EVOLVE
Schoolwide Professional Development
Evolve offers school-wide professional development as part of our program offerings. We know that working with youth alone does not shift student outcomes.
There must be a shift in behavior, perceptions and school culture in a critical mass of adults in schools to create the relationship-centered environment that is needed by youth, especially those who have experienced trauma.
Evolve offers the following professional development opportunities:
Positive Youth Development
Positive Youth Development (PYD) is about valuing young people’s strengths and giving them the skills, voice and opportunities to contribute to their communities.
Positive Youth Development (PYD)Participants will learn how to promote youth engagement, healthy relationships, social-emotional skills building and a stronger sense of belonging in school.
Trauma-Responsive Care
This training will provide school staff with skills in creating physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural safety in the school community.
This training will provide school staff with skills in creating physical, emotional, spiritual and cultural safety in the school community.School staff will learn strategies to integrate trauma responsive care into policies, procedures and practices. Â
Community Care & Healing Centered Communities
A healing-centered approach is holistic involving culture, civic action and collective healing by viewing trauma not simply as an individual experience but highlights the ways in which trauma and healing are experienced collectively.
A healing-centered approach is holistic involving culture, civic action and collective healing by viewing trauma not simply as an individual experience but highlights the ways in which trauma and healing are experienced collectively. This training will provide staff with tools to view and practice care as a community-based effort. Â
Culturally Responsive Practices
This training will provide school staff with tools to engage in academic, social and emotional learning that is situated in the lived experiences of their students.
This training will provide school staff with tools to engage in academic, social and emotional learning that is situated in the lived experiences of their students.Culturally responsive practices involve recognizing and incorporating the assets and strengths all students bring to school.
Adult Social-Emotional Learning & Emotional Intelligence
To promote students’ social-emotional well-being, it is important for schools to simultaneously foster a supportive staff environment that cultivates the social-emotional development and capacity of the adults.
To promote students’ social-emotional well-being, it is important for schools to simultaneously foster a supportive staff environment that cultivates the social-emotional development and This training will encourage self-reflection on personal SEL skills, support the foundation of structures to integrate SEL into staff development and provide practice in modeling SEL skills.
CORE VALUES
THE EVOLVE CIRCLE
Evolve Circles use a structured group curriculum where youth are given opportunities to learn, practice, and internalize social-emotional skills and knowledge that will support them in forming a positive integrated identity, developing healthy relationships, and engaging in school. Evolve Circles center the experiences of young people and teach SEL skills in contextualized, culturally responsive ways that resonate for youth of color and lead to greater skill internalization and application in their daily lives.
The Evolve Model bridges the therapeutic principles used to support youth growth and development in a mixed-gendered environment, with relatable engagement formats.
INTENDED EXPERIENCE FOR YOUTH
Asked what they liked the most about the Evolve Training Academy, participants said:
The trainers were very passionate, educated, wise, warm.
I enjoyed everyone being engaged, the knowledge I learned and just how everyone was able to share and open up.
I loved the conversation about affirmations and how important they are to not only our students, but ourselves.
I really liked the affirmation circle at the end and will definitely be using that in my circle.
Learning more on how to support students, engaging with colleagues, different ways to communicate, listen and be present.
I liked working with my school members so we are all on the same page about the circles we will facilitate.
I think it was especially important and relevant to connect with our school teams with the activities so we can lean on each other and collaborate.
I liked the mix of direct instruction and hands on activities. I felt like everything discussed was important and relevant to my role.
Extremely engaging and helpful information I will be able to apply to my work with students on day one.
Each experiential learning method was a tool that could be used in the classroom.
From Michele Lansing:
Are you responsible for bringing Evolve to DS? I am all in, this is phenomenal.
I enjoyed everyone being engaged, the knowledge I learned and just how everyone was able to share and open up.
I loved the conversation about affirmations and how important they are to not only our students, but ourselves.
I really liked the affirmation circle at the end and will definitely be using that in my circle.
THE EVOLVE MODEL
Students enrolled in the BAM Program are:
EVOLVE IMPLEMENTATION TIMELINE
MEET THE DIRECTOR
Kathleen Leynes
Director of Professional Development and Curriculum Design | Evolve
Dr. Kathleen A. Leynes, DSW, LCSW has almost 20 years of experience in education, social work and youth development research. Kathleen worked 15 years as a high school social worker where she co-led her district's social-emotional learning professional development strategy and co-created a school-wide advisory model and coaching plan. Her passion for social-emotional learning and strengthening relationships across school communities led her to a doctoral degree in social work where she studied school social workers' impact on social-emotional school climate.
Outside of her work at Youth Guidance, Kathleen is an adjunct social work professor at Aurora University. She enjoys travel, food and enjoying food while traveling with her family and friends. Â