Centering Intersectionality Within the Field of Childhood Bereavement

Centering Intersectionality Within the Field of Childhood Bereavement

It is commonly believed that grief is different for everyone and that we should not compare one child’s grief to another’s. Why can grief differ so much from one child to another, even within the same family system? When a child experiences a death loss, adults in their system may attribute a child’s thoughts and behaviors to being a “grief response” and center the child’s grief as their primary motivating factor. This unintentional oversimplification of what the child may be experiencing can make grief the only lens by which adults see children who are grieving. It can potentially harm a child’s health and well-being if supportive adults only see a child as a “single story.” This presentation will use the concept of intersectionality introduced by Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw to help adults who support children see them as the complex, socially constructed people they are.

members only iconThis playback is available to active NACG members only.

Members must be logged into the member portal to access the playback. Not currently a member? Become a NACG member today! Your membership will provide access to free monthly webinars with CEs on current topics to support you in your work, discounts on educational events, access to all webinar playbacks, and more. To learn more and become a member to access this webinar for no additional cost, visit HERE →

 

Continuing Education (CE) credits are not available for webinar playbacks.
Target Audience:
Counselors, Social workers, Bereavement support professionals
Instructional Level: Basic – This best describes a topic or issue that the prospective audience is encountering for the first time in a meaningful way.
Format: Live Interactive Webinar

 

Objectives:

After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Explain Kimberlé Williams Crenshaw’s concept of intersectionality.
  • Identify areas of their practice where intersectionality can be incorporated into their work with children who are grieving.
  • Create an intake process that uses principles of intersectionality to help portray a more complete picture of a grieving child.

 

Speaker Bios:

Adam W. Carter, Ph.D., is a professional counselor and counselor educator who received his doctoral degree in Counselor Education and Supervision, with an emphasis in multicultural counseling, from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Adam has taught courses in CACREP-accredited master’s level clinical mental health programs and doctoral-level courses in counselor education and supervision and served as the Trauma-Informed Counseling Graduate Certificate coordinator at Northern Illinois University. During his time at Northern Illinois University, he founded the Center for Grief and Loss at the University’s Community Counseling and Training Center, where he provided clinical supervision and education to counselors in training. Adam’s ongoing research and scholarship program focuses on early childhood grief responses and preparing counselors-in-training to work with grieving children. Adam’s scholarly work also includes numerous peer-reviewed presentations focusing on topics such as trauma-informed counseling, play therapy, and developing research skills in counseling practitioners. His clinical experience is broad, having worked as a counselor and supervisor in community mental health clinics, in-home intensive settings, community advocacy agencies, and private practice.

 

New York Life Foundation logo

Supported by the philanthropic investment
of the New York Life Foundation.

The Rhythm of Emotion: The Use of Music Therapy to Give Voice to Grieving Children & Adolescents

This presentation will explore the use of music therapy as a powerful tool for grieving children and adolescents. Participants will have the opportunity to gain information and knowledge about the interconnection between child and adolescent grief and music therapy, discover ways of incorporating music therapy techniques with this population through clinical examples and guided practice, and engage in music therapy experiences that may be used in self-exploration of their own grief journey.

members only iconThis playback is available to active NACG members only.

Members must be logged into the member portal to access the playback. Not currently a member? Become a NACG member today! Your membership will provide access to free monthly webinars with CEs on current topics to support you in your work, discounts on educational events, access to all webinar playbacks, and more. To learn more and become a member to access this webinar for no additional cost, visit HERE →

 

Continuing Education (CE) credits are not available for webinar playbacks.
Target Audience:
Counselors, Social workers, Bereavement support professionals
Instructional Level: Intermediate – This best describes a topic or issue that the audience likely has a theoretical foundation for understanding and/or a working knowledge.
Format: Live Interactive Webinar

 

Objectives:

After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Define music therapy.
  • Discuss the role of music therapy in grief and bereavement.
  • Describe 3 music therapy experiences that can be used in child and adolescent grief.

 

Speaker Bios:

Amy Entwistle, MMT, MT-BC, a board-certified music therapist, is a Child and Adolescent Grief Coordinator at Four Seasons. Amy graduated with a bachelor’s degree in music performance with a minor in psychology from High Point University. She earned her Master of Music Therapy degree from Appalachian State University. She has worked as a hospice music therapist and bereavement counselor. Amy uses a body-mind-centered approach and various creative art modalities to meet the needs of grieving children, adolescents, and their families.

 

New York Life Foundation logo

Supported by the philanthropic investment
of the New York Life Foundation.

