Navigating Hard Times: Tools and Resources to Help You
People appreciate and never forget that helping hand especially when times are tough.
– Catherine Pulsifer
INTRO
Finding support during difficult times can bring a sense of relief. Schools are more than places of learning—they are communities that provide stability and assistance in times of need. By offering guidance and access to helpful resources, educators help students, staff, and families navigate life’s toughest moments.
OBJECTIVES
- Resource bank you can lean on during tough situations
Life is unpredictable, and at some point, we all face hardships—whether it’s the loss of a loved one, financial struggles, mental health challenges, or unexpected crises. Sometimes events impact individuals in a community, and some events have widespread effects on the entire community. These moments can feel overwhelming, leaving us unsure of where to turn for help. But no matter how difficult things get, support is available.
Educators play a crucial role in helping students, staff, and families navigate challenges by offering guidance and connecting them to resources. Whether it’s providing mental health support for students, directing families to financial assistance programs, or ensuring staff have access to well-being services, schools can be a pillar of stability in times of crisis. Below, you’ll find a list of resources designed to provide comfort, assistance, and practical solutions for those facing tough situations. By sharing these tools, educators can foster a supportive community that helps individuals move toward healing and resilience.
The resources provided below are not an exhaustive list, and they aren’t perfect, but they can give you a place to start when trying to support students and families who may need help.
Natural Disasters
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Find Shelter tool provides information about housing, shelter, health care, and clothing resources in communities across the country.
The Feeding America nationwide network of food banks and food programs helps millions of people find food and grocery help in their communities every year. Connect with your local food bank to learn about upcoming free food distributions and to apply for national food programs like SNAP and WIC.
Suicide and Mental Health
The Lifeline provides 24/7, free and confidential support for people in distress, prevention and crisis resources for you or your loved ones, and best practices for professionals in the United States.
Suicide Prevention for LGBTQIA+ folx 24/7 with trained counselors.
Parents to Parents: After Your Child’s Suicide Attempt is informed by interviews with parents and experts. The video resource was created jointly by Zero Suicide at EDC and Parents to Parents, a non-profit organization that offers resources to caregivers whose child is struggling with mental health challenges or concerns. This film was made possible in part by the generous support of the Four Pines Fund.
YouthLine is a free teen-to-teen crisis support and helpline. YouthLine is confidential to a point- while we will never share conversations had on the lines, we are mandatory reporters. If a young person is unable to agree to safety for themselves or another person, or if abuse is occurring, YouthLine contacts other agencies to ensure the best support and safety for the young person in crisis.
SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year treatment referral and information service (in English and Spanish) for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders.
This resource page outlines resources on addressing crises that occur in school communities and how to move forward in the aftermath of these crises.
Grief
Provides free Peer Support Groups for children, young adults, and adults after the death of a loved one. Groups are open to anyone who has lost a parent, sibling, grandparent, relative, or friend as a result of illness, accident, suicide, or homicide.
The alliance is a national organization of professionals dedicated to supporting grieving children and the networks and communities surrounding them.
This site acts as a resource hub. It is geared towards teens and they have the ability to find activities, articles, and podcast episodes geared toward the support they need.
Racism
A list of resources sourced by Learning for Justice Resources and Articles.
FHAO has a huge library of resources that are created to support teachers with discussing current events that are deemed difficult to talk about.
This resource is intended to help educators understand how they might address the interplay of race and trauma and its effects on students in the classroom. This guide is from PBS and is geared towards younger children and parents.
The Racial Equity Support Line is led and staffed by people with lived experience of racism. We offer support to those who are feeling the emotional impacts of racist violence and microaggressions, as well as the emotional impacts of immigration struggles and other cross-cultural issues.
Child Abuse
The Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline Crisis counselors are here to support those concerned about or affected by child abuse and provide appropriate, individualized guidance for those that reach out. We can also help research additional resources that may be available. The hotline is staffed by live crisis counselors (not bots) who all have college education and life experience in working with child abuse, neglect, and maltreatment.
Provides training, support, technical assistance and leadership on a national level to local children’s and child advocacy centers and communities responding to reports of child abuse and neglect.
Domestic Violence
Safer Society harnesses the power of knowledge, compassion, and innovation to create a world free from sexual and social violence. Offering books, training, and resources to find a provider in your area.
24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, the National Domestic Violence Hotline provides essential tools and support to help survivors of domestic violence so they can live their lives free of abuse.
This hotline advocates offer personalized, non-judgmental support. They can talk to you about your safety, provide information about resources in your community, and connect you to our programs and services.
School Violence
A list of resources, documents, and publications to support students after a school shooting.
Violence such as high-profile school shootings can cause concern within school communities, even if they are not directly affected by the event(s). Adults and students struggle to understand why these events happen and, more importantly, how they can be prevented.
In the demanding world of education, where we pour so much of ourselves into supporting others, it’s easy to overlook the toll that vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue can take on our own well-being. The truth is, consistently holding space for others’ struggles without tending to our own can quietly deplete us. That’s why self-care isn’t a luxury—it’s a professional and personal necessity. Prioritizing rest, reflection, and connection helps us stay grounded, resilient, and fully present for the communities we serve. In taking care of ourselves, we model what it means to thrive, not just survive.
Compassion Fatigue & Secondary Trauma/Vicarious Trauma
This fact sheet describes how individuals experience STS, understanding who is at risk, how to identify STS, strategies for prevention and intervention, and essential elements to address STS
This assessment tool provides an overview of effective strategies to maintain self-care. After completing the full assessment, you can
move on to developing a full self-care plan.
Defines secondary trauma vs compassion fatigue vs burnout and gives strategies and coping skills to stay healthy.
Additional Stories and Toolkits
Looking for more resources and stories on how schools have overcome difficult times? Check out the tookits below.
Stay in the Loop
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
Responses