Foster Care Training

This training will teach about various evidence-based approaches for managing anxiety around the holidays for caregivers and youth in care. We will explore strategies for coping with expectations and creating structure for children during holiday breaks. Participants will identify the social-emotional concerns of children in care during the holidays, including social engagement, dynamic interaction, problem-solving, and building healthy relationship skills. Participants will enjoy an overview of practical arts-based techniques that promote emotional well-being and building connections for caregivers and children in care. Register Here

This training will teach about various evidence-based approaches for managing anxiety around the holidays for caregivers and youth in care. We will explore strategies for coping with expectations and creating structure for children during holiday breaks. Participants will identify the social-emotional concerns of children in care during the holidays, including social engagement, dynamic interaction, problem-solving, and building healthy relationship skills. Participants will enjoy an overview of practical arts-based techniques that promote emotional well-being and building connections for caregivers and children in care. Register Here

There is a lot of pain and suffering in our world, and youth, in particular, are often sensitive and in tune with the grief and challenges around them and in their lives. In this training, we will offer skills and practices for those who serve and support system involved youth to recognize the signs of grief, and expand their capacity to support grief tending for any big transitions and change, including but not exclusively around death and dying. We will learn mindfulness practices for grief as it arises in the moment, ongoing grief tending, and creative arts practices to support youth in navigating the grief they may be holding.

This training will teach a creative problem solving method, which is applicable to many situations, including working with system involved youth and others who support them. We will go from a poorly defined problem to a clear problem to a solution over the course of our training, so please bring in an idea you’d like to work on within your efforts to support system involved youth. In addition, we will practice some creative exercises that will help expand your divergent thinking skills which if applied in various ways can support improved outcomes for system involved youth.

Many system-involved youth struggle to regulate their emotions, particularly anger. Youth often acknowledge their need for anger management skills so it’s crucial for social service providers, foster parents and natural supports to learn how to help system-involved youth navigate their anger. This workshop will provide you with strategies for talking with system involved youth about anger management and how to support them. The training will also teach conflict resolution skills to share, teach and practice with system-involved youth and young adults in care.  Register Here

This two-hour course reviews the concept of the Escalation Curve when working with youth in care and provides opportunities for participants to discuss and practice support strategies to maintain safety as well as means of deescalating situations verbally.

This training is an introduction to implementing behavioral support strategies with children who present with a variety of challenging behaviors. It includes a discussion of basic principles of behavior modification, behavioral assessment, functional assessment and support methods. The discussion addresses the advantages, risks and limitations of these approaches in various settings including group care settings, classrooms and families.

Issues of class and socioeconomic status are often at the core of some families’ experience of oppression and mistreatment. Their interaction with these social constructs are often discussed in ways that leaves families at times struggling to name their experience. This training will focus on historical factors that may influence families’ access to resources and the ways it also may impact engagement with providers or welfare workers.

This training will teach about various evidence-based approaches for managing anxiety around the holidays for caregivers and youth in care. We will explore strategies for coping with expectations and creating structure for children during holiday breaks. Participants will identify the social-emotional concerns of children in care during the holidays, including social engagement, dynamic interaction, problem-solving, and building healthy relationship skills. Participants will enjoy an overview of practical arts-based techniques that promote emotional well-being and building connections for caregivers and children in care. Register Here

This training will teach about various evidence-based approaches for managing anxiety around the holidays for caregivers and youth in care. We will explore strategies for coping with expectations and creating structure for children during holiday breaks. Participants will identify the social-emotional concerns of children in care during the holidays, including social engagement, dynamic interaction, problem-solving, and building healthy relationship skills. Participants will enjoy an overview of practical arts-based techniques that promote emotional well-being and building connections for caregivers and children in care. Register Here

To promote healthy sexuality for system involved youth, providers and caregivers must feel comfortable talking about sex and sexuality in an age appropriate manner. The California Foster Youth Sexual Health Education Act (Senate Bill 89) went into effect in July of 2017, requires comprehensive sexual health education for youth in foster care and training requirements for foster caregivers, social workers and judges. Learn how to talk to youth off all ages about sex, consent and decision making around engaging in sex.

One of the most significant challenges for those supporting system involved youth is to effectively engage them to break free of negative self-talk and doubt since this is required to be successful in academic and career related activities, to build networks of support, and to avoid using drugs and compulsive behavior to self-medicate. In this training, we will explore how to enhance our capacity to support system involved youth by exploring partnership approaches within public school systems. We will also explore situational leader coaching points that can prepare us to foster young people’s transformational behaviors that are sustainable and lead to healthy community engagement and improved outcomes, as well as […]

This training explores the purpose of actively working with youth in care to help them meet preferred behaviors. The training highlights four things to think about in any given situation before choosing how to support youth: your personal state, the desired outcome, the situation and environment, and which approach to use. Didactic presentation, group discussion, art and visualization exercises are utilized.

Participants will discuss several different categories of behavior support strategies to use with youth including individual and group support strategies as well as crisis communication techniques. Participants will learn how to prepare youth to support themselves and work toward their goals when they are no longer in care. Didactic presentation, group discussion, art and visualization exercises are utilized.

As more providers are learning about trauma and becoming trauma-informed, it’s crucial to not only focus on trauma but equally important to focus on resilience. Resilience impacts how individuals respond and recover from trauma. This training will provide an overview on resilience as well as ways to identify and foster resilience with system-involved youth, their families and their communities.

Whether a childs communication is effective or ineffective, it can leave a parent feeling like they are constantly trying to put out fires. Learn how to Interpret your child’s needs,Provide opportunities to make choices,Teach appropriate pro-social behaviors. Register Here

This training will cover an introduction to the problem-solving framework as an assessment tool through understanding their purpose, focusing on individual factors, evaluating external circumstances, identifying phases of the assault cycle, and interrupting triggers to reduce escalation.

In this course, participants will gain a generalized concept of MI. Participants will be introduced to the spirit of MI, Righting Reflex, and OARS (open-ended, affirmations, reflections, and summary). Participants will have the opportunity to work in small groups, engage in various activities, and receive tangible examples to use during their work with system-involved clients. The material will be delivered by PowerPoint presentation, short video clips, group discussion, breakout (small group) discussions and participant workbook (handout). Register Here

Please note that this training is suggested for clinicians with 2-3 years experience in the field, supervisors, and/or managers. The use of Motivational Interviewing in direct care with clients will not be covered. This 6-hour training will focus on assessing a system’s readiness to provide client-centered services, the identification of a system’s motivation points, and the use of O.A.R.S (open-ended questions, affirmations, reflections, and summaries) and values work to elicit/enhance system readiness. The training will begin with an examination of the common systems with which clients need to engage (Department of Social Services, probation departments, schools, benefits agencies, medical service providers) and the establishment of the system’s motivation type. Trainees […]

