Find opportunities to learn more about trauma-informed care
October 2025
October 3rd
10am - 10:45am
Let’s Talk Coalitions: A SPCA Virtual Roundtable
Let’s Talk Coalitions is a new monthly virtual roundtable hosted by SPCA. It’s designed for coalition members at all stages to come together for casual, real-world conversations. Each 30–45-minute session features a brief spotlight on a key topic in prevention work, followed by open discussion where you can share challenges, successes, and strategies with others in the field. Whether you’re brand new to coalition work or a seasoned member, there’s a seat at the table for you.
October 3rd
11:30am - 12:30pm
Empowering Professionals to Support Children and Youth Impacted by Family Substance Use
This training will provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of substance use disorder (SUD), the intergenerational cycle of addiction, and the vital importance of early identification and intervention. It will cover strategies and tools for effective engagement and building supportive connections. Key objectives include recognizing trauma and its impacts, identifying at-risk children, using non-stigmatizing language, connecting families with essential resources, and prioritizing self-care. Emphasizing practical strategies and compassionate approaches, the training equips professionals with the necessary tools to respond effectively and sensitively, promoting positive, lasting outcomes for vulnerable children, youth, and the professionals supporting them. P2
October 6th
1pm - 2:30pm
QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer: the three simple moves anyone can learn to help save a life from suicide. In this training, community members will learn how to: identify the warning signs and risk factors of suicide; ask the suicide question and persuade a suicidal person not to end their life; appropriately refer a suicidal person to behavioral healthcare professionals. Just as people trained in CPR and the Heimlich Maneuver help save thousands of lives each year, people trained in QPR learn how to help someone in crisis seek the support they need.
October 7th
12pm - 1pm
Chronic Pain: Treating the Long Game
This training will cover the impact of hyperalgesia and cross tolerance on chronic pain among patients with opioid dependence and/or who are on medications for opioid disorder. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatments for chronic pain management will be discussed. Participants will acquire tools for identifying pain severity and evaluating opioid use disorder in patients on chronic opioid therapy.
October 7th
1:30pm - 3pm
Epigenetics and Substance Misuse Prevention
This training provides an introduction to the science of epigenetics and its relevance to substance misuse prevention. Participants will explore how environmental and social factors such as trauma, stress, and protective relationships can influence gene expression and shape health outcomes across the lifespan. The session highlights how prevention efforts can be biologically informed, responsive, and rooted in healing-centered practices to build resilience and reduce risk in individuals and communities.
October 7th
1pm
Driving It Home: Empowering Youth to Step into Responsibility
In partnership with SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions), Carol Lucio and a SADD youth leader will explore how parents, caregivers, and schools can prepare youth to take the wheel in more ways than one. Driving is often the first big test where freedom and responsibility meet, but the foundation is built long before a license.
October 7th
2:30pm - 4pm
Epigenetics & Substance Misuse Prevention
This training provides an introduction to the science of epigenetics and its relevance to substance misuse prevention. Participants will explore how environmental and social factors such as trauma, stress, and protective relationships can influence gene expression and shape health outcomes across the lifespan. The session highlights how prevention efforts can be biologically informed, responsive, and rooted in healing-centered practices to build resilience and reduce risk in individuals and communities.
October 8th
9am - 12:15pm
Assisting providers to consider and embark upon personal self-awareness and behavioral change is an important foundational skill for healthcare providers. This training promotes providers’ understanding regarding their own impact and influence within the change process. It increases the ability to form an engaged connection with the people exploring change and therefore increasing potential change. Participants will be asked to explore how their own beliefs, perceptions, behaviors and chosen forms of communication influence their working relationship with people.
October 8th
12pm - 1pm
Adolescent Substance Use - A Deep Dive: Synthetics, Club Drugs, and New Fads in Substance Misuse
This one-hour webinar is designed for pediatric and adolescent clinicians and will provide a targeted overview of how to recognize acute signs of intoxication from synthetic drugs, club drugs, and newer substances such as xylazine. Participants will review practical, evidence-based approaches for managing overdose, walk through case-based examples, and explore how to guide adolescents and families toward appropriate resources and support.
October 8th
1pm - 3pm
Foundations of Trauma Informed Care
A history of trauma is extremely common in individuals presenting for mental health and/or substance use disorders treatment. Attention to trauma issues occurs on a continuum ranging from trauma-informed to trauma-sensitive to trauma-integrated. A trauma-informed approach seeks to raise awareness about trauma among all behavioral health caregivers. A trauma-sensitive approach promotes screening and treatment methods that take past trauma into account without re-traumatizing the client and fully integrates trauma issues into all aspects of care delivery especially through the use of specific models used to treat trauma. This training will review key concepts and core principles of trauma-informed care and trauma-sensitive care and will explore how individuals can integrate these principles into their own approaches as Behavioral Health Providers, Programs, Agencies, and related Systems of Care. This workshop will address the issue of trauma as it affects individual clients, clinicians, and systems of care.
