Michelle Gaither
I am a cis-gender bi-racial Black woman born and raised in Portland, OR. I am an educator with over 15 years of experience, and have previously taught preschool, middle & high school; been a student support specialist and now work as a DEI Consultant and Trauma facilitator at Village Resiliency. I’m passionate about education, racial equity, holistic and community well-being and I envision and work toward a world where they can exist and thrive together. I hold a Bachelors of Arts in teaching as well as a Masters in Education in Curriculum/Instruction with a dual endorsement in Teacher Leadership and Trauma & Resiliency in K-12 Schools, from Concordia University.
My desire to support organizations and individuals in being trauma informed, anti-racist, equitable and inclusive stems from my personal experiences as a classroom teacher in mostly under-resourced and heavily trauma saturated settings. Learning how student and teacher behavior is impacted by stress and trauma (societal, environmental and personal) was eye opening, startling, and ultimately life changing for me. It broke me open. I had to take the time to shift my perspectives and practices and do my own healing and learning. I had to address my own trauma exposure and wrestle with the impact I was unintentionally having on students by not adopting trauma informed standards. As I learned of and personally experienced the inequities impacting students and staff- especially those with marginalized identities - I had to reckon with the reality of the education system as a whole and the harm that was being unintentionally perpetuated. This awareness woke me up to actively address and engage with the issues of race and trauma.
Village Resiliency aims to support, equip and empower organizations in developing and maintaining anti-oppressive and trauma-informed environments. Our approach blends trauma-informed principles and antiracist theology to support individual and organizational transformation. We offer brain-based education, skill-building workshops, organizational coaching and consulting in order to help organizations develop equitable and inclusive environments that support resiliency and reduce harm.