About the Curriculum Authors
Steve Hydon, EdD, MSW
Dr. Hydon is the chair of the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work and PPSC Program and a professor in field education. His interests are in secondary trauma, resiliency, and social work practice in school settings. He is the president of the American Council on School Social Work and sits on the steering committee for the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Dr. Hydon has been trained by the U.S. Department of Education as an educator resilience facilitator on secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, and PFA-Listen, Protect, Connect, Model, and Teach curriculum for school personnel.
Sheryl Kataoka, MD, MSHA
Dr. Kataoka served as cochair of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry’s Schools Committee, helping to expand and improve mental health services in schools across the United States. She collaborated with colleagues at Los Angeles Unified School District and RAND in developing the Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) program to be culturally sensitive for Los Angeles’ multiethnic students. With funding from the National Institute of Mental Health, Dr. Kataoka studied how the Learning Collaborative model impacts the implementation effectiveness of evidence-based interventions in school settings.
James (Jim) Caringi, PhD, LCSW
Dr. Caringi is a professor and chair at the School of Social Work at the University of Montana. Dr. Caringi received his MSW from Boston University and his PhD in social welfare from the State University of New York at Albany. His interests are in the areas of primary and secondary traumatic stress (STS), trauma informed system development, and work with groups and teams, as well as action research. He brings over 20 years of practice experience in both clinical and macro settings and has worked in diverse environments, from the inner city housing projects of Boston to rural villages in Alaska. Dr. Caringi is a licensed clinical social worker, as well as an active national consultant, and has obtained over 4 million dollars in federal research grants.
Pamela Vona, MA, MPH
Ms. Vona is the cofounder of the Center for Safe and Resilient Schools and Workplaces. In this capacity, she provides consultation to schools and districts throughout the country to facilitate the development of comprehensive trauma-responsive school environments. Previously, Ms. Vona was the program manager for the Center for Resilience, Hope, and Wellness in Schools. Ms. Vona served as a lead developer of the Trauma Responsive School Implementation Assessment—an online assessment designed to help schools improve their responsiveness to trauma. She is also the lead developer of the Trauma-Informed Skills for Educators (TISE), a curriculum designed to enhance educators’ trauma knowledge and skills. Ms. Vona was previously a member of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) Policy Task Force and Schools Committee. Ms. Vona is completing a doctorate in education and is researching the impact of trauma-informed leadership strategies on organizational culture, climate, wellness, and productivity.
Melissa Woolley, MA
Ms. Woolley served as the project assistant for the Center for Resiliency, Hope, and Wellness in Schools. In addition to providing research support to the STAT program, Ms. Woolley has used web-based platforms to support data collection for high school students exposed to trauma.
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