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Session #100
Tuesday, August 20, 2024, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM
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Description:
Every human being wants to do well. Every child wants to succeed and make their parents and teachers happy. However, it can be really hard to be a kid sometimes, especially for our neurodivergent children. We are demanding more from them than ever before in school. While the academic demands have changed, what hasn’t changed is the course of human development. Current advances in neuroscience have taught us so much about 1) how the brain works and 2) what kids need so they can feel safe, regulated and ready to meet our expectations. We will gain a new understanding about “the why” of childhood behavior and learn strategies to support kids, improve their behavior and help them thrive.
Target audience(s): Recommended for all attendees.
Founding Director, Power Play Pediatric Therapy
Greg Santucci is a Pediatric Occupational Therapist and the Founding Director of Power Play Pediatric Therapy. Greg has been working with children and families for over 20 years, providing OT services in schools, homes and outpatient therapy centers throughout New Jersey. Greg is certified in Sensory Integration and the creator of the Model of Child Engagement, a clinical framework to help professionals and parents focus on a child’s safety needs prior to addressing their regulation and sensory processing skills, with the goal of improving a child’s participation in daily activities.
Greg has been lecturing nationally for over a decade on topics related to sensory processing, child development and behavior, and consults with parents and educators around the world. Greg has dedicated his career to promoting neurodevelopmentally-informed, relationship-based interventions to help parents and teachers support children of all abilities and learning styles. Greg is the father of two children and is married to a Pediatric Occupational Therapist, so he shares his toys with everyone in his family.
Session #101
Tuesday, August 20, 2024, 1:15 PM-2:45 PM
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Target audience(s): Recommended for all attendees.
Oregon Health Authority
Panel:
Lois Pribble: Early Intervention/ Early Childhood Specialist Education (EI/ECSE) Education Specialist, Oregon Department of Education
Katrina Miller: Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist, Department of Early Learning and Care
Paula Zaninovich: Early Childhood Mental Health Team, Portland Public Schools
Erin Kinavey Wennerstrom: Executive Director, Oregon Infant Mental Health Association
Carrie Love Taylor: Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, C. Love Therapeutic Care
Jamie Watson: Mental Health Therapy Director, Neurotherapeutic Pediatric Therapies, Inc.
Session #102
Tuesday, August 20, 2024, 1:15 PM-2:45 PM
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Learning objectives:
Identify how trauma impacts brain development that affects learning and behavior in school
Increase confidence when responding to behaviors
Provide resources, strategies, and tools to use in your workplace
Description:
This workshop is designed to explore regulation concepts and strategies. We will explore the continuum of regulation. Participants will gain strategies for co-regulation, identifying and recognizing triggers, and creating co-regulation cues.
Target audience(s): Recommended for all attendees.
she/her
Mental Health and Behavior Education Specialist, WESD
Mary is a native Oregonian who has lived and worked in both rural and and densely populated towns/cities. She received her Bachelor’s Degree from Western Oregon University, and her Master’s Degree in Curriculum Design from Portland State University. Her endorsements include ESOL and Trauma Informed Specialist. Mary’s classroom experience includes teaching assignments in all grade levels K-9th grades. She has worked as a behavior specialist at the elementary level, a 504 coordinator, an afterschool ESOL coordinator, TAG coordinator. She has also lead Trauma Informed practices for Oregon Education Association members and trauma related book study groups. Her goal is to establish a collaborative working relationship with school district employees and community partners to implement trauma-informed practices that address preventative and sustainable measures for students and staff.
she/her
Sr. Manager of Mental Health and Behavior, Willamette Education Service District
Cassie Stafford is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and the Coordinator of School Safety and Mental Health at Willamette Education Service District. Her role is to provide or support technical assistance in the area of mental health, behavior, and school safety for all job classification types of educational staff members across Yamhill, Marion & Polk counties. Our 21 school districts range from the 2nd largest in the state, to a rural district with less than 200 students. WESD provides services to approximately 84,000 students through programs such as special education, early intervention, school improvement services, and migrant education services.
Session #104
Tuesday, August 20, 2024, 3:00 PM-4:15 PM
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Target audience(s): Recommended for all attendees.
D – OR – District 8
Sara Gelser Blouin was sworn into the Oregon House in 2005 where she served until she was elected to the Oregon State Senate in 2014. She is Chair of the Senate Human Services Committee. She also serves on the Judiciary Committee, the Education Committee and is a member of the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, and the Human Services Subcommittee of Ways and Means.
Sara entered public services through the disability rights community. She is a consistent champion for those often not heard or seen in the halls of the legislature, including children in care, people with disabilities, those with mental illness, people living in poverty and the aging. She is a national leader in the effort to reform abusive residential programs for youth that comprise what is known as the Troubled/Exploited Teen Industry. Sara’s legislative accomplishments include spearheading legislation to end Oregon’s backlog of untested rape kits, dismantling discrimination in health care delivery, improving staffing and services in memory care facilities, establishing a Domestic Worker’s Bill of Rights, eliminating discriminatory use of abbreviated school days in Oregon schools, establishing statewide standards for modified and extended diplomas and implementing clear, enforceable policies to limit the use of physical restraint and seclusion in public schools and residential programs.
