A Warm Return - Welcome to Fall, Welcome to Year 3
Here we are in September 2020. As we as a Center enter our third year of being in service to you, we are enormously grateful to continue providing learning opportunities and resources to all of you who are – simply put – warriors in this moment.

Thank you for your courage. Thank you for your creativity. Thank you for your perseverance.

We look forward to this coming project and school year: may it be one of more health, restoration, and connection.

Missed our Year 2 Program in Review? Access all recorded webinars, products, and more here.
The Pacific Southwest MHTTC is a SAMHSA-funded center serving American Samoa, Arizona, California, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Marshall Islands, Nevada, Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau.
GET IN TOUCH:
Contact us for questions and comments. 
 
SPREAD THE WORD:
Invite your team to sign up: tinyurl.com/pacsw-mh-news


CONNECT WITH US ON SOCIAL MEDIA:
@PSMHTTC
Meet Our Pacific Southwest MHTTC Field Staff!
Some familiar and some new faces
Leora Wolf-Prusan, EdD
(she/hers)
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Lead
Livia Rojas, MSSW
(she/they)
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Project Manager
NEW STAFF!
Oriana Ides, MA, LPCCI, PPS
(she/hers)
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Training Specialist
NEW STAFF!
Angela Castellanos, PPSC, LCSW
(she/hers)
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health
Training Specialist
David J. Schonfeld, MD, FAAP
(he/his)
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Consultant
Interested in getting no-cost consultation from Dr. Schonfeld? Contact us.
Pacific Southwest MHTTC Office Hours

4th Monday of the month / 3rd Monday in February

October 26
6-7 p.m. ET / 3-4 p.m. PT / 12-1 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

November 23, December 28, January 25, February 15
6-7 p.m. ET / 3-4 p.m. PT / 1-2 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Have a training or technical assistance question regarding mental health service provision or school mental health in the Pacific Southwest MHTTC region of Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, or the Pacific Islands? Join us for monthly PS MHTTC Office Hours! 

Once a month, PS MHTTC staff will host a virtual meeting for the mental health and school mental health workforce to pose questions, access support, and share resources.

Office Hours are held 3-4 p.m. PT on every 4th Monday of the month, October through January, and on the 3rd Monday in February. Please register at by 3 p.m. PT on the dates you would like to attend.
From Our Center: New Programming
Leading Our School Systems & Communities
Through and After Wildfire

The Northwest MHTTC and the Pacific Southwest MHTTC are coming together to provide a special virtual town hall on school mental health leadership in times of wildfire.

What: Six principals, superintendents, and county office of education leaders from Oregon, Washington State, and California who have experienced wildfire in the past and present will lead this town hall. They will offer their reflections, lessons learned, and stories so we can learn from and with them in this moment of need.

Leaders will be in conversation for the first portion of the town hall, and then will answer your questions through a moderated Q & A.

When: Wednesday, September 30
1:30-3:00 p.m. ET / 10:30 a.m.-12:00 pm PT / 7:30-9:00 a.m. HT (view your time zone)

Where: Zoom. Register Here >

Who: Open to anyone, and we are especially focused on supporting school mental health systems and community leaders on the West Coast during this acute moment.

Speakers:
Ed Navarro
Matt Reddam
Dr. Laurie Dent
Jeannie Larberg, Ph.D.
Dr. B Grace Bullock, Ph.D
Rachael George
To learn more about the townhall speakers, see our event page

• • • • •
Discussions that Matter in 2020
Apply by September 27

What: A series of multi-cultural and multi-disciplinary discussions about the challenges of 2020 facing mental health and school mental health providers.    

Dates: The following Mondays: October 5, October 19, November 2, November 16, November 30, and December 7

Times (prior to Nov. 1): 6:00-7:30 p.m. ET / 3:00-4:30 p.m. PT / 12:00-1:30 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Times (after to Nov. 1): 6:00-7:30 p.m. ET / 3:00-4:30 p.m. PT / 1:00-2:30 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Where: Zoom  

Who: Mental health workforce of the Pacific Southwest (i.e., social workers, psychologists, marriage and family therapists, peer specialists, and school mental health leaders in CA, AZ, NV, HI, and the US Pacific Islands). Space is limited; apply online by September 27, 2020.   

