Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Virtual
Monday, December 7, 2026
9 am – 12 pm
3 CECs

Description and Learning Objectives Coming Soon

Welcome 2 Reality
Virtual
Tuesday, November 17, 2026
6 pm – 8 pm

Registration Fee: $50
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and current SSW Practicum Instructors

The training on the impact of vaping is designed to provide child welfare agency professionals with essential knowledge about the effects of vaping on both children and adults. With the increasing popularity of vaping and the potential risks associated with it, it is crucial for child welfare professionals to be well-informed and equipped to address this emerging issue within their work. Training will delve into the various aspects of vaping, including the different devices used, the chemicals involved, and the potential health implications. Participants will gain an understanding of the impact of vaping on physical and mental health, particularly focusing on the vulnerable population of children and the impact on adults, including secondhand exposure and the potential for nicotine addiction. Strategies to address vaping-related concerns within families and provide appropriate support and resources will be discussed.

Learning Objectives

• Discuss the prevalence, devices, and chemicals involved in vaping, enhancing their understanding of this emerging trend.
• Explore the impact of vaping on children and adults, including the potential for nicotine addiction and the consequences of secondhand exposure, to help professionals address related concerns within families effectively.
• Foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing among agencies, professionals, enabling them to develop approaches to address vaping-related issues within their respective roles.

Patricia Parks, LCSW
Virtual
Tuesday, December 8, 2026
10 am – 12 pm
2 CECs

Registration Fee: $5
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and current SSW Practicum Instructors

 

Medically complex pregnancies and neonatal intensive care experiences can significantly impact maternal mental health. Despite this, many healthcare providers receive limited training in recognizing and responding to the psychological needs of mothers navigating high-risk pregnancies, NICU hospitalization, and pregnancy after loss.

This training is intended for mental health clinicians and healthcare providers working with pregnant and postpartum populations. The webinar provides an overview of the emotional and psychological experiences associated with medically complex pregnancies and introduces trauma-informed approaches that providers can use to support maternal mental health in clinical and healthcare settings.

Participants will be able to:

1. Identify common psychological responses associated with high-risk pregnancy and NICU hospitalization, including anxiety and loss of control.

2. Describe how medically complex pregnancy can impact maternal mental health and the transition to motherhood.

3. Apply trauma-informed strategies, including validation and collaborative communication, when supporting mothers navigating medically complex pregnancies and postpartum care.

4. Recognize the role of healthcare providers in supporting maternal mental health and identify opportunities for early intervention and referral when appropriate.

 

 

Emily Carveth, LCSW, Veterinary Social Worker
Virtual
Monday, November 16
10 am – 12 pm
2 CECs

Veterinary Social Work, an emerging field of social work study and practice, offers a new lens for
conceptualizing clients, access to care, and social determinants of health. As Veterinary Social Work grows in popularity, an
intersectional lens is needed to understand the implications and benefits of utilizing this model
at all levels (micro, mezzo and macro) of social work and clinical practice.

Participants in this webinar will:

• Learn the 4 Pillars of Veterinary Social Work (Intentional Wellbeing, Animal-Related Grief and
  Bereavement, Animal-Assisted Interventions, and The Link Between Human and Animal Violence)
• Explore settings where Veterinary Social Work can be implemented, and their implications for
  practice
• Understand applications of Veterinary Social Work in micro, mezzo and macro systems
• Learn about current Veterinary Social Workers and their practice models
• Identify resources for further learning about Veterinary Social Work, including information on
  continuing education programs

Robin P. McHaelen, MSW
Friday, October 16, 2026
9 am – 12 pm
Virtual
3 CECs

This program provides 3 hours of content on cultural competency.

LGBTQ+ people —transgender and non-binary people in particular — are navigating an increasingly hostile policy environment. Since early 2025, a series of federal executive orders, agency guidance changes, and enforcement actions have targeted gender-affirming care access, military service, federal identity documents, and civil rights protections for transgender people, while dozens of states have independently enacted restrictions on healthcare, school participation, and legal recognition. For LGBTQ+ individuals, their families, and the clinicians, educators, and caregivers who support them, this is a period of significant and compounding stress.