Sara served on the Corvallis School Board from 2001 until 2006. In 2010, President Barack Obama appointed Sara to the National Council on Disability. The nomination was confirmed by a unanimous vote of the US Senate.
She was a National Council on State Legislators Child Welfare Fellow and the national Education Policy Chair for the Council on State Governments. She was named a Henry Toll Fellow, a Marshall Memorial Fellow, a Milbank Memorial Fellow and participated in the US Department of State’s American Council of Young Political Leaders foreign exchange program.
In 2017, Sara was featured as one of Time Magazine’s “Person of the Year” Silence Breakers. Her work on disability and youth issues is regularly highlighted in national print, film and radio. In 2021, she was honored with the Carl Levin Award for Effective Oversight from the Levin Institute at the Wayne State School of Law for her work to address abuse of youth in residential programs.
Before serving in the Legislature, Sara was the Children with Disabilities and Family Support Coordinator for the Oregon Department of Human Services. She also worked as a parent education instructor at Linn-Benton Community College and as a regional coordinator for the Oregon Parent Training and Information Center (now FACT Oregon), where she provided training to parents, educators and administrators about special education law and practice. For several years, she was also employed as a youth minister at Grace Lutheran Church (ELCA) in Corvallis.
Sara earned her BA in History and Education from Earlham College and a MAIS degree in History and Women and gender studies from Oregon State University. Sara lives in Corvallis with her husband, Dr. Michael Blouin. She has four adult children and one teenaged stepson.
Session #200
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 9:00 AM-12:00 PM
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Description:
Behavioral interventions have been the primary strategy when working with people who are having difficulty meeting expectations. We offer rewards and reinforcers to try and motivate children to comply, assuming it’s a motivation problem that’s preventing them from engaging. Very often, professionals say these strategies “work”, but with all of the new knowledge we have about brain function, we have to ask ‘works for who?’ and ‘at what cost do these strategies work?’ Understanding how the brain influences behavior and learning will help change our approach to how we support children with concerning behaviors, and positively change the trajectory of their progress, and our relationship with them.
Target audience(s): Recommended for all attendees.
Founding Director, Power Play Pediatric Therapy
Greg Santucci is a Pediatric Occupational Therapist and the Founding Director of Power Play Pediatric Therapy. Greg has been working with children and families for over 20 years, providing OT services in schools, homes and outpatient therapy centers throughout New Jersey. Greg is certified in Sensory Integration and the creator of the Model of Child Engagement, a clinical framework to help professionals and parents focus on a child’s safety needs prior to addressing their regulation and sensory processing skills, with the goal of improving a child’s participation in daily activities.
Greg has been lecturing nationally for over a decade on topics related to sensory processing, child development and behavior, and consults with parents and educators around the world. Greg has dedicated his career to promoting neurodevelopmentally-informed, relationship-based interventions to help parents and teachers support children of all abilities and learning styles. Greg is the father of two children and is married to a Pediatric Occupational Therapist, so he shares his toys with everyone in his family.
Session #201
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 1:00 PM-2:30 PM
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Target audience(s): Mental health professionals, Disability professionals, Educators
She/Her
Licensed Clinical Social Worker, Acceptance Mental Health, LLC
Dr. Jennifer Cork is a doctor of social work (DSW) and licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), specializing in the treatment of neurodivergent individuals with co-occurring mental health diagnoses. Jennifer is a late-diagnosed autistic adult and has 20 years’ experience working with individuals with neurodevelopmental disabilities. She has worked in the education, disability, and mental health settings. She has a certificate in disability studies from Eastern Washington University, is a certified autism specialist (CAS), and ADHD-certified clinical service provider (ADHD-CCSP). Increasing mental health awareness and access to mental healthcare for the neurodivergent community is one of her passions. Besides education and advocacy work, Jennifer enjoys trips to the coast, hikes with her family, cooking, baking, and is an avid reader. She is also the mom, spouse, and sister of some awesome neurodivergent humans!
Session #202
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 1:00 PM-2:30 PM
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Description:
Learn about Unpacking Systemic Ableism:
• What is Ableism?
• Ableism in our systems
• Ableism and White Supremacist Culture
• Changing Ableist language
• Listening to Lived Experience
• Neurodiversity movement
• And more…
Target audience(s): Mental health professionals, Disability professionals, Educators, Correctional professionals
she/her
We Can Do Better
Amy Fellows of We Can Do Better is a neurodivergent parent of an intersectional teen that has been impacted by racism and ableism in multiple systems. Amy sits on the Oregon Universal Health Plan Governance Board (to advocate for disabled Oregonians), 988 Crisis Systems Advisory Steering Committee as a voice for families with ID/DD youth, Education Justice Action Team, Oregon’s Systems of Care Advisory Council Legislative Committee and Lane County Systems of Care as family voice of lived experience and more. Amy was recently appointed to the Eugene 4J school district Budget Committee to advocate for Special Education students.