Why: The mental health workforce has adapted quickly to 2020’s many challenges (e.g., COVID-19, racial violence, economic recession, and global warming-related natural disasters). Sustained professional and personal adaptation can result in exhaustion, burnout, and compassion fatigue. Join us to debrief, regroup, develop new self-care skills, and identify anti-bias action plans for change in mental health systems, services, and society at large.
       
Benefits of Participation: 
  • Up to 10.5 continuing education hours (CE hours) for mental health professionals for participating in six 90-minute sessions. Processing fee of $35 will apply. 
  • Cross cultural and multidisciplinary coalition building and networking across CA, AZ, NV, HI, and American Samoa, Guam, Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Northern Mariana Islands, and Palau.  
  • Time to engage in self-care, give and receive affirmation, and commit to anti-bias efforts in mental health care.


Application is due by September 27, 2020
• • • • •

Trauma Informed Suicide Prevention:
Leading School District, County, and State Systems - Examples from California

Join us for a three-part webinar series for school field leaders who are leading systems’ support for student suicide prevention.

Part 1: Policy
Tuesday, December 1, 6-8 p.m. ET / 3-5 p.m. PT / 1-3 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Part 2: Workforce Development
Monday, December 7, 6-8 p.m. ET / 3-5 p.m. PT / 1-3 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Part 3: Collaboration and Risk Assessment
Monday, December 14, 6-8 p.m. ET / 3-5 p.m. PT / 1-3 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Session content will focus on providing timely, effective, competent, and evidence-based suicide prevention support to students and families. Each session will be contextualized with experience and suggestions from on-the-ground regional leadership.

Learning Objectives:
  1. Understand suicide prevention policy, the prevalence and impact of traumatic stress and its relation to suicide, and resources available to schools;
  2. Understand your role as a school leader in providing trauma informed practices when conducting a risk assessment; and,
  3. Learn how to effectively collaborate with community partners when providing follow up support to students and families. 

Attendees will have the opportunity to submit questions upon registration, enabling our team to shape the session content to meet your needs.

The presenters will devote the first segment of each hour-long presentation to a specific topic, then address attendee-submitted questions.

Audience: System leaders, prevention specialists, educators, administrators, school site leadership district and state administrative leadership, and anyone interested.

The series will be led by Angela J. Castellanos, PPSC, LCSW, Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Training Specialist, and systems leaders as guest presenters.

An optional 2.0 Continuing Education Hours are available for each event (6.0 total). View flyer for more information about CEHs and for easy distribution.
From Our Center: Continued Programming

THEY'RE BACK!
Pacific Southwest School Mental Health Wellness Wednesdays
Connect • Reflect • Support

We are so pleased that after a short pause, our School Mental Health Wellness Wednesdays are back. For the coming program year, we’ll offer 60-minute virtual sessions for the school mental health workforce to connect, reflect, and support each other.

The Wellness Wednesdays will occur every 2nd Wednesday of each month, 2-3 p.m. PT, and will be led by Pacific Southwest MHTTC School Mental Health staff (Leora Wolf-Prusan and Oriana Ides).

Please note that Wellness Wednesdays are not a sequence; you can join some or all.
Join us for our Year 3 kick-off session on October 14. View your time zone for sessions in October and sessions beginning in November.


• • • • •

IT'S BACK AND EXPANDED!
Pacific Southwest MHTTC/Northwest MHTTC West Coast ISF Party

The Northwest MHTTC and the Pacific Southwest MHTTC are continuing our partnership to provide and extend deeper technical assistance on the Interconnected Systems Framework (ISF).

This past year, we offered three webinars on the Interconnected Systems Framework (see below for recordings) and followed the learning series up with monthly discussion hours led by Susan Barrett and field leaders from our region.

This year, we are offering programming to deepen your ISF work and contextualize ISF to this moment of COVID-19 and beyond. Please note that registration priority will be given to members of our regions.

The ISF West Coast Party:
Systems (structures & leadership) and Practices (services & supports)
For This Moment

Led by Susan Barrett, MA, and University of Southern California trauma informed specialists Steve Hydon, Pamela Vona, and Vivien Villaverde, we invite you to explore the ISF framework by examining systems change (structures and leadership) and the practices (services and supports) needed to ensure student support equity.

Our fall offering is made up of four modules and ends with a town hall for you to be able to ask faculty your questions and resource one another. Each module includes teaching from Susan Barrett and field leaders on ISF systems, and USC faculty on ISF practices.

