Wellness Together's 8th Annual Student Mental Wellness Conference: Full Schedule

4:00pm PDT

Empowering California: Macro Approaches to Youth Suicide Prevention

Wednesday October 9, 2024 4:00pm - 5:00pm PDT

Youth suicide rates are staggering and the state of support for young people requires continued refinement to meet the call to action. Join facilitators in learning more about an innovative project dedicated to establishing, improving, and expanding local efforts to report and respond to youth suicides and suicide attempts, and enhancing implementation of crisis response services.

During this workshop, participants will: 
• Gain knowledge of innovative collaborative strategies that enhance partnerships between county, education, public and behavioral health entities, community-based organizations and crisis responders.
• Enhance their understanding of state and countywide systems that support the identification of priorities, gaps, and opportunities for advancing local youth support following a suicide attempt or exposure to a suicide death.
• Develop a thorough understanding of best practices in suicide prevention and crisis response, including outreach, training, reporting, and postvention support

Speakers

Tina Rocha

Technical Assistance Specialist, Center For Applied Research Solutions

Angela Castellanos

Managing Director, Center For Applied Research Solutions

Angela Castellanos, LCSW, is an experienced mental health consultant and administrator with 25+ years of diverse and progressive expertise in the mental health care industry and school settings. As a licensed clinical social worker, she specializes in administering school mental health... Read More →

Jana Sczersputowski

Founder, Youth Creating Change

Jana Sczersputowski, MPH, Executive Director of the Directing Change Program and Film Contest, Inc has over 15 years of experience in program development, and implementing county and statewide, community and school-based youth engagement campaigns. She created the Directing Change... Read More →

Wednesday October 9, 2024 4:00pm - 5:00pm PDT
213C

Mental Health Policy & Advocacy

8:30am PDT

Implementing Evidence-Based Strategies to Conquer Exam Stress: Lets do this!!

Thursday October 10, 2024 8:30am - 9:30am PDT

213C

Participants will learn about strategies to help students implement evidence-based methods to mitigate stress and anxiety related to testing, which may significantly improve well-being and performance. Session will highlight:
• Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR)
• Importance of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Techniques
• Sleep Hygiene Education
• Test-Taking Strategies Training
• Expressive Writing
• Positive Psychology Interventions

Participants will learn the importance of assessments and feedback to refine the approach to better suit the students’ needs.

Speakers

Dr. Tyson Schwab

Medical Director, University of Utah

Tyson C. Schwab, MD, MS, attended the University of Utah School of Medicine and trained in Family Medicine at Intermountain Healthcare where he served as Chief Resident. He has completed additional graduate education and training in bioengineering at the University of Utah. In 2021... Read More →

Thursday October 10, 2024 8:30am - 9:30am PDT
213C

Student and Community Mental Health

12:30pm PDT

Sponsored Breakout: Building Bridges: Proactive Approaches to Student Mental Health

Thursday October 10, 2024 12:30pm - 1:30pm PDT

213C

Join us for an essential session on transforming student mental health support from reactive to proactive. We will discuss the current state of mental health systems, which often wait until students are in crisis before offering support, and the implications this has on both students and staff. We will introduce Clayful, an innovative Tier 1 system designed to provide every student with personalized, preventative care through coaching.

By the end of this session, participants will:

Understand the Importance of Proactive Mental Health Support:
Participants will gain a comprehensive understanding of why shifting from reactive to proactive mental health support is crucial for student well-being and success.

Explore the Impact of Personalized Coaching:
Attendees will learn how personalized coaching, as provided by Clayful, can address various aspects of student mental health, including anxiety, depression, self-regulation, and resilience.

Speakers

Dr. Ashley Wolfe

Mental Health Therapist; Clinical Supervisor, Aspire Public Schools

Ashley Wolfe, DSW, LCSW, PPSC is a school-based adolescent mental health provider. Her research interests include adolescent suicide risk assessment and prevention, loneliness, identity-centered social emotional learning, adult SEL implementation, language and social work, and the... Read More →

Dr. Julia Jeffries

Head of Education, Clayful Health

Thursday October 10, 2024 12:30pm - 1:30pm PDT
213C

Mental Health Policy & Advocacy

3:30pm PDT

We're gonna need a bigger (life)boat; preventing student suicide

Thursday October 10, 2024 3:30pm - 4:30pm PDT

213C

Hear from one of the only professionals in the world reviewing college student suicides, to better understand underlying themes, risks and red flags.

