Agenda & Workshop Description

Terina Maldonado, Public Speaker and Life Coach

Participants will strengthen their inner and outer voice so they can better speak up for themselves and the ideas and issues that matter most to them and their organization. Through a mix of coaching, training, roleplay, and small- and full-group conversation, participants will begin to develop the mindset, skill-set and habits to boost their communication confidence so they can speak with more power and impact and move people to take action whenever they engage in meaningful conversations. (Introductory)

Megan Conrad, MAS-MFT, and Barbara Guillen, MSW, Department of Child Safety

Adolescence can be a confusing time for both the adolescent and the adults trying to support them. The Youth Thrive framework offers critical insights into adolescent brain development and will explore creative solutions to help practitioners evaluate how their current programs and practices support youth in developing protective and promotive factors. When services and programs shift from traditional views of risk reduction to this focus, it allows young people to thrive. (Introductory)

Natalie Eggers, Sara Colbert and Emily Snay, Mohave County Probation Department

Sex trafficking is the fastest-growing criminal enterprise in the world, second only to the drug trade. Child involvement in all the systems we represent makes them more vulnerable to falling victim. Join us as we identify warning and victimization signs while increasing prevention strategies. We will discuss what any agency can do to screen potential victims, offer services, grow community outreach, and rally around this important cause. (Introductory)

Chris Panneton, MEd, Southwest Family Advocacy Center

When our children’s social media posts go viral or get tons of views, the pleasure senses in their brain react, releasing the pleasure chemical dopamine. This same pleasure chemical is released when drinking, taking drugs, gambling, and during sexual encounters. The presenter will talk about the research behind how our brains respond to technology, and how caregivers can have intentional conversations with their children about addiction and moderation. (Introductory)

Iya Affo, Culturalist & Trauma Specialist

Family is the foundation for BIPOC communities. For generations, the impact of historical trauma has been felt through cultural dispossession and the destruction of the family unit. Leaving a legacy creates a bridge between future generations and their ancestral roots. A legacy provides a living blueprint for family traditions, restoring cultural identity and facilitating a full expression of resilience for future generations. (Introductory)

Michael C. White, MCJ, and Tara Sundem, Hushabye Nursery

Hushabye Nursery in its first year of providing services that have helped 70 percent of prenatally engaged substance-dependent mothers bring their baby home instead of having their infant go into out-of-home care. This is an abrupt turnaround for Arizona; in 2015, any child born to a mother on medication-assisted treatment was seen as neglected, and the child would be entered into state custody. Hushabye Nursery works diligently to develop synergies between this population and the agencies that support them, attempting to save lives, family trajectories and tax dollars while living the oath of “do no harm.” (Intermediate)

Karina Herrera, BS, Touchstone Health Services

Restoring Empathy is a workshop designed to take participants on a journey of exploration into basic social needs that have been lost due to recent traumatic world events. Empathy is the light at the end of the tunnel that can help restore the lost social needs for all. (Introductory)

Darcy McNaughton, MBA, and Michele Schmidt, MPA, LeCroy & Milligan Associates

The Covid-19 pandemic has been incredibly challenging for families with young children and the programs serving them. Home visitation programs had to quickly adapt to virtual service delivery. LeCroy & Milligan Associates is the evaluator of Healthy Families Arizona and Parents as Teachers’ home visitation programs. Over the past two years, these evaluations have incorporated surveys and interviews with families and staff to understand the impact of the pandemic on services. This presentation will explore factors that contributed to successful integration of home visiting models to virtual service delivery, including aspects that worked well, challenges, and innovative practices that could be retained moving forward.  (Intermediate)

Neil Tift, Native American Fatherhood & Families Association

This session will explore a range of emotional responses to typical personal and family situations that may lead couples to get angry and express their responses in harmful and dangerous ways. It also addresses ways for individuals to increase their capacity to create positive outcomes in their emotional responses to conflict, and provides unique insight to the challenges the Native American population faces in dealing with this matter.

