ALWD Virtual Front Porch

Advocating for Self and Students in a Cycle of Trauma

Wednesday, August 17, 2022

(Click here to watch the video recording)

This session of the ALWD Virtual Front Porch series provided a great opportunity for our community to gather and dialogue on current challenges prior to the start of the academic year. ALWD’s theme this year has been how individuals can be their own best advocates—a concept that is inextricably linked to promotion of our own wellbeing (as well as that of our students). The wellbeing of faculty, staff, and students has been substantially impacted by years of stress and trauma that have left little time for processing or reflection. This VFP generated dialogue, questions, and reflections on these concepts, as well as the following:

• The connection between advocacy and wellbeing
• Different layers of wellbeing – self, students, other
• Centering wellbeing in the classroom
• The impact of Standard 303 on professional identity on the classroom space
• Trauma informed teaching in legal education
• Being intentional yet avoiding additional trauma

This VFP allowed plenty of space for discussion while walking through a hypothetical classroom scenario to show how some of these issues might play out. This provided participants a chance to reflect and consider how you they deal with these issues when they arise in the classroom space this year.

Featured Panelists

• Nicole Dyszlewski, Head of Reference, Instruction, and Engagement, Roger Williams University Law Library
• Shailini George, Professor, Suffolk University Law School