Roots of Empathy

Thank you to the Mapleton Community Foundation for last month's generous $1,000 grant to the West Lane team to fund the Mapleton Roots of Empathy program for first- and second-graders during the 2020-21 school year. We are so grateful for the Foundation's support and for its commitment to helping change the world, child by child!

Big news from West Lane: The team received $6,000 from the Western Lane Community Foundation and $5,000 from the Siuslaw School District to implement Roots of Empathy, which is currently in first-grade classrooms at Siuslaw and Mapleton Elementary Schools. Congratulations to West Lane, and thank you to these wonderful donors for recognizing the power of the tiny teachers of the Roots of Empathy program!

90by30 is excited to welcome Roots of Empathy founder and president Mary Gordon back to Eugene for a special presentation on Thursday, August 29. Mary is here to help celebrate the success of rural Lane County's pilot year of her groundbreaking program to teach children empathy and compassion through interactions with an infant. Next year, classrooms in all seven regions of the county, including Eugene and Springfield, will join the ROE pilot. The presentation on "Viewing the Classroom Climate Through the Lens of Attachment-Aware and Trauma-Informed Teaching" begins at 10:30 a.m. at Prairie Mountain School (5305 Royal Ave. in Eugene). This is a free event, but space is limited and seats are...

The Center for the Prevention of Abuse and Neglect, 90by30, and the K(no)w More campaign were featured recently in the UO publication " Around the O ." More than a brief overview of 90by30's work to reduce child abuse, the article delves into the prevention strategies we've chosen, like Roots of Empathy, and explains how the K(no)w More website, which launched in April, is providing a way for community members to take action to create healthier, more nurturing communities for children and families. As CPAN Co-Director Jeff Todahl says, "We’ve found that a concerted effort that pulls in all aspects of a child’s community — parents, teachers, caregivers — one that points to actionable steps...

Two mentors from the Roots of Empathy program were in town last week to observe a family visit with each of the 17 Lane County instructors and offer feedback. To welcome Angelica, the mentor for its instructors, to the region, the West Lane team gathered several Roots of Empathy families and babies as well as instructors and educators around the green blanket for a meet-and-greet at the school district office.

West Lane isn't the only region to receive recognition for its Roots of Empathy program. The Cottage Grove Sentinel recently covered the effort in South Lane. The article points out that students often use their observations about the baby's development to reflect on their own emotions. Scott Hoffman, a second-grade teacher at Harrison Elementary, notes that empathy comes into play because "the baby can’t tell you how he’s feeling, he doesn’t have the language. So, it’s an opportunity for the kids to think how do you tell how a baby might be feeling?” As the article explains: Spending the year with a baby who started its class visits between two and three months old means second-graders can...

West Lane's Roots of Empathy program has received extensive coverage in The Siuslaw News lately in two in-depth articles written by Damien Sherwood. The first article, " Planting Roots of Empathy ," appeared on December 1 and offered a deep dive into the program's effect on students, teachers, instructors, and the community as a whole. A description of one classroom visit: This month’s family visit theme is emotions, so Mann-Heintz asks, “When you learn new things, how do you feel?” Many children exclaim at once, “Happy!” Wilson’s father takes the toy away and the class watches Wilson’s brief, longing gaze as the toy disappears. The class then discusses how one can show that they want...

The North Lane Regional Leadership Team held a "baby shower" at the Fern Ridge Library on November 15 to recognize the Roots of Empathy instructors and families who are dedicating their time to helping raise a compassionate, caring generation of kids. Team co-chair Stacy Moeller coordinated an amazing welcome to the mothers and babies participating in the program by organizing a month-long diaper drive. By the end of October, the team had collected enough diapers and wipes for a “diaper cake” for each family – which made perfect appreciation gifts at the baby shower. Thank you to everyone in North Lane who has worked so hard to make ROE a reality in classrooms at Elmira, Veneta, and...

Five Roots of Empathy staff members - two from Ontario and three from Seattle - visited Eugene at the end of August to lead a three-day ROE training to prepare our 19 instructors to launch the program this fall in 20 rural classrooms. In addition, 29 teachers, principals, and school counselors attended an information session about incorporating ROE into their schools. The mother who generously volunteered her time (and her baby's!) was so excited about the program that she and Baby Memphis joined the program . . . and are completing the Lane County program's first caretaker/infant visit to a school this week. Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard to make this program a local reality!

With Roots of Empathy, a school-based program that teaches elementary-school kids empathy through interactions with a local infant, launching in rural schools in Fall 2018, teams are searching for volunteer instructors to accompany the infant and cargeiver to classrooms. Instructors attend an ROE training and make a two-year commitment to meet with students during and between the visits with the infant. Volunteers will have all the support and lesson materials they need from ROE, and many instructors see tangible changes in "their" students throughout the year. If you're looking for a way to help kids and get involved with 90by30, this could be the opportunity for you. Email friends@90by30...