Robin Blumenthal, MA

Empathy is key to cultivating trust. Not only does it open the heart and the mind to learning, but the effective use of empathy builds a bridge of connection. When a safe and empathetic connection happens, healing begins, trust is built, hope is inspired, and life-change happens. Join us as we look at tools, resources, and reminders for the power of empathy. (Introductory)

Korina Callahan, MEd, BCBA, LBA, Kaibab Behavioral Services

In this workshop, we will discuss the components of the pyramid model of positive behavior supports, along with the challenges and rewards of promoting a positive classroom culture through implementation of the model, as demonstrated in nine early childhood classrooms in northern Arizona. (Introductory)

Lindsey Shine, Family Involvement Center; Jennifer Patterson, BS, Social Worker; William Cawthon, Office of the Public Advocate; and Emily Saeteurn, MSW, ASU Center for Child Well-Being 

The dependency process can be overwhelming. Along with an attorney to represent a parent’s legal rights, the parent has a social worker assigned to help them navigate the system and work on issues that continue to be barriers for reunification. A Peer Parent Navigator is also assigned to the case to be there as a support. Research demonstrates that when families are involved in team-based parent representation, they are more likely to be reunified with their children. We will discuss the role of the attorneys, social workers and Peer Parent Navigators, and how working as a team leads to better outcomes for parents and families. (Introductory)

Kelly Lubeck, MPH, RYT

Trauma-informed systems of support are essential to providing families and children what they need to thrive, yet so often the focus is on the outer expressions of the work. Join this workshop to learn how trauma-informed care and system change can happen in more effective and lasting ways by starting within. Explore how changemakers, service providers and leaders implementing the work can grow their capacity to embody trauma-informed practice from within their own nervous systems and bodies. Walk away with tools to serve with greater capacity and effectiveness, and create even more potent change for children and families. (Intermediate)

Shequan Palmer, Mrs. Arizona International

This workshop will reveal intergenerational trauma through the lens of a former victim of ACEs, and will explore solutions and resources that work to build resilience for the individual and the family unit. When healthy interventions – such as counseling, coping skills, and community supports – are implemented, the negative generational cycles can be broken. Parents, caregivers and educators will be equipped with knowledge, skills and resources to motivate and support the thriving and resilient family unit. (Introductory)

Lisa Blyth, MA, Licensed Professional Counselor

Let’s have a conversation about gender: What do we believe, where did those beliefs originate, and how can we challenge some of those beliefs and social norms to contribute to the expansion of affirming experiences and spaces for all identities? (Intermediate)

Tonia Stott, PhD, MSW, Jodi Pawlowski, LMSW, and Chandra Crudup, PhD, MSW,  Arizona State University

The fire of urgency has once again been ignited to eliminate racism and systemic oppression. After feeling outrage at injustices, many people are left with the question of how to affect change. This workshop aims to provide practitioners with specific strategies and applicable skills they can employ every day to practice in more oppression-informed and anti-racist ways.  (Intermediate)

Bianca Harper, DSW, LCSW, and Danielle Langel, MSW, LMSW, Arizona State University

Innovative programs like the Arizona Child & Adolescent Survivor Initiative bring trauma-informed interdisciplinary stakeholders together to provide child Intimate Partner Homicide (IPH) survivors with effective advocacy, a measure of safety, and opportunities for healing. Participants will be able to identify the impact of intimate partner homicide on child development and functioning, and learn to integrate trauma-informed principles to support child survivors in cross-sector practice settings.

(Introductory)

Clay Jones, M.Ed., IMH-E, Maricopa County Department of Public Health; Carma Umpleby, Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County; and Mike White, Hushabye Nursery

Substance use disorder in expectant parents is a complex issue that’s often stigmatized. Addressing substance use with pregnant parents to promote access to care and basic needs during pregnancy, rather than waiting for the birth event, is a form of primary prevention and leads to the best outcomes for both the infant and the parents. Join us while we share what we’ve learned through the Maricopa Safe Healthy Infants & Families Thrive (SHIFT) taskforce, and how it applies to your program and community. We’ll also discuss the role you play in improving our systems of care and using prenatal family care planning and coordination as the tools to do so.

