Creating a Positive School Culture

Based on more than 200 interviews, this practical guidebook provides strategies for solving staff problems, preventing conflicts, and enriching school climates.

Marie-Nathalie Beaudoin, Ph.D. is the Training Director of the Narrative Therapy program at Bay Area Family Therapy Training Associates (BAFTTA) where she supervises the counseling of doctoral interns in schools from three school districts in Silicon Valley, California. In her private practice, she enjoys working with young people, their families, and their schools, on a wide variety of issues. Marie-Nathalie values bringing forth people's own wisdom and knowledges, through respectful, creative, and collaborative conversations.  She has published numerous professional articles, has been featured in several magazines such as the California Educator and Educational Leadership, and is known internationally for her entertaining, thought provoking, and inspiring workshops.  She was recently invited to produce three videotapes with Alexander Street Press (one which is specifically on school work).
Marie-Nathalie has won several grants and awards, with the most recent one focusing on the effectiveness of narrative therapy based group activities.  She is the author of several successful books such as Working with groups to enhance relationships (1998), Responding to the culture of bullying & disrespect: New perspectives on collaboration, compassion and responsibility (2004, 2009);  Creating a positive School Culture: How principals and teachers can work together (2004); and the popular paperback for parents, teachers, and therapists titled The SKiLL-ionaire in Every Child: Boosting Children's Socio-Emotional Skills Using the Latest in Brain Research (2010)  (sample at www.skillionaire.org). She has been the recipient of several prestigious awards such as a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada grant (SSHRC), a Canadian Foundation for the Advancement of Research grant (FCAR), the John F. Kennedy University best psychology professor award (JFKU), and more recently the Shine A Light narrative research fund (SAL).
Also availabler from the author: "From Bullies to Buddies"

This book is a great resource for those interested in creating an enriching and inspiring school environment. At a time when so many of our schools are in crisis, it is so refreshing to read a book that demonstrates how teachers and administrators can turn a school into a safe and caring community. Beaudoin and Taylor consolidate the expertise of teachers and administrators who know how to realistically build nurturing, constructive, and positive relationships.