School of Social Work Continuing Education

Time: 9 a.m.-noon

Modality: in person

Presenters: Cara Wallace, Ph.D., and Beth Barrett, M.S.W.

*Meets Diversity Requirements

Learning Objectives:  

• Explore how grief is connected to our experiences with and of oppression as related to our various social identities.
• Identify one’s own experiences with grief related to oppression and how this shows up in professional settings.  
• Develop strategies for supporting clients through a lens of social justice.  

Course Description: In every diverse community or organization, individuals each hold various social identities, some causing unearned privilege and others facing oppression. Regardless of our positionality, we all have experiences with oppression across various identities (e.g., as a witness, participant in the system, or as a target). Subsequently, experiences with and of oppression can cause grief and/or trauma related to each of those identities we hold. Grief and/or trauma can show up unexpectedly and can be misinterpreted as problematic behaviors, particularly when it is unattended to or cannot be resolved due to oppressive systems. This presentation will explore various types of loss and grief associated with different social identities and how those impact our professional interactions.   
 
Bios: Beth Barrett, M.S.W., LCSW, CDFT is an associate clinical professor and faculty field liaison for SLU’s School of Social Work.  
 
She teaches courses in social work clinical skills, end-of-life, grief, and integrative practice seminars. Beth specializes in end-of-life and grief issues, change and loss across the life cycle, field education, and professional development for social workers. Her clinical experience includes working with children, adolescents, and adults facing life-threatening illnesses and their families, from diagnosis through death and bereavement. Beth holds the NCCJ St. Louis’ Certified Diversity FaciliTrainer certification and serves on the school’s DEI Committee. 
 
Cara Wallace, Ph.D., LCSW, is an associate professor in the School of Social Work at Saint Louis University.  
 
Her research focuses on end-of-life care and (1) barriers to care; (2) quality of care; and (3) educating students, professionals, and the public about death, illness, loss and grief. She also coordinates SLU's Interprofessional Gerontology Certificate program. Wallace's work is informed by years of practice experience in hospice and hospital systems and is funded by NIH/NINR and Cambia Health Foundation Sojourns Scholar Leadership Program. She is also the 2020 recipient of SWHPN’s Award for Excellence in Psychosocial Research. 

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Time: 1-4 p.m. 

Modality: in person 

Presenter: Jenny Deutsch, M.S.W., LCSW 

*Meets Suicide Requirements

Learning Objectives:

• Articulate the suicide and crisis line process for what to expect when someone contacts 988 suicide and crisis lifelines.
• Describe evidence-based practices for suicide assessment and prevention.
• Comprehend the significance of follow-up care for persons experiencing a suicidal crisis.

Course Description: This course will provide social workers and other clinical professionals with information to increase confidence in referring clients to contact the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline. Participants will learn what to expect when someone reaches out for support regarding the risk assessment conducted by the crisis line's responding personnel and the types of referrals offered to connect the caller to care. Finally, participants will learn about evidence-based practices (EBPs) and lifeline standards used to assess and promote the safety of clients experiencing a suicidal crisis.     

Bio:  Jenny Deutsch, M.S.W., LCSW, is an adjunct clinical professor at Saint Louis University School of Social Work and a clinician with Behavioral Health Response.  She has 25 years of experience in crisis intervention, suicide prevention, supporting loss survivors and community education.   

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Time: 9-noon

Modality: Zoom  

Presenter: Charles Franke, LCSW

*Meets Ethics Requirement

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the risks and concerns unique to social work that can affect our proficient access to the use of self.  
• Differentiate between moral injury, compassion fatigue, burnout and secondary trauma along with the ways these concerns create direct concerns related to ethical treatment.  
• Apply the concept of the self of the social worker with multiple strategies for valuing and connecting to their sense of self.

