Katrina G. Huels

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Educational Consultant | Author | Speaker

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Join date: Jul 23, 2025

About

Katrina G. Huels is an educational consultant and former education leader with more than twenty years of experience working across classrooms, programs, and district leadership. Her work focuses on helping educators sustain their passion and effectiveness in one of the most emotionally demanding fields. She is the author of Transformational Tools for Special Educators (Sage/Corwin Press, 2026), and The Motivation Toolkit: Cultivate Your Inner Drive.

Drawing on a background in psychology, neuroscience-informed practice, and educational leadership, Katrina translates research into practical tools educators can actually use in the middle of a demanding school day. Her work centers on emotional intelligence development, neuroplasticity, and the cultivation of professional resilience.

Katrina is the creator of Applied Harmony, an initiative focused on helping educators build inner mastery and long-term professional sustainability through emotional intelligence development. Her work advocates for emotional intelligence training to be recognized not as a wellness trend, but as a professional competency that strengthens school culture, educator retention, and student outcomes.

Posts (4)

May 24, 2026 ∙ 1 min

What’s Missing in Professional Development and Educator Preparation

Featured Guest Article Published by The Learning Scientists In this guest article, Katrina G. Huels discusses how educators are prepared for the technical demands of their work, yet the emotional and psychological demands of the profession are still largely treated as something they should manage on their own. She examines the consequences of that gap, including educator burnout, attrition, and the strain placed on classroom functioning and student outcomes. The article draws on research...

Apr 5, 2026 ∙ 3 min

The Science of Affect Labeling for Stress Reduction

You cannot manage what you have not accurately named. That sentence sits at the center of emotional competency. Before you can regulate a stress response, motivate yourself through a difficult stretch, or read the emotional climate of a room, you must first be able to accurately identify what you are feeling. Not approximately. Not generically. Accurately. People are not typically taught to do this, and if they are, the practice is not considered a workplace competency. But that is exactly...

Apr 4, 2026 ∙ 3 min

The Case for Box Breathing

Self-regulation is one of the five domains of emotional intelligence, and it is also one of the most physiologically grounded. It is not a mindset. It is a skill with measurable biological markers, and breath is one of the most direct access points we have to it. When the body perceives stress, the sympathetic nervous system activates. Cortisol rises. Breathing becomes shallow and rapid, which compounds the stress response rather than interrupting it. What most people do not know is that the...