our amazing team!
““Our children are behaving and reacting to situations exactly as their brains are programmed to do.”
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““That was masterful. Pete led a dynamic workshop for us. This was by far the most meaningful, important, and enjoyable PD day I’ve attended in my entire career. “”
Pete Hall
Pete Hall is a dynamic educator and speaker with a proven leadership track record. In addition to teaching in three states at multiple grade-levels, Mr. Hall served as principal of three Title I schools, each of which earned awards for student achievement and accolades for social-emotional growth.
As a self-titled Professional Development Agent, Mr. Hall has partnered with licensed mental health counselor Kristin Souers to create multiple tools and resources to support the cultivation of #TraumaInvested learning environments in schools and districts worldwide. Together, they have written several articles and published two books, Fostering Resilient Learners: Strategies for creating a trauma-sensitive classroom (ASCD, 2016) and Relationship, Responsibility, and Regulation: Trauma-invested practices for fostering resilient learners (ASCD, 2019).
Mr. Hall has been honored with Nevada’s Martin Luther King Jr. Award, was appointed to the Nevada Governor’s Commission on Excellence in Education, and was selected to sit on the National Education Association's Great Public Schools Indicators Advisory Panel, among other recognitions. He is a veteran conference presenter and keynote speaker at dozens of international, regional, and local education conferences. Currently working on his 12th book, Always strive to be a better you: How ordinary people can live ordinary lives, Mr. Hall and his family live in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.
““I wish ALL teachers could hear your message.””
““This was the most informative and professionally relevant session I have ever attended. Thank you so much!””
KEith Orchard
Look up “child advocate” in the dictionary and you’ll find Keith Orchard’s photograph.
From a wide range of positions, Keith has anchored his professional services to supporting the families, organizations, and systems that care for our community’s children. Kristin Souers and Pete Hall, co-authors of Fostering Resilient Learners: Strategies for Creating a Trauma-Sensitive Classroom (ASCD, 2016), are proud to partner with Keith in providing professional development and consultation support to teachers, education staff, counselors, caregiving organizations, and families across the country. A licensed clinical social worker, Keith serves as the Regional Trainer for Child Welfare in North Idaho. He was formerly an environmental educator in the Peace Corps, wilderness therapy guide, senior clinician at Idaho Youth Ranch, adjunct faculty at Eastern Washington University, clinical supervisor of the Family Advocate Program at the Marine Corps Base in Hawai’i, and a classroom teacher in Redmond Washington. From his passionate keynote addresses and practical workshops to personal coaching and tailored support, Keith’s warm and caring personality shines. Insightful, open, and patient, Keith’s message resonates in a very real, very practical way.
Interested in bringing Keith Orchard to work with your school or organization? Here’s a snippet to preview his presentation style.
““Anna truly delivered! Her workshop was powerful and shifted the way we look at childhood trauma.””
““In addition to her vast knowledge, Anna’s interaction with the audience was energetic, caring, and warm.””
Anna Rowe
To Anna Rowe, one thing matters most: improving people's lives.
For nearly two decades, Anna has dedicated herself professionally to accomplishing that single goal. With passion, tenacity, and compassion, Anna partners with Kristin Souers and Pete Hall, co-authors of Fostering Resilient Learners: Strategies for Creating a Trauma-Sensitive Classroom (ASCD, 2016), in providing professional development and consultation support to teachers, education staff, counselors, caregiving organizations, and families across the country. As a former teacher, counselor, social worker, and university trainer, Anna has applied her expertise in childhood trauma to all angles. Approachable, kind,m and focused, she consistently emphasizes the importance of relationship, understanding its value in the schoolhouse, home, and workplace. Early in her teaching career, Anna was committed to letting every student know s/he mattered and was a learner. She transitioned to the field of mental health with a Master’s degree in counseling psychology, working with some of the most vulnerable in our society involved with child welfare. Experiences with adoption, case-working, teaching, and training have deepened her knowledge base regarding ACEs, complex trauma, attachment, school systems, and trauma-informed care.
““Wendy Turner is a thoughtful hands-on facilitator. Her presentation style draws from real-world teaching experiences, and attendees left her sessions with a whole new set of tools and techniques to help their students be successful. Most importantly, Wendy teaches by example and her presentations are interactive and engaging. In that sense, she provides a great learning lab environment to try out new ways to support positive school environments.””
Wendy Turner
Wendy has made a career of bringing the heart back to education.
As a teacher, she emphasizes social-emotional learning, relationships, and empathy in order to help her students build strong foundations, sturdy connections, and meaningful learning. And if her selection as Delaware’s 2017 Teacher of the Year is any indication, she’s on to something good. She has partnered with Kristin Souers and Pete Hall, co-authors of Fostering Resilient Learners: Strategies for Creating a Trauma Sensitive Classroom (ASCD, 2016) and Relationship, Responsibility, and Regulation: Trauma-invested practices for fostering resilient learners (ASCD, 2018), to provide professional development and consultation support to teachers, education staff, counselors, caregiving organizations, and families across the country. Currently a 2nd grade teacher in Delaware, Wendy has been honored with the Presidential Award for Excellence Teaching Science (2016), a No Kid Hungry School Breakfast Fellow (2017), and NEA Foundation Global Education Fellow (2018), among others. When she teaches (kids and/or adults), it’s from the heart.
Katlynn Souers- Executive assistant
Being the daughter of Kristin Souers, Katlynn has been surrounded by the idea of fostering resilience her entire life. Katlynn is extremely passionate about the mental health field and the necessity for a strong education system for today’s youth. She spent a great deal of her life working with children and has seen firsthand how much of a difference that passionate educators can make in a child’s life. In addition to being passionate about this work, Katlynn is wicked awesome at keeping Kristin afloat with managing the website, technology needs and providing a real time sounding board for the work that is being developed—Kristin is immensely grateful for her She currently lives in Fort Collins, CO. Katlynn studied Applied Psychology at Montana State University and graduated in 2019. She began working as an assistant to Kristin in 2020, where she began her education regarding trauma-invested practice. While living in Montana, Katlynn worked at a Clinical Research Lab, and has since shifted her focus back to the field of mental health. She currently works at a counseling office in Fort Collins, in addition to being Kristin’s Executive Assistant.