SILVER SPRING, Md. (Monday, December 14, 2020) – In what has been an unprecedented and challenging year for schools across the U.S., educators now have access to new, no-cost digital content that supports their own and their students’ emotional resiliency from Ready, Set, RISE!, a unique virtual resource from Kaiser Permanente, Alliance for a Healthier Generation (Healthier Generation), and Discovery Education. Kaiser Permanente is the nation’s largest nonprofit and an integrated health system. Healthier Generation is a non-profit dedicated to creating environments supporting children’s physical, social, and emotional health. Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources and professional learning for K-12 classrooms.
Ready, Set, RISE! offers educators a series of no-cost, on-demand e-learning modules built to highlight the importance of human connection and empathy in schools. The series provides educators with a foundational understanding of trauma-informed educational practices and policies they can use to create more student-centered learning environments for all learners.
The first module focuses on educator self-care in any teaching environment, while the second module offers educators new strategies for helping students neutralize the effects of adversity, societal oppression, and implicit bias. Additional modules, coming in early 2021, will address how to recognize and respond to sign of trauma in schools and explore the science of implementation. Overall, the Ready, Set, RISE! series covers core social and emotional learning concepts, as well as logistical and administrative concerns regarding planning, implementing, and sustaining trauma-informed practices in schools.
“With the continued impact of COVID-19 on millions of students, teachers, and school staff, it is more important than ever to empower educators with tools that help them, and their students, support their mental health and resilience,” said Bechara Choucair, MD, Senior Vice President and Chief Health Officer for Kaiser Permanente. “We are proud to partner with Discovery Education and Healthier Generation to help cultivate trauma-informed educators and create a better world for both students and educators.”
Ready, Set, RISE! is the latest addition to the RISE initiative and is a natural extension of Kaiser Permanente’s leadership role in building healthier schools and communities. Developed as part of Kaiser Permanente’s Thriving Schools initiative, RISE works with students, school staff, teachers, districts, and the community to better understand the underlying factors of stress in schools and develop strategies and practices that foster more positive school environments. RISE incorporates the RISE Index assessment (developed with Healthier Generation) as the cornerstone to identifying needs and opportunities for districts and schools, which launched in fall of 2019 with a goal of reaching 25,000 schools and districts by 2023. As of December 2020, there have been more than 20,000 engagements with schools and districts that have accessed RISE resources.
“Ready, Set, RISE! connects educators to the resources they need to incorporate trauma-informed practices into their teaching. We know that by focusing on social and emotional learning skills, teachers are able to not only build stronger relationships with students, but also are able to help develop a stronger learning environment,” said Lori McFarling, President of Corporate & Community Partnerships at Discovery Education. “Discovery Education is proud to partner with Kaiser Permanente and Healthier Generation on this initiative delivering no-cost digital professional learning focused on emotional resiliency.”
“More than ever before, social-emotional health is foundational to optimal health and learning development for our children – and especially those who have been hit hardest by the current public health crisis,” said Kathy Higgins, Chief Executive Officer at Healthier Generation. “Healthier Generation is proud to continue our strong collaboration with Kaiser Permanente and Discovery Education to build the resiliency of our educators and students in ways that are critical in the present times.”
Learn more about Ready, Set, RISE! and find all the no-cost resources designed for educators at readysetrisemodules.com and through the Discovery Education Experience‘s Corporate Education Partnerships channel.
For more information about Discovery Education’s digital resources and professional learning services, visit www.discoveryeducation.com, and stay connected with Discovery Education on social media through Twitter and LinkedIn.
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About Kaiser Permanente
For 75 years, Kaiser Permanente has been committed to shaping the future of health and health care — and helping our members, patients, and communities experience more healthy years. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Since July 21, 1945, Kaiser Permanente’s mission has been to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.4 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health.
About the Alliance for a Healthier Generation
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation believes every child deserves a healthy future. For over a decade, Healthier Generation has empowered kids to develop lifelong healthy habits by ensuring the environments that surround them support their physical, social and emotional health. Driven by our passion that all young people deserve a chance to live healthier lives, our work, in total, has reached more than 29 million kids across the country. To learn more and help make a difference, visit HealthierGeneration.org and join us on Facebook and Twitter.
About Discovery Education
Discovery Education is the global leader in standards-aligned digital curriculum resources, engaging content, and professional learning for K-12 classrooms. Through its award-winning digital textbooks, multimedia resources, and the largest professional learning network of its kind, Discovery Education is transforming teaching and learning, creating immersive STEM experiences, and improving academic achievement around the globe. Discovery Education currently serves approximately 4.5 million educators and 45 million students worldwide, and its resources are accessed in over 140 countries and territories. Inspired by the global media company Discovery, Inc., Discovery Education partners with districts, states, and like-minded organizations to empower teachers with customized solutions that support the success of all learners. Explore the future of education at www.DiscoveryEducation.com.
Contacts
Grace Maliska
Discovery Education
Email: gmaliska@discoveryed.com
Phone: 240-839-4239
Stephen Wakefield
Discovery Education
Email: swakefield@discoveryed.com
Phone: 202-316-6615
Vincent Staupe
Kaiser Permanente
Email: vincent.p.staupe@kp.org
Phone: 510-318-1557
Krista Washington
Alliance for a Healthier Generation
Email: krista.washington@healthiergeneration.org
Phone: 919-418-2993