The Whole Child Review Issue No. 5, January 2021

Enhancing Teacher Wellbeing

Staff Wellness Workshops

As we are all working from home, we sincerely miss the opportunities to gather in person for the sake of community, joy, and wellbeing! In striving to virtually hold space for connecting with others across the region, we’ve hosted 9 wellness workshops since the start of the school year. Workshops have included: yoga, mental health resources presentations, financial health presentations, watercolor, pasta making, family cooking class, paint-and-sip, and holiday hot cocoa bombs. Through partnerships with outside organizations and our own staff members, we’re grateful to the variety of people who presented these thoughtfully curated workshops!

Workshop Partner Spotlight

Yellow Vibrations is a therapist matchmaking platform founded by Christian Ziraldo. Her vision is to build, connect, and support the professional relationships necessary for mental wellness and joy, providing clients with the agency to make informed decisions and take control of their mental health.

Christian, in her own words:

Hi, I’m Christian, and I created Yellow Vibrations to provide a landing place for those seeking therapy and healing but are overwhelmed by the process. Don’t worry! It isn’t you. The tools we currently have to bring together therapists and clients are lacking. The beautiful, wonderful, fantastic part is that many people are becoming aware of the importance of healing past and generational traumas, working through the dark parts of ourselves, and finding ways to cope with our world. The challenging, sticky, frustrating part is- the systems in place to facilitate that healing is convoluted, confusing, and often inaccurate. This is where I would like to offer my help.

A few facts about me:

• I earned my dual master’s degree in Community and School Counseling from Wayne State University and my bachelor’s degree in Social Theory and Practice from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.
• My heart and home is in Detroit, MI, but my current adventure has led me to Oakland, CA.
• My passion is helping others find their joy (and finding joy myself!). I love those deep, soul-soothing conversations you have with someone close to you, so I decided to make it my profession.
• In my free time, you can catch me dancing to Beyoncé, baking yummy treats, or spending time with my husband and kitten.

Financial goals and celebrations

Currently, approximately 45% of our team is actively and consistently engaged with Holberg Financial, one of our teacher wellness partners, for financial literacy goals. Since COVID, using the Holberg model for financial health, our team’s aggregate financial health score has increased from 42%-51%. Our staff uses this model when creating a budget, saving for a home, and planning for student loan payments.