Neil Tift, Native American Fatherhood & Families Association

The presenter will explore contributing factors and discuss culturally sensitive ways in which to help victims and abusers overcome the cycle of abuse and violence and the disturbing effects it causes in the lives of families and communities.

Lara Taggart, EdD, OTR/L, and Kelly Moritz, Childhelp

This workshop will repair misattunements to promote safety and protection through sensory activities that facilitate connection and stronger relationships. (Intermediate)

Robin Blumenthal, MA, Pantano Christian Church

What happens when schools, city and state organizations, nonprofits, and the faith community join forces? Mutually beneficial relationships are formed, families and communities thrive, and life-change happens. Join us as we explore how to invite and build these partnerships, and mobilize greater systems and avenues of support for children and communities. (Introductory)

The speakers are no longer available to present this workshop.

Crystal Krueger, DBH, LMFT, Dawn Institute

ACE studies have shown that experiencing adversity does not just happen in our mind, but in our whole bodies. Yet many treatments continue to focus on cognitive and behavioral approaches. Join us as we walk through ways to engage children and families in body-based treatments to support attachment, trauma processing, and healing.  (Intermediate)

Denise Ann Bodman, PhD, and Bethany Bustamante Van Vleet, PhD, Arizona State University

We are humans, empathic, caring, and sensitive to the horrors experienced by our most vulnerable young. Secondary traumatic stress and burnout are well recognized among those working in the area of child abuse, from pediatricians to police officers to social workers. Recent research finds that hopeful helpers are less likely to experience these negative effects. Learn how we can grow hope, thus preserving joy and fostering resilience in the lives of helpers, leading to better and healthier helping of children. (Introductory)

Dr. Carlian Dawson, Arizona Center for African-American Resources

Talking about ACEs can save lives. Understanding the effects of trauma on a body can change its trajectory of stress. But what happens when you only hear about what trauma is, but are never told how families overcome it? What does one need to do to help their families thrive and flourish? (Advanced)

Jennifer Moss, MA, MFT, Nurturing Parenting Programs

Let’s talk about stress. Even better, let’s do something about it! Learn instant ways to deal with high-stress situations in life, parenting and the social services profession. We will also explore the science behind the stress response and explore an integrated approach to supporting families using both a cognitive and experiential understanding. (Introductory)

Kristin Stookey, CRNP, and Dania Garcia, Arizona Family Health Partnership

Attendees of this workshop will increase their knowledge of current practices and recommendations on the topic of reproductive health and family planning, and will gain comfort discussing these topics with clients. Information provided will include contraceptive methods available, and how to provide referrals to low- or no-cost reproductive health providers. (Introductory)

Neil Tift, Native American Fatherhood & Families Association

Fathers and men in families are often more reluctant than mothers to fully participate in home visits, whether due to scheduling problems, parents living separately, maternal reluctance, lack of interest or effort on the part of home visitors, or the father’s hesitancy. This session will present a series of 40 specific suggestions that home visitors may employ to actively engage fathers in positive and concrete ways.

Tene Marion, Robin Smith and Nicolette Chingofor, Department of Child Safety

The Department of Child Safety (DCS) promotes the Safe Sleep program to minimize the risk of infant death due to unsafe sleep conditions by providing a safe place for babies to sleep, and by educating parents on safe sleep practices. It starts with a simple question: “Where will baby sleep?” Talking to caregivers and providing facts can help them understand the safest way for baby to sleep.

Crystal Lucero and Ligaya Manalastas, Peer Solutions

Can you imagine a world in which all children are safe and treated equitably with respect? We can, and so can you. Trauma-Informed Primary Prevention (TIPP) is about normalizing systemic solutions with the community. Hear from youth, learn from each other, gather new tools, have fun, and stay connected. (Introductory)

Nicole Roskens, MC, LPC, and Lauren Lindquist, MSW, Maricopa Superior Court, Juvenile Department

This workshop will educate attendees on how the Zero to Three Safe Babies Court Team approach is implemented in Maricopa County, and how it can promote child welfare system reform to better align with the needs of children and families. Participants will learn how the Cradles to Crayons approach, clinical services, and Community Coordination Program promote timely permanency by utilizing an integrated, family-centered approach that increases family engagement, reduces siloed services, and increases communication. (Intermediate)

