How Teachers are Leaning on Each Other to Stay Resilient During COVID-19

For the first time in her decade of teaching, Coral Zayas is eating lunch every day. It may sound small, but for her, it’s a major victory. “I don’t normally eat three meals a day, because I’m usually working and don’t even think about it,” Zayas said in September. In addition to her new lunch routine, Zayas, who teaches STEM and social studies at a public school in Leander, Texas, has set a regular time when she turns off her computer at night. “I’m working really hard to put what is in my brain of what balance looks like into reality,” she said.

“Balanced” is not a word that many educators would use to describe how they feel in 2020. Even before COVID-19, recent studies found that 93% of elementary school teachers and 94% of middle school teachers experience high stress. Add to that a pandemic, upheaval in job duties and ongoing social unrest, and you’ve got plenty to worry mental health professionals. “We were in crisis a year ago, and now the house is on fire,” said Michelle Kinder, a licensed professional counselor and co-author of “WHOLE: What Teachers Need to Help Students Thrive.”

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