This training is designed to introduce service providers to the services available to youth at the Alameda County Assessment Center. This training includes overview of the service roles, responsibilities, and expectations for those working directly with youth. The training will help participants to familiarize themselves with the major components of the cases that are seen at the Assessment Center, including screening, transitional services, collaborating with various service providers, and linkage/transfer of services and care. In addition to providing information about the nature of specific tasks inherent for service providers, the training is also designed to help providers consider how the systems and structures in which the Assessment Center operates impacts […]

Youth in Alameda County who enter the foster care system through the Assessment Center or are awaiting a change in placement have special needs that surface within the context of the milieu setting while they are transitioning placements. This training provides information about key ways to engage and work with exploited youth within a milieu setting. This training will discuss the Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) in Alameda County Social Services. We will describe how societally imposed racial differences exist amongst CSEC youth in the foster care system. The training will describe the benefits of using harm reduction and safety planning with youth who “AWOL” specifically from the milieu floor […]

Small group discussion with each member sharing impact of multiple roles on fulfilling job tasks in supervision and program management. Parallel process to lives of children and families in foster care were drawn. Multiple roles of organizational leadership and supervision of staff.

This training is relevant to all care providers who work with high needs youth immediately upon their transition in placement. Youth that are first entering foster care have recently been removed due to reasons of abuse or neglect and may present with experiencing complex trauma. Youth are at higher risk of increased levels of escalation in their behaviors that present risk for themselves, providers, and other youth in care. Participants in this training will learn how to engage and support the needs of youth at the Assessment Center.

This training offers a comprehensive and essential knowledge base for professionals in various fields who engage with system-involved individuals. Participants will delve into the core principles of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA), gaining insight into the behaviorist framework and the ABC model. The training goes further by addressing the unique challenges and ethical considerations involved in working with system-involved youth, offering practical strategies which can be used for behavior management and skill acquisition. Through case studies, interactive activities, and cultural sensitivity discussions, attendees will leave with a well-rounded understanding of ABA and the ability to apply these principles effectively in their roles. The material will be delivered by PowerPoint presentation, short […]

Numerous children and adolescents identified as at-risk struggle with either low self-esteem or an unhealthy high self-esteem based on his/her ability to create feelings of inferiority in others (a.k.a. bullying behavior). Such experiences create an external locus of control thereby perpetuating the risk factors classifying children and adolescents as at-risk. In an effort to encourage an internal locus of control and to increase protective factors, children and adolescents must be empowered to develop a healthy self-esteem and a strong sense of self. We explore hands-on experiential activities based in Adlerian play to provide children with a visual, auditory, and kinesthetic means for conceptualizing and developing a strong sense of self. […]

TRAINING OFFERED ON 12/1/23 AND 12/14/23 Training Summary Part 4: How to Address Trauma with EFT (Required prerequisite – #1 of series, #2 is highly recommended.) Participants will be able to: 1. Assess and address when an individual is ready to address symptoms of trauma; 2. Demonstrate two skills that will help individuals regulate their nervous system when re-stimulated by past trauma. 3. Utilize the 5 step process for address symptoms of trauma with EFT. TRAINING OFFERED ON 12/1/23 AND 12/14/23 TO REGISTER:

This training will focus on evidence-based and expressive strategies for providers to engage children, youth, and their families virtually. This includes considerations about using videoconference platforms with systems-involved youth. Given the cumulative impact of the COVID-19 and racial injustice pandemics, these strategies will be presented using trauma-informed and health equity perspectives. A specific focus in this webinar will be on providing practical examples for optimizing the use of videoconference platforms when working with children and youth.

This training will focus on differentiating causes for youth’s emotional distress, including attachment disruptions, trauma, and possible psychosis. Recommendations for stabilizing mental health will be incorporated.

Issues of class and socioeconomic status are often at the core of some families’ experience of oppression and mistreatment. Their interaction with these social constructs are often discussed in ways that leaves families at times struggling to name their experience. This training will focus on historical factors that may influence families’ access to resources and the ways it also may impact engagement with providers or welfare workers.

This highly interactive and informative cultural humility training supports service providers in deepening their understanding of racial, sexuality, gender, and moral development. Through self-reflection and group case study work, attendees will be better equipped to formulate case plans and other strategies to support youth clients’ healthy identity development by considering the multiple, complex, and layered influences that create a unique individual experience of development throughout the lifespan.

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives.

This training will cover an introduction to the problem-solving framework as an assessment tool through understanding their purpose, focusing on individual factors, evaluating external circumstances, identifying phases of the assault cycle, and interrupting triggers to reduce escalation.

We will follow a detailed case presentation to show how psychoanalytic play therapy can help children in foster care with histories of early loss, deprivation, abuse and other developmental strains and traumas. Play and other forms of reconstruction can offer ways to re-process the past emotional pain so as to gain new flexibility and integration. We will discuss developing plans to incorporate play therapy into work with system-involved youth clients to help them heal from trauma and develop healthy attachment.

This training will explain the purpose of the Child Welfare system and the Resource Family Approval application process. We will define what a Resource Parent is and go over the responsibilities that come with the role, where the Resource Parent is in the larger team of supports for foster youth, as well as the five competency categories guiding a Resource Parent. The Aldea Staff will introduce Aldea’s history, its programs, and support services provided to Resource Families. She will explain the steps in the process to become an approved Resource Parent: the required documentation, pre-service trainings, submission of background checks, how to prepare your home for RFA approval, and review […]

This training offers the opportunity for providers to learn about the complexities of working with youth in the foster care system and reflect on challenges they have experienced. Providers will discuss complex trauma and the different ways complex trauma can manifest. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about how to best support youth by promoting resilience and utilizing trauma informed care practices.

This training will provide participants with strategies that will help them to better understand the emotional and affective needs of foster youth with developmental delays (sense of belonging, invisibility, loneliness). This training is to help participants develop empathy for the foster youth they work with, their families, and empower providers with tools to support each youth/family’s individual needs.

The Assessment Center provides a safe place for youth to stay while they await placement within the Foster Care system. Youth at the Assessment Center have the opportunity to engage in art activities, play video games, listen to music, and read a book. Since the Assessment Center has become a licensed facility, youth can stay at the Assessment Center for up to 72 hours. This training focuses on modifying program culture to promote social, emotional, and intellectual well being of foster youth while they are at the Assessment Center. Providers will contribute to supporting foster youth’s developmental needs and restoring developmentally appropriate functioning.