Learn about student specific suicide red flags, and how to minimise future risks.
Identify actions you can take to better support students at college and in their personal lives.
Empower all institutions working with students to tackle suicide risk in an evidence based way, using the themes discovered in my unique work.
Create a personalised Safety 'Bingo' card for institutional risk reduction, to guide you in next steps.

Speakers

Dr Dominique Thompson

Director, Buzz Consulting

Talk to me about young people's mental health, in particular teenagers and college students. I was a university campus doctor for 20 years, so there isn't much I haven't heard! I am interested in raising and supporting independent and resourceful young people to become successful... Read More →

Thursday October 10, 2024 3:30pm - 4:30pm PDT
213C

Mental Health Policy & Advocacy

10:15am PDT

We Are the Champions: Becoming a Youth Champion

Friday October 11, 2024 10:15am - 11:15am PDT

213C

Did you know that youth with even one safe and responsive adult in their lives report significantly fewer mental health-related concerns? Active Minds is dedicated to helping ensure that all youth have a Champion. Youth Champions, those dedicated to creating healthy social, emotional, and academic growth for youth, have a deep impact on positive youth outcomes including mental health. The value of this role demands supportive learning spaces dedicated to their personal and professional development including content focused on their mental health. We will dive into what it means to make meaningful connections with youth and ways to mobilize with them around mental health.

What You'll Learn
In the hour-long dialogue, participants will:

Gain an understanding of the four main attributes that characterize a Youth Champion
Explore the data-backed impact of Youth Champions on the mental health and positive life outcomes of youth
Brainstorm what interpersonal work we may need to do to strengthen our own Youth Championship

Speakers

Lauren Cikara

VP, School. Mental Health, Active Minds

Friday October 11, 2024 10:15am - 11:15am PDT
213C

Mental Health Policy & Advocacy

1:45pm PDT

The Gifts of Gentle Acceptance

Friday October 11, 2024 1:45pm - 2:45pm PDT

213C

When we are able to accept our many emotions, we are better equipped to accept them in colleagues, students, family, and friends. This informative, fun, self-reflection session is inspired by Dr. Susan David's work. Come see how to expand your emotional vocabulary, how labels can change experiences and communication, and how to better acknowledge those messy and difficult feelings to have more "meaningful happiness". The Gentle Gifts of Acceptance!

Speakers

Ann C Hargraves

Professional Learning Coach, Northwest Regional ESD

I've had a lifelong appreciation and a deep respect for children and their growing and learning processes. As the middle child of 5 siblings one of the earliest indications of my interest in child development was, at age 3 1/2. The story goes that I repeatedly told my mother, pregnant... Read More →

Friday October 11, 2024 1:45pm - 2:45pm PDT
213C

School & District-Wide Leadership

3:00pm PDT

Check In Before They Check Out: Creating A Staff Wellness Framework

Friday October 11, 2024 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT

213C

Staff wellness, belonging, and mental health directly affect student achievement, family satisfaction, and staff retention. Schools must prioritize being intentional in creating a welcoming, safe, and healthy environment for staff. Please join to learn how to build a custom wellness framework that engages staff to identify wellness needs, monitors staff well-being, builds structures to include proactive and responsive supports, and develops community partnerships to support staff’s mental health needs.

Speakers

Andrew Crowe

Deputy Director, Scholarship Prep

Andrew Crowe is the Deputy Director at Scholarship Prep, a network of charter schools serving students in grades TK-8. Andrew has led the closing of the opportunity and achievement gaps as a teacher, instructional coach, site administrator, and district leader in Philadelphia, Hawai`i... Read More →

Taylor Ellis

Cheif Academic Officer, Scholarship Prep

Friday October 11, 2024 3:00pm - 4:00pm PDT
213C

School & District-Wide Leadership

Wellness Together's 8th Annual Student Mental Wellness Conference