Trauma-informed school counseling practices to address COVID-19-fueled discrimination and racial trauma in Asian-American youth: A multitiered system of support

ABSTRACT

Following the COVID-19 outbreak, Asian Americans, more specifically East and Southeast Asian Americans, have become the targets of racism, discrimination, and hate crimes. Mirroring this broader societal problem of COVID-related racism, schools have become a hostile environment for Asian American students with a significant rise in bullying and discriminatory incidents. In addition to experiencing harassment and discrimination in schools, Asian American students have also reported such incidents in online platforms. Both in-person and online COVIDrelated discrimination experienced by Asian American students have been linked to the PTSD symptoms, racial trauma, in this minoritized population. Therefore, the purpose of this chapter is to serve as a resource for school counselors to implement trauma-informed, culturally-sensitive practices, using the multitiered systems of support (MTSS) as a guide, when working with Asian American youth affected by COVID-19-related racial discrimination. © 2021, IGI Global.