Zuzana Urbanek and Larel Jacobs, Childhelp

We are living in unprecedented times, and knowledge of and access to services continues to change. It’s important that providers listen, adapt, and evaluate what works. Gain insights into innovating based on the experiences of Childhelp prevention and intervention programs. (Intermediate)

Patrick Hutchins, Dou-Bro’z, Trained Postpartum Doula and Childbirth Educator

The physical and hormonal effects of pregnancy on women are well-known, but during this time, men can also experience changes in vasopressin, oxytocin and testosterone. This workshop will show how each of these hormones play a part in the male psyche when it comes to preparedness for childbirth. It will also explore how fathers can become an advocate for their partner by learning more about what she is undergoing pre- and post-natally, and how to recognize signs of stress or related issues. Participants will also learn the importance of delayed cord clamping, nesting, swaddling, understanding your baby’s cries, and getting your “me time.” (Introductory)

Angelica Tovar Huffman, LCSW, LISAC, and Lara Yoblonski, MD, MPH, Phoenix Children’s Hospital           

This workshop will look at an innovative approach to working with children, caregivers and youth in high-risk populations with increased utilization of services. We will describe and demonstrate how we complete visits for new and returning patients together without increasing time spent per patient. The workshop will address how we incorporate ACEs screening to triage and start conversations about physical and mental health. We will also look at how a program may structure coding and billing to develop a sustainable service. Our goal is to show how another site can use their current team to be more proactive and rapidly create support for specific patient needs and strengthen family/caregiver supports. (Intermediate)

Jerald Monahan, Justice Studies Program, Yavapai College, and Iva Rody, National Center for the Prevention of Community Violence

The Adverse Childhood Experiences model tells us that children who are exposed to or grow up in certain negative environments may develop behaviors that are noticed by others around them. These behaviors are signs to predators that the child is vulnerable to being recruited into juvenile sex trafficking. Child well-being professionals and other community support systems can contribute to strengthening families with specific protective factors that prevent abuse and neglect. (Intermediate)

Cassie Hilpman Breecher, Beyond Strategy Consulting and Collective Impact for Child Safety and Well-Being, and Stephen Flaaen, Valley Leadership’s Impact Maker

Arizona families can now access the help they’ve been looking for just by sending a text message. The Collective Impact for Child Safety and Well-Being team has developed the first iteration of a free text-based chatbot that anyone in Arizona can use to find and access basic needs like food and clothing. This tool will make the complex and often frustrating process of finding available resources nonjudgmental, stigma-free, quick, and easy. (Introductory)

Michelle Sambrano, Aspire Consulting

Healing-centered engagement helps us reimagine our approach to trauma-informed care by providing steps to construct environments that help us thrive. It allows us to resist being defined solely by our trauma, and to move into creating the environments we need to heal as individuals and as a community. (Intermediate/Advanced)

Eshawn Peterson, MBA, and Jackie Phillips, Onward Hope Inc.

When is the last time you felt SEEN? Empowered? Safe? This workshop will explore systemic inequity and the importance of integrating a racial equity lens to strategic decision-making; engaging lived experts to enact structural change; and how to cultivate psychological safety in the workplace. We will discuss moving from commitment to action and include strategies needed to build an inclusive culture that supports children, families, and staff, so we can all be SEEN. (Introductory)

Victoria Strayer, Voices for CASA Children, and Lindsey Shine, Family Involvement Center

A family stands in court and is told their hard work and dedication has paid off: It’s time for their children to come home. How do we celebrate and support these families with respect to the struggle they’ve just gone through? Since 2014, Maricopa County has celebrated families during National Family Reunification Day. The FRD committee is now expanding its vision in hopes of creating a more connected, inclusive, and talked-about Family Reunification community. This workshop will include a panel that will share more about the effort to educate the community on the benefits of family reunification and discuss the importance of breaking the stigma and promoting a positive understanding of reunification.