October 9th
9am - 3pm
Virtual 2025 Ohio Prevention Pre-Conference: Integrating Trauma-Informed Care into Prevention
This virtual session will explore how trauma-informed care can strengthen and support prevention efforts across communities. The first virtual pre-conference event features Ohio Handle With Care, a trauma-informed, cross-systems response to Adverse Childhood Experiences that promotes resilience through positive relationships with school staff and first responders. The program uses a standardized yet flexible implementation model that respects each community’s strengths. Participants will learn about fidelity components and the implementation process, with guidance on leading or joining the program.
October 9th
9am - 4pm
In-Person, Columbus OH
Building Better: Resilience in the Community: Brain-Based, Trauma Informed Approach
The Building Better Lives team uses our community trainings as an opportunity to bring the Neurosequential model to Franklin Counties families by educating those who work with the community directly. Developed by Dr. Bruce Perry and expanded upon by others, BBL has developed a training that educates Community Workers on ways to interact with families and patients in a way that acknowledges their trauma and provides solutions
October 9th
10am - 2:15pm
Moral Injuries in Service Members
While moral injury is not a recognized mental health disorder, it is well known to have impacted the lives of many throughout time. Recent military conflicts and worldwide events, like COVID-19, have brought the construct of moral injury more to the forefront in the behavioral health professions as we work to better understand how to identify how it is both similar and different from other issues our clients face, like depression and PTSD.
This training will define moral injury, describe how it develops, and examine various assessment and treatment methods. The focus will be on moral injury in the military population, while recognizing that it also occurs in the civilian population. The presenter will encourage participants to consider challenges they face in identifying and treating moral injury, including how to create a nonjudgmental, safe space for clients to talk about it, and how to distinguish moral injury from common co-occurring problems such as PTSD.
October 9th
12pm - 3:15pm
Ethics & Boundaries for Substance Use Disorder Professionals
Sound ethics and boundaries are critical to the provision of Substance Use Disorder treatment. Unethical behavior and boundary violations are detrimental to the treatment process, impacting the clients’ mental health, recovery efforts, and often leads to disengagement of services. At the same time, engagement in unethical practices and boundary violations can result in job dissatisfaction, burnout and severe consequences such as a loss of a job or license. Participants will be encouraged to reflect on their own experiences with ethical dilemmas throughout this training.
October 9th
2pm - 3:30pm
Conflict to Connection: Create the Conditions for Healthy Disagreement
Conflict is ever-present in our professional and personal lives. Our knee-jerk reaction is to avoid it at all costs. However, healthy disagreement is in fact essential in our work. How can we encourage different viewpoints and use conflict as an opportunity for growth? In this 90-minute peer sharing session, a series of guided questions will be used to gain a deeper understanding of our collective relationship with conflict, discuss ways to reframe it and strategies to embrace it.
October 13th
10am - 12:15pm
Foundations of Severe & Persistent Mental Health Disorders
Severe and persistent mental illnesses (SPMI) are a group of mental health disorders that can have significant impact on a person’s life. These disorders can substantially interfere with major activities of daily living. This impact can be present in their family relations, learning and development, work and social integration.
Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) is a widely researched service delivery model for individuals with severe and persistent mental illness (and co-occurring substance abuse) who experience consistent, severe symptoms and who benefit from regular, intensive treatment from a multidisciplinary team of trained mental health professionals.
Participants of this workshop will learn the basic difference between a mental health condition and severe and persistent mental illness through understanding the diagnostic criteria.
October 14th
1pm - 4:15pm
Engaging People in Conversations About Change
Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a collaborative, person-centered form of guiding to assist individuals in identifying and accessing their intrinsic motivation to change behaviors. It is both a philosophy and a set of strategic techniques that is evidence-based with a broad range of applications. No skill or strategy is more important for engaging people in conversations about change than expressing accurate empathy through listening well. Participants will learn the characteristics of high-quality listening, practice the core, person-centered skills of MI, and methods to exchange information with respect for the person’s autonomy. (C2)
October 14th
3pm - 4pm
Integrative Therapies for Pain
This training introduces evidence-based approaches that complement conventional pain management strategies. Participants will learn to incorporate at least two integrative therapies into a multimodal treatment plan to enhance patient outcomes. The training also explores common barriers to implementing these therapies in clinical settings and practical solutions to overcome them. This course supports a holistic, patient-centered approach to pain care.
