Date of Award

2026

Degree Name

Leadership Studies

College

College of Education and Professional Development

Type of Degree

Ed.D.

Document Type

Dissertation

First Advisor

Dr. Ron Childress

Second Advisor

Dr. Eugenia Lambert

Third Advisor

Dr. Yvonne Skoretz

Abstract

Urban educators frequently support students who have experienced significant trauma, increasing their vulnerability to secondary traumatic stress (STS) and compassion fatigue (CF). Although trauma-informed practices have expanded in public education, limited research has examined how educators develop and sustain resilience strategies as they navigate the emotional demands of their work. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the strategies urban educators use to mitigate STS and CF and to understand how these strategies develop across educators’ professional experiences. The study also examined potential differences in strategies across demographic groups and considered implications for educational leadership.

Seventeen educators from 13 urban public schools participated in semi-structured interviews using the Origins of Teacher Resilience Interview Protocol (OTRIP), and completed the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL) to provide contextual artifact data on compassion satisfaction, burnout, and secondary traumatic stress. Interview transcripts were analyzed through iterative coding and cross-case comparison to identify themes across participants’ lived experiences.

Findings indicated that educators employ resilience strategies across four interconnected domains: self-care, detachment, sense of satisfaction, and social support. Self-care and boundary setting emerged as foundational practices, while detachment strategies helped educators manage emotional exposure to student trauma. Participants also relied on maintaining a sense of satisfaction derived from relationships with students and alignment with personal purpose. Social support networks, and particularly trusted colleagues, were consistently identified as critical to sustaining resilience. However, most strategies developed reactively following periods of professional depletion rather than through formal preparation or organizational support. Differences in strategy use were also observed across demographic characteristics, instructional levels, and career stages. Findings suggest the need for intentional leadership structures—including mentorship, structured social support systems, and the normalization of resilience strategies—to better support teacher well-being and retention in urban schools.

Subject(s)

Teachers.

Psychic trauma.

Secondary traumatic stress.

Urban schools.

Public schools.

Burn out (Psychology)

Resilience (Personality trait) -- Psychological aspects.

Resilience (Personality trait) -- Study and teaching.

Educational leadership.

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