Dedham Police, Schools Attend Training

Representatives of Dedham’s Police and School departments joined Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey and more than 60 of their colleagues from across the county at the DA’s Safe & Supportive School Trainings recently, according to a press statement.

“Research tells us half to two thirds of all students have experienced trauma – be it direct mistreatment, substance abuse, domestic abuse or mental illness in the home – sufficiently stressful to impact their capacity to learn and regulate their behavior,” Morrissey said. “These children can be successful, even after overwhelming trauma, when their school communities are shaped to support their academic success, self-regulation, health and relationships. The 2014 legislation establishing the statewide Safe & Supportive Schools Framework is an important basis for doing that, and we wanted to bring experts in the law and the science behind it to Norfolk County.”

Dedham Director of School Health Services Gail Kelley and School Resource Officers Rich Cawley and Neil Cronin attended the all-day May 14 event, held in the seminar facilities at the headquarters of the Bank of Canton.

“Presenter Joel Ristuccia was a school psychologist for decades before becoming the director of training at the Trauma & Learning Policy Initiative,” Morrissey said. “He did an excellent job explaining the physiological changes that overwhelming stress can create in a child’s brain, and how that shapes their classroom experience.”

Trauma & Learning Policy Initiative Senior Attorney Michael Gregory’s ensuing presentation explored the Safe & Supportive Schools legislation and how local districts can create trauma-sensitive school structures that benefit the entire student body. Attorney Matthew MacAvoy, from Nuttal & MacAvoy, P.C., explained the information sharing laws necessary to implement the new law.

“The more we learn about the brain and how it develops, the more we as a society can craft schools and systems where fewer kids fall through the cracks, and fewer kids run into behavior problems and consequences,” Morrissey said. “Healthy schools where bullying is banished and all students feel safe and supported those are safe schools. And we want every school in Norfolk County to be a safe school.”