From the time they enter the state’s care and likely long before, foster youth experience trauma that can severely alter their physical, emotional, and psychological well-being. The impact of trauma on foster youth can mean that this vulnerable population faces numerous additional challenges as they grow and develop into adulthood. Foster youth experience trauma in many ways, often starting at home. Youth will enter the foster care system because they have experienced physical or sexual abuse, neglect, a loss of a parent, or abandonment, forcing the state to step in. Other family stress factors such as poverty, substance abuse, mental illness, and incarceration can lead to a child’s removal from […]

This training will demonstrate that Cultural Humility is the best approach to supportive care for system-involved youth and their families. Every person is a unique combination of cultural traits that are influenced by personal and familial experiences of trauma, grief, joy, identity, and purpose. Thus, every individual has a personal culture that cannot be taught through bullet points, but can only be understood through the lens of Cultural Humility. For people in a supportive role, a mindset of Cultural Humility recognizes the person we are caring for as the expert on their personal culture, and acknowledges the individuality and unique experiences of system-involved youth and their families. This is a […]

This training will focus on allowing participants to assess their views on the importance of cultural humility as a concept in work with youth and families. The training will provide a space for participants to discuss cultural practices, how to remain humble in the face of difficult work, and how to be aware of our own personal biases that may get in the way of exceptional care for youth.

The fear of fat in our culture has established a shocking tolerance for the mistreatment and violence against people living in larger bodies. The normalization of fatphobia in our society is evident on the playground where the word “fat” is learned to be a weapon at as young as 4 years old. Children are learning fat equates to shame as early as they learn their abc’s from the adults in their lives.

This multi-part series meets monthly to discuss how cultural identity relates to the role of overseeing services and case plans for youth and the intersectional lens of power and privilege in decisions for foster youth. The group gives an opportunity to receive support, connection, and further learning around cultural identity development variables and also offers a space to dialogue around dilemmas in youth-serving system while personally deepening awareness, consciousness and action of each individual member.

With the vast majority of Alameda County foster youth representing racial and ethnic minorities and the systems supporting them (e.g., RFA, child welfare, behavioral health) often not matching their racial or ethnic cultural group, providers should be particularly conscious of the ways that racial dynamics surface in the care of youth, particularly as it impacts the provision of culturally competent care. This training will provide opportunities for providers to work with scenarios from their work around how racial and ethnic dynamics are relevant to and surface in relation to care and services for foster youth. As a group, we will review how the reactions and behaviors that arise with youth […]

In this country, talking about race is not easy, but can be especially challenging cross-culturally between caregivers and youth. But we can help caregivers and adoptive parents get more comfortable with practice. Beth Hall has written extensively about how to talk with your children about race and racism; there are steps professionals can take that will help parents and children feel better prepared to have these difficult conversations—and to have them frequently. Because that’s what BIPOC children need and what the state of our society demands. When working with youth populations, professionals must educate caregivers along with children, in order to support healthy, race-identity affirming parenting approaches that support white […]

The Assessment Center serves youth with varying needs who come from diverse ethnic, racial, and cultural backgrounds. This training invites participants to explore cultural humility practices to authentically engage with foster youth from diverse backgrounds. Participants will have an understanding of key concepts related to identity and culture in order to provide foster youth with culturally relevant care. Participants will explore various identities to support continued development in working across diverse cultural groups.

When a hard of hearing or deaf, system involved child joins a new family or environment, there are many communication, education, philosophical and cultural barriers to overcome. Meeting these challenges with openness and curiosity are the best tools for the job at hand. In this workshop we will discuss resources, ASL, and other visually based skills and cultural communication strategies to make the life of the foster child and the family blend in a coherent way.

This training will explore structural racism and oppression. Participants will learn how structural racism exists within the child welfare system, the juvenile justice system, the healthcare system, and the educational system. Participants will also learn about implicit biases and how these and structural racism can impact system involved youth. The training will end with strategies to address these issues together in order to improve outcomes for system involved youth and families.

This course will review the definition and science regarding Implicit Bias. The training will provide participants with a firm understanding of Implicit Bias, it’s definition, impact, and ways of addressing it in order to keep it from having a negative impact on youth in care.

“”Decolonization”” is a word that has entered social change discourse in recent years. We have seen it all over social media and in our movements, but what does it really mean? Why has this come up, how has it shifted social justice movements, and what does it mean for the work we do in our everyday lives? To understand this, we first must take a look at what colonization is: the United States and our society was formed by taking the land and resources from the people indigenous to the land, rupturing relationships to community, to people, to land, and to all living beings involved. In the process, we established […]

How we begin to form and shape our understanding of ourselves, our surroundings, our values and our beliefs are influenced heavily by the people who predominantly raised us, the institutions we attended and the kind of media we were exposed to. This cycle of socialization can be applied to how we think of our gender, our race/ethnicity, culture, etc and the intersectionality of many identities. This course provides participants with a thorough examination of how we have been socialized in terms of race and dissect what has been socially constructed. Participants will do self-reflective explorations around their own personal racial identities, reflecting on their socialization about what was taught directly […]

This training presents a frame of working with students, families & communities in a way that challenges racial bias and other punitive manifestations of racism. By framing the typical mindset of adult educators as controlling or constructive while framing the school & community environment as toxic or supportive. This training reviews the Four Pivots, looks at Hidden Language of Bias, and engages participants on their experiences with the aforementioned phenomenon.

Racial trauma is the cumulative effects of racism on an individual’s health. Given the disproportionate number of youth of color, it’s crucial social service and health providers understand how racial trauma impacts youth on their care plan. This training will equip providers with the knowledge to better understand racial trauma and strategies to support system-involved youth and families impacted by racial trauma.  Register Here

Many system-involved youth experience parental separation whether it is because of divorce, parental incarceration, removal from home by child welfare, etc. Divorce and parental separation can be traumatic. This workshop will discuss the impact of parental separation and divorce on system-involved youth’s social, emotional and educational development. Participants will also learn how to support youth experiencing parental divorce or separation.

This training will equip attendees with foundational knowledge about how to best understand and support children with ADHD, autism & other learning differences. Register Here

When caring for and supporting foster youth you can often face challenges of crises, placement instability, or system pressures. These can lead to quick decisions or unintended consequences for youth and families, especially when the needs and strengths of youth are not maintained as a guiding force. This training focuses on the importance of self-reflection, humility and self-care as a means of building capacity to deliver care for foster youth who experience trauma.

This training will provide attendees with information about Awareness and Prevention on the topic of Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) in the US and local communities. Attendees will be provided with valuable tools and resources that empowers them to make a difference in the effort to eradicate exploitation of children.  Register Here

This training will provide attendees with information about Awareness and Prevention on the topic of Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) in the US and local communities. Attendees will be provided with valuable tools and resources that empowers them to make a difference in the effort to eradicate exploitation of children.  Register Here

Foster youth face unique challenges and triggers during the holidays. From culture and religious clashes with their foster family, to feeling guilty for enjoying time away from their biological family, and much more! This training helps foster families understand the challenges foster youth face and how to make these holidays easier for them. Register Here

Elder and dependent adult abuse is at an epidemic level in the United States. In California, many professions are now legally designated as mandated reporters in an effort to help combat this increasing problem. This reporting responsibility is a serious one and can pose ethical dilemmas for mandated reporters. This training will address the signs to look for to identify elder abuse, the problems facing mandated reporters in elder abuse situations, the process for reporting, and help you to understand how, when, and where to report suspected abuse or neglect as well as what to expect after your report has been made. Register Here

This training will cover who are Mandated Reporters and their responsibilities to report child abuse, types of child abuse and neglect, accidental vs purposeful abuse and what, when and where to report abuse. Protection for reporters and penalties for failure to report. This training is intended for those that work with children and youth within the child welfare system or are at-risk of entering. This includes child welfare workers, resource parents, youth sports coaches, youth mentors, teachers and volunteers/staff working with this population. Register Here

This training is designed to introduce prospective Resource Families to the Child Welfare System and the role of a resource parent. Participants will receive an overview of the steps to becoming a resource parent with Alternative Family Services.