She, her
A Zaney Life
Jeni Canaday of A Zaney Life is a neurodivergent parent of three neurodivergent children. Jeni has many years of lived experience navigating ableism in systems with her oldest son, including many years of fighting for her sons right to a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in the least restrictive educational environment. Jeni continues to advocate for the autonomy, choice and safety of all Disabled humans, and works together with her son to share from their lived experience while advocating for disabled children to influence policy at the school board, state legislature and national levels. She is also a trained IEP advocate and volunteers to support families at IEP and wraparound meetings. Jeni sits on the Children’s System Advisory Council, Oregon Needs Assessment Advisory Panel, Eugene 4J School District Equity Committee, Education Justice Action Team, Lane County Behavioral Health Systems Advisory Committee and Lane County Systems of Care as family voice of lived experience and more. Jeni is trained in Think Kids Collaborative Problem Solving and has worked as a Family Support Specialist.
Session #301
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 2:45 PM-4:15 PM
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Learning objectives:
(1) Understanding Restorative Practices (RP) and its role in your work. (2) How the tools and processes of RP and Restorative Justice Conferencing (RJ) are tied to the principles of Co-Regulation. (3) Promotes students’/clients’ use of self-reflection and accountability to facilitate communication, trust and relationship.
Description:
This is designed as a break-out session, with participants mainly in a circle format and therefore, with a limit of 30 participants. There will be times for pair-shares and discussion to plant concepts for future transfer in the work of the participants. We will be incorporating some training slides from the International Institue of Restorative Practices, with their permission. It will provide attendees an understanding of how RP and RJ supports co-regulatory processes and also some tools to start using immediately.
Target audience(s): Mental health professionals, Disability professionals, Educators
She, her, we
Restorative Practitioner/Certified Trainer, Restorative Practices Consultant
Georgiann Loboda Jones, M.Ed. is a Restorative Practices Trainer and Organizational Consultant, receiving certifications from the International Institute of Restorative Practices in both Restorative Justice Conferencing and the principles and tools of Restorative Practices. She received her M.Ed. degree at Temple University in psychoeducational processes, with emphasis on group dynamics and organizational training and consulting to support effective change. As a Consultant/lTrainer, her commitment is to compassionate listening, increasing each participant’s self-discovery, and creating transformative, trauma-sensitive pathways, as identified by all the stakeholders, to bring about change where needed.
She has served in various roles in Pre-K – 16 education for over thirty years. During this time, her lived experiences as a circle facilitator, an educator with interest in neurodiversity, and a trainer, have provided steady proof that restorative practices and social justice build the key components for healthy learning spaces and communities. This has increased her intention in specializing in restorative practices, woven with mindfulness and social justice, and in establishing healthy relationships in environments that support creative contributions.
Along with Melanie Namkoong, Georgiann facilitates meaningful trainings and presentations that spark organizational transformation, equipping educators, parents and guardians, those in healthcare and wraparound services, and other community leaders and members, with skills, tools and strategies to apply in all aspects of their lives.
She, her
Restorative Practitioner/Certified Trainer, Restorative Practices Consultant
Melanie Namkoong has worked in education for 19 years in multiple administrative assistant roles. During the pandemic she took the opportunity to be trained in Restorative Practices and Restorative Justice Conferencing through the International Institute of Restorative Practices (IIRP), moving further to become a Trainer of Trainers in both areas. In her current position as Departmental Secretary, she has been providing training to teachers, staff and students at South Eugene High School and Eugene International High School with the goal of creating a full school Restorative Practices environment.
She has a BS in Industrial Engineering from Northwestern University, but deferred work in that area in order to focus on raising her children. When deciding on work that would fit into her values and the needs of her family, education jumped out as an ideal option. Additionally, she has been active in Soccer officiating, currently acting as President of the local referees association.
Melanie has been teaming with Georgiann Jones, conducting multiple trainings for teachers and paraprofessionals over the past three years. She is committed to expanding the understanding of how Restorative Practices can create an equitable structure in all organizations beyond using it to strengthen daily interactions.
Session #302
Wednesday, August 21, 2024, 2:45 PM-4:15 PM
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Recognizing and supporting PDA
Learning objectives:
1. To define and describe pathological demand avoidance
2. Learn how PDA is distinct from non-PDA autism
3. Know the basic framework for supporting PDA
Description:
PDA is currently understood as a profile of autism, but what makes it distinct from non-PDA autism? In my presentation I will share the definition, differences, and unique supports that PDA requires.
Target audience(s): Mental health professionals, Disability professionals, Educators, Correctional professionals
she/her
No Pressure PDA
Brook is a mother of 3 neurodivergent boys living in the state of Oregon (U.S.A.). In February of 2022 she was diagnosed as autistic with a Pathological Demand Avoidant (PDA) profile which was alongside her existing diagnoses of ADHD and Complex PTSD.
Her three boys are also suspected PDAers, and the struggle to find a lifestyle that suits so many different needs led to her creating No Pressure PDA (website, Facebook page, Instagram, and more). The different mediums are where she explores understanding the PDA profile and other neurodivergent expressions.
Brook has a B.A. in religious studies and an M.A. in human services counseling. She enjoys working alongside other PDA content creators such as SallyCat’s PDA when they did a joint presentation for the PDA Summit 2023.