Education

Supporting Social-Emotional Learning During the Pandemic

One of the most important ways to assist students during the pandemic is to work with them in learning how to manage their emotions.

Published

5 years ago

April 29, 2021

Mia Lane

Most students have been learning virtually for over a year now, due to COVID-19. It’s probably fair to assume that most students have adjusted favorably to the expectations of online learning whether they wanted to or not. With caring and well-prepared teachers, most students are being exposed to grade-level lessons and activities.

However, even though students appear to be more familiar with educational platforms, learning apps and are more tech-savvy than ever before, we can’t assume that they are still not being affected by the pandemic and all the things they have given up since it began. Students now sit for long periods and movement between and during class is minimum and if they get too fidgety or distracted, they could be called out for it. Recess is a thing of the past and Physical Education is reduced to what can be done in front of the screen.

As parents and teachers try to juggle their children’s lives in front of the camera as well as behind the camera, we also have to take into consideration their social-emotional development, even more so, now that we are in a pandemic.

According to CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning), the leader in the field of Social Emotional Learning (SEL), SEL “is the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.” Helping students learn how to manage Social Emotional Learning will help them to better process and navigate through the current health plight, as well as how to succeed in school and life, long after the pandemic is finally behind us.

One of the most important ways to assist students during the pandemic is to work with them in learning how to manage their emotions. Even though many students have been attending school online for over a year now and many have become quite adjusted to learning virtually, we still have to check in with them often and gauge how they are feeling. We have to notice any change in their behavior and allow them to move periodically after sitting during their online classes or to take movement breaks on purpose.

Other ways to help students manage their emotions during this time, is to help them in identifying and labeling their emotions. We could be of great assistance to them if we help them to recognize how they are feeling and commend them for taking responsibility for those emotions.

For example, “I am feeling grumpy today because I didn’t get enough rest last night.” For those feelings of fear, anger, and/or sadness we can guide them in finding strategies that could make them feel better or practice ways to calm them down by journaling, soothing exercises, mindfulness meditation, and deep breathing.

Another great way to support our children’s Social Emotional Learning especially during this Pandemic is to help them to continue developing their self-esteem. According to an article in ‘very well mind’ an online developmental psychology website, “The concept of self-esteem plays an important role in psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which depicts esteem as one of the basic human motivations.” The article goes on to say that, “Maslow suggested that individuals need both appreciation from other people and inner self-respect to build esteem. Both of these needs must be fulfilled for an individual to grow as a person and reach self-actualization.”

So, as we think of ways to develop self-esteem within our children, they can feel good about accomplishing tasks, as well as feeling good about the accolades that could result in carrying them out.

For example, giving children more responsibilities around the house, no matter how big or how small, is a productive way to help them in feeling good about themselves.

Allowing them to make age-appropriate choices will also make them feel like a respected contributing member of the family, as well. It is also beneficial to teach them how to think through their decisions and to come up with options that they have decided upon on their own. Most importantly, when they can make choices and fulfill their responsibilities around the house, it is equally important for us to show our appreciation towards them for helping out and for the effort they display.

Another way to support our children by developing their Social Emotional Learning is by working with them in building empathy.

This is not always easy to do, since it’s all a child can do to think about how they are feeling, let alone think about how someone else may be feeling.

So, when we continue to openly discuss the pandemic and how it can affect others, we can then begin to have our children think about how it could feel to walk in someone else’s shoes. If the person is someone the child knows then we could brainstorm ways in which they could help them or offer a word of kindness by phone, text, email, social media, etc. We could even teach them the skill of “active listening” and let them understand the value of being supportive in our silence. This type of life skill is something that can be used throughout their lives, for the rest of their lives and can be applied to numerous everyday situations.

Another valuable strategy that we can model and share with our children is the use of “self-talk.” Some may call it “talking out loud” and back in the day, it could have been referred to as “talking to yourself.” According to the media organization Psychology Today,“ Many people are conscious of an inner voice that provides a running monologue on their lives throughout the day.

