Child welfare experts and other professionals who work with children and families will speak about addiction and trauma, children’s behavioral health, building resiliency and coping skills in families, and other topics in areas of child safety, permanency and well-being during the North Dakota Children and Family Services Conference, July 24-26, at the Ramkota Hotel in Bismarck.
School social worker Kathy Flaminio, who has trained over 20,000 professionals in mind-body interventions and movement strategies in classrooms, juvenile detention centers, and therapeutic settings, will lead four interactive presentations on the science of mindfulness, movement and social and emotional learning. Her workshops blend lecture, hands-on learning, yoga-based activities and other strategies to help recognize complex trauma and the power of healing for children, families and the professionals who work with them.
Other conference presentations include caring for substance-exposed mothers and infants during pregnancy and the postpartum period, serving Native American families in the child welfare system and strategies for quality home visits between case workers and families. Additional topics include exploring creative partnership ideas between educators and communities that create a healthy connection for youth and families, the effects of parental incarceration and addiction on children and families and the relaunch of North Dakota’s Children Caucus.
Three preconference workshops will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on July 23. Topics include secondary-trauma training for supervisors, suicide prevention and intervention training for social service providers and the Building Bridges Initiative, an effort to build partnerships among residential and community-based services providers, youth and families to improve lives.
People can register and find the conference schedule and other details at www.cfstc.und.edu.