{"id":11207,"date":"2021-01-13T17:12:36","date_gmt":"2021-01-14T01:12:36","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=11207"},"modified":"2021-01-13T17:12:36","modified_gmt":"2021-01-14T01:12:36","slug":"ucsb-teaches-thriving-during-chaos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lesliedinaberg.com\/wordpress\/?p=11207","title":{"rendered":"UCSB Teaches Thriving During Chaos"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"UCSB<\/a>

UCSB Teaches Thriving During Chaos, originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent Self-Care issue, January 7, 2021.<\/p><\/div>\n

The pandemic has been stressful for\u00a0all of us, but the abrupt shift to online\u00a0learning \u2014coupled with social isolation,\u00a0political unrest, and the loss of just\u00a0about everything that makes college fun\u2014 has been particularly difficult for students.<\/p>\n

Last spring, Smaranda Lawrie<\/a>, a graduate\u00a0student in UCSB\u2019s Department of Psychological<\/a>
\n& Brain Sciences, saw\u00a0how the COVID-19 pandemic\u00a0impacted her students\u2019 lives. \u201cMy\u00a0students were really struggling,\u201d\u00a0she said. \u201cI was teaching a lab\u00a0course online, and there were a lot\u00a0of hard conversations with them.\u00a0There were tears and lots of emotions,\u00a0so I started incorporating\u00a0positive psychology practices into\u00a0the class.\u201d<\/p>\n

Using techniques designed\u00a0to \u201chelp individuals be stronger\u00a0versions of themselves,\u201d Lawrie\u00a0observed such positive results with her students\u00a0that they were thirsty for more.<\/p>\n

Working with undergrads, particularly\u00a0Samantha Blodgett, \u201cWe thought, \u2018Let\u2019s just\u00a0start a series of talks and see what happens,\u2019\u201d\u00a0said Lawrie. The speakers they approached\u00a0were enthusiastic, and students even more\u00a0so. \u201cWe were hoping for 20 students, and\u00a0we ended up cutting it off at close to 1,000\u00a0because we didn\u2019t know how to manage\u00a0everyone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, four sessions into the UCSB Resilience\u00a0Summit and Certificate Program, \u201cI\u2019ve\u00a0just been surprised about these discussions\u00a0that students are having during the actual\u00a0lectures,\u201d said Lawrie, who taught the first\u00a0course, called Positive Psychology and the
\nScience of Thriving, before opening up to\u00a0other lecturers on such topics as mindful
\nattention training, conditioning for resilience,\u00a0and overcoming imposter syndrome.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are very vulnerable and very open,\u00a0and it seems like they are really relating to\u00a0the material and appreciating the information\u00a0and appreciating the speakers,\u201d added\u00a0Lawrie, who is trying to make the summit\u00a0live on. \u201cIt\u2019s the pilot year, so we\u2019ll see how it\u00a0goes. I would love to get this info to as many\u00a0people as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Upcoming seminars will discuss\u00a0finding your inner hero, monitoring\u00a0mental wellness in students, finding silver\u00a0linings in negative events, supporting\u00a0\u201cat-promise\u201d students, post-traumatic\u00a0growth, and more. See ucsbresilience.wixsite.com\/resiliencesummit<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"Santa<\/a><\/p>\n

Originally published in the Santa Barbara Independent<\/em><\/a> on January 7, 2021. To see this story as it appeared in print, please click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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