This inner voice, our self-talk, combining conscious thoughts and unconscious beliefs and biases, provides a way for the brain to interpret and process daily experiences.” Today we have come to realize the benefits of it, and it teaches our children how to better associate their words with their feelings. For example, when you are in heavy traffic you could model by saying, “This traffic is so backed up, and I’m going to be late. I’m feeling angry that we can’t move faster, so I’m going to take a deep breath and turn on the music to calm myself down.”

This quick commentary will help in teaching our children words that can be associated with their feelings, as well as possible strategies that can help in calming them down, like deep breathing and listening to music. Practicing “self-talk” often with our children, by modeling and by allowing them to practice so that it will become a useful tool that can be used to regulate their emotions when needed, will be invaluable.

Helping our children learn to manage their Social Emotional Learning has benefits that can take them far beyond the pandemic, but while we are still in it, we must help them to understand and handle those emotions so that they can have less emotional stress, make responsible choices and decisions, feel better and show empathy for others and most of all so that they can work successfully towards academic achievement.

Mia Lane

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Activism

Desmond Gumbs — Visionary Founder, Mentor, and Builder of Opportunity

Gumbs’ coaching and leadership journey spans from Bishop O’Dowd High School, Oakland High School, Stellar Prep High School. Over the decades, hundreds of his students have gone on to college, earning academic and athletic scholarships and developing life skills that extend well beyond sports.

Published

3 days ago

December 20, 2025

Oakland Post

NCAA football history was made this year when Head Coach from Mississippi Valley State, Terrell Buckley and Head Coach Desmond Gumbs both had starting kickers that were Women. This picture was taken after the game. Courtesy photo.

Special to the Post

For more than 25 years, Desmond Gumbs has been a cornerstone of Bay Area education and athletics — not simply as a coach, but as a mentor, founder, and architect of opportunity. While recent media narratives have focused narrowly on challenges, they fail to capture the far more important truth: Gumbs’ life’s work has been dedicated to building pathways to college, character, and long-term success for hundreds of young people.

A Career Defined by Impact

One of his most enduring contributions is his role as founder of Stellar Prep High School, a non-traditional, mission-driven institution created to serve students who needed additional structure, belief, and opportunity. Through Stellar Prep numerous students have advanced to college — many with scholarships — demonstrating Gumbs’ deep commitment to education as the foundation for athletic and personal success.

NCAA football history was made this year when Head Coach from
Mississippi Valley State, Terrell Buckley and Head Coach Desmond
Gumbs both had starting kickers that were women. This picture was
taken after the game.

A Personal Testament to the Mission: Addison Gumbs

Perhaps no example better reflects Desmond Gumbs’ philosophy than the journey of his son, Addison Gumbs. Addison became an Army All-American, one of the highest honors in high school football — and notably, the last Army All-Americans produced by the Bay Area, alongside Najee Harris.

Both young men went on to compete at the highest levels of college football — Addison Gumbs at the University of Oklahoma, and Najee Harris at the University of Alabama — representing the Bay Area on a national level.

Building Lincoln University Athletics From the Ground Up

In 2021, Gumbs accepted one of the most difficult challenges in college athletics: launching an entire athletics department at Lincoln University in Oakland from scratch. With no established infrastructure, limited facilities, and eventually the loss of key financial aid resources, he nonetheless built opportunities where none existed.

Under his leadership, Lincoln University introduced:

Football
Men’s and Women’s Basketball
Men’s and Women’s Soccer

Operating as an independent program with no capital and no conference safety net, Gumbs was forced to innovate — finding ways to sustain teams, schedule competition, and keep student-athletes enrolled and progressing toward degrees. The work was never about comfort; it was about access.

Voices That Reflect His Impact

Desmond Gumbs’ philosophy has been consistently reflected in his own published words:

“if you have an idea, you’re 75% there the remaining 25% is actually doing it.”
“This generation doesn’t respect the title — they respect the person.”
“Greatness is a habit, not a moment.”