Course Description: The self of the social worker is one of the primary tools that allows for effective treatment and services of the populations we work with. Our ability to understand our own experience of our work, process that experience, and apply that experience in helpful and ethical ways is paramount to our work. This incredible sensitivity and utilization of self also exposes us to compassion fatigue, moral injury, burnout and secondary trauma. Social workers are expected to hold space for the most difficult situations, and often, we are experiencing this exposure alone. As a result of this difficulty, we must ensure we are self-aware, utilizing support and supervision, and ensuring our compliance with the code of ethics is intact. In this training, we will look deeply at the self of the social work along with all of its applications. This training will discuss the uses of self and strategies for building safety to preserve and value that sense of self as professionals.  
 
Bio: Charles “Chaz” Franke, LCSW, is an adjunct professor in the School of Social Work and is a therapist and clinical supervisor for Light Source, a small group practice in Belleville, Illinois,  

He has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from McKendree University and a Master of Social Work degree from SLU. Franke has been practicing therapy full time since 2007. Since beginning his career as a therapist, he has worked with trauma and its long-reaching effects. This work has included extensive work with all ages and all walks of life. He specializes in self-compassion and integrating Eastern thought and philosophy into the therapeutic process. Chaz provides both clinical and reflective supervision to clinicians across many settings to help further their ability to find their voice in the field and maintain engagement in their work.   

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Time: 1-4 p.m. 
 
Modality: Zoom 
 
Presenter: Monica Matthieu, Ph.D., LCSW

Learning Objectives:  

• Assess the types of lethal means and best practice approaches to mitigating risk.  
• Describe the elements of a patient-centered approach to promoting safety behaviors. 
• Practice talking to clients about the safe storage of lethal means such as firearms and poisons.  

Course Description: Lethal means are objects that may be used by individuals experiencing a suicidal crisis. They include things like guns, medications, alcohol, opioids, other substances, ropes, cords or sharp objects. If an individual is in crisis or is having suicidal thoughts, these items can become deadly if easily accessible. Increasing the time and distance between a person in suicidal crisis and their access to lethal means can reduce suicide risk and save lives. This session will provide an overview of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Keep It Secure program, which promotes awareness about the simple steps you can take to protect yourself and your family. Attendees will also learn and practice skills for lethal means safety counseling (LMSC) a patient-centered approach to promoting safety behaviors by aligning evidence-based recommendations with patients’ preferences and values.  
 
Bio: Monica M. Matthieu Ph.D., LCSW is an associate professor in the School of Social Work at Saint Louis University and is a research social worker for the Central Arkansas Veterans Health Care System, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).   
 
Matthieu is engaged in research and program evaluation related to VA’s national suicide prevention program, implementation of trauma treatment in the VA, and improving assessment, intervention, and referral to treatment for individuals at risk for suicide in social service and health care settings in the St. Louis metro area. 

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Time: 9 a.m.-noon

Modality: Zoom 

Presenter: Kenya Brumfield-Young, M.L.S., M.S.C.J. and Heather Lewis, M.S.W., Ed.S., BCBA

Learning Objectives:

• Understand the concepts of multi-partiality as it pertains to group dynamics.
• Understand the multi-levels of topical analysis as it pertains to group dynamics.
• Understand and articulate the importance of intention versus impact as it pertains to group dynamics.
• Applying LARA during difficult conversations to help people better understand one another’s position on issues.

Course Description:  One often encounters challenging conversations in classrooms and other workspaces, particularly following high-profile events that spark emotion and intense public reaction. This course focuses on approaching and facilitating conversations with students and other groups related to these events, providing approaches for effectively facilitating them.  

Participants will gain insights into fundamental facilitation strategies such as identifying group dynamics, employing multi-partiality, and utilizing LARA to help navigate these conversations. This knowledge will help participants gain confidence in navigating tough conversations and situations. 
 
Bio: Kenya Brumfield-Young, M.L.S., M.S.C.J. is an assistant professor and the internship coordinator for the criminology/criminal justice program within the School of Social Work at Saint Louis University.  
 
Bio: Heather Lewis, M.S.W., Ed.S., BCBA serves a dual role as the assistant director of field education for students pursuing their M.S.W. or M.S. A.B.A. degrees as well as clinical faculty in the applied behavior analysis program at Saint Louis University. She is a social worker and licensed behavior analyst, consulting in school, home, and clinic-based settings for over 20 years.  
 