You may attend as much or little as desired.


Save the dates and times below! Registration links coming soon.
Please note that all times for the sessions are from 3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. PT

ISF Systems with
Susan Barrett and Guests

October 20, 2020
Interconnected Systems Framework in Virtual Conditions

• • • • •

October 27 or 29, 2020
ISF + Trauma Informed Approaches

• • • • •

December 1 or 10, 2020
ISF + Tiers 2 & 3

• • • • •

January 14 or 18, 2021
ISF and Equity
ISF Practices with USC
School of Social Work Faculty

October 22, 2020
Secondary Traumatic Stress and Educator Well-Being

• • • • •

November 5, 2020
Virtual Adaptations of PFA (Tier 1)

• • • • •

November 17, 2020
Virtual Adaptations of Trauma Informed Skills for Educators

• • • • •

December 3, 2020
Virtual Adaptations of SSET/Bounce Back (Tier 2)

• • • • •

January 12, 2021
Secondary Traumatic Stress and BIPOC Educator Well-Being

• • • • •

January 19 or 21, 2021
Racial Violence and Trauma and Schools
January 26, 2021
ISF Systems and Practices in this Moment with Susan Barrett and USC: A Virtual Town Hall


Check out our archived Year 2 ISF content that may help as priming material:

Virtual Learning from our Partners

Follow up from our summer series
Supporting School Mental Health in the Context of Racial Violence

Thank you, again, for joining the MHTTC Network on July 31 and August 7 for our two-part series, Supporting School Mental Health Navigating Racial Violence.

As promised, we have compiled a list of resources from the presenters and the field to help continue your learning. To access the document, please click here.

We also heard from you, our audience, that you are interested in extended learning opportunities. Our Network is committed to continuing nationwide dialogue and discourse to help us help our school communities.

A helpful way to let us know what you would be interested in (e.g., same format as our July and August forum, one designated speaker, small discussion groups, etc.) is to complete one of the two surveys linked below. This will help us tailor our programming to meet your needs.
• • • • •

MHTTC Grief Sensitivity Virtual Learning Institute (GSVLI)

On September 10 and 11, over 5,000 of you from across the country joined us for two incredibly powerful and rich learning days for Part I of the MHTTC GSVLI. All sessions’ materials and recordings will be posted on the event site.

Want to continue the learning or weren’t able to come in September?
Join us for Part II on November 12 and 13, 12:00-5:45 p.m. ET / 9:00 a.m.-2:45 p.m. PT / 7:00 a.m.-12:45 p.m. both days (view your time zone)

(scroll down to the bottom of this page and click the large orange button)

Please note that the Eventbrite will hold both days, November 12 and 13. By signing up, you’ll be on the list to get Part II’s session line-up, descriptions, and speakers.
Virtual Learning Opportunities From the Field

We're a Sponsor and a Presenter!
California School-Based Health Conference
School Health on the Frontlines: Navigating Pandemics & Building Equity

October 6-8, 2020

School-based health centers are stepping up to provide critical support and health care access to the students most impacted by the intersecting pandemics of COVID-19 and the public health crisis of racism. Learn, grow, and connect virtually with fellow providers, educators, advocates, and other leaders in the school-based health care movement as we increase our capacity to care for students during this critical moment. Learn more about all sessions at the conference website: bit.ly/CSHAconference.

We're a sponsor and we're presenting! Leora Wolf-Prusan, Pacific Southwest MHTTC School Mental Health Lead and Oriana Ides, SMH Training Specialist, will lead an interactive workshop based on the School Mental Health Crisis Leadership Lessons guide during the October 6 morning session from 9:15 a.m.-11:15 a.m. PT.

Youth attend free! On the event registration page, select "Tickets," click "Enter promo code," and enter code VIP20. Please note this offer is only available for youth participants.


• • • • •

Virtual 25th Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health
Equitable & Effective School Mental Health

October 29, 2020
12-3 p.m. ET / 9 a.m.-12 p.m. PT / 6-9 a.m. HT (view your time zone)

The Annual Conference brings together local, state, national, and international experts to advance knowledge and skills related to school mental health practice, research, training, and policy. The virtual conference will include a 3-hour livestream of cutting-edge content from school mental health leaders and unlimited participant access to pre-recorded sessions and exhibits. This year’s keynote speaker, Richard Milner, PhD, will share his expertise on “Mental Health as Curriculum: Five Imperatives in the Fight for Justice in the "New" Normal.”

