Chapter 11: Coalescing Streams: Interrupting the Progression of Adversity through Cross-Sector Mobilization and Systems Alignment

How can a community build the collective will and capacity to engage in cross-sector learning and coordinated efforts to alleviate the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)? What system and organizational level changes provide evidence of this will and capacity? And to what extent can these efforts help improve student outcomes often undermined by ACEs? This chapter examines the interplay between individual, organizational, and system level factors during a 5-year period of coordinated community effort to foster widespread understanding of the impacts of adversity and implementation of trauma-informed practices to ameliorate those impacts.

Recognizing the key role that self-regulation plays in supporting academic success and the detrimental effects of toxic stress upon self-regulation, developing student self-regulation was selected as a key focus for intervention and measurement. Because students and families often interact with a range of service providers, interventions and professional learning included organizational partners from across multiple systems of care. Findings indicate that a collective impact, layered strategies approach contributed to broad, deep, and durable engagement by a diverse set of community stakeholders leading to the adoption of a whole child, whole family, whole school, and whole community regional framework.