October 15th
10am - 10:30am
Caffeinate and Innovate: Habits, Addiction, and Mindfulness
Dr. Jud Brewer, Director of Research and Innovation at Brown University’s Mindfulness Center, is known for meeting at the intersection of modern science and ancient meditative practices, and he brings a fascinating wealth of knowledge on the underlying neural mechanisms of mindfulness. Join us for a free-wheeling conversation on how our thoughts can drive our habits, our cravings and our addictions... and what we can do to push back.
October 15th
12pm - 1:30pm
Restoring Rest - Helping Kids & Teens Navigate Sleep Through Life’s Transitions & Stresses
Learn more about evidence-based sleep interventions and their potential applications for improving sleep health in youth ages 6-17. Explore the impact of poor sleep and nightmares on psychological well-being and development, as well as strategies for adapting sleep interventions to meet the unique needs of children and adolescents. Additionally, the session will present a model for understanding the mechanisms through which sleep interventions may enhance emotional regulation during transitions (e.g., a parent’s deployment) or stressful times (e.g., holidays). Attendees will leave with practical knowledge of effective adaptations of sleep interventions for youth to implement successfully into clinical practice.
October 16th
10am - 12pm
This training discusses ways to help individuals who are experiencing the effects of multiple traumas in their lives. The session teaches coping skills, such as grounding and relaxation techniques, to support emotional regulation. The training also applies cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) concepts to help change the irrational beliefs formed from trauma. The presenter will review triggers and how to help individuals cope with them, as well as the importance of increasing support systems and overcoming barriers.
October 16th
10:45am - 1pm
Firearms are the most used means in veteran suicide. Lethal means safety, an evidence-based intervention, focuses on how to improve the voluntary secure storage of firearms and other lethal means to help reduce suicidal behavior. Increasing the time and space between when suicidal thoughts occur and accessing lethal means has the potential to be lifesaving. This workshop is designed for peers, friends, family, and clinical providers of veterans to enhance their knowledge about engaging in lethal means safety conversations.
October 16th & October 30th
1pm – 3pm
*must attend both sessions*
Advanced Training in Trauma Practices: The Case of Jamal
This training will increase practitioner competency in implementing evidence-based trauma-informed practice elements. Topics of focus will include identification of specific ways that a child’s development may be affected by trauma and appropriate application of practice elements used with children and caregivers. Also included will be the impact of client and therapist positionality on the therapeutic alliance.
October 16th
1pm - 4:15pm
Overview of Harm Reduction for Substance Use
While historical substance use treatment models have emphasized abstinence as the goal, we have learned through research and from those with lived experience, about the complex relationship people have with substance use, beginning with their first use through many possible intervention points. Harm reduction acknowledges this complexity and offers ways to reduce the risk of mortality and other negative outcomes of substance use. Harm reduction is not only a single set of interventions, but an overall approach and philosophy that values the voices of those with lived or living experience of substance use. Harm reduction addresses inequalities in the treatment of and resources available for those who use substances and seeks to eliminate the stigma that continues to exist toward those who use substances and the stigma within treatment policies and procedures. (C1, C7, C9 blend)
October 16th
2pm - 3:30pm
Working Together: Motivational Interviewing for Co-Occurring Disorders in Indigenous Communities
Attendees will explore how to adapt MI strategies to be culturally relevant and effective in addressing co-occurring disorders, with an emphasis on building trust, understanding community-specific challenges, and integrating traditional healing frameworks. The session will include both didactic content and a collaborative discussion to equip participants with practical tools for working with Indigenous clients facing mental health and substance use challenges
October 17th
10am - 12pm
Prevention services are key to identifying and addressing risky levels of substance use to offer the appropriate level of support. The spectrum of effective prevention strategies helps to identify and address different levels of substance use and the negative health effects that tend to result from risky behaviors. This interactive learning event will inform on varying degrees of substance use and substance use terms, effects on health, and importance of transparency in language.
October 17th
12pm
Meeting the Moment: A Fireside Chat with Casey Parks
Join Equitas Health for a powerful fireside chat with Casey Parks, Washington Post Reporter and author of Diary of a Misfit. This conversation will explore the intersections of storytelling, health, legislation, and queer life in America.
October 20th
1pm - 2:30pm
Counseling on Access to Lethal Means (CALM) Conversations is a 90-minute workshop for a general audience. It requires no prior training in mental health or suicide prevention. This training is open to the public, with a primary focus on military service members, veterans, their families, and caregivers. Many people do not access behavioral or physical health care despite having thoughts of being at risk of suicide. Yet many of them signal to others – directly or indirectly – that they are struggling. This interactive workshop will provide friends, family, and others with information on how to recognize and respond to suicide risk, with an additional focus on reducing access to lethal means – especially firearms. Participants learn to talk with someone who might have these thoughts in a collaborative, non-judgmental, and supportive manner.