Robin Afinowich, MC, LAC, CARE 7

We are in a pivotal era that demands innovative perspectives, practices, and processes to address the intensified complexities of individual, family, and collective trauma. Our methods must be holistic, integrative, implemented across many systems, and drawn from collective perspective. Band-Aid approaches are a disservice to children, families and communities, and are not sufficient in managing the intensity of our collective and intergenerational wounds. It is time to address the roots of suffering rather than continue to apply a topical and temporary anesthetic. (Intermediate)

Carly Burton, MS, Addiction Counseling

Working with clients in the child welfare system who are recovering from a substance use disorder can present challenges when it comes to communication, engagement, and behavior change. Understanding the effects of drugs on the brain can help providers develop treatment plans and coordinate services that best meet the needs and abilities of this population. Rethinking our approach will contribute to more effective services. (Introductory)

Peggy Peixoto, MEd, Arizona Dept. of Health Services; Shefali Gandhi, Midwestern University; Nicole Roskens, MC, LPC, Maricopa Superior Court, Juvenile Department; and Tasia Grzecka, Department of Child Safety

The Strong Families Toolkit is laser-focused on addressing the primary reason for about 75 percent of child removals in Arizona: neglect. It gives families at risk of involvement with the child safety system or those already engaged with it information about the Strong Families Protective Factors framework, and provides relevant, reliable information about the network of services and resources available to them as they strive to be resilient. (Intermediate)

Chris Link Duarte, Linking Dreams

When Tamara reached out to me and asked for help to find an attorney, she hadn’t seen her 5 children in 2 years. Although I had more than a decade of experience working with families, there were complex issues that made this case especially challenging. Tribal laws, the Covid-19 pandemic, and other events posed many barriers. We had to discover new ways, while being mindful of tribal culture and tradition, to seek an outcome that would serve the best interest of the children. In this workshop, we will review this landmark case, discuss the barriers and outcomes, and share tips on how to gain positive results when working with families in the Tribal Family Court System. (Intermediate)

Edward A. Casillas and Sleepy Vildosola, Family Involvement Center, and Tene Marion, Department of Child Safety

Nurturing fathers who are actively involved in their children’s lives make a positive impact on the development of not only their children but also the community in which they live. This workshop will provide information on what a nurturing father is, as well as details and statistics on how paternal involvement enriches children’s lives. (Introductory)

Jeri Perkins, MSW, Social Roots Foundation

ACEs impact every child and family differently. At the intersection of race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status, there are a variety of factors that impact ACEs scores and the level of trauma and grief each child experiences. The goal of this workshop is to view child abuse prevention from a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, & Justice (DEIBJ) and collective responsibility lens and solution-focused approach. (Advanced)

Marie Hibbitt, RN, BSN, MBA, Southwest Human Development Nurse-Family Partnership; Stephanie Golden, MEd, Casa Grande Alliance; and Casey Martinez, Terros

Have you ever wanted to help the children and families in your community but struggled to find concrete ways to do so? The struggle is over! Join others who share your goal. Together, you will harness your collective power to create a space in which meaningful dialogue and collaboration will yield innovative ideas that you can use to strengthen the families you care about and serve. (Introductory)

Elizabeth Dunn, MS, LPC, Yavapai County Education Services Agency

The last two years (and counting) have shaken our collective snow globes. Regulating-Relating-Reasoning are the tools to settle and stabilize our globes. This workshop uses the neurosequential model developed by Dr. Bruce Perry as the framework to identify adverse impacts pre- and post-pandemic, their predicted impact on social-emotional behavior and learning, and ways to help children and families build resilience. We will focus on 1- to 5-minute low-cost regulating/relationship activities families, educators, childcare workers and more can use to boost resilience. The activities are designed to assist in calming dysregulated youth and increasing regulation for greater success in home, school and community settings. (Introductory)

Neil Tift, Native American Fatherhood & Families Association

This workshop explores the impact that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) have upon Native American children, adolescents and adults. ACEs are stressful or traumatic events, including abuse and neglect, but also include household dysfunction such as witnessing domestic violence or growing up with family members who have substance use disorders. ACEs are strongly related to the development and prevalence of a wide range of health problems throughout a person’s lifespan, including those associated with alcohol and substance misuse, family violence and suicide. (Intermediate)

