TIERS
Trauma Informed Educators Reaching Students
What is TIERS?
TIERS (Trauma Informed Educators Reaching Students) is a transformative initiative developed by Gap Relief in collaboration with the Walton Family Foundation and is designed to reduce the growing impact of stress and trauma on both educators and students in Northwest Arkansas. Focused on fostering a supportive and responsive school environment for all stakeholders, TIERS is a 1-2 year cutting-edge, research-backed program rooted in neurobiological principles.
TIERS provides group training, one-on-one consultation, and leadership development to support every level of the educational system.
Our trauma-informed approach equips educators with practical strategies to address student needs, strengthen staff resilience, and reduce the impact of stress and trauma. By fostering healthier school communities, TIERS helps students thrive and lays the foundation for lasting educational excellence in Northwest Arkansas.
TIERS Impact
The TIERS program is built for sustainability
Empowering those trained to independently continue the work without long-term support. Through our experience, we've learned that training smaller groups in a deeper, more experiential way leads to more lasting change than large-scale, didactic instruction.
The program features two main tracks:
The Ambassador Team Track, which covers core content, and the Administrator Consultation Track, which focuses on trauma-informed leadership and troubleshooting real-life challenges using resilience-based, human-centered practices.
Learn more about the two TIERS tracks
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As a core element of the TIERS strategy, Gap Relief has worked with each partner school to identify teams of 6-8 staff members who serve as TIERS Ambassadors throughout the school year. These Ambassador Teams will be the primary recipients of project training, coaching, consultation, and support over the course of the year. Ambassador team members will engage Gap Relief’s TIERS program while simultaneously being equipped to train and support additional school/district staff in the very principles they are learning and implementing. They will also work alongside Gap Relief guides to develop and implement further trauma and neurobiologically-informed initiatives in their buildings, allowing them to experience the reproducibility of this model first-hand.
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The Admin Track is designed for organizational and strategic leaders, guiding them through a structured program that integrates trauma-informed and human-centered principles into organizational systems. This track empowers leaders to adopt a human-focused perspective, providing practical strategies to reduce trauma impact and foster resilience within their teams. Delivered through 2-hour monthly meetings with a Gap Relief Representative, the program focuses on shaping culture, enhancing conflict resolution skills, and identifying systemic gaps. Leaders gain valuable tools to implement both structural and human-centered strategies for long-term sustainability. Personal wellness and self-awareness are also emphasized, ensuring leaders are equipped to navigate challenges effectively. Operating alongside the Ambassador Team, this track fosters a unified approach to organizational resilience.
Learn about TIERS program goals
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Equip educational staff to actively share trauma-informed and regulation resources with parents and families, ensuring consistent communication and support to enhance student and family success. Promote a strength-based approach to family engagement by training staff to focus on families' strengths, encouraging a culture of empowerment and positive support in all interactions.
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Continue to expand upon traditional classroom management methods by addressing the root causes of behavior, rather than focusing solely on the behaviors themselves. Develop proactive strategies to reduce chronic absenteeism, offering targeted support that promotes student well-being and engagement.
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Move beyond the philosophy of Conscious Discipline to provide practical, actionable strategies that align with brain-based research. This will allow educators to move from the “why” to the “how” as they work to create classroom environments that foster success.
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Equip administrators with the knowledge and strategies to prioritize academic excellence while creating space for the holistic development of students. Empower them to cultivate school cultures that support staff well-being, resilience, and burnout prevention, recognizing these factors as essential to long-term success and student growth. Expand the educational mindset to value both resilience and holistic development alongside academic achievement, ensuring both are integral to the school's mission.
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Create actionable steps that are reproducible, realistic, and achievable within the constraints of school systems. Continuously evaluate and refine strategies based on ongoing feedback and outcomes to ensure long-term effectiveness and adaptability. Empower program participants to independently apply and sustain the strategies they’ve learned, ensuring continued progress without the need for ongoing program support.