This 3-hour webinar equips participants with two complementary, evidence-based frameworks for understanding and responding to this moment. Ilan Meyer’s Minority Stress Model provides a theoretical foundation for understanding how stigma, discrimination, and anticipated rejection translate into measurable mental health disparities for sexual and gender minorities — and how distal stressors (like policy and legislation) interact with proximal, internalized stress processes. Caitlyn Ryan’s Family Acceptance Project (FAP) framework offers a practical, research-based model for helping social workers and clinicians move family and caregiver behavior along the acceptance-rejection continuum, even when starting from a place of ambivalence or discomfort.

Building on these frameworks, the webinar devotes focused attention to the current federal and state policy landscape affecting transgender and non-binary people specifically — including restrictions on gender-affirming care, military service, federal documentation, and Title IX protections, alongside the record volume of state-level legislation — and translates this landscape into practical clinical and caregiving guidance. Participants will leave with concrete language, screening considerations, and support strategies for working with LGBTQ+ clients and their families during a period of acute, ongoing systemic stress.

This webinar is designed for mental health clinicians, social workers, school counselors, healthcare providers, case managers, and other professionals who work with LGBTQ+ individuals and families. It is grounded in current, evolving policy conditions; because this is a fast-moving area, participants are encouraged to treat the specific legal/policy examples as illustrative of a broader pattern rather than a final or exhaustive accounting.

By the end of this seminar, participants will be able to:

• Explain the core components of Meyer’s Minority Sexual/Gender Minority Stress Model.
• Identify how current federal and state policy actions function as distal minority stressors, describe their documented associations with anxiety, depression, and other mental health outcomes and identify potential interventions
• Describe the Family Acceptance Project’s continuum of caregiver behaviors, using an intersectional lens to distinguish specific accepting and rejecting behaviors and their impact on outcomes for LGBTQ+ youth and adults.
• Apply FAP-informed communication strategies to help ambivalent, uncertain, or struggling caregivers move toward more accepting behaviors, even when they hold personal, cultural, or religious reservations.
• Assess for signs of minority stress, hypervigilance, and policy-related anticipatory anxiety in LGBTQ+ clients, with particular attention to the compounded burden on transgender and non-binary clients navigating an active and changing legal landscape.
• Recognize the importance of remaining current on the fast-changing federal and state policy landscape and identify reliable sources (e.g., legal advocacy organizations, medical associations, state-specific trackers) for ongoing monitoring beyond the seminar.

Welcome 2 Reality
Tues, October 13, 2026
6 pm – 8 pm
2 CECs

Registration Fee: $50
10% discount for UConn SSW Alumni and Current SSW Field Instructors

This program provides 2 hours of content on cultural competence.

This training will focus on the depiction of black males in today’s world. The issues Black males go through and face. The cultural mistrust which influences perceptions and the quality of their relationships. Recognizing Black males varies in their individual needs and identifying supports that might be most effective. Consider how efforts to adequately provide for Black males can be linked to the fight for larger social justice goals for themselves and their communities.

Participants will:

• explore their knowledge base around historic and current systematic oppression and implicit bias and the physical and mental health impact it has on Black males
• identify unconscious cultural responses to mental health
• improve culturally specific skills to work with the Black male population more effectively
• learn skills to support in the healing of the Black male

Regina Lester-Harriat, LMSW, Assistant Professor in-Residence
Mon, October 5, 2026
9 am – 12 pm
3 CECs

Understanding children’s behavior through a neuroscience-informed lens is an important first step. The next challenge is translating that understanding into sustainable practices that shape everyday experiences for children, families, and school communities.

This interactive workshop builds upon current research in neuroscience, attachment theory, and trauma-informed practice to help participants move beyond understanding behavior toward creating the relational, emotional, and environmental conditions that support regulation, belonging, and healthy development.