Registration is free for this year’s event.


Our region has been deeply impacted by wildfire. Please see the NCTSN’s compiled resources to help navigate trauma and wildfire: Wildfire Resources. Their resources and tips are easy to navigate for Before, During, and After a wildlife experience.

• • • • •

CASP has published a resource paper for school psychology practice under COVID-19 with assessment guidance, including: a summary of methods required for evaluations, both in-person and virtual assessment considerations, and a reminder of the legal and ethical guidelines mandated by both our state and national professional organizations.

• • • • •

This ETR Virtual Vitality tool, Adapting Trauma-Informed Practices to a Virtual Environment, provides strategies and resources to guide educators to implement trauma-informed virtual instruction. Learn more about ETR Virtual Vitality D4L (Design for Learning) tip sheets and tools to support the transition to virtual learning here.

• • • • •

California Children’s Trust and Breaking Barriers developed this guide for school district leaders interested in exploring partnerships and accessing Medi-Cal to meet the social, emotional, and mental health needs of students in schools. The guide explores five different models school districts can use to partner with state- or county-level agencies for an integrated system.


• • • • •

(Edutopia, August 2020)
Educators share their best synchronous and asynchronous strategies to boost student participation during online learning. These are practical strategies and activities to help ensure that all students’ voices are heard in the virtual classroom.

• • • • •

School Social Work Network (SSW) presents a research brief on reopening schools drawn from their study with 1,275 school social workers. The brief explores the issues school social workers are facing – including students’ basic needs challenges, student trauma, and lack of resources – and offers recommendations.
 
• • • • •

The new Spotlight from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) compiles NCTSN tools to help administrators support the well-being of educators and to help educators reduce the impact of stressors during this difficult time. Explore resources on trauma-informed school strategies, self-care, secondary traumatic stress, and more.


• • • • •

Fact Sheet: This document uses the NCTSN’s “Creating, Supporting and Sustaining Trauma-Informed Schools: A System Framework,” to consider how, in the time of COVID-19, schools can adapt or transform their practices by using a trauma-informed approach to help children feel safe, supported, and ready to learn. The fact sheet includes tips for the physical and emotional well-being of staff, how to foster a trauma-informed learning environment, identifying and assessing traumatic stress, partnering with students and families, cultural responsiveness, and more.
School Crisis Recovery and Renewal (SCRR) Project

School crisis readiness is essential. Response is critical.
And: what happens after matters, too.

Supporting students, educators, school staff, and school-based clinicians to effectively implement trauma-informed crisis recovery and renewal strategies.

The School Crisis Recovery & Renewal (SCRR) project is a new initiative that launched June 2020. Funded by SAMHSA, the SCRR is a National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) Treatment and Services Adaptation Center (Category II, 2020-2025).

We are excited to share that the SCRR team includes Pacific Southwest MHTTC team members Leora Wolf-Prusan, Livia Rojas, and Oriana Ides, in partnership with Trauma Transformed with special advisement from the National Center for School Crisis & Bereavement.

 
Nationally, SCRR:
  • Provides training and technical assistance (TTA) services and resources to state and local education agencies (SEAs/LEAs); school leaders and educators; school mental health providers; community partners and more.
  • Creates curricula, training opportunities, and best-practice resources to promote long-term recovery and renewal after school crisis.
  • Promotes effective and sustainable change in the ways school leadership build the skills, knowledge, and attributes necessary to recover and renew after a crisis.

Learn more by visiting www.schoolcrisishealing.org and joining one of three upcoming open houses:

Friday, September 25
2-3 p.m. ET / 11 a.m.-12 p.m. PT / 8-9 a.m. HT (view your time zone)

Wednesday, September 30
6-7 p.m. ET / 3-4 p.m. PT / 12-1 p.m. HT (view your time zone)

Thursday, October 8
2-3 p.m. ET / 11 a.m.-12 p.m. PT / 8-9 a.m. HT (view your time zone)

Can’t make an open house? Email SCRR@cars-rp.org to set up an introductory call.
 
Contact the Pacific Southwest MHTTC
 
Toll-Free: 1-844-856-1749  Email: pacificsouthwest@mhttcnetwork.org  
Disclaimer: The views, opinions, and content expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, or policies of the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).