Guest Writer Geoffrey E. Fenelus
Being an educator can be incredibly rewarding yet challenging. As a former school leader and teacher, I often woke up every two hours, thinking about how to support teachers, improve myself, and enhance student achievement. The constant demands can lead to burnout.
Earlier this summer, I attended the Society for Human Resource Management conference in Chicago with my NFP colleagues. I met current and prospective employee benefits clients and heard about burnout across various industries, from construction to nonprofits to schools. This made me wonder about the extent of burnout among educators and its impact on retaining and attracting high-quality educators.
I talked with my colleague Deb Smolensky, who leads our work around well-being and wrote the book Brain On! Mental Fitness Strategies for Sharpening Focus, Boosting Energy, and Winning the Workday! This conversation prompted me to read her book, which offers strategies to increase mental fitness and combat burnout. These strategies are particularly relevant for educators and leaders facing high-stress levels.
The Challenge: Teacher and Leader Burnout
Teacher and school leader burnout is a pressing issue with significant implications for staff retention and student achievement. The National Education Association found over 55% of educators consider leaving the profession earlier than planned due to stress and burnout. This trend is alarming, and research from The Learning Policy Institute shows that teacher turnover negatively impacts student achievement, especially in high-poverty schools. This is a huge warning sign that can’t be taken lightly. Traditional public, public charter, and private school leaders have an opportunity to support educators in staying in the game.
Educators face numerous stresses, including heavy workloads, lack of resources, high-stakes testing, and sometimes insufficient support. These challenges can be amplified in high-poverty schools, where social and emotional support for students is crucial. High teacher turnover disrupts learning continuity, which is especially harmful to Black, Latino, and disadvantaged students who rely on stable, supportive relationships with educators. Addressing burnout is essential for retaining talented educators and ensuring all students receive a high-quality, equitable education.
Insights from “Brain On!”
1. Mindfulness and Stress Reduction: Incorporating mindfulness practices into daily routines can significantly reduce stress levels. For educators, this might involve brief mindfulness sessions before classes or during breaks. Mindfulness can improve sustained attention and emotion regulation. Practices like meditation, guided apps (Headspace, Calm), and deep breathing exercises provide immediate stress relief. As a former leader, I routinely took three to five deep breaths before meetings, practiced visualization, and started my day by writing three gratitudes, which was extremely helpful when my stress level rose. Each individual is different, but finding ways to leverage mindfulness to reduce stress is key.
2. Growth Mindset: Encouraging a growth mindset helps educators and leaders view challenges as opportunities for development rather than threats. Carol Dweck’s research shows that individuals with a growth mindset are more resilient and better able to handle stress. As a school leader, I saw low test scores as an opportunity to improve teaching strategies and student support. This mindset shift reduced my stress and helped me focus on incremental progress, which was within my control.
3. Work-Life Balance: Everyone knows this, but it’s hard to implement, especially when you want to win for kids. As a leader, I often failed to model this, though I emphasized its importance to my team. Leaders must model the change they expect to see with their staff. Changing my state of mind when I got home, exercising outdoors, and separating work from home life was essential. Leaving work materials at school or in a separate room at home helped maintain this balance. By implementing strategies such as changing mental states after work, engaging in outdoor activities, and maintaining physical separation of workspaces, educators can cultivate a more sustainable work-life balance, ultimately benefiting their professional and personal lives.
4. Peer Support Networks: Building strong peer support networks within educational institutions provides much-needed emotional support. Regular meetings, peer mentoring, and professional learning communities foster a sense of belonging and collective resilience. Groups like Education Leaders of Color and Surge Institute have offered me a space to share joys, pains, wins, and losses, providing a community and life-saving support. In these meetings and gatherings, I had a safe space to share my thoughts, feelings, and current situations. My peers in those spaces allowed me to be heard, affirmed and gave feedback, or they shared their own experiences, which lessened any anxiety or fear I may have had.
Professional learning communities are also a great source of emotional and intellectual support. Researchers have found that effective PLCs help participants feel like they have a natural system for mutual help, which inspires and motivates them to do a better job. Participants also serve as each other’s role models when accepting changes and new methods. Overall, PLCs enhance teachers’ sense of belonging, confidence when dealing with complex tasks, self-esteem, and willingness to take initiative while feeling less isolated.
Addressing teacher and leader burnout is essential for the success of educational institutions. By implementing the strategies outlined in “Brain On!” and fostering a culture of mental fitness, schools, and nonprofits can support their staff, improve retention rates, and ultimately enhance student achievement.
Let’s turn our brains on and prioritize well-being in education. Peer support networks offer more than professional advancement—they are havens for shared experiences, empathy, and growth.
Geoffrey Fenelus is a visionary educator with a decade of experience across diverse educational landscapes. With a background spanning the South Bronx, Connecticut, Indianapolis, and Brooklyn, NY, he has served as a special education teacher, principal and school founder. Geoff’s impact extends into board service. He is a board member for Teach For America Indianapolis, Purdue Polytechnic High School, 913 Sports, and the Community Alliance for Education (CAFE). A vocal advocate for inclusive policies, he is a member of the Education Leaders of Color (EDLOC) Surge Institute Alum and a current Mitch Daniels Leadership Fellow. At NFP, Geoff guides organizations, districts, and charter networks in strategic areas like talent retention and employee benefits. As the founder of Board Education Transformation (BET), he provides strategic, operational, and instructional support to educational nonprofits and schools nationwide. Geoff is also a devoted family man, entrepreneur, and enjoys college basketball, cycling, and watching great films.
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