This training will review the history of how and when youth’s personal rights were enacted, clarify the differences between youth and non-minor dependent’s,  what their personal rights are and the caregivers role and responsibilities to ensure the youth’s rights are protected.  Register Here

Attendees will understand Sexual and Reproductive Wellness Rights for youth in foster care. These rights ensure young people in foster care age 10 and older, including non-minor dependents, have access to education, information, and services about their sexual and reproductive health. Attendees will understand the sexual and reproductive health rights of youth in foster care and the duties and responsibilities as a caregiver as well as those of the case worker, how to engage with youth about sexual and reproductive wellness. Register Here

Child sexual exploitation is a major child protection issue for communities across the country. Hidden from view and often unnoticed, vulnerable young girls and boys are recruited, groomed and then abused, leaving them traumatized and without support. This training is a framework for engaging with sexually exploited youth and will offer suggestions for talking with youth.

Presenter will review the basic care and precautions while caring for infants in the foster care system. The training covers best practices in sleep rules when caring for infants. Presenter will discuss new crib standards, crib recalls, safety hazards and how they affect a safe sleeping environment. Training addresses the proper way to feed and burp a new born infant and how to make certain the infant is consuming the proper amount formula, basic diaper rash symptoms and how to properly treat and prevent rashes. Presenter also discusses common health issues in infants and toddlers in Foster Care. Presenter will discuss teething, infant development stages and milestones, well baby checkups, […]

Presenter will review the basic care and precautions while caring for infants in the foster care system. The training covers best practices in sleep rules when caring for infants. Presenter will discuss new crib standards, crib recalls, safety hazards and how they affect a safe sleeping environment. Training addresses the proper way to feed and burp a new born infant and how to make certain the infant is consuming the proper amount formula, basic diaper rash symptoms and how to properly treat and prevent rashes. Presenter also discusses common health issues in infants and toddlers in Foster Care. Presenter will discuss teething, infant development stages and milestones, well baby checkups, […]

Participants will learn the lingo and process for initiating, reviewing, and participating in the process of an IEP.Participants will learn timelines, requirements, and laws governing the administration of an IEP. Register Here

Child sexual exploitation is a major child protection issue for communities across the country. Hidden from view and often unnoticed, vulnerable young girls and boys are recruited, groomed and then abused, leaving them traumatized and without support. Issues specific to sexual exploitation of youth, including the difficulty in identifying youth at risk, can make the provision of appropriate services a challenge for systems that serve the youth. This training is a framework for engaging with sexually exploited youth and will offer suggestions for talking with youth.

This support group will offer a space for prospective and current foster and adoptive parents to talk about their experiences as such. This space will offer support from other fost/adopt parents who have been through similar experiences as they learn to process the legal, social and emotional expectations on their families. The group will cover such topics as: behavioral issues, separation and attachment (theoretical frameworks and practical application(s), IEPs/educational needs, legal expectations, and other critical topics of concern for our families. Fost/Adopt parents will learn that their experience is uniquely similar to others who are struggling with the joys and pains of the process of fostering and adoption.

This training is designed to prepare resource families to work with youth in the foster care system. Participants will receive a better understanding of the foster care system structure and explore how to provide a well-planned, safe, and secure environment designed to meet children’s individual and unique needs, and how to create an environment that promotes children’s social emotional, cognitive, and physical development. Participants will continue to review; Interim Licensing Standard, Child Growth and Development, Medication Guidelines, Discipline, Working with Biological Families and understanding the Effects of Trauma.

This training will discuss challenges, statistics, and tips to affirm one’s gender identity, as well as review the importance of using proper pronouns and respecting a person’s gender identity. Join us as we work together to develop empathy and understanding for LGBTQ2IA+ community members. Register Here

This training provides an introductory overview of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) including: basic definitions, significant laws and legislation, and a discussion on risk factors that contribute to a child’s vulnerability to be recruited or groomed into exploitation. This training also describes how complex trauma can create vulnerabilities for youth at risk for exploitation, providing trainees the opportunity to learn about trauma informed care practices.

Many system-involved youth and young adults struggle with mood disruptions so it’s crucial for providers to know how to support them. This training will build off “Strategies to support system-involved youth with mood disruptions” where providers learn the different types of mood disorders and some engagement strategies. This training will provide you with additional strategies to support with mood disruptions, how and when to involve parents/caregivers, and how parents/caregivers can support their youth with a mood disruptions. This training will also include discussions around common co-occurring conditions youth and young adults may struggle with and learning-related challenges. Register Here

The Alameda County Assessment Center is a place for children and youth to stay while they await placement within the foster care system. Youth coming to the Assessment Center are often removed from their homes due to reasons of abuse and/or neglect or are changing placements within the foster care system. When youth are removed, it is possible there will be an escalation of suicidality, because of the intensity of their experience and the nature of trauma from removal. This training aims to review safety protocol and emergency procedures, while youth await placement at the Alameda County Assessment Center. In this training, providers will have the opportunity to identify ways […]

While the larger human trafficking narrative has focused on child sex trafficking, it’s equally as important to discuss child labor trafficking. This training will provide an overview of child labor trafficking in the United States, including what it is, risk factors, and pathways of entry. Participants will also hear about warning signs someone is being labor trafficked and recommendations to support labor trafficking survivors. Lastly, the trainer will discuss labor trafficking with adults and the impact it has on their children. Register Here

While male sexual abuse is fairly common, the predominant dialogue is about sexual abuse of women and girls. This training will equip social service providers of needed knowledge about male sexual abuse. The training will provide information about the prevalence of childhood male sexual abuse, myths of sexual abuse, impact of male sexual abuse and strategies to support males who have experienced sexual abuse as minors. Register Here

Many system-involved youth struggle to regulate their emotions, particularly anger. Youth often acknowledge their need for anger management skills so it’s crucial for social service providers, foster parents and natural supports to learn how to help system-involved youth navigate their anger. This workshop will provide you with strategies for talking with system involved youth about anger management and how to support them. The training will also teach conflict resolution skills to share, teach and practice with system-involved youth and young adults in care.  Register Here

During this training, participants will review their roles in assessing and intervening to prevent suicide as defined by professional organizational ethics and legal statutes. They will also view current Centers for Disease Control (CDC) statistics identifying demographic trends of suicide completion and exploring the most lethal methods of suicide attempts. Participants will learn to identify risk and protective factors for suicide as defined by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). They will also be introduced to Thomas Joiner’s Interpersonal Theory of Suicide to better understand drivers for suicide. Participants will be introduced to the Ask Suicide-Screening Questions (ASQ) screening and brief suicide assessment tools as a best […]

TBA Register Here

Youth Professionals who provide services in the community or in home-based settings have a wide range of safety issues to consider in order to ensure the safety of children, families, and themselves. This course will review key concepts and give participants time to apply these ideas to real-world situations. Throughout the training, there will be a discussion of how bias can impact judgements about safety, responses to safety, and personal comfort levels of safety. Participants will receive strategies to mitigate this bias and reactions.