Former players and community members have echoed similar sentiments in public commentary, crediting Gumbs with teaching them leadership, accountability, confidence, and belief in themselves — lessons that outlast any single season.

Context Matters More Than Headlines

Recent articles critical of Lincoln University athletics focus on logistical and financial hardships while ignoring the reality of building a new program with limited resources in one of the most expensive regions in the country. Such narratives are ultimately harmful and incomplete, failing to recognize the courage it takes to create opportunity instead of walking away when conditions are difficult.

The real story is not about early struggles — it is about vision, resilience, and service.

A Legacy That Endures

From founding Stellar PREP High School, to sending hundreds of students to college, to producing elite athletes like Addison Gumbs, to launching Lincoln University athletics, Desmond Gumbs’ legacy is one of belief in young people and relentless commitment to opportunity.

His work cannot be reduced to headlines or records. It lives on in degrees earned, scholarships secured, leaders developed, and futures changed — across the Bay Area and beyond.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland School Board Grapples with Potential $100 Million Shortfall Next Year

The school board approved Superintendent Denise Saddler’s plan for major cuts to schools and the district office, but they are still trying to avoid outside pressure to close flatland schools.

Published

1 week ago

December 14, 2025

Oakland Post

OUSD Supt. Denise Saddler. File photo.

By Post Staff

The Oakland Board of Education is continuing to grapple with a massive $100 million shortfall next year, which represents about 20% of the district’s general fund budget.

The school board approved Superintendent Denise Saddler’s plan for major cuts to schools and the district office, but they are still trying to avoid outside pressure to close flatland schools.

Without cuts, OUSD is under threat of being taken over by the state. The district only emerged from state receivership in July after 22 years.

“We want to make sure the cuts are away from the kids,” said Kampala Taiz-Rancifer, president of the Oakland Education Association, the teachers’ union. “There are too many things that are important and critical to instruction, to protecting our most vulnerable kids, to safety.”

The school district has been considering different scenarios for budget cuts proposed by the superintendent, including athletics, libraries, clubs, teacher programs, and school security.

The plan approved at Wednesday’s board meeting, which is not yet finalized, is estimated to save around $103 million.

Staff is now looking at decreasing central office staff and cutting extra-curricular budgets, such as for sports and library services. It will also review contracts for outside consultants, limiting classroom supplies and examine the possibility of school closures, which is a popular proposal among state and county officials and privatizers though after decades of Oakland school closures, has been shown to save little if any money.

Oakland Post

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Activism

How Charles R. Drew University Navigated More Than $20 Million in Fed Cuts – Still Prioritizing Students and Community Health

Named after the pioneering physician Dr. Charles R. Drew, famous for his work in blood preservation, CDU’s mission is to cultivate “diverse health professional leaders dedicated to social justice and health equity for underserved populations through education, research, clinical service, and, above all, community engagement.”

Published

1 month ago

November 16, 2025

Oakland Post

Photo Caption: The campus of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU) in Los Angeles. CBM photo by Max Elramsisy.

Charlene Muhammad | California Black Media

Earlier this year, when the federal government slashed more than $20 million in grants to Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU), the leadership of California’s only historically Black medical school scrambled to stabilize its finances — while protecting its staff and students.

The school is widely recognized as a vital pipeline for Black doctors and other health professionals throughout California.

Dr. David Carlisle (center), President of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science (CDU), with two of the university’s students. Photo Courtesy of Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science.

Dr. Jose Torres-Ruiz, CDU’s Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, said the university—designated as a Historically Black Graduate Institution (HBGI)—was notified in early March 2025 that most of its major grants, including the Research Centers in Minority Institutions (RCMI) award, known at CDU as the “Accelerating Excellence in Translational Science” (AXIS Grant), would be terminated. Initially renewed, the grant was later revoked because its language did not align with the current federal administration’s priorities.

The AXIS Grant provides $4.5 million per year for five years through the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. CDU quickly reallocated other funds to protect its scientists, staff, and technicians, though some personnel losses were unavoidable.

