Gulf Regional Innovative Teaching Conference

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9:00am CDT

You Can't Teach a Nervous System That's on Fire: Understanding Student Dysregulation in the Age of Social Media

Wednesday July 15, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am CDT

Something has shifted in our classrooms. Educators across grade levels and subject areas are reporting the same thing: students who cannot focus, cannot regulate, cannot tolerate uncertainty, and cannot connect the way they once could. And most professional development has responded by adding more — more curriculum, more programs, more policy, more things for already-exhausted educators to implement.

This session takes a different approach entirely.

You Can't Teach a Nervous System That's On Fire is a deep, honest, and surprisingly hopeful look at what is actually happening to the students sitting in our classrooms — through the lens of neuroscience, social media research, and the realities of growing up in an era of unprecedented collective overwhelm.

Participants will leave with:

A clear, accessible understanding of how chronic social media consumption is affecting the adolescent nervous system

The ability to recognize and reframe specific student behaviors through a neurological lens — transforming how they see and respond to their most challenging students

Practical, evidence-informed strategies to support student regulation that require no new budget and no additional programs

Language and tools to share with parents navigating these same challenges at home

This is not a session about blaming phones, diagnosing students, or adding to anyone's workload. It is a session about understanding — because when you truly understand what you are looking at, everything about how you show up changes.

And that changes what is possible in the room.

Presenters

Kristi Bush

Keynote Speaker, Social Media Safety Educator, KNB Communications

Kristi Bush serves as a national education consultant and social media safety advocate. She is a licensed social worker with greater than 20 years of clinical practice and health care experience. She attended Troy and Auburn University where she studied social work and counseling... Read More →

Wednesday July 15, 2026 9:00am - 9:50am CDT
Cafeteria/Auditorium

2:00pm CDT

Closing Session: Our Time to Shine: Igniting Inspiration into Impact

Wednesday July 15, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm CDT

Cafeteria/Auditorium

Join us for an uplifting closing session led by Spanish Fort Elementary’s own Elizabeth Von Hofe, Alabama’s 2026–2027 Teacher of the Year — she’ll share inspiring closing remarks that will leave us motivated to make a real impact. We’ll finish the day on a high note with a fun raffle and fantastic prizes to be won!

Presenters

Elizabeth Von Hofe

Special Education Teacher, Spanish Fort Elementary

Elizabeth Eubanks Von Hofe is Alabama’s 2026-2027 Teacher of the Year. She is a National Board Certified Teacher (Exceptional Needs Specialist/Moderate-Severe Disabilities) who serves as Special Education Department Chair and classroom teacher of students with multiple disabilities... Read More →

Jeremy King

Instructional Technology Coorindator, Central Office Staff

Wednesday July 15, 2026 2:00pm - 2:50pm CDT
Cafeteria/Auditorium

Gulf Regional Innovative Teaching Conference - GRITC 2026

9:00am CDT

Kristi Bush

2:00pm CDT

Elizabeth Von Hofe

Jeremy King

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