It’s All About Relationships
“…Shilo’s teaching style… [supports] how we relate to each other as co-workers and humans. As a public employee, there can be a tension between who we are in our public facing roles and who we are as individuals. Shilo has provided ways of thinking and working together that encourage us to show up as our authentic selves and support others to more safely do the same.”
— Peggy Morell, Metro Community Partnership Program Manager
Metro Regional Government:
Transforming Public Service Culture Through A Trauma Informed Approach —Communications Department
With direction from Metro’s Strategic Plan to Advance Racial Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Metro is committed to building community relationships based on trust through policies and practices that strengthen involvement of people of color and other marginalized communities in Metro’s decision-making processes. As a regional convener of community based organizations and elected decision-makers, Metro brings together diverse partners from across the Portland region to reduce racial disparities and improve outcomes for communities historically excluded from shaping decisions for which Metro is responsible. To achieve a deeper understanding of the needs of culturally specific communities and the impacts of its programs and services, Metro seeks to contract with a community consultant with expertise in a trauma-informed care approach for engaging with communities. Metro commits to co-creating with the community, learning from their collective wisdom, and building the capacity of community leaders.
I’ve really enjoyed working with the Metro Regional Government. My work with the Communications Department continues into a second year with the training of a second cohort in Trauma Informed Practices as well as working with cohort one staff on implementation ideas and processes for the sustainability of the work. We have co-created a TIC Implementation workgroup that will be helping guide TIC practices in the new department strategic plan that includes a racial equity strategy. We are also holding regular restorative circles to support the emotional and psychological wellness of staff. Staff are able to get 1:1 consulting help for specific projects as they practice their new skills. The department management team is also on their own journey with 1:1 consultation hours available with me. I also recently built a training for them called The Anatomy of an Apology, Accountability, and Relationship Repair as a specific need around addressing conflict.
Around the agency other departments and the agency leadership has heard about the Communications Department and their TIC training. I’m working with two other departments on creating a training specifically for their needs and have been actively consulting, training, and facilitating for specific projects throughout the agency.
Project Details
20 Staff trained including managers and department director
15 hours of class training including 10 hours of training outside of class.
3 training sessions per month for six months
March 2018 - June 2019
The goal of the work is to reduce or eliminate the retraumatization of people from marginalized communities and Metro staff who come together in engagement and decision-making spaces.
Training Sessions
The purpose of a trauma-informed care approach to planning and implementing engagement activities is to create supportive and welcoming public input and decision-making spaces for marginalized communities where:
Metro staff are better prepared to engage, serve, and co-create long-term and meaningful relationships with marginalized communities and specifically communities of color
There is a clear process of accountability for harm when marginalized communities are retraumatized in Metro convened spaces
There is a way forward through reconciliation of harm when marginalized communities are retraumatized in Metro convened spaces.
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These sessions were created to give staff an opportunity to reflection on and discuss three crucial questions that need to be unpacked to do trauma informed approaches that deeply transform agency culture. The three questions addressed healthy relationships, safety (physical/emotional), and liberation.
2 hours
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This training was created to make sure everyone has common understandings of anti-oppression terms and concepts. Knowing and being able to conceptualize how oppression works in our society helps us see it and take steps needed on multiple levels to interrupt it and create new, less oppressive practices and organizations.
Topics include: Cultural Humility, White Supremacist Culture as Professionalism, Historical Trauma, Institutional Oppression, Resilience
3 hours
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Foundations in Trauma Informed Care (TIC) is an essential training that will bring awareness of the role that trauma has and continues to play in the lives of individuals, families, and communities.
Topics Include: What is trauma, what is trauma informed care, neurobiology of trauma, ACEs adverse childhood experiences, parallel process, workforce wellness, resilience.
4 hours
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This unstructured workshop will be held for staff to be able to ask lingering questions, bring up potential areas of transformation, and get input for future planning.
2 hours
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It's important to celebrate the work!
3 hours
Read What Participants Had to Say