October 20th
1pm - 4:15pm
Responding to Resistance and Focusing on Change
Motivational interviewing is an approach that promotes self-awareness and intrinsic motivation in a person. When internal motivation still needs to be identified and developed, effective responses involve accepting and validating the person’s perspective rather than challenging it. Responding to resistance avoids judgement, confrontation and/or persuasion which reduces defensiveness, builds rapport and can increase the potential for the person to talk about change through shared decision making within a collaborative relationship. Participants will learn to identify and respond strategically to promote motivation toward change. (C2)
October 22nd
9:45am - 3pm
Crisis Response Plan (CRP) for Suicide Prevention Workshop
CRP is a strategy designed to assist an individual who might be at risk for suicide by offering alternative self-selected actions and activities they can use in times of crisis. Peers, friends, family, and clinical providers can support the planning process and provide solid options which they can utilize during different phases of a suicidal crisis. This workshop is designed to enhance individuals’ knowledge about crisis response planning (CRP) for managing acute suicide risk, and to increase their ability to administer this intervention confidently and competently with at-risk individuals.
October 22nd
10am - 11:30am
Recharging Responders: Wellness Tools for 988 Call Center Staff
This presentation offers a concise wellness framework for 988 crisis line teams. It outlines practical strategies, including micro-practices, regulation breaks, peer and supervisor support, and structural changes, to reduce burnout and promote emotional resilience in high-stress environments.
October 22nd
1pm - 4:15pm
Right or Wrong? The Ethics of Harm Reduction
The U.S. has historically utilized abstinence-based approaches to treating substance use, which can make the adoption of harm reduction interventions feel counterintuitive when working with individuals whose goals do not align with complete abstinence. Despite having a strong evidence base, there remains hesitancy, discomfort, even dismissal of the use of harm reduction interventions in substance use treatment. But why? This workshop will specifically explore the intersection of ethics and harm reduction and challenge participants to explore their own values and beliefs when working with individuals who use substances. (C9, Ethics)
October 23rd
9am - 12:15pm
Overview of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Substance Use Disorders
Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) has helped people with a wide range of illnesses and behaviors achieve relief, remission and/or recovery. The practice involves working with people to increase their understanding of how thoughts, emotions, and behaviors play a key role in their reactions to stressful life events. CBT has substantial empirical evidence of its effectiveness for people with substance use disorders. (C1, C2)
October 23rd & October 30th
1pm - 2:30pm
Cyber Ethics for Prevention Professionals: Navigating Social Media, Privacy, and Digital Boundaries
Part 1: October 23rd): Introduction to the ethical landscape prevention professionals face in the digital world. Participants will explore foundational ethical principles from the Public Health Code of Ethics and the NASW Code of Ethics, applying them to online interactions, social media engagement, and digital research. The session focuses on identifying clear professional boundaries in virtual spaces, understanding the risks of online engagement with youth, and aligning prevention work with both ethical standards and youth development best practices. Through case studies and discussion, participants will begin developing strategies to engage online while safeguarding trust and professional integrity.
Part 2: October 30th: This second session builds on the foundations established in Part 1, moving into deeper analysis of real-world scenarios involving online privacy, information gathering, and ethical decision-making. Participants will explore the ethical risks of online research and strategies to prevent inappropriate online behaviors. The session emphasizes creating personalized, actionable guidelines for ethical digital communication that maintain trust, protect privacy, and strengthen prevention messaging in online spaces.
October 24th
9am - 10:30am
Befriend the Mind with Internal Family Systems
We all have multiple parts—sub-personalities with different emotions, beliefs, and behaviors. While well-intentioned, parts can become burdened by trauma or stress, causing depression, anxiety, shame, or addiction. IFS invites us to befriend these parts with compassion and curiosity, uncovering their purpose and creating lasting healing. Participants will learn the basics of IFS and how to put IFS into practice through learning and experiential exercises.
October 27th
10am - 12pm
Building Engagement through Skilled Listening
This interactive learning community conversation deconstructs the art of listening to its core elements and provides opportunities for listening practice and reflection.
October 27th
1pm – 3pm
Ask About Pets: A Trauma-Informed Call to Action in Behavior Healthcare
While 71% of U.S. households report at least one pet – and over 90% identify pets as family – these vital relationships are often overlooked in behavioral health care, despite their importance to safety planning, housing stability, social support, and grief support. For many trauma survivors, companion animals are sources of safety, regulation, and connection. When these relationships are ignored, providers risk missing critical elements of a client’s support system and resilience, as well as potential sources of distress or danger.
Grounded in the principles of trauma-informed care, the NASW Code of Ethics, