The importance of trauma-informed practices in education | Jen Teachenor | TEDxOCU

Some children experience life as an adult without being afforded the joy of childhood. Jen Teachenor, author and education administrator discusses her first-hand knowledge of life as an adult child. Jen Teachenor is an author, novelist, educator, military spouse, and school administrator. She is the wife of multi-platinum singer/songwriter, Jamie Teachenor and the daughter-in-law of rock-a-billy artist and Hall Of Fame Inductee, Jim Teachenor. Together Jamie and Jen have two children, Charlie (16) and Lily (13)
who keep them busy with football games and cheerleading competitions. She has been awarded the National Outstanding American Teacher Award, recognized by the Autism Society Of Middle Tennessee for her impact on the lives of students with Asperger's Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder, debuted as an Amazon Best-Seller in both paperback and Kindle with her novel, Beautiful Life, and was recognized with the Heart of the Family award by the 21st Space Wing atPeterson Air Force Base (now Peterson Space Force Base) for the work she has done for the armed forces community as a military spouse.

Jen has an author spotlight on permanent display with Arkansas State University’s Hemingway-Pfeiffer Museum and Educational Center in Piggott, AR. The museum presented Jen with a commemorative quilt block from Ernest Hemingway’s wife, Pauline Pfeiffer, that Jen was asked to sign and date commemorating the release and national success of Beautiful Life. The museum–the location in which Ernest Hemingway wrote portions of his highly-acclaimed A Farewell to Arms in the 1930s–is an affiliate partner of the American Writers Museum in Chicago, IL. In 2014, coinciding with her best-selling novel,

Jen was commissioned Kentucky Colonel by Governor Breshears for her achievements in the arts and education. Teachenor earned her Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education from Oakland City University and her Master of Education: Educational Leadership from Lipscomb University. Over the last 20 years, Jen has served students and their families in many capacities, first as a teacher, then as a military spouse and school administrator. She served the United States Army as a Civilian Assistant Director of Child and Youth Services at Ft. Carson, CO - the largest military post in North America. She was commissioned as the opening Data and Assessment, Training, and Mentoring Coordinator for New Summit Charter Academy—a K-12 public charter academy in Colorado Springs, CO. Currently, she occupies the position of Assistant Principal at Merrol Hyde Magnet School (MHMS) in Hendersonville, TN. MHMS—a K-12 magnet school in Sumner County, TN—is a nationally accredited Paideia School for Creative and Critical Thinking. It is a 2-time National Blue Ribbon School, a 6-time TN Reward School, and in 2021 US News and World Report ranked MHMS as the #1 Best School in Tennessee and the #7 Best School in the Nation.