Heather Okeke, Child and Family Resources

Come learn how home visitation can reduce the likelihood of abuse and neglect and promote positive development through parent-child interaction, child development, and the well-being of the family.  Through these approaches we have the ability to enhance parents’ understanding of their role in encouraging their child’s development from the beginning, which can help improve school readiness and parent involvement. (Intermediate)

Angela Rees, LPC, SEP, Northland Family Help Center

This workshop provides insight into the basics of trauma-informed care in a variety of areas. Topics will include understanding the underlying causes of behavior; identifying trauma and how traumatic experiences affect the mind, brain, body, and relationships; and exploring the impact of intergenerational and historical trauma. Also included will be the practical application of the concepts. (Introductory)

Caitlin Skeens, MS, LAC, PMH-C, SageWise Wellness, and Leigh Lewis, ND, LAc, PMH-C (RX), NCMP, FABORM, Arcadia Women’s Wellness

Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) can interfere with parental bonding and have been associated with an increased risk of child abuse, necessitating the ability to identify and treat these disorders. Insecure attachment styles are directly correlated with increased risk of child abuse, neglect and a number of adverse health outcomes for parents and children. Learn to support healthy attachments and bonding in children and their parents through the perinatal period. (Introductory)

Jeremiah Kaplan, Arizona State University

This workshop explores the impact of training and feedback on providers seeking to improve their outcomes through the use of Motivational Interviewing (MI), an evidence-based practice designed to draw out an individual’s intrinsic motivation and commitment to long-term, positive behavior changes. MI was created from attempts to serve classically “resistant” populations and engage them in services. The presentation will focus on workforce development efforts in conjunction with the MyMI Motivational Interviewing Coding Lab and how the data collected has impacted training efforts in multiple settings including social work, healthcare, public health, corrections and education. (Intermediate)

Andi Fetzner, PsyD, Origins Training & Consulting

Organizational culture is at the heart of a trauma-informed approach. But that can feel abstract or hard to operationalize. In this workshop, participants will explore concrete ways to build a resilient culture. Through storytelling and interactive engagement, participants will identify actionable steps they can take. (Introductory)

Frances Holguin, B.S., MSW Candidate, University of Arizona Pima County Cooperative Extension           

PAX Tools is a collection of trauma-informed, evidence-based behavioral strategies for families and communities to promote the development of self-regulation in children. Participants will receive a Community Tool Kit and strategies they need to effectively use PAX Tools with children immediately following this training. (Introductory)

Hilary Mahoney, MPH, CPHQ, CPC, Banner Health

In order for employees to “grow forward” during times of crisis, they need to feel safe and be able to trust the environment and the people around them. This workshop provides a trauma-informed framework for supervisors and leaders to support staff while make sense of, managing and growing through difficult experiences. (Intermediate)

Darneshia Allen, Zero to Three Infant-Toddler Court Program

This session will provide an overview of strategies used to offset the impact of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and toxic stress on children and their families while navigating transitions before during and after key moments on their journey through the child welfare system. Participants will be provided an overview of the Strengthening Families Protective Factors Framework and resilience-building lifestyle interventions to support strength-based decision-making across key milestones. This session will also dive into provider resources, collective impact and two-generational approaches to enhancing opportunities that increase safe and stable environments for infants, toddlers and their families.

Cricket Mitchell, PhD, and Carol Lopinski, MSW, LCSW, Triple P AZ, and Randy Ahn, PhD, MLIS, Triple P America

What could it look like if we reimagined who plays a role in bringing Triple P to families in Arizona? Could we reach more families in rural areas? Could we meet the diverse needs of parents through engaging trusted members of their respective communities? This workshop will draw upon lessons learned from the non-traditional Triple P workforce that’s been growing in Arizona – including the innovative approach of training incarcerated parents to facilitate Triple P with other incarcerated parents in state prisons – and encourage creative visioning from our participants and partners. This visioning will also include an exploration of the shifts we would expect to see in Arizona’s community-based prevention indicators –  decreased rates of substantiated child maltreatment and fewer entries into foster care – as Triple P training increases statewide and our service delivery workforce grows.