Coalition to Support Grieving Students

The Coalition for Grieving Students is a collaboration of national organizations representing the full range of school professionals, convened to develop and provide free training materials to schools providing support to grieving students. The Coalition is led by the National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement.

History
The Coalition to Support Grieving Students was created in 2015 to provide resources for teachers, principals, assistant principals, superintendents, school board members, central office staff, student support personnel (school counselors, nurses, school psychologists, school social workers, and other school professionals) facing crisis and loss within the school and/or community. The Coalition was convened by the New York Life Foundation and the National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement, which is directed by David J. Schonfeld, M.D. The National Center for School Crisis and Bereavement (NCSCB) is a part of the University of Southern California Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work.

Resource Materials
The Coalition to Support Grieving Students' website contains resource and reference materials and corresponding video modules for educators, aimed at helping to empower schools in the support of their students experiencing grief and bereavement. Categories and topics are:

Conversation & Support Developmental & Cultural Considerations Practical Considerations Reactions & Triggers Professional Preparation & Self-Care Crisis & Special Circumstances
 * Talking with Children
 * What Not to Say
 * Providing Support Over Time
 * Peer Support
 * Concepts of Death
 * Connecting with Families
 * Cultural Sensitivity
 * Funeral Attendance
 * Secondary & Cumulative Losses
 * Coordinating Services & Supporting Transitions
 * Social Media
 * Impact on Learning
 * Guilt & Shame
 * Other Reactions
 * Grief Triggers
 * Professional Preparation
 * Professional Self-Care
 * Death and School Crisis
 * Suicide
 * Commemoration and Memorialization
 * Potentially Life-Limiting Conditions

Members
Founding Members Supporting Organizational Members Friends of the Coalition
 * New York Life Foundation
 * USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work
 * AASA, The School Superintendents Association
 * American Federation of School Administrators (AFSA)
 * American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
 * American School Counselor Association (ASCA)
 * National Association of School Nurses (NASN)
 * National Association of School Psychologists (NASP)
 * National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP)
 * National Education Association (NEA)
 * School Social Work Association of America (SSWAA)
 * Actively Moving Forward
 * American Academy of Pediatrics
 * American Council for School Social Work
 * American School Health Association
 * Association of Educational Service Agencies
 * Association for Middle Level Education (AMLE)
 * Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD)
 * Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL)
 * Childcare Aware of America
 * HealGrief
 * Kappa Delta Pi
 * Military Child Education Coalition
 * The Moyer Foundation
 * National Alliance for Grieving Children
 * National Association of Independent Schools
 * National Resilience Institute
 * Society for Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics
 * Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS)
 * Bo's Place
 * Highmark Caring Place
 * Hospice of Santa Barbara
 * Kara
 * Hospice Caring, Inc.