Youth Professionals who provide services in the community or in home-based settings have a wide range of safety issues to consider in order to ensure the safety of children, families, and themselves. This course will review key concepts and give participants time to apply these ideas to real-world situations. Throughout the training, there will be a discussion of how bias can impact judgements about safety, responses to safety, and personal comfort levels of safety. Participants will receive strategies to mitigate this bias and reactions.

Relapse prevention planning is helpful with youth struggling with a variety of issues from substance use, self-harm, engagement in the commercial sex industry, etc. This training will provide an overview of relapse prevention planning to help you teach youth about relapse prevention and create a relapse prevention plan. Register Here

Direct care providers who serve and support commercially sexually exploited youth (CSEC) are particularly vulnerable to burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and vicarious trauma. This increased risk for unintended, “negative impacts” is due to the nature of the work, the settings in which the work takes place, and the systemic surround. All of this combines to create pressure and potentially harmful impacts for providers doing work that is already intense, trauma-exposed, and at times dangerous and isolating. For providers to serve and support CSEC with the best care possible, providers need their support and attention with regards to vicarious trauma vulnerabilities and self-care strategies. This training will explore vulnerabilities and related […]

This training will support staff in understanding the history and definition of the Lanterman-Petris Short Act and how the 5150/5585 process works in youth care. The course will provide staff with the opportunity to review the process, evaluate their internal processes and discuss strategies to safely support youth while in crisis.

It is not uncommon for service providers who work with youth in out of home care to experience secondary trauma. While secondary trauma can be experienced in a multitude of ways for service-providers, it is known to impact the capacity to provide effective care for youth and can increase feelings of isolation and exhaustion. By engaging in a dialogue that centers on the impact of secondary trauma among service providers and their work with foster youth, participants can work together to collaborate on strategies and skills to manage their experiences of secondary trauma in their work.

Gender inequality shows up in many ways from pay inequality, opportunities one has, exposure to violence, objectification, discrimination, etc. It’s important for providers, foster parents, and natural supports to understand how gender inequality shows up and how to help youth and young adults when they experience gender inequality. Register Here

This training will provide a review of relevant and evidence supported service approaches for foster youth at risk for exploitation. Additionally, the training will review strategies for adapting services to ensure they are CSEC and trauma informed. Special issues such as best practices for meeting the needs of culturally diverse foster youth, LGBTQI2-S foster youth, as well as youth engaged in substance abuse will be considered.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death for youth aged 15-24. It’s crucial for social service providers to learn how to assess suicide, know what to do if a youth endorses suicidal ideation, and how to foster protective factors. The training will also touch on helping youth grieve friends and family lost to suicide.  Register Here

This training will focus on effectively engaging caregivers in the suicide safety planning process. Participants will review current U.S. youth suicide risk statistics, discuss research concerning caregiver experience when presented with their child’s suicide risk acuity, and identify ways to support the caregiver in collaborating with their child in the safety planning process. Participants will practice the use of Motivational Interviewing open-ended questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries to elicit caregiver understanding of their child’s suicidality, increase provider understanding of client’s risks and resiliency factors and consolidate motivation to safety plan. The training will include strategies for speaking with caregivers about means to safety.  Register Here

As online interventions becomes part of many providers service provision, it is important that they are aware of the legal and ethical issues related to telemental health. In this class participants will learn: 1) California Telehealth legal codes and Telehealth professional codes of ethics including: informed consent, privacy, working with people out of state, preparing for crisis, and handling technology failure; 2) research on Telemental Health and 3) best practicing when providing online health and mental services.

If you are a supervisor and are supervising unlicensed support providers who are working with system-involved youth and their families, this is an important training for you. We will focus on issues of culture in supervision and also on some legal issues of supervision. Learning will include ethical boundaries in supervision and how this parallels boundaries that support providers need to establish and maintain in their relationships with system involved youth and their families. We will also describe and review the relevance of countertransference in the supervisory relationship and how to help supervisees identify this in order to stay focused on, and most effectively address, the needs of system-involved youth […]

The purpose of this training is to create a renewed and heightened awareness of boundary issues in work with foster youth. Having boundaries is not just a matter of being professional. Appropriate boundaries are a key ingredient in providing the children in our care with the highest quality of care, which often times requires us to build trusting and healing relationships with them. Frequently the relationships we build with clients can have ambiguous boundaries, making it important to develop an awareness of possible danger signs for boundary issues that might result in poor practice or which might be red flags for potential exploitation of clients.

The purpose of this training is to create a renewed and heightened awareness of boundary issues in work with foster youth. Having boundaries is not just a matter of being professional. Appropriate boundaries are a key ingredient in providing the children in our care with the highest quality of care, which often times requires us to build trusting and healing relationships with them. Frequently the relationships we build with clients can have ambiguous boundaries, making it important to develop an awareness of possible danger signs for boundary issues that might result in poor practice or which might be red flags for potential exploitation of clients.

As professionals we are often invited to slip into conversations about the people who consult us when they are not present. This training will focus on the real and possible effects of these second, or dual, dialogues. Participants will read and discuss a brief article written by Johnella Bird (“Professional Talk”) that outlines the dangers of this dual dialogue. We will examine the invitations to engage in professional talk, the effects of these practices, and strategies to avoid falling into a way of working with people that can objectify them.

Probably the first step in supervising staff is hiring the right people. Hiring is not an exact science and therefore managers should have a plan for successfully engaging in the process. This training is designed to help managers develop those strategies that increase the odds of hiring effective, dedicated and committed staff who will best fit the needs of the youth in their programs. Participants will have the opportunity to explore and develop a step by step process for hiring staff – a major component of which, is the interview. Participants will be presented with the components of Behavioral Interviewing and allowed to develop and practice the process. They will […]

This training reframes processing emotions as a life skill that can enable system-involved youth and their caregivers to adapt and grow following significant loss. Presentation includes instruction on using The Emotions Wheel as a supportive tool; learning activities to help youth improve their emotion processing skills; as well as how to identify and release emotions. Participants will be informed through presenter instruction, a slide presentation, guided discussion, small group sharing, and activities to add to your supportive tool kit.

