Treasure Coast teachers benefiting from free support from Tykes & Teens

Virtual meetings on second Tuesday of each month at 4:30 p.m.

Posted 1/5/21

Teachers participating in the group are encouraging others to take advantage of the TEAMS support group...

You must be a member to read this story.

Join our family of readers for as little as $5 per month and support local, unbiased journalism.


Already have an account? Log in to continue. Otherwise, follow the link below to join.

Please log in to continue

Log in
I am anchor

Treasure Coast teachers benefiting from free support from Tykes & Teens

Virtual meetings on second Tuesday of each month at 4:30 p.m.

Posted

PALM CITY — Teachers across the Treasure Coast are taking advantage of and benefiting from free support provided by Tykes & Teens, a leading mental health provider for children and adolescent evidence-based programs and services for nearly 25 years. TEAMS — Teacher Empowerment And Meaningful Support — is a confidential virtual teacher support group provided the second Tuesday of each month by Tykes & Teens with the support of the Children’s Services Council of Martin and St. Lucie Counties. The next TEAMS meeting is Tuesday, Jan. 12, at 4:30 p.m.

As children and families are continuing to struggle with increased anxiety and added pressures caused by COVID-19, teachers are on the front lines adjusting to providing both virtual and in-person education and care for children, while also balancing their own challenges during the current pandemic world.

“We know our teachers are working harder than ever and facing even greater pressures during a pandemic, and we want you to know we are here for you,” says Dorothy Oppenhesier, Tykes & Teens trauma-informed care coordinator, who leads TEAMS. “TEAMS is an excellent opportunity for teachers to have a safe place to share their personal experiences and feelings and receive coping strategies in a confidential space of mutual understanding and support.”

“As a long-time educator and Tykes & Teens’ trauma-informed care coordinator, Dorothy personally relates to what teachers are going through and provides excellent support and guidance through our TEAMS support group,” says Tykes & Teens Director of Prevention Services Dr. Agnieszka Marshall, Psy.D., CAP.

Teachers participating in the group are encouraging others to take advantage of the TEAMS support group, saying: “TEAMS has been so helpful”; and “I wish more teachers would take advantage of this group.”

Tykes & Teens’ TEAMS virtual group is open to all teachers and meets the second Tuesday of each month at 4:30 pm. To register, email Dr. Agnieszka Marshall at agnieszka@tykesandteens.org. For more information on Tykes & Teens’ Trauma-Informed Care, visit www.tykesandteens.org/trauma-informed-care/.

Dorothy Oppenhesier is also a longtime school educator and administrator. She provides training in trauma-informed care, motivational interviewing, mindfulness and compassion fatigue. She is an experienced educational consultant with a demonstrated history of working in the education and health care management industry, and is skilled in career education, special education, child advocacy, staff development and student counseling. She is a former middle and high school teacher and was also a high school assistant principal and principal. In addition, she has worked with 50 school districts to evaluate and implement comprehensive health education curriculum that included social emotional health. She received her Bachelor of Science in health education and sociology certification in teaching from Western Michigan University and her graduate degree in public administration with an emphasis in health care from the University of Michigan-Flint. She holds a School Principal Certification and is a certified Mental Health First Aid Trainer and Michigan Model for Health Trainer.

About Tykes & Teens
Tykes & Teens has been a leading mental health provider for children and adolescent evidence-based programs and services for nearly 25 years. Our passion and commitment are to empowering children and strengthening families by ensuring that all children have access to high-quality counseling and mental health services, regardless of financial status. Our mission is prioritizing children’s mental health in our families, schools and communities through a wide range of prevention, education, and treatment programs and services. We also advocate for increased awareness of mental health to remove the stigma and shame often associated with seeking mental health treatment. Since our inception, we have provided affordable quality mental health services for more than 60,000 children in need across the Treasure Coast from more than 50 service locations, including outpatient offices in Palm City, Jensen Beach, Hobe Sound, Port St. Lucie, and Vero Beach, on-site services in all Martin County schools, and in schools in Okeechobee and Indian River counties, as well as collaboration with numerous community partners, in addition to virtual telehealth services. We have continued to offer our services and programs throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, including virtual telehealth care. We accept most insurance, private payments, and we are a Medicaid-approved provider. We have successfully administered a sliding fee scale for those in need when necessary for more than 20 years. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency, we also provide $750,000 in unreimbursed services to the communities we serve each year.

TEAMS, teachers, free, support, tykes & teens, virtual, meeting

Comments

x