Focusing specifically on adolescents forced to relocate after Hurricane Katrina, the study looks closely at the role of schools in helping adolescents adapt after a natural disaster. Data collected from 46 middle and high school students across a 6-month period demonstrate that those who showed the greatest improvements in their well-being were those who sought help from their teachers, whose new school created a milieu of cooperation, and who were placed in a school that neither went overboard trying to help nor ignored their special needs. The article concludes with recommendations for schools seeking to maximize the welfare of their students.
CollinsonV.CookT. F.ConleyS. (2006). Organizational learning in schools and school systems: Improved learning, teaching, and leading. Theory into Practice, 45(2), 107-116.
2.
CochranM.LarnerM.RileyD.GunnarssonL.HendersonC. R.Jr. (1990). Extending families: The social networks of parents and their children. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
3.
CryderC. H.KilmerR. P.TedeschiR. G.CalhounL. G. (2006). An exploratory study of posttraumatic growth in children following a natural disaster. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 76(1), 65-69.
4.
EnnettS. T.BaumanK. E.HussongA.FarisR.FosheeV. A.CaiL.DuRantR. H. (2006). The peer context of adolescent substance use: Findings from social network analysis. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 16(2), 159-186.
5.
FurmanW.BuhrmesterD. (1992). Age and sex differences in perceptions of networks of personal relationships. Child Development, 63(1), 103-115.
6.
FurstenbergF. F.Jr.CookT. D.EcclesJ.ElderG. H.Jr.SameroffA. (1999). Managing to make it: Urban families and adolescent success. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
7.
GoenijianA. K.MolinaL.SteinbergA. M.FairbanksL. A.AlvarezA. L.GoenijianH. A.PynoosR. S. (2001). Posttraumatic stress and depressive reactions among Nicaraguan adolescents after Hurricane Mitch. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(5), 788-794.
8.
HartnettS. (2008). Does peer group identity influence absenteeism in high school students?The High School Journal, 91(2), 35-44.
9.
JaycoxL. H.TanielianT. L.SharmaP.MorseL.ClumG.SteinB. D. (2007). Schools’ mental health responses after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Psychiatric Services, 58(10), 1339-1343.
10.
JonesR. T.FraryR.CunninghamP.WeddleJ. D.KaiserL. (2001). The psychological effects of Hurricane Andrew on ethnic minority and Caucasian children and adolescents: A case study. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 71, 103-108.
11.
KaniastyK.NorrisF. H.MurrellS. A. (1990). Received and perceived social support following natural disaster. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 20, 85-114.
12.
KilicC.AydınI.TaşkıntunaN.OzcürümezG.KurtG.ErenE.. . . ZileliL. (2006). Predictors of psychological distress in survivors of the 1999 earthquakes in Turkey: Effects of relocation after the disaster. Acta Psychiatrica Scandivavica, 114, 194-202.
13.
LeeM.MadyunN. (2008). School racial composition and academic achievement: The case of Hmong LEP students in the USA. Educational Studies, 34(4), 319-331.
MarshallN. L.NoonanA. E.McCartneyK.MarxF.KeefeN. (2001). It takes an urban village: Parenting networks of urban families. Journal of Family Issues, 22, 163-182.
16.
Martinez-CosioM.BarrettE. J.AusbrooksC. (2008). (Re)defining school counselors’ roles: Lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina. Arlington: School of Urban and Public Affairs, the University of Texas at Arlington.
17.
MilneG. (1977). Cyclone Tracy: II. The effects on Darwin children. Australian Psychologist, 12, 55-62.
18.
OpdenakkerM.-C.Van DammeJ. (2007). Do school context, student composition and school leadership affect school practice and outcomes in secondary education?British Educational Research Journal, 33(2), 179-206.
19.
PerryL.McConneyA. (2010). School socio-economic composition and student outcomes in Australia: Implications for educational policy. Australian Journal of Education, 54(1), 72-85.
20.
PrinsteinM. J.La GrecaA. M.VernbergE. M.SilvermanW. K. (1996). Children’s coping assistance: How parents, teachers, and friends help children cope after a natural disaster. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 25(4), 463-475.
21.
RubinK. H.BukowskiW.ParkerJ. G. (1998). Peer interactions, relationships, and groups. In DamonW.EisenbergN. (Eds.), Handbook of child psychology. Vol. 3: Social, emotional, and personality development (pp. 619-700). New York, NY: John Wiley.
22.
SalvyS.Wojslawowicz BowkerJ.RoemmichJ. N.RomeroN. D.KiefferE.PaluchR.EpsteinL. H. (2008). Peer influence on children’s physical activity: An experience sampling study. Journal of Pediatric Psychology, 33(1), 39-49.
23.
SirinS. R. (2005). Socioeconomic status and academic achievement: A meta-analytic review of research. Review of Educational Research, 75(3), 417-453.
24.
SmylieM. A.ConleyS.MarksH. M. (2002). Exploring new approaches to teacher leadership for school improvement. In MurphyJ. (Ed.), The educational leadership challenge: Redefining leadership for the 21st century. Yearbook of the National Society for the Study of Education (Vol. 101, Issue 1, pp. 162-188). Chicago: University of Chicago.
25.
StarfieldB.RileyA. W.GreenB. F.EnsmingerM.ForrestC. B.RobertsonJ.RyanS.HarrisS. K. (2000). Manual for the Child Health and Illness Profile, Adolescent Edition (CHIP-AE). Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University.
26.
TinsleyS.NussbaumK. M.RichardsM. H. (2007). Risk and protective factors for urban African-American youth. American Journal of Community Psychology, 39, 21-35.
27.
VogelJ. M.VernbergE. M. (1993). Interventions with children following disasters. Journal of Clinical Child Psychology, 22, 454-498.
28.
WolmerL.LaorN.DedeogluC.SievJ.YazganY. (2005). Teacher-mediated intervention after disaster: A controlled three-year follow-up of children’s functioning. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 46(11), 1161-1168.