Rebuilding & Reengaging: School-Based Grief Support Post Pandemic

We know the impact that COVID-19 has had on students’ social development, mental health, and academic progress. This experience has also significantly changed how our schools operate. Schools with high levels of grief that need support have competing priorities and limited staff capacity. This presentation will identify some of the various barriers to school-based grief programming and explore solutions to help programs rebuild their school-based grief support through engaging new school partners and re-engaging previous school partners.

members only iconThis playback is available to active NACG members only.

Members must be logged into the member portal to access the playback. Not currently a member? Become a NACG member today! Your membership will provide access to free monthly webinars with CEs on current topics to support you in your work, discounts on educational events, access to all webinar playbacks, and more. To learn more and become a member to access this webinar for no additional cost, visit HERE →

 

Continuing Education (CE) credits are not available for webinar playbacks.
Target Audience:
Counselors, Social workers, Bereavement support professionals
Instructional Level: Basic – This best describes a topic or issue that the prospective audience is encountering for the first time in a meaningful way.
Format: Live Interactive Webinar

 

Objectives:

After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Discuss the changes and challenges in administering school-based grief programs.
  • Implement strategies to engage new school partners.
  • Discuss ways to renew and steward relationships with lapsed school and community connections.

 

Speaker Bios:

Elizabeth Carson is the State Outreach Manager at Kate’s Club. She works closely with the Program Director on KC Connects, the outreach program of Kate’s Club. As State Outreach Manager, Liz works to increase awareness of Kate’s Club within the broader Atlanta community, so that Kate’s Club can meet the needs of more grieving children in the Atlanta area. She also works to develop new partnerships with schools and community organizations, as well as to further engage existing Kate’s Club partnerships. Originally from Columbus, Georgia, Liz graduated from Emory University in May 2014 with a B.S. in Anthropology and Human Biology and a master’s in social work from the University of Florida in 2022. While enrolled at Emory, Liz was student director of the Emory chapter of Camp Kesem, a national organization that provides free camps for children coping with a parent’s cancer. She is also a graduate of Emory’s Community Building and Social Change Fellowship Program, where she worked within Atlanta communities on projects pertaining to asset-based community development. These experiences have made Liz a strong believer in the importance of peer support and community engagement.

 

New York Life Foundation logo

Supported by the philanthropic investment
of the New York Life Foundation.

Exploring the Role of Social Media in Child and Adolescent Grief

Social media is an integral part of almost everyone’s life today, especially children and adolescents. This form of connection can digitally put them in contact with others who may share their thoughts and feelings when physical contact is not wanted or available. These connections can provide much-needed support for a child or adolescent who is grieving while allowing them the opportunity to maintain their privacy and anonymity if so desired. While the opportunity for connection can be helpful, social media can also present challenges to children and adolescents who are grieving. The same anonymity that may allow for freer expression of thoughts and feelings may be used by others to manipulate, bully, or even extort children and adolescents. This webinar will share ways that social media can be used to support children and adolescents who are grieving, some potential challenges in its use, and ways social media can be used in the memorialization process.

Download the slides here →

Become a NACG member today! Your membership will provide access to free monthly webinars with CEs on current topics to support you in your work, discounts on educational events, access to all webinar playbacks, and more. To learn more and become a member to access this webinar for no additional cost, visit HERE →

 

Continuing Education (CE) credits are not available for webinar playbacks.
Target Audience:
Counselors, Social workers, Bereavement support professionals
Instructional Level: Basic – This best describes a topic or issue that the prospective audience is encountering for the first time in a meaningful way.
Format: Live Interactive Webinar

 

Objectives:

After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Identify two benefits of the use of social media by children and adolescents who are grieving.
  • Identify two potential challenges of the use of social media by children and adolescents who are grieving.
  • Identify two ways children and adolescents can use social media in the memorialization process.

 

Speaker Bios:

Adam W. Carter, Ph.D., joined the NACG in 2021 as National Clinical Director. He is a professional counselor and counselor educator who received his doctoral degree in Counselor Education and Supervision, with an emphasis in multicultural counseling, from The University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Adam has taught courses in CACREP-accredited master’s level clinical mental health programs and doctoral level courses in counselor education and supervision and served as the Trauma-Informed Counseling Graduate Certificate coordinator at Northern Illinois University. During his time at Northern Illinois University, he founded the Center for Grief and Loss at the University’s Community Counseling and Training Center, where he provided clinical supervision and education to counselors in training. Adam has an ongoing program of research and scholarship that focuses on early childhood grief responses and preparing counselors in-training to work with grieving children. Adam’s scholarly work also includes numerous peer-reviewed presentations focusing on topics such as trauma-informed counseling, play therapy, and developing research skills in counseling practitioners. His clinical experience is broad, having worked as a counselor and supervisor in community mental health clinics, in-home intensive settings, community advocacy agencies, and private practice. In 2014, Adam was one of two inaugural Scholars-in-Residence with the American Counseling Association and helped develop strategies for empowering clinicians to conduct single-subject design research in community settings. In the fall of 2020, Adam was acknowledged for his work in the field of grief counseling and death education by earning the designation of Fellow in Thanatology: Death, Dying, and Bereavement.

