As America, and New Jersey, takes a giant step back into the classroom after an awfully long (and mostly awful) break, it’s time to prioritize factors for success. At the top of everyone’s list is safety, but what comes after that? Certainly learning, but if we’ve learned anything in the past two years, it’s that academic learning isn’t enough. Effective learning comes hand-in-hand with socio-emotional learning, or SEL, which embraces the socio-emotional well-being of students (and others) at home, in school, and in the community at large.

As we cautiously step into a new school year, there is a singular question on everyone’s mind: is there anything we can do besides hope for the best? Uncertainty exists on every level. We wait anxiously for news about federal guidelines, governors’ press conferences that announce state vaccine requirements, and buzz on what’s happening at our local schools. With so much conflicting evidence about COVID-19 and its emerging variants, “hope” just isn’t enough. We have no choice but to prepare in advance for the unknown. Here are some strategies for parents, educators, administrators, and students to do just that: 

This edition of Trust Matters is dedicated to providing opportunities and resources for children and families to enjoy one another and the Newark community throughout the summer months. Here we provide a round up of options to help prevent summer slide, have fun, and engage in self care with resources from Arts Ed Newark, The City of Newark, The Newark Museum of Art, The Newark Public Library and Newark Thrives.