This course aims to provide participants with an in-depth understanding of the Transition to Independence Process (TIP) Model and its application in supporting system involved youth and young adults with emotional/behavioral difficulties (EBD). Participants will learn about the core principles and components of the TIP Model, explore strategies for implementation, and gain practical insights through case studies and interactive discussions. The material will be delivered by PowerPoint presentation, short video clips, group discussion, breakout (small group) discussions and participant workbook (handout).

Clinical Supervision is an important tool used to enrich the relationship between new clinicians and clients. This six-hour training is required every two years for those supervising MFTis, LPCCis and Psych interns. Topics covered will include necessary paperwork for supervision, exploration of supervisory styles and choices, as well as challenges and obstacles encountered in supervision. Time will be allowed for questions, cases and discussion.

Privacy of system involved children, youth, and families is held to many local, state, and federal expectations. For youth in care, their privacy rights are protected via the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Other service-specific privacy practices including confidentiality, and mandated reporting requirements may apply, and have the potential to impact engagement and partnership with foster youth. This training will provide a comprehensive overview of HIPAA, protected health information (PHI), confidentiality, and mandated reporting requirements for service providers, and delve into a discussion of how these privacy practices are relevant to youth in foster care. Due to the ever changing nature of how we communicate with children, families, […]

Many system-involved youth and young adults struggle with mood disruptions so it’s crucial for providers to know how to support them. This training will build off “Strategies to support system-involved youth with mood disruptions” where providers learn the different types of mood disorders and some engagement strategies. This training will provide you with additional strategies to support with mood disruptions, how and when to involve parents/caregivers, and how parents/caregivers can support their youth with a mood disruptions. This training will also include discussions around common co-occurring conditions youth and young adults may struggle with and learning-related challenges. Register Here

The Alameda County Assessment Center is a place for children and youth to stay while they await placement within the foster care system. Youth coming to the Assessment Center are often removed from their homes due to reasons of abuse and/or neglect or are changing placements within the foster care system. When youth are removed, it is possible there will be an escalation of suicidality, because of the intensity of their experience and the nature of trauma from removal. This training aims to review safety protocol and emergency procedures, while youth await placement at the Alameda County Assessment Center. In this training, providers will have the opportunity to identify ways […]

While the larger human trafficking narrative has focused on child sex trafficking, it’s equally as important to discuss child labor trafficking. This training will provide an overview of child labor trafficking in the United States, including what it is, risk factors, and pathways of entry. Participants will also hear about warning signs someone is being labor trafficked and recommendations to support labor trafficking survivors. Lastly, the trainer will discuss labor trafficking with adults and the impact it has on their children. Register Here

While male sexual abuse is fairly common, the predominant dialogue is about sexual abuse of women and girls. This training will equip social service providers of needed knowledge about male sexual abuse. The training will provide information about the prevalence of childhood male sexual abuse, myths of sexual abuse, impact of male sexual abuse and strategies to support males who have experienced sexual abuse as minors. Register Here

This training will focus on differentiating causes for youth’s emotional distress, including attachment disruptions, trauma, and possible psychosis. Recommendations for stabilizing mental health will be incorporated.

Several youth and families, especially those from the LatinX community, that we serve in child welfare services have experienced shifts and transitions in their family systems due to immigration trends. Often, LatinX families have recent roots from countries of origin that are impacted by poverty, violence, lack of access to education and steady employment among other challenges. Therefore, many families or family members are forced to leave their country of origin to find refuge and a better life abroad, including in the U.S. The migration for each family may look unique to their family system and specific needs, but often we have a parent or both parents immigrating to the […]

When caring for and supporting foster youth you can often face challenges of crises, placement instability, or system pressures. These can lead to quick decisions or unintended consequences for youth and families, especially when the needs and strengths of youth are not maintained as a guiding force. This training focuses on the importance of self-reflection, humility and self-care as a means of building capacity to deliver care for foster youth who experience trauma.

Training Summary: Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) 101 provides an in-depth overview of CSEC within the larger legal framework of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act followed by a review of current statistics about CSEC. Next, the training discusses myths about involvement in CSEC as well as the demand of CSEC. The training then discusses the pathways and precursors to involvement in CSEC. Participants will hear case studies of CSEC survivors to highlight the risk factors for CSEC recruitment. Next, the training will provide an overview of the impact of CSEC, specifically looking at the physical, emotional, spiritual, and social impacts of CSEC involvement. Participants will learn about Stockholm Syndrome […]

Issues of class and socioeconomic status are often at the core of some families’ experience of oppression and mistreatment. Their interaction with these social constructs are often discussed in ways that leaves families at times struggling to name their experience. This training will focus on historical factors that may influence families’ access to resources and the ways it also may impact engagement with providers or welfare workers.

Foster youth transitioning to new placements can struggle to establish stability, which at times is magnified due to the failures of collaboration within the system of care. This training looks at the role of service providers in supporting foster youth. Participants are encouraged to discuss youth engagement strategies in the midst of high-conflict systems/teams. This training will review approaches to develop and encourage positive ethics while working with youth in care. Providers will identify signs and symptoms of compassion failure. Discuss and name challenges inherent in the work with foster youth. There will be opportunity in small-group discussion for participants to develop solution-oriented techniques to manage compassion failure.

Trainees will be taught the common signs and symptoms of vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue and learn how to recognize it in themselves and others. Having this knowledge will bring awareness and ability to identify and interrupt the progression of vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue to allow successful client-staff relationships and increase staff retention in the helping profession.   Register Here

Training Summary: CSEC 102 is designed for social service providers to assist them with enhancing their ability to work with CSEC survivors and their families. The training begins with a discussion about self-care and vicarious trauma. Next, the trainer will provide a brief CSEC 101 review that will include information on emerging populations such as CSEC with boys, the intersection of CSEC and gangs, and CSEC amongst indigenous youth. Next, an overview of trauma will be discussed which will include discussions about the impact of trauma across one’s lifespan, trauma bonds, the continuum of abuse, life after the commercial sexual exploitation, and resiliency. Next, the training will focus on the […]

This training is intended to Learning Normative factors associated with positive early child development, The Diagnosis of Reactive Attachment DisorderThe effects of child abuse and neglect on development. Register Here

Services involving screening of youth needs traditionally involve a one-directional focus and power dynamics were youth and families struggle to feel as though they have the ability to self-advocate. This training looks at frameworks involving collaboration and engagement with youth and families during screening services. Service providers will have opportunities to examine and discuss a case-based example of how enlisting collaboration from the start of services can uncover important dynamics in family relationships and youth needs.

