Resume

• 2008

  Penn State University

  University of California

  San Francisco

  As Research Assistant Professor with Human Development and Family Studies and with the Prevention Research Center in the College of Health and Human Development I am directing a joint research project to develop and test an intervention called Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE) that introduces mindfulness practices and emotion skills training to help reduce teacher stress

  enhance classroom efficacy

  and promote student academic performance and pro-social behaviors.

  Penn State University

  Director of the Initiative on Contemplation and Education

  The Garrison Institute's Initiative on Contemplation & Education works with educators to help improve school environments

  boost academic achievement

  and support social and emotional development

  especially for students exposed to risk factors such as poverty

  violence

  and divorce.

  Garrison Institute

  University of Virginia

  I am an Associate Professor of Curriculum

  Instruction and Special Education with the Curry School of Education. I am developing and teaching an innovative course in classroom organization that integrates deep reflection

  emotion skills and mindfulness to prepare education students to create and sustain supportive learning environments and relationships with their students in order to promote prosocial behavior and academic learning. I am also a member of the Directorate of the Contemplative Sciences Center and I am involved in several research projects exploring the effectiveness of mindfulness-based interventions for promoting teacher and student performance.

  Associate Professor

  Charlottesville

  Virginia Area

• 2000

  Ph.D.

  Human Development

  2004 - UC Davis Outstanding Graduate Student Teaching Award \n2000 – 2003 UC Davis Graduate Opportunity Fellowship\n2001 – 2002 UC Davis Henry A. Jastro Fellowship\n2003-2004: Chair

  Colloquium Committee\nUniversity of California

  Davis\nDepartment of Human and Community Development

• 1990

  WestEd

  Garrison Institute

  University of Virginia

  Directed the Cultivating Emotional Balance project

  a randomized clinical trial to determine the effectiveness of a training intervention designed to reduce stress and enhance school teachers’ emotional awareness. Collaborated with a team of investigators to develop an assessment battery including biological and behavioral measures of emotional states and emotional reactivity in addition to standardized self-report measures. Recruited

  trained

  and managed research interns. Supervised clinical assessments. Managed and oversaw IRB compliance. Managed study budget. Wrote grant applications. Developed and received funding for a program of study to investigate the secondary effects of teachers’ enhanced emotion regulation on classroom climate

  child behaviors

  and child academic performance.

  University of California

  San Francisco

  WestEd

  WestEd

• 1978

  Spanish

  M.Ed.

  Education

  Saint Mary's College

• 1976

  B.A.

  Psychology

  Antioch College

• 136

  Patricia Broderick

  New Directions in Youth Development

  Broderick

  P.

  & Jennings

  P. A. (2012). Mindfulness for adolescents: A promising approach to supporting emotion regulation and preventing risky behavior. In Malti

  T. (Ed.). Adolescent emotions: Development

  morality

  and adaptation [Special issue]. New Directions in Youth Development

  111–126.

  Mindfulness for adolescents: A promising approach to supporting emotion regulation and preventing risky behavior.

  Michael Coccia

  Jennings

  P. A.

  Snowberg

  K. E.

  Coccia. M. A.

  & Greenberg

  M. T. (2011). Improving classroom learning environments by Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE): Results of two pilot studies. Journal of Classroom Interaction

  46(1)

  37–48.

  Improving classroom learning environments by Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE): Results of two pilot studies.

• 118

  Jennings

  P. A. (2008). Contemplative education and youth development. New Directions in Youth Development

  Special Issue: Spiritual Development

  101–105.

  Contemplative education and youth development

  Carolyn Aldwin

  Michelle D'Mello

  Michael Levenson

  Gross national happiness and development

  Levenson

  M. R.

  Jennings

  P. A.

  D’Mello

  M.

  Le

  T.

  & Aldwin

  C. M. (2004). Happiness in the midst of change: A human development approach to studying Gross National Happiness (GNH) in the context of economic development. In K. Ura & K. Galay (Eds.)

  Gross national happiness and development. Thimphu

  Bhutan: Centre for Bhutan Studies.

  Happiness in the midst of change: A human development approach to studying Gross National Happiness (GNH) in the context of economic development

  Paul Ekman

  B. Alan Wallace

  Philip Shaver

  Omri Gillath

  Erica Rosenberg

• 79

  Jennings

  P. A.

  & Greenberg

  M. (2009). The Prosocial Classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to child and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research

  491–525.

