Navigating Grief: Partnership Provides New Tool For Teachers

Fulton County Schools (FCS) educators have a new tool to ensure they are equipped to support students grieving the loss of a loved one.  

Ashley Clarke, seventh-grade counselor at Webb Bridge Middle School (WBMS), notes that teachers typically receive little training on handling grieving students. Through a partnership with New York Life Insurance, FCS School Social Work Services has implemented the Grief-Sensitive Schools Initiative (GSSI), recognizing 96 schools, including WBMS, as Grief-Sensitive Schools. 

Clarke says when a student has lost a loved one, the counseling department will often contact teachers to let them know. Beyond that, she says, “teachers don’t get any specific, concrete training on what to do.”  

The GSSI training, aimed at building a robust culture of grief support and resiliency, includes an online course and an in-person visit from a GSSI ambassador. Schools participating in the online course received a $500 grant, while those opting for the ambassador visit received an additional $500. WBMS completed both and received a $1,000 grant. 

The training introduced a card teachers can keep on hand to walk them through ways to speak with children who have experienced the death of a loved one. The card includes questions and prompts that can open conversations, including: “Tell me more about what this has been like for you,” and “What sort of things have you been thinking about?”   

Their goal, says Clarke, was to guide teachers to become “well-versed” in helping students navigate grief. She says the training and the grant money will strengthen support for grieving students.  

WBMS plans to use the $1,000 to create “a calm space” for students, says Clarke, transforming an unused room at WBMS into an area where she says, “some of our students can regulate… just to make that room a comforting space.”