This multi-part series meets monthly to discuss how cultural identity relates to the role of overseeing services and case plans for youth and the intersectional lens of power and privilege in decisions for foster youth. The group gives an opportunity to receive support, connection, and further learning around cultural identity development variables and also offers a space to dialogue around dilemmas in youth-serving system while personally deepening awareness, consciousness and action of each individual member.

This seminar looks at how the Collaborative Model can provide a framework for engaging families in understanding youth needs and strengths. This multi-part training series focuses on applying family-centered theories to creating plans for engagement, dialogue, and case planning that will help the family begin to understand the youth’s experiences and reasons for their challenging behaviors. Participants will learn effective strategies to use with families in order to demonstrate key elements of family relationships and dynamics. This seminar focuses on foundations of family systems theory that create a basis for understanding some of the challenging dynamics present between youth and caregivers. Participants will be involved in case-based discussion to explore […]

Child sexual exploitation is a major child protection issue for communities across the country. Hidden from view and often unnoticed, vulnerable young girls and boys are recruited, groomed and then abused, leaving them traumatized and without support. This training is a framework for engaging with sexually exploited youth and will offer suggestions for talking with youth.

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives.

Communities are continually impacted and challenged in addressing complex trauma in their settings. Children may display a range of symptoms and behaviors that are difficult to organize and understand. Teachers, providers and caregivers need frameworks for interpreting behaviors and expanding practices that build a more attuned and responsive environment. This course will offer providers a framework of understanding traumatic impact in terms of arousal and attachment behaviors that can guide response and support improved functioning in the community, participation in tasks required for daily functioning. Facilitated discussion, didactic material, and experiential exercises will be used to discuss the themes and address class objectives

With the vast majority of Alameda County foster youth representing racial and ethnic minorities and the systems supporting them (e.g., RFA, child welfare, behavioral health) often not matching their racial or ethnic cultural group, providers should be particularly conscious of the ways that racial dynamics surface in the care of youth, particularly as it impacts the provision of culturally competent care. This training will provide opportunities for providers to work with scenarios from their work around how racial and ethnic dynamics are relevant to and surface in relation to care and services for foster youth. As a group, we will review how the reactions and behaviors that arise with youth […]

This training will cover an introduction to the problem-solving framework as an assessment tool through understanding their purpose, focusing on individual factors, evaluating external circumstances, identifying phases of the assault cycle, and interrupting triggers to reduce escalation.

This training will cover an introduction to the problem-solving framework as an assessment tool through understanding their purpose, focusing on individual factors, evaluating external circumstances, identifying phases of the assault cycle, and interrupting triggers to reduce escalation.

Trauma can impact one’s understanding and experience of intimacy, and given the high rates of sexual abuse amongst foster youth, it’s important that social service providers are equipped with the skills and knowledge to talk about relationships, dating and sex after sexual abuse. Despite how common this can be amongst sexual abuse survivors, it is often not addressed in services. In this training, the trainer will discuss how trauma impacts one’s relationship with sex and how to support transitional age youth in developing a healthier understanding and experience of sex.

In this country, talking about race is not easy, but can be especially challenging cross-culturally between caregivers and youth. But we can help caregivers and adoptive parents get more comfortable with practice. Beth Hall has written extensively about how to talk with your children about race and racism; there are steps professionals can take that will help parents and children feel better prepared to have these difficult conversations—and to have them frequently. Because that’s what BIPOC children need and what the state of our society demands. When working with youth populations, professionals must educate caregivers along with children, in order to support healthy, race-identity affirming parenting approaches that support white […]

Child sexual exploitation is a major child protection issue for communities across the country. Hidden from view and often unnoticed, vulnerable young girls and boys are recruited, groomed and then abused, leaving them traumatized and without support. Issues specific to sexual exploitation of youth, including the difficulty in identifying youth at risk, can make the provision of appropriate services a challenge for systems that serve the youth. This training is a framework for engaging with sexually exploited youth and will offer suggestions for talking with youth.

This training is designed to introduce service providers to the services available to youth at the Alameda County Assessment Center. This training includes overview of the service roles, responsibilities, and expectations for those working directly with youth. The training will help participants to familiarize themselves with the major components of the cases that are seen at the Assessment Center, including screening, transitional services, collaborating with various service providers, and linkage/transfer of services and care. In addition to providing information about the nature of specific tasks inherent for service providers, the training is also designed to help providers consider how the systems and structures in which the Assessment Center operates impacts […]

This training provides an overview of STAT. STAT is a screening and assessment program for youth in the CWS who have recently changed placements. This training will review the basic care and supervision of children who come to the Alameda Co. Assessment Center after being removed from their family due to abuse or neglect. The screening/assessment procedures of children who come to Alameda County Assessment Center will be reviewed. This training will also cover how to assist children’s transition to and stabilization in the foster home, group home, or placement with relative after they leave the Assessment Center.

To understand how trauma shapes a child’s brain,To understand how calm parental authority fosters greater responsibility in more intense, challenging children.To learn a transformative approach beyond traditional behavior management. Register Here

Foster youth rely on many providers and resources, and it is imperative that these providers understand how to work together to most effectively assist and engage youth in care. This seminar reflects on principles of effective teaming for providers working with youth, and engages providers in practicing and employing best strategies for teaming in their roles going forward.

This high-energy, interactive workshop aims to challenge the conventional ways of thinking about self-care. Proactive and consistent self-care is not something that comes naturally, nor is it a challenge for the reasons you may think. By prioritizing mental health, those who work with youth in care can become more effective in their roles and better support the youth and families they serve. Everyone deserves a personalized self-care plan based on their unique needs and circumstances. This workshop will guide you toward adopting sustainable self-care practices that will improve your LIFE-WORK balance.

Direct care providers who serve and support commercially sexually exploited youth (CSEC) are particularly vulnerable to burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and vicarious trauma. This increased risk for unintended, “negative impacts” is due to the nature of the work, the settings in which the work takes place, and the systemic surround. All of this combines to create pressure and potentially harmful impacts for providers doing work that is already intense, trauma-exposed, and at times dangerous and isolating. For providers to serve and support CSEC with the best care possible, providers need their support and attention with regards to vicarious trauma vulnerabilities and self-care strategies. This training will explore vulnerabilities and related […]

This is a training for supervisors on techniques for providing written feedback on comprehensive evaluations of foster youth, youth in probation, and other at-risk youth. The training will focus on organizing and communicating evaluation findings in ways that are more succinct and clear and have meaningful implications for youth and family goals.

This training offers the opportunity for providers to learn about the complexities of working with youth in the foster care system and reflect on challenges they have experienced. Providers will discuss complex trauma and the different ways complex trauma can manifest. Attendees will have the opportunity to learn about how to best support youth by promoting resilience and utilizing trauma informed care practices.