  The Prosocial Classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to child and classroom outcomes

  Jeffry Beers

  Ellen Skinner

• 60

  Michael Levenson

  International Journal of Aging and Human Development

  Levenson

  M. R.

  Jennings

  P. A.

  Aldwin

  C. M.

  & Shiraishi

  R. W. (2005). Self-transcendence: conceptualization and measurement. The International Journal of Aging and Human Development

  127–143.

  Self-transcendence: conceptualization and measurement.

  Michael Coccia

  Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE for Teachers) is a mindfulness-based professional development program designed to reduce stress and improve teachers' performance and classroom learning environments. A randomized controlled trial examined program efficacy and acceptability among a sample of 50 teachers randomly assigned to CARE or waitlist control condition. Participants completed a battery of self-report measures at pre- and postintervention to assess the impact of the CARE program on general well-being

  efficacy

  burnout/time pressure

  and mindfulness. Participants in the CARE group completed an evaluation of the program after completing the intervention. ANCOVAs were computed between the CARE group and control group for each outcome

  and the pretest scores served as a covariate. Participation in the CARE program resulted in significant improvements in teacher well-being

  efficacy

  burnout/time-related stress

  and mindfulness compared with controls. Evaluation data showed that teachers viewed CARE as a feasible

  acceptable

  and effective method for reducing stress and improving performance. Results suggest that the CARE program has promise to support teachers working in challenging settings and consequently improve classroom environments.\nPsycINFO Database Record (c) 2013 APA

  all rights reserved.

  Improving classroom learning environments by Cultivating Awareness and Resilience in Education (CARE): results of a randomized controlled trial

  Jennings

  P. A. (2011). Promoting teachers' social and emotional competencies to support performance and reduce burnout. Chapter 13 in A. Cohan & A. Honigsfeld (Eds.)

  Breaking the mold of preservice and inservice teacher education: Innovative and successful practices for the twenty-first century (pp. 133–143). New York: Rowman & Littlefield.

  Promoting teachers' social and emotional competencies to support performance and reduce burnout.

  Most teacher professional development focuses on curriculum delivery. CARE for Teachers is different because it promotes core skills and dispositions teachers need to create and maintain supportive learning environments while retaining their well-being and love of teaching.

  Anna DeWeese

  Christa Turksma

  Richard Brown

  Contemplative Sciences Center

  Patricia

  Jennings

• 28

  Jennings

  P. A.

  Levenson

  M. R.

  Aldwin

  C. M.

  Spiro

  A.

  & Mroczek

  D. K. (2006). Combat exposure

  perceptions of military service

  and wisdom: Findings from the Normative Aging Study. Research on Aging: A Bimonthly on Aging and the Life Course

  Special Issue: Wartime Military Service

  Aging

  and the Life Course

  115–134.

  Combat exposure

  perceptions of military service

  and wisdom: Findings from the Normative Aging Study.

  Linda Lanteri

  Jennings

  P. A.

  Roeser

  R.

  & Lantieri

  L. (2012). Supporting educational goals through cultivating mindfulness: Approaches for teachers and students. In A. Higgins-D'Alessandro

  M. Corrigan

  & P. M. Brown (Eds.)

  The handbook of prosocial education. New York: Rowman and Littlefield.

  Supporting educational goals through cultivating mindfulness: Approaches for teachers and students.

  Early childhood teachers are instrumental in creating socially and emotionally supportive learning environments for young children. However

  there is a paucity of research examining teachers’ psychosocial characteristics in relation to the dimensions of quality learning environments. Furthermore

  little is known about the relationship between teachers’ psychosocial characteristics and their attitudes about children whose behavior they find challenging. The present study examined data from 35 preschool teachers’ self-reports of well-being

  mindfulness

  and self-compassion in relation to observations of classroom quality and ratings of semi-structured interviews about a child chosen by the teacher as most challenging. Mindfulness

  self-compassion

  personal efficacy

  and positive affect were associated with emotional support while emotional exhaustion and depersonalization were negatively associated with emotional support. Depression was negatively associated with emotional support

  classroom organization

  and instructional support. With regard to the interview ratings

  mindfulness and efficacy were positively associated with perspective-taking and sensitivity to discipline

  and depersonalization was negatively associated with sensitivity to discipline. While further research is needed to ascertain causality

  these results suggest that teachers’ psychosocial characteristics may impact their ability to create and maintain optimal classroom environments and supportive relationships with challenging students. Furthermore

  they point to the need for research to examine professional development designed to promote mindfulness

  reduce distress

  and support teachers’ social and emotional competence and well-being.