Participants will explore how everyday interactions, relationships, routines, and environments influence children’s nervous system regulation and developing sense of safety, connection, and identity. Through guided reflection, case application, and concrete planning, participants will examine how adults across school communities can cultivate conditions that promote resilience, strengthen relationships, and support positive developmental outcomes.

Grounded in school social work practice and designed for immediate application, this workshop emphasizes accessible, evidence-informed approaches that participants can integrate into existing systems without relying on costly programs or extensive new resources.

Participants will discover how to translate neuroscience, attachment theory, and trauma-informed knowledge into everyday practices that help adults intentionally create the relational, emotional, and environmental conditions in which children and the adults who care for them experience regulation, belonging, and the opportunity to thrive.

Participants will be able to:
1. Apply neuroscience, attachment theory, and trauma-informed principles to design relational and environmental practices that support regulation and belonging.
2. Evaluate how everyday interactions, routines, and school environments influence children’s developing nervous systems and sense of safety.
3. Integrate relationship-centered strategies that strengthen co-regulation, resilience, and positive developmental outcomes.
4. Develop approaches that become embedded within psychologically safe learning environments without requiring extensive financial or organizational resources.
5. Create an individualized action plan for implementing manageable relationship-centered practices that foster regulation, belonging, and healthy development within their professional setting.

Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Friday, July 24, 2026
In-person at the UConn Hartford Campus
9:30 am – 3:30 pm (ET)
5 CECs

Registration Fee: $125
UConn SSW Alumni and Current Field Instructors receive a 10% discount

Room location will be included in your confirmation email.

This is an essential training for supervisors dedicated to fostering ethical excellence in their mental health teams. This program provides the knowledge, tools, and strategies needed to effectively teach and model ethical practices to clinicians. From navigating complex ethical dilemmas to upholding professional standards, this course empowers supervisors to guide their clinicians in making sound, ethical decisions. Perfect for those committed to cultivating integrity & professionalism within their supervision practice.

Learning Objectives:

• Learn the vital components to successful supervision.
• Examine the 5 keys to an ethical practice.
• Explore the most common pitfalls to an ethical practice.
• Learn strategies to manage common scenarios that challenge the interview.

Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Friday, June 26, 2026
In-person at the UConn Hartford Campus
9:30 am – 3:30 pm (ET)
5 CECs

Registration Fee: $125
UConn SSW Alumni and Current Field Instructors receive a 10% discount

Room location will be included in your confirmation email.

Designed for supervisors eager to enhance their ability to teach and guide mental health clinicians in the art and science of diagnosis, this specialized training provides practical tools, strategies, and insights to help supervisors effectively support their clinicians in mastering diagnostic skills.

From understanding diagnostic frameworks to navigating complex cases, this program ensures supervisors are equipped to foster confidence and competence in their teams.

Learning Objectives

• Examine core of the supervisory relationship and the needed tools.
• Learn how to direct and redirect the path of the clinical interview.
• Explore common diagnostic mistakes clinicians make.
• Practice diagnosis using DSM5 through clinical vignettes.

Jennifer Berton, PhD, LICSW, CADC-II
Friday, June 12, 2026
In-person at the UConn Hartford Campus
9:30 am – 3:30 pm (ET)
5 CECs

Registration Fee: $125
UConn SSW Alumni and Current Field Instructors receive a 10% discount

Room location will be included in your confirmation email.

Whether you are currently a supervisor, or interested in becoming one, this is a must-have training for mental health professionals looking to build a successful and impactful clinical supervision practice. 

This seminar provides a comprehensive toolkit, including essential strategies, frameworks, and resources to enhance your supervisory skills. From navigating challenging supervisory relationships to fostering professional growth and ensuring ethical compliance, this program will equip you with everything you need to confidently guide and support clinicians under your supervision.

Learning Objectives:

• Explore the current state of supervision and needed improvements.
• Gather effective theoretical orientations and models of supervision.
• Examine the core components of the supervisory relationship and the needed tools.
• Troubleshoot common challenges in supervision and how to address them.