“We didn’t want to fire them because these people have expertise that takes years to gain,” Torres-Ruiz said.

The grant is crucial, he added, funding research in cancer, diabetes, and metabolic diseases that affect the Willowbrook community in South Los Angeles, training the next generation of scientists, and supporting community outreach.

Programs at the school, including its youth and teen mentoring programs reach beyond the walls of the university, impacting the lives and quality of health care of people in the surrounding community, one of the most underserved areas in Los Angeles County.

Confronted with the harsh reality of funding cuts, the university’s leadership made an early, strategic choice to honor its foundational commitment and prioritize its students. Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Stith, dean of CDU’s College of Medicine, highlighted the school’s deliberate focus on admitting students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds — many of whom are Pell Grant recipients and graduates of public high schools.

“We are staying true to our mission, finding creative ways to prioritize what’s most important,” she said. “I’m optimistic because of our students—they are dedicated and committed to service.”

In addition, the $2 million-per-year John Lewis NIMHD Research Endowment Program, intended to strengthen CDU’s research infrastructure, was terminated with three years remaining after a February 2025 freeze on nearly all federal grants for public health, education, and infrastructure projects.

Following an appeal, CDU learned in June that the RCMI grant had been fully reinstated, along with all but eight smaller grants. The university’s next priority is restoring the John Lewis Endowment.

“We are working with NIH staff to adjust the language. Certain words like ‘diversity’ and ‘equity,’ which are core values of our institution, are now under scrutiny,” Torres-Ruiz explained.

CDU has also expanded funding sources by targeting foundations and private donors. “This may happen again. We cannot rely solely on federal agencies,” Torres-Ruiz said, emphasizing the importance of building relationships with politicians and private partners.

Prothrow Stith echoed Ruiz’s perspective on cultivating multiple funding sources. “Building bridges with private foundations helps, but it doesn’t erase the disruption,” she said.

Many students rely on federal loans, CDU leaders say. Those loans are now capped at $150,000. So, most medical students graduate with $300,000–$350,000 in debt when accounting for tuition and living expenses.

To lower the burden on students, CDU is exploring options to make education more affordable, including overlapping school years to reduce annual costs.

Students like Isaiah Hoffman and Bailey Moore epitomize CDU’s values.

Hoffman, an aspiring orthopedic surgeon from Inglewood, credits Drew for inspiring his career choice. Out of 12 medical school acceptances, he chose CDU to give back to his community and continue Drew’s legacy. Hoffman also founded H.O.M.I.E.S. Inc., a nonprofit pairing Black K–12 students with mentors to support academic and personal growth.

Moore, 23, from Southeast Washington, D.C., pursued CDU to address maternal health disparities she observed in her own community – an underserved area of the nation’s capital city. “CDU pours into you. It emphasizes service, and I hope for a world without health disparities,” she said. “Drew may be small, but Drew is mighty. It was created out of necessity to save lives and empower communities.”

CDU President and CEO Dr. David Carlisle acknowledged during the Aug. 28 “State of the University” that the institution faces ongoing challenges. Political threats and grant disruptions contributed to a sizable unrestricted budget deficit, despite achievements over the past year.

Successful appeals and alternative sources of funding, led by Vice Provost Dr. Ali Andallibi, have now restored all the monies previously lost in research funding, he said.

Carlisle expressed gratitude to L.A. Care Health Plan and Sutter Health for providing multimillion-dollar scholarships and highlighted that CDU would welcome approximately 1,050 incoming students—near its highest enrollment ever. “I’m deeply grateful for the resolve, diligence, and unwavering commitment of everyone here, even when the path is not easy,” he said.

At the gathering, Carlisle referred to the sounds of ambulances passing by with blaring sirens as- the “music of healthcare,” while students and the school’s leadership attending expressed resilience in their speeches and conversations. The activities of the day captured the institution’s focus on education, service and advancing health care across disadvantaged communities in California – and beyond.

Video Report: How Charles Drew Stayed Strong Amid Federal Funding Cuts