 

New York Life Foundation logo

Supported by the philanthropic investment
of the New York Life Foundation.

Data & Evaluation Training Series #1: Data Basics

Given limited resources and stretched capacity, data collection procedures and program evaluation strategies at the individual program level often fall short in terms of identifying gaps in service, areas for growth, and program impact. Today, philanthropic giving demands quantifiable return on investment in exchange for donations and grants. Combining nearly 20 years of experience in designing bereavement-focused evaluation protocols with the power of the CBEM, with philanthropic support provided by the New York Life Foundation and in collaboration with the National Alliance for Children’s Grief (NACG), Judi’s House/JAG Institute offers a series of free trainings to share best practices in data collection and program evaluation.

This first workshop on Data Basics will outline where to start with essential data capture for process evaluation and highlight how organizations can capitalize on what they may already be collecting as well as what community data are available. Presenters will discuss the role of data in the childhood bereavement field, review data fundamentals (e.g., types and sources of data) using accessible examples, and provide tips on how to start strong with data gathering to help tell your story.

Become a NACG member today! Your membership will provide access to free monthly webinars with CEs on current topics to support you in your work, discounts on educational events, access to all webinar playbacks, and more. To learn more and become a member to access this webinar for no additional cost, visit HERE →

 

Continuing Education (CE) credits are not available for webinar playbacks.
Target Audience:
Counselors, Social workers, Bereavement support professionals
Instructional Level: Basic – This best describes a topic or issue that the prospective audience is encountering for the first time in a meaningful way.
Format: Live Interactive Webinar

 

Objectives:

After attending this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Identify key data sources for evaluation.
  • Discuss types of data and when to utilize them
  • Explain how to establish practical strategies for gathering data.

 

Speaker Bios:

Laura Landry, PhD is the Director of Evaluation and Research at Judi’s House/JAG Institute. She has 15 years’ experience evaluating community-based programs and large-scale prevention initiatives as well as building the capacity of organizations to utilize data to drive decisions. In addition to heading the organization’s Childhood Bereavement Changemaker Initiative, Laura oversees the Evaluation and Research Department. Her work focuses on evaluating Judi’s House services, building evaluation/data utilization capacity in the field, and disseminating the prevalence of childhood bereavement to inform advocates and practitioners working in the field.

Deirdre Erkman is the Evaluation Researcher at Judi’s House/JAG Institute. With over 5 years’ experience applying data analysis to nonprofit programming, Deirdre has a passion for guiding organizations to use data to benefit the people being served. In her role at Judi’s House, she leads the Childhood Bereavement Changemaker expansion, collaborating with organizations across the country to devise data-informed strategies and recommendations to improve decision-making, implementation, process, and outcomes. Deirdre holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Political Science from Tulane University. She can be reached at deirdree@judishouse.org.

 

New York Life Foundation logo

Supported by the philanthropic investment
of the New York Life Foundation.

Inventory of Youth Adaptation to Loss (IYAL): Opportunities & Challenges

What Happened to You? Incorporating Trauma-Informed Practices in Grief Work

Lost & Alone: Widowed Parents Share Firsthand Experiences & Perspectives

Establishing a Trauma-Informed Parent-Child Relationship in the Wake of Covid

For some grieving families, Covid-19 was the catalyst for nonstop stress, distress, and trauma. Literature shows that under persistent states of stress, family systems can become compromised in areas such as parenting practices, communication, routines, structure, and emotional cohesion (Sheidow, et al., 2014). Research shows that strong family cohesion, positive parenting practices and structure are associated with building resiliency in youth (Haine et al., 2008). Incorporating an evidence-based framework of Attachment, Regulation, and Competency (ARC), attendees will be able to increase their knowledge in these three domains and receive applicable interventions to utilize in a group setting that help facilitate the restoration of familial cohesion between caregivers and youth (Blaustein & Kinniburgh, 2018). The ARC framework is effective with diverse populations, across various developmental stages, and can be applied in clinical and nonclinical settings (Arvidson, et al., 2011). Each domain of ARC is concurrently supported with the evidence-based practices used to support grieving youth and families.”

Working with Grieving Immigrant Youth