Helping students recover
Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) is a school-based group intervention (for grades 5-12) that has been shown to reduce PTSD and depression symptoms and psychosocial dysfunction in children who have experienced trauma. Bounce Back is an adaptation of the CBITS model for elementary school students (grades K-5).
Schools are a critical setting for delivering behavioral health services
The majority of children with emotional or behavioral health needs do not receive services. But among those who do, approximately 70% receive services through their schools. The links between trauma exposure, physical health, behavioral health and academic functioning underscore the importance of integrating trauma-informed care within educational settings:
- Children exposed to violence, for example, exhibit lower reading achievement, higher rates of school absence, lower grade point averages, lower graduation rates and are suspended from school more than twice as often as other students.
- Youth with histories of trauma can have difficulties regulating emotions and behavior and can be impulsive or disruptive in school settings when experiencing reminders of past trauma.
About CBITS & Bounce Back
Cognitive Behavioral Intervention for Trauma in Schools (CBITS) and Bounce Back are school-based, group interventions designed to reduce symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and behavioral problems, and improve functioning, grades and attendance, peer and parent support, and coping skills.
CBITS is used with students from 5th grade through 12th grade who have witnessed or experienced traumatic life events. Bounce Back is an adaptation of CBITS for children in Kindergarten through fifth grade.
How to participate
CHDI is helping over 100 schools use CBITS and Bounce Back to help children recover from trauma. Funding to expand CBITS and Bounce Back is provided by the Connecticut Department of Children and Families (DCF) with the goal of eventually attaining statewide coverage.
Connecticut-based providers, schools, school-based health centers, or others interested in offering CBITS or Bounce Back can learn more in the CBITS application & welcome packet:
About the Bounce Back model
Bounce Back is an adaptation of CBITS for children in Kindergarten through fifth grade developed by Audra Langley PhD. and Lisa Jaycox PhD. in collaboration with schools and other partners.
About the CBITS model
The model was developed by a team of clinician-researchers from the RAND Corporation, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA), and the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD).