The Palm Beach County Youth Services Department held a one-day supervision and coaching retreat for department supervisors and trainers as part of its pursuit of department-wide certification in the trauma informed care model by the Sanctuary Institute. The retreat, held at Mounts Botanical Garden, took place on March 8 and 9, to reduce the number of employees attending per day, ensuring CDC safety guidelines and protocols were met.

As part of Sanctuary standards, the retreat began with a community meeting. Employees took turns asking one another three questions: “How are you feeling? What is your goal for today? Who can you ask for help?" The community meeting is a fundamental component of Sanctuary involving emotional learning. It allows individuals the opportunity to build connections and set goals to remain future focused.

Sanctuary consultant Aaron James led the groups through a series of leadership/coaching topics and group activities to reflect on leadership styles. Discussions focused on leadership development through the Sanctuary model including trauma theory, the seven commitments (non-violence, emotional intelligence, social learning, democracy, open communication, social responsibility, and growth and change), SELF (safety, emotions, loss, future), and various Sanctuary tools to be utilized by employees in leadership or training roles. Tools included managing complex change, implementing supervision and supervisory notes, cultivating supervision styles and transformational leadership. Participants worked through reenactment scenarios, and rated their own leadership styles to develop a plan of action through the seven commitments during the “Seven Commitments Leadership Exercise."

Becoming Sanctuary-certified reinforces the department's commitment to the standards of a trauma informed care environment for clients and employees. The Sanctuary Institute will provide direct support to Youth Services by providing trauma-responsive practices across all department operations.

A special thank you to members of the Sanctuary-Trauma Informed Cross-Divisional Action Team and department staff who planned and coordinated the retreat.​