TEACHERS DEAL WITH STRESS; EDUCATORS LEARN HOW TO HANDLE IT

Cape Girardeau school administrators, facing a new school year, took time out Thursday to look at what stresses them out and how better to deal with it.

Donald Hinnant, director of the Pain Management Center at St. Francis Medical Center, talked with school principals about what they can do to minimize stress.

Teachers have an opportunity to learn about stress management Tuesday when Hinnant conducts a workshop at back-to-school activities.

Being an educator is stressful, Hinnant said.

"I think educators are blamed for most of the problems of children. They are very responsible people, but often they have limited power," Hinnant said. "They are expected to provide discipline, parenting, teaching, coaching, and then they are blamed for the problems of children.

"People working in a school system work under such stress and they have such high expectations, a lot of qualified people are feeling the effects," Hinnant said.

Some educators burn out and leave the profession. Others develop stress-related illnesses.

Hinnant talked with administrators about the negative aspects of stress on the body and how they can recognize the influence of stress in their lives.

He also talked about ways they can learn to more effectively deal with stressful situations.

Hinnant added: "If principals and teachers are coping better with the stress they deal with every day, that also helps kids learn better management of their stress."

Superintendent Neyland Clark agrees that the business can be stressful.

"Public education today is a much different process than it was 10 or 15 years ago," Clark said.

"Our patrons expect increased performance with less money and fewer people. Our physical plant, with no air conditioning, adds to that stress. Senate Bill 380 (Missouri's new education funding and reform law) adds to that stress.

"Educators today are faced with more and more demands, and that does create tension and stress," Clark said. "We hope to equip our staff with some sense of being able to cope with this."

He added that the stress management workshop is just one of a number of workshops utilizing expertise within the community.

"If it's out there and we can utilize it, we plan to take a pro-active stance and bring that expertise to the school district. It will make us better."