Youth in Alameda County who enter the foster care system through the Assessment Center or are awaiting a change in placement have special needs that surface within the context of the milieu setting while they are transitioning placements. This training provides information about key ways to engage and work with exploited youth within a milieu setting. This training will discuss the Commercially Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) in Alameda County Social Services. We will describe how societally imposed racial differences exist amongst CSEC youth in the foster care system. The training will describe the benefits of using harm reduction and safety planning with youth who “AWOL” specifically from the milieu floor […]

Small group discussion with each member sharing impact of multiple roles on fulfilling job tasks in supervision and program management. Parallel process to lives of children and families in foster care were drawn. Multiple roles of organizational leadership and supervision of staff.

It is not uncommon for service providers who work with youth in out of home care to experience secondary trauma. While secondary trauma can be experienced in a multitude of ways for service-providers, it is known to impact the capacity to provide effective care for youth and can increase feelings of isolation and exhaustion. By engaging in a dialogue that centers on the impact of secondary trauma among service providers and their work with foster youth, participants can work together to collaborate on strategies and skills to manage their experiences of secondary trauma in their work.

This training will discuss vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue and moral distress that can arise when supporting system involved transition age youth. When individuals don’t intentionally care for themselves and have awareness of the impacts of vicarious trauma, this can unintentionally negatively impact outcomes for system involved transition age youth. The trainer will discuss strategies participants can utilize to prevent or manage vicarious trauma and become more resilient and compassionate. It’s essential for those who support system involved youth to prioritize well-being so we can model this for transition age youth and families and support improved outcomes.

This training will provide participants with strategies that will help them to better understand the emotional and affective needs of foster youth with developmental delays (sense of belonging, invisibility, loneliness). This training is to help participants develop empathy for the foster youth they work with, their families, and empower providers with tools to support each youth/family’s individual needs.

This training is relevant to all care providers who work with high needs youth immediately upon their transition in placement. Youth that are first entering foster care have recently been removed due to reasons of abuse or neglect and may present with experiencing complex trauma. Youth are at higher risk of increased levels of escalation in their behaviors that present risk for themselves, providers, and other youth in care. Participants in this training will learn how to engage and support the needs of youth at the Assessment Center.

The Assessment Center serves youth with varying needs who come from diverse ethnic, racial, and cultural backgrounds. This training invites participants to explore cultural humility practices to authentically engage with foster youth from diverse backgrounds. Participants will have an understanding of key concepts related to identity and culture in order to provide foster youth with culturally relevant care. Participants will explore various identities to support continued development in working across diverse cultural groups.

Working with system-involved youth can be challenging given the generational patterns observed in families. These can include trauma, poverty, incarceration, teen pregnancy, etc. The better we understand the youth’s trauma and adversity in light of what has happened to the generations who came before them, the better we can support the youth. Without this perspective, we can have unrealistic expectations for youth and their families and encounter barriers to engagement. This training will provide an overview of generational trauma, examples of generational trauma, impacts of generational trauma and strategies to support youth and families.

The Assessment Center provides a safe place for youth to stay while they await placement within the Foster Care system. Youth at the Assessment Center have the opportunity to engage in art activities, play video games, listen to music, and read a book. Since the Assessment Center has become a licensed facility, youth can stay at the Assessment Center for up to 72 hours. This training focuses on modifying program culture to promote social, emotional, and intellectual well being of foster youth while they are at the Assessment Center. Providers will contribute to supporting foster youth’s developmental needs and restoring developmentally appropriate functioning.

Youth entering foster care are often removed due to reasons of abuse or neglect. Providers at the Assessment Center work with youth that have recently been removed and determine what supports and strategies the youth needs. This training offers providers with an understanding of the impact of trauma on a child’s social and emotional development. Participants will learn strategies for working with youth experiencing trauma and provide tools for promoting developmentally appropriate functioning.

This training provides an introductory overview of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) including: basic definitions, significant laws and legislation, and a discussion on risk factors that contribute to a child’s vulnerability to be recruited or groomed into exploitation. This training also describes how complex trauma can create vulnerabilities for youth at risk for exploitation, providing trainees the opportunity to learn about trauma informed care practices through a vignette.

This highly interactive training is designed to address the self-care needs of resource families and kinship families impacted by traumatic life events of foster youth. Caregivers are encouraged to verbalize their understanding and connectedness to the multiple aspects of compassion fatigue and secondary traumatization. By taking a self-inventory, participants will see first-hand the levels of stress they experience. The group will look at several tools and techniques to circumvent the most challenging aspects of compassion fatigue and to be able to regain a state of neuro-physiological (mind-body) regulation, recovery and resilience.

Working within foster youth systems can involve multiple complex initiatives that together work towards establishing resiliency of youth and families, and sustainability for providers and those working within the system of care. Building Trauma informed systems requires ongoing training and development of providers who have newly entered the system of care and may be unaware of previous actions and steps taken to begin developing a trauma-informed system. This training sets a frame of how the modality of education and teaching can be used to bridge gaps in power dynamics to foster healing within foster-youth serving systems. Participants will engage in activities that help articulate the actions involved in building resilience […]

Youth at the Assessment Center in Alameda County historically were required to be placed by child welfare within 24 hours of their removal. With limited placements available for transitional aged youth and youth with specific and higher levels of needs, instances of extended/overstays with youth and non-minor dependents have become more common. However, this setting may not be well suited for youth with certain acute and high level needs. Using case presentations, participants explore the dynamics present at the Assessment Center and discuss service approaches and strategies to support and stabilize youth in the context of the complex system of care.

Gender inequality shows up in many ways from pay inequality, opportunities one has, exposure to violence, objectification, discrimination, etc. It’s important for providers, foster parents, and natural supports to understand how gender inequality shows up and how to help youth and young adults when they experience gender inequality. Register Here

This training provides an introductory overview of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC) including: basic definitions, significant laws and legislation, and a discussion on risk factors that contribute to a child’s vulnerability to be recruited or groomed into exploitation. This training also describes how complex trauma can create vulnerabilities for youth at risk for exploitation, providing trainees the opportunity to learn about trauma informed care practices.

TBA Register Here

Trauma Informed Care is intended to educate those in the helping professions about the prevalence of trauma, how to recognize the signs of trauma, and how to help someone with trauma.  Register Here

Trauma Informed Care is intended to educate those in the helping professions about the prevalence of trauma, how to recognize the signs of trauma, and how to help someone with trauma.  Register Here

“Parenting In OZ!” is an experiential, memorable, trauma-informed, parenting curriculum designed to help parents and staff understand and respond therapeutically to the acting-out behaviors often exhibited by children who have experienced the trauma of neglect, abuse, and loss. Utilizing the vivid imagery from “The Wizard of OZ” and the emergency room, this unique training is an entertaining, multi-sensory approach to working with trauma that both professionals and parents cannot help but remember and integrate into their work. Trauma informed parenting is a paradigm shift for many parents who have often been trained to utilize tools designed to bring external controls to address or remediate problematic behaviors within a particular environment.