Heather develops and supervises behaviorally based programs, with a particular interest in supervision and training of future practitioners. She presents in local and national workshops and conferences covering issues common in the fields of behavior analysis and social work, including supervision and mentorship.   

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Time: 1-4 p.m. 
 
Modality: Zoom 
 
Presenter: Maria Morrison, Ph.D., LCSW 

Learning Objectives:

• Articulate the role of trauma in the lives of justice-involved individuals.
• Describe what a trauma-informed approach involves and how it improves health and safety outcomes.
• List and assess specific trauma-informed strategies for working with individuals involved in the criminal justice system. 

Course Description: The criminal justice system touches the lives of millions of Americans, particularly those we work with as social workers. This workshop will present current research findings on the alarmingly high rates of chronic traumatic exposures experienced across the life course by those involved in the criminal justice system and explore why these matter to intervention with this population. It will then discuss the value of a trauma-informed approach and offer specific strategies to use with this population in a range of settings. 
 
Bio: Maria Morrison, Ph.D., LCSW, recently joined the faculty of SLU’s School of Social Work as an assistant professor after 20 years of social work practice.   
 
Morrison is also a senior social worker at the Equal Justice Initiative, a non-profit human rights organization providing legal services to individuals who have been unjustly sentenced and challenging racial and economic injustice. The focus of both her practice and research is on the trauma of individuals who experience incarceration. 

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Time: 9 a.m.-noon
 
Modality: in person
 
Presenter: Craig Miner, LPC

Learning Objectives:

• Identify and interpret an individual’s level of readiness for change.
• Articulate best practice interventions based on an individual’s stage of change and level of readiness for change.
• Design stage-based intervention-driven treatment plans. 

Course Description: This learning opportunity will provide a foundation of knowledge on which the clinician can align treatment intervention with an individual’s level of readiness for change. Participants will be moved from simply defining the stage of change to clinically utilizing this common model to develop treatment plans with stage-based, best-practice interventions. While didactic in nature, time will be spent integrating discussion around application throughout with targeted experiential activities for skill-building. 
 
Bio: Craig S. Miner is a licensed professional counselor, a Certified Reciprocal Advanced Alcohol Drug Counselor, a Certified Co-Occurring Disorders Professional - Diplomate and a Medication Awareness Recovery Specialist in Missouri.   
 
He has 30-plus years’ experience in the behavioral health field working with substance use and co-occurring disorder populations. Craig currently serves as the adult outpatient program manager at Places for People. In addition, he works as an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University, teaching courses in substance use disorder interventions and motivational interviewing. His true passion is to move Science to Service while assisting colleagues to become more comfortable and confident utilizing best- and evidence-based practices to help those we serve to achieve recovery and their meaningful “happy” life goals. 

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Time: 1-4 p.m.

Modality: in person

Presenter: Cassie E. Brown, LCSW

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the underlying theory and principles of motivational interviewing.
• Learn and integrate the basic skill set needed to practice MI with good fidelity.
• Analyze clinical scenarios to discern the appropriate application of MI theory, techniques, and skills. 

Course Description: Motivational interviewing is an intervention that has efficacy in a broad range of settings, including integrated behavioral health, substance use disorders treatment, and many stages of psychotherapy. This continuing education opportunity moves participants from no knowledge of motivational interviewing to an insightful grasp of the underlying theory of this evidence-based intervention. Participants will learn basic skills, apply them in scenarios, and even apply open-source tools to identify key markers of fidelity of this intervention. 
 
Bio: Cassie E. Brown, LCSW, is the executive director of NASW-MO.  
 
Cassie’s career in mental health includes in-home therapy with children and families, working at a public psychiatric hospital with adults with mental illness and substance use, and outpatient therapy at a substance use disorders clinic. Her social work has included adjunct teaching, program development, and evaluation. She has provided continuing education for over a decade on topics including self-care, compassion fatigue, supervision, LGBTQ+ clients, substance use disorders, and the stigma of mental illness. Her work with NASW-MO finds her advocating passionately for social work and those the calling serves.  

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