  Early Childhood Teachers’ Well-Being

  Mindfulness

  and Self-Compassion in Relation to Classroom Quality and Attitudes Towards Challenging Students

  Mindfulness for Teachers is based upon the author's extensive experience as a mindfulness practitioner

  teacher

  teacher educator and scientist. Drawing upon basic and applied research in the fields of neuroscience

  psychology and education

  the book offers valuable information about how mindfulness can help teachers manage the stressful demands of the classroom

  cultivate an exceptional learning environment

  and revitalize teaching and learning.

  Mindfulness for Teachers: Simple Skills for Peace and Productivity in the Classroom

  David Meyers

  Linda Lanteri

  Adam Engle

• 12

  James Cavanagh

  Carol Foltz

  Margaret Kemeny

  Emotion

  Kemeny

  M. E.

  Foltz

  C

  Cavanagh

  J. F.

  Giese-Davis

  J.

  Jennings

  P. A.

  Rosenberg

  E. L. Gillath

  O.

  Shaver

  P. R. Wallace

  B. A.

  & Ekman

  P. (2012) Contemplative/emotion training reduces negative emotional behavior and promotes prosocial responses. Emotion

  338–350.

  Contemplative/emotion training reduces negative emotional behavior and promotes prosocial responses

  Dan Mroczek

  Ron Spiro

  Carolyn Aldwin

  Michael Levenson

• 6

  John Dunne

  Richard Davidson

  Child Development Perspectives

  Mind and Life Education Research Network (MLERN): Davidson

  R. J.

  Dunne

  J.

  Eccles

  J. S.

  Engle

  A.

  Greenberg

  M.

  Jennings

  P.

  Jha

  A.

  Jinpa

  T.

  Lantieri

  L.

  Meyers

  D.

  Roeser

  R. W.

  & Vago

  D. (2012). Contemplative practices and mental training: Prospects for American education. Child Development Perspectives

  146–153.

  Contemplative practices and mental training: Prospects for American education.

  Roeser

  R. W.

  Skinner

  E.

  Beers

  J.

  & Jennings

  P. A. (2012). Mindfulness training and teachers’ professional development: An emerging area of research and practice. Child Development Perspectives

  167–173

  Mindfulness training and teachers’ professional development: An emerging area of research and practice.

  Ray Shirashi

  Carolyn Aldwin

• Patricia A. Jennings \" Employee Directory - Curry School of Education

  As a prevention scientist

  to apply my knowledge of the social and emotional dynamics of educational settings to create interventions that enhance teachers' capacity to provide a supportive and engaging social and emotional context for academic learning. This involves conducting evaluative

  efficacy

  effectiveness

  and dissemination research to determine whether these intervention efforts are effective and sustainable in educational settings.

  I study the social and emotional dynamics of educational settings and apply this understanding to develop and test interventions designed to enhance teachers' capacity to cultivate supportive relationships with their students and provide a supportive and engaging social and emotional context for academic learning.

  Curry School of Education

  Mindfulness For Teachers

  Uploaded by Tish Jennings on 2015-03-03.

  Mindfulness For Teachers

  Tish Jennings on Trust

  1440 Foundation supports the Garrison Institute

  a not-for-profit organization exploring the intersection of contemplation and engaged action in the world. Tish Jennings

  the institutes Senior Director of Contemplation and Education

  is helping create programs and tools to help teachers

  caregivers

  human service providers

  environmentalists and others on the front lines of social and environmental engagement succeed.

  Tish Jennings on Trust

  School Administration

  Public Speaking

  Teacher Training

  Psychotherapy

  Child Development

  Teaching

  Staff Development

  Classroom Management

  Program Evaluation

  Curriculum Design

  Training

  Curriculum Development

  Research

  Program Development

  Higher Education

  Stress Management

  Grant Writing

  Psychology

  Meditation

  Mindfulness

  Mindfulness-based interventions in school settings: An introduction to the special series.

  Frank

  J. L.

  Jennings

  P. A. & Greenberg

  M. T. (2013). Mindfulness-based interventions in school settings: An introduction to the special series. In Frank

  J. L.

  Jennings

  P. A. & Greenberg

  M. T. (Eds.). Mindfulness-based interventions in school settings [Special Issue]. Research in Human Development. 10

  205-210

  DOI:10.1080/15427609.2013.818480.

  Mindfulness-based interventions in school settings: An introduction to the special series.