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Shel Frolich-Tscherne Ed.D., is a 2025 graduate of the Ed.D. program in Educational and Professional Practice at Antioch University.
Dissertation Committee:
Roshimi Mishra, Ph.D., Committee Chair
Torin Finser, Ph.D., Committee Member
Lesley Jackson, Ph.D., Committee Member
Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Date
2025
Abstract
Emergency Pedagogy works to stabilize, both physically and socially, those that have been affected by traumatic events through pedagogical interventions that are based on the concepts of Waldorf education (Ruf, 2013). While techniques and interventions such as Trauma-Informed Care and psychotherapy are more widely known and used to treat individuals who have experienced traumatic events, Emergency Pedagogy is another method to be considered when working with traumatized individuals (Cohen and Mannarino, 2016). Emergency Pedagogy is not therapy but rather pedagogical first aid, seeking to stabilize, both physically and socially, those that have been affected by traumatic events before the wound worsens and becomes post-traumatic stress disorder (Ruf, 2013). This dissertation will consider the works of educational theorists like Maslow and Bloom, as well as philosopher Nussbaum to gain a better understanding of the needs that must be met for a person to live a life of meaning, followed by the work of Ruf and Rogers whose focus is on the emotional well-being of children and helping them work through situations that are challenging to understand. This dissertation will also consider the work done by Oberman to bring Emergency Pedagogy into a public Waldorf charter school setting. Through interviews with key individuals this dissertation seeks to determine how to best bring “an expression of care” into non-Waldorf school settings and spaces through the application of Emergency Pedagogy in order to help children work through traumatic events. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).
Recommended Citation
Frolich-Tscherne, S. (2025). What Would Mr. Rogers Do? Healing Childhood Trauma Through the Application of Emergency Pedagogy. https://aura.antioch.edu/edd/2
Comments
ORCID No. 0009-0002-6018-1328
Bio: Shel Frolich-Tscherne, Ed.D., earned her bachelor's degree in elementary and special education from the University of Hartford in May 1999. After graduation she moved to Massachusetts to begin work as a teacher at The New England Center for Children (NECC), a private special education school serving children with autism from the ages of 3-22. While at NECC, she worked as a teacher in the residential and day programs. She completed her master’s degree in Intensive Special Needs at Simmons College (now university) graduating in May 2002.
After graduating from Simmons, Shel took a teaching job in the Hudson Public Schools in Massachusetts. She worked as a special education teacher at the elementary and middle school levels during her tenure there. Shel's main goal was to ensure not only that each of her students received a top-notch education, but also that each student was a valued, active and accepted member of the school community. This is a goal that she is proud to have achieved.
After several years, Shel left Hudson to spend time raising her daughters. During the time that her first, followed closely by her second, daughter was born she and her husband made the decision to homeschool them. Both girls were educated following the Waldorf education curriculum and methods.
In August 2020, Shel returned to The New England Center for Children, this time within their Education Department. Shel works closely with NECC staff, as well as with the sending school district of each student, regarding the IEP process and development.
Though she returned to the world of paid work, Shel has continued to oversee her daughters' educations. In true Waldorf fashion, Shel is thrilled to have “graduated her first class”, her daughter Grace, in June 2025, and looks forward to “graduating her second class” her daughter Emma in 2026.
Shel has completed the EdD program in Educational and Professional Practice with Waldorf Specialization at Antioch University. She was a member of the Waldorf cohort that was created in honor of the 100th anniversary of Waldorf education. In April 2025, Shel successfully defended her dissertation entitled "What Would Mr. Rogers Do? Healing Childhood Trauma Through the Application of Emergency Pedagogy".
Shel's interests include childhood, education, Waldorf education, the Finnish educational system, the work of Fred Rogers, and creating a world/childhood/school environment that children do not need to heal from.