From trauma to triumph: Transforming through trauma-informed pedagogy
Presentation Type
Abstract
Faculty Advisor
Milton Fuentes
Access Type
Event
Start Date
25-4-2025 1:30 PM
End Date
25-4-2025 2:29 PM
Description
Trauma is affecting more college students across the United States (Zhai & Du, 2024). Specifically, trauma significantly disrupts undergraduate students’ cognitive functioning, emotional regulation, and academic persistence, undermining their success and well-being (Thomas et al., 2021). Additionally, first-generation students may be particularly vulnerable due to heightened academic stress and limited institutional support (Cataldi et al., 2018; Lecy & Osteen, 2022). Trauma involves experiencing, witnessing, or learning about actual or threatened death, serious injury, or violence, as well as repeated exposure to distressing details of these events (American Psychiatric Association, 2022). To address this concern, trauma-informed pedagogy has been linked to improved student engagement, retention, and well-being; however, its implementation on campuses remains inconsistent (Holden & Bruce, 2024). In the current study, 392 undergraduate students were surveyed at Montclair State University to explore how trauma and other identity variables influenced their academic wellness. Content analyses were conducted to categorize trauma types. Of the students surveyed, 244 (62.2%) reported experiencing trauma, and 156 (63.9%) identified as first-generation college students. The main types of trauma reported included sexual assault and death/grief. This poster will further describe how trauma affects students on our campus across various demographic variables and provide faculty guidance on how to implement trauma-informed principles in their teaching. This research contributes to the ongoing dialogue on trauma-informed education and advocates for integrating these practices into MSU's undergraduate curricula to better support students in overcoming trauma-related barriers, fostering resilience, and promoting academic success.
From trauma to triumph: Transforming through trauma-informed pedagogy
Trauma is affecting more college students across the United States (Zhai & Du, 2024). Specifically, trauma significantly disrupts undergraduate students’ cognitive functioning, emotional regulation, and academic persistence, undermining their success and well-being (Thomas et al., 2021). Additionally, first-generation students may be particularly vulnerable due to heightened academic stress and limited institutional support (Cataldi et al., 2018; Lecy & Osteen, 2022). Trauma involves experiencing, witnessing, or learning about actual or threatened death, serious injury, or violence, as well as repeated exposure to distressing details of these events (American Psychiatric Association, 2022). To address this concern, trauma-informed pedagogy has been linked to improved student engagement, retention, and well-being; however, its implementation on campuses remains inconsistent (Holden & Bruce, 2024). In the current study, 392 undergraduate students were surveyed at Montclair State University to explore how trauma and other identity variables influenced their academic wellness. Content analyses were conducted to categorize trauma types. Of the students surveyed, 244 (62.2%) reported experiencing trauma, and 156 (63.9%) identified as first-generation college students. The main types of trauma reported included sexual assault and death/grief. This poster will further describe how trauma affects students on our campus across various demographic variables and provide faculty guidance on how to implement trauma-informed principles in their teaching. This research contributes to the ongoing dialogue on trauma-informed education and advocates for integrating these practices into MSU's undergraduate curricula to better support students in overcoming trauma-related barriers, fostering resilience, and promoting academic success.
Comments
Poster presentation at the 2025 Student Research Symposium.