, the School Culture and Climate Initiative, the New Jersey Alliance for Social, Emotional, and Character Development (NJASECD), the Academy for SEL in Schools, and the NJ School Climate Improvement Platform (NJSCI). Find out what is available for you as you seek to embed SEL, character, and a positive school culture and climate in your school!
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Presenters: Erica Brentan and Kathleen McClay, The School Culture and Climate Initiative
Description: School staff carry enormous emotional and cognitive load. This interactive workshop offers practical tools to help you regulate your nervous system, replenish your energy, and reflect in ways that protect your wellbeing. Through grounding exercises, micro-restoration strategies, and guided reflection practices, you’ll leave with simple turnkey tools you can use yourself and share with colleagues. Come ready to breathe, restore, and walk away feeling lighter.
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Presenter: Patrick Fennell, Empowerment Solutions LLC
Description: This interactive workshop will explore how SECD prepares students for college, career, and life success in an ever-evolving world and workforce. Participants will examine SECD through a developmental and career-readiness lens, explore alignment with existing readiness standards, and reflect on the critical role adults play in modeling core competencies. The session will also highlight the human skills that will continue to be needed as students are impacted by the use of AI and technology. Participants will be equipped with practical strategies to ensure students are prepared for lifelong learning and continuous change.
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Presenter: Erica Brentan, The School Culture and Climate Initiative
Description: Youth social, emotional, physical, and mental health (well-being) are foundational for effective teaching and learning. Drawing from SEL and wellbeing tenets, we will explore arts-based strategies for teachers and students to build life skills to become more resilient and ready to learn.
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Presenters: Maribeth Hall, Debra Minieri, and Doug Stech, NJASECD
Description: This presentation will focus on concrete steps your school can take to involve students in planning, carrying out and improving your character education activities. This presentation will also highlight real examples of student voice from our presenting schools that illustrate the increased energy and positive student outcomes that occur in schools that put student voice at the center of their mission.
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Presenters: Barry Barbarasch and Phil Tenaglia
Affiliation: NJ Association of School Psychologists
Description: Start with the big picture: explore current student mental health trends and challenges through up-to-date data. Then move to action with the Prosocial Matrix—a simple, unifying framework to build resilience, foster connection, and improve behavior. Leave with ready-to-use tools to unlock student potential and elevate well-being for all.
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Presenters: Kira Rizzuto
Affiliation: Arts Ed NJ
Description: This session will celebrate the many ways arts-based learning can activate student empowerment and foster positive culture and climate! Participants will investigate how arts education can support many school and district goals, while preparing students for success in school and in life. Join us for this interactive session that will spark reflection and joy!
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Presenters: Liz Hansen Warner, Trish Heindel, Julie Borst, Greg Stankiewicz, Ross Whiting, New Jersey Institute of Community Schools
Description: A Community School Framework has been shown to benefit all within a school community whether through reduced turnover/increased teacher retention of educators to decreases in chronic absenteeism and greater access to mental and physical health supports. This session will explore what is a community school, why they are important, how they harness the power of community organizations, the state of community schools in NJ and the role of the newly launched Institute of Community Schools in supporting the Community School effort in NJ.
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Presenters: Mike Roseborough, Marianne Alt, and Kayla James, Children’s Home Society of New Jersey
Description: Being aware of our emotions and nurturing the ability to regulate them requires a brain-body connection. We can facilitate that connection by intentionally moving our bodies to calm them and to learn SEL skills. Moving our bodies in concert with others creates a social-emotional bond that builds individual confidence and group unity. Mike Roseborough, Marianne Alt, and Kayla James will talk about their experiences with Kidsbridge and TEDI (Trenton Educational Dance Institute) and how movement plays a major role in SEL for the youth and adults they work with. Attendees should expect to move!
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Presenters: John Lestino, NJASP and Michael Radichel, Edgewater Park Public Schools
Description: There is a broad history in school psychology of integrating the needs of individual students with classroom, school, and community collaborations, thereby improving students’ SEL skills and relationships, often under the term, Whole Child Approach(s). This program shares both conceptual paradigms for supporting student-to-student and student-teacher collaborations and interventions for individuals and classrooms. Strategies can be used in the classroom as SEL activities and can be tailored to specific applications and needs for school-based introduction.
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