Social, Emotional, Academic Development Initiatives

Social, Emotional, Academic Development Initiatives Healthy Minds = Healthy Schools
About The SEAD Initiatives

The Leadership Institute of Nevada developed and implemented a Social, Emotional, Academic Development (SEAD) series of wellness workshops. The Institute collaborated directly with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine and Mindful SEAD on developing and implementing these new SEAD wellness workshops.
It was a five-part series of sessions that had a primary goal to ensure that administrators and teacher leaders have the tools they need to address their own personal well-being, and to learn coping strategies that may be implemented in schools thus allowing them to better serve students and their school communities. In the process, leaders were able to recognize signs and triggers of trauma in students and families, allowing them to better meet the needs of students and families’ social-emotional well-being in order to improve both academic and SEL outcomes. This SEAD Workshop Series was based upon the science and research on mindfulness practices.
Leadership Challenge
Our students
Who Should Attend

 - Administrators -
Gain tools to strengthen personal well-being and lead schools with resilience and empathy.


 - Teacher-Leaders -
 - Educators -
Competencies for SEAD Workshop

Building resilience in educators means brighter outcomes for students and families.
Five Core Competencies for SEAD Workshop Series:
- Self-awareness: The abilities to understand one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior across contexts.
- Self-management: The abilities to manage one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations and to achieve goals and aspirations.
- Social awareness: The abilities to understand the perspectives of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and contexts.
- Relationship skills: The abilities to establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and to effectively navigate settings with diverse individuals and groups.
- Responsible decision-making: The abilities to make caring and constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions across diverse situations.
Testimonials

Le Nora Bredsguard discusses her experience in the SEAD program.
SEAD Institute Faculty

Dr. Anne Weisman
Dr. Anne Weisman
Dr. Anne Weisman specializes in integrating massage therapy and other integrative practices into the care and treatment of patients. As the school’s Director of Well-Being & Integrative Medicine she will develop the school’s well-being and integrative medicine curriculum and workshops for students, faculty and residents.
Weisman has spent more than a decade caring for people living with HIV AIDS, and working with hospice patients. She also has developed continuing medical education classes for nurses and other health care providers on how to incorporate non-pharmacological techniques such as massage therapy, aromatherapy and energy work in patient care.
She was awarded the Jefferson Award for Public Service for her volunteering as a massage therapist for HIV/AIDS patients in 2007. Weisman also presented her research on the healing power of touch, particularly for hospice & HIV/AIDS patients at the Nevada Public Health Association and American Public Health Association annual conferences.
She was chosen to represent her research at the Clinton Global Initiative University 2010 at the University in Miami to advocate for massage therapy and building touch into patient care. She earned her BA in Communication Studies, MPH in Public Health and PhD degrees from UNLV.
Kathi Pauli
Kathi Pauli
Kathryn Pauli started her position as the manager of well-being and integrative medicine with the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV in July of 2021. Prior to joining UNLV, she worked for the Clark County School District in Title 1, high-need schools for 13 years, spending a critical part of her time addressing the trauma and mental health concerns many students face.
During her time at the Brown Academy of International Studies, where she served as a math teacher, learning strategist and then as an assistant principal, Pauli worked closely with students in creating restorative justice plans to avoid out-of-school discipline. In addition, she engaged with the school’s leadership team, implementing multi-tiered systems of support (MTSS) that were focused on addressing the trauma, mental health, behavioral, absenteeism, and academic challenges that many students faced.
Pauli, who earned a master’s degree of education in curriculum and instruction from UNLV and holds a master’s degree in administrative leadership from Sierra Nevada College, also taught 5th grade at Halle Hewetson Elementary School in Las Vegas. She holds a certification in Mind-Body Medicine from the Center for Mind-Body Medicine and is a certified Koru Mindfulness teacher. Pauli is also a member of the 2022 Jameson Fellowship cohort.
Originally from Minnesota, where much of her family still resides, Pauli enjoys spending time with her immediate family, which includes two puppies, Addy and Olive. Married with two daughters, Haleigh and Magen, Pauli loves to travel, exercise, and follow the Golden Nights.
Dr. Debb Oliver
Dr. Debb Oliver
Debb Oliver is the Co-founder and CEO of Mindful SEAD. Her motivation is to support educators with their own self-care and to transform school culture through mindfulness, positive psychology and SEL/SEAD. Debb’s work has given her opportunities to build lasting relationships as she consulted with public and private organizations throughout the United States and abroad regarding change management, mindful leadership development, board governance and innovative learning scenarios. She has provided relevant learning opportunities for thousands of teachers and administrators as they transition to effective practices to enhanced student-centered learning. Debb is the author of two books about her work. She has co-edited and co-authored Leading Schools With Social Emotional Academic Development and authored The Learning Transformation: A Guide to Blended Learning for Administrators.
Dr. Michele Robinson
Dr. Michele Robinson
Dr. Michele Robinson has been a school superintendent for 13 years successfully leading districts in Nevada, Massachusetts and New Jersey. She has extensive experience in engaging community partnerships, improving educational outcomes for students, and providing for student and adult social emotional foundations. Michele has engaged community partners to develop employee wellness programs that support the social emotional development of students and the wellbeing of staff caring for children and schools.
Dr. Robinson presents a versatile background that encompasses both the traditional public-school environment and forward-thinking approaches to learning which include the integration of technology and 21st Century learning skills into instructional practices. She developed and founded a successful private K-6 school in Las Vegas, Nevada as well as Odyssey Charter High School, an innovative blended learning charter school. She co-founded the Charter School Association of Nevada, a non-profit organization designed to support new and aspiring charter schools in the state. She was appointed by Nevada’s Governor to the Governor’s Blue Ribbon Task Force. She was appointed to serve on the Nevada Department of Education Common Core Standards (CCA) Steering Committee and acted as co-chair for the CCA Communications Committee. Having participated in numerous legislative roundtables and presentations, Michele worked extensively with state and federal legislators advocating for innovation and educational reform in the state. She co-founded the Bergen County Women in Educational Leadership and Bergen County School Support Network designed to provide support, networking, and professional development in social emotional learning for school districts in New Jersey. Michele has spoken nationally and internationally on topics related to educational innovation and reform, and leadership and wellbeing.
​Michele earned her Ed.D from Nova Southeastern University in the area of Educational Leadership in which she gained an expertise in providing quality professional development and onboarding programming to educational professionals and leaders. She holds an M.ED. in Curriculum and Instruction from Lesley University, and a B.S. in Elementary Education from the University of Nevada Las Vegas.
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Get in Touch with LION

North Las Vegas, NV 89119
(702) 840-LION (5466)