Trauma–Informed ‘Superpowers’: Former Foster Youth Teachers as Agents of Change in Title I Schools

The qualitative study reframes former foster youth teachers’ histories as professional funds of knowledge, examining how they innately transform past adversity into trauma–informed practices that disrupt traditional zero–tolerance discipline in Title I schools. Through autoethnographic narratives, interviews, and researcher reflexivity, findings reveal these teachers’ relational superpowers—resilience, empathy, and agency—cultivate student equity and counter institutional harm. As systemic navigators, these teachers offer retention assets and promote hope–filled alternatives for marginalized youth.