Using Engagement and Data to Provide Appropriate Care for Children and Youth with Emotional and Behavioral Health Challenges

Thursdays, November 20, December 4, & December 11, 2025
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm Eastern Time

Determining how to provide appropriate care to children who have intense behavioral and emotional needs can be complex and challenging. When behaviors are difficult to control or efforts to address these complex needs in home or community-based care are unsuccessful, the result is youth are admitted into congregate care. The goals of this training are to address the processes used to determine referrals for behavioral health care for children and youth by looking at the referral and decision-making processes, access processes, and the infrastructure needed.

The training will also address the specific needs of youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and substance use disorders, access opportunities for youth who might otherwise have entered Juvenile Justice programs, keeping youth close to home by developing interventions based on data in their own communities, and expanding low cost options and strategies to focus on behavioral and emotional challenges while also taking into consideration the social determinants of health.

Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse: Insights, Interventions, Interruption and Next Steps

Mondays & Tuesdays, December 8, 9, 15 & 16, 2025
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm Eastern Time

CWLA is pleased to offer an expanded training of Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse: Insights, Interventions, Interruption and Next Steps presented in (4) four two-hour sessions. The training sessions will share ideas and expertise to enhance participants’ understanding, assessment of and intervention with situations involving father-, father figure-daughter incest. The topics to be covered will include prevalence rates, the application of research, literature, theory and typologies to assist practitioners to conceptualize secretive and harmful behavior. Barriers to inquiry and intervention and poor outcomes for children will be discussed. Several tools, techniques and interview questions will be offered to access hidden information.

The training will use a systems perspective to examine the factors that contribute to Intrafamilial Child Sexual Abuse occurring and to isolate specific characteristics and presentations of children, those that harm, non-harming parents or caregivers and possible siblings within a family environment.

This training will situate this harmful behavior within an environment of power and control, secretiveness, family isolation, guilt and fear, cultural and religious beliefs, and provide both analytical framework and concepts for the investigation, assessment and treatment of incest occurrence.

The Next Generation PRIDE Model of Practice – Enhancement Training

Thursday, January 15 & Friday, January 16, 2026 (in person)
Tuesday, January 20, 2026 (virtual)

CWLA is pleased to continue with the release of The Next Generation PRIDE Model of Practice curriculum. This latest iteration of the training curriculum now includes person-first language, strength-based words and expressions, and the lived experience perspective.

The Next Generation PRIDE Model of Practice curriculum is an expansion of the current materials with numerous updates and additions, including new videos and new sections. It also features new topical areas such as: the impact adverse childhood experiences have on trust and attachment, how compassion fatigue affects household stability, and the importance of safeguarding children who use social media and technology.

We invite PRIDE Model of Practice licensed agencies to participate in a special refresher training opportunity focused on introducing and delivering the new components of the curriculum. This unique “enhancement training” is essential for all PRIDE Model of Practice trained staff!

Teachers Unify to End Gun Violence: Cultivating Hope, Collaboration, and Change

January 21, 2026 (virtual)
1:00 pm – 2:30 pm Eastern Time

Rampant and incessant gun violence is devasting students, their families, and educational faculty daily.  The soaring pressure and extraordinary demands confronting educational, healthcare, and human services workers are having a profound impact on all levels of the workforce, leaving many well-meaning professionals feeling overwhelmed, under-supervised, and highly susceptible to primary and secondary traumatic stress.  As one result, the Child Welfare League of America and Teachers Unify to End Gun Violence are partnering with associated professionals to provide safe and structured forums for interdisciplinary educators and human services workers about effective and respectful methods that reduce and minimize the harmful impact of gun violence and workforce stress, increase morale and productivity, and enhance professional alliances.

This free webinar will describe the evolution and current capacity of Teachers Unify to End Gun Violence and offer a framework that addresses the “emotional labor” that educational and human services workers face every day: by strengthening organizational resilience and school safety; establishing cohesive interdisciplinary teams within and across helping systems; and cultivating trustworthy spaces for self-preservation and wellness on personal and professional dimensions.

Crisis Assessment and Intervention When Gun Violence and Trauma Strike: A Five-Step Approach to Foster Hope, Collaboration, and Change

Tuesdays, February 3, 10 & 17, 2026 (virtual trainings)
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm Eastern Time

The Child Welfare League of America and Teachers Unify to End Gun Violence are partnering with associated professionals to provide safe and structured forums for interdisciplinary educators and human services workers about effective and respectful methods that reduce and minimize the harmful impact of gun violence and workforce stress, increase morale and productivity, and enhance professional alliances.

The facilitated forums propose a resilience and wellness framework for educators, interdisciplinary professionals, and key community partners, and are supplemented by Dr. Michael Schultz’ latest book published in collaboration with CWLA, Systems Consultation When Trauma Strikes: Stories of Hope, Collaboration, and Change, Second Edition. The systemic approach is designed to assess and intervene in the immediate aftermath of school shootings and gun violence, and promotes hope, collaboration, and change during moments of escalating burnout, increasing social and political tension, plunging budgets, growing media scrutiny, and exceedingly high expectations. Underlying the principles and practices of the facilitated forums is our belief that when helping organizations, schools, and professional staff enhance their capacity to rebound from immediate crisis and weather persistent stress, they also gain vital resources to deal more effectively with future challenges. Thus, in building organizational resilience among professional teams, every learning moment is a preventive measure.