SECTOR: Post-secondary education
EMPLOYEES:
-
- 205 – Full-Time Faculty
- 368 – Adjunct Faculty
- 313 – Staff
THE CHALLENGE
About Santa Barbara
Santa Barbara City College (SBCC) is a public community college committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive learning environment. It serves students seeking to enrich their lives, advance their careers, earn associate degrees, or transfer to four-year institutions.
Amid heightened national attention to racism and privilege, alongside the ongoing pressures of the COVID-19 pandemic, SBCC sought to strengthen its commitment to equity, cultural responsiveness, and inclusion. The challenges of supporting a multiracial, multicultural administration, faculty, staff, and student body underscored the need for a systemic approach to transforming workplace culture. SBCC partnered with Lumos Transforms to build the knowledge and skills necessary for cultivating a truly inclusive, equitable organizational and learning environment.
THE SOLUTION
Comprehensive eTIRO Capacity Building
SBCC worked with Lumos Transforms to implement a five-part, 12-hour embodied trauma-informed resilience-oriented (eTIRO) capacity-building training program. Delivered over two semesters during the 2022-2023 academic year, the program aimed to equip participants with the tools to embody anti-oppressive values and practices while fostering organizational transformation.
Lumos facilitated the program in person and virtually across 20 cohorts, engaging 335 participants. Cohorts were designed to provide psychologically safe learning environments, allowing participants to share experiences and voice concerns authentically. Participants could join groups open to all campus members or select identity-based or role-based cohorts, such as:
- Identity-based groups: Black/African/Indigenous/People of Color, Latinx, LGBTQIA+, and Asian American/Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander;
- Role-based groups: Full-Time Faculty, Adjunct Faculty, Staff, and Managers/Administrators.
Lumos’ eTIRO approach to culture change is an organic process that requires openness to the unknown, responsiveness to the moment, humility to learn from mistakes, and connection to the belief that together, we are capable of something new. The training employed a range of experiential methods, including small-group activities, individual reflection, mindfulness practices, writing, and ethical storytelling. By embedding eTIRO principles into both curriculum design and training activities, Lumos modeled anti-oppression and guided participants through deeply rooted, experiential learning.
THE RESULTS
Increased Resilience: Knowledge, Skills, and Attitude & Behavior Changes
The eTIRO training produced significant increases in SBCC staff’s capacity to transform organizational culture through an equity and justice lens. Participants reported growth in their ability to:
- Recognize stress and trauma responses in cross-cultural interactions;
- Identify emotional and physical states during difficult conversations and regulate their stress responses;
- Navigate cognitive barriers related to privilege and oppression;
- Empathize with individuals holding conflicting views.
Participants also gained a deeper understanding of how trauma impacts individuals and groups mentally, emotionally, physically, and socially. This increased awareness fostered greater empathy and collaboration, reduced workplace stress, and improved morale across the institution.
The program created a space for authentic dialogue and connection, where participants could engage with peers to learn about power, privilege, and the importance of self-care. By acquiring these skills, SBCC staff are better positioned to integrate equity and anti-oppression practices into their work, ensuring a lasting institutional impact.
CONCLUSION
SBCC’s partnership with Lumos exemplifies the transformative potential of trauma-informed, equity-focused organizational change. Through the eTIRO program, SBCC staff gained the tools to navigate the complexities of building an equitable and inclusive culture while fostering resilience, collaboration, and empathy.
This initiative serves as a model for other institutions seeking to integrate anti-oppressive practices into their organizational structures. By aligning individual growth with systemic change, SBCC is cultivating a workplace culture that maximizes its institutional impact and empowers its diverse community to thrive.
