Starting the School Year Strong: CIS Staff Explore Why Emotional Intelligence Matters
More than 90 Counseling In Schools staff members came together at 505 8th Avenue to kick off the new school year with a day dedicated to learning, connection, reflection, and preparing for the work ahead.
As Counseling In Schools enters another year of supporting NYC students, families, educators, and school communities, this year’s Staff Kickoff focused on a skill that touches every part of that work: Emotional Intelligence—Why It Matters. Emotional intelligence is about more than understanding emotions. It is about developing the awareness and skills to recognize what we are feeling, understand how our emotions affect our actions, navigate relationships thoughtfully, communicate effectively, and respond to challenges with intention. For professionals working alongside young people and school communities every day, these skills can be especially powerful.
The day featured insights from two dynamic speakers who brought complementary perspectives on emotional intelligence, leadership, and the school environment.
Farah Harris, CEO of Working Well Daily and author of The Color of Emotional Intelligence, challenged staff to think about emotional intelligence as an essential part of how we lead, communicate, collaborate, and care for ourselves and others. Her work emphasizes the connection between emotional awareness and healthier, more effective workplaces, giving CIS staff an opportunity to consider how these concepts show up in their own professional lives.
Staff also heard from Dr. Harris, Deputy Superintendent of Brooklyn North High Schools, who offered a school leadership perspective on the role emotional intelligence plays in building strong school communities. Her remarks highlighted the importance of relationships, communication, and thoughtful decision-making in creating environments where both students and adults can feel supported and empowered.
Together, the speakers helped staff look at emotional intelligence from multiple angles, from personal awareness and workplace relationships to leadership and the broader school community.
A central theme throughout the day was that emotional intelligence is not simply a concept to understand, it is a set of skills that can be practiced and strengthened.
For CIS staff, that means considering how emotional intelligence can influence everyday interactions: How do we listen when a student needs to be heard? How do we respond when a family is navigating a difficult moment? How do we communicate with educators and colleagues when challenges arise? How do we recognize our own reactions and make intentional choices about how we respond?
These questions are particularly meaningful in school-based mental health work, where relationships are at the heart of everything we do.
CIS clinicians, youth development specialists, educators, and other staff members work every day to help young people build confidence, strengthen relationships, navigate challenges, and develop the skills they need to thrive. Creating those supportive relationships requires adults who are also equipped to listen, reflect, communicate, and respond with empathy and intention.
The Staff Kickoff provided space for employees to step away from the day-to-day demands of their work and invest in themselves and one another. Through presentations, conversation, and shared reflection, staff had the opportunity to connect with colleagues, consider new perspectives, and think about how they could bring the day’s lessons into their schools and programs.
The kickoff also reflected something fundamental about Counseling In Schools: the strength of our work begins with the strength of our people.
For nearly four decades, CIS has shown up in NYC schools and communities to help students and families navigate challenges and create pathways toward success. That work depends on relationships built on trust, compassion, understanding, and connection.
As we begin a new school year, investing in our staff means investing in the students and communities we serve. When our team has the opportunity to learn, grow, reconnect, and strengthen their own skills, they are better prepared to bring that same care and intentionality into their work with young people.
The new school year is officially underway, and CIS staff are ready to show up, with new ideas, renewed energy, and a shared commitment to helping NYC students thrive.
Here’s to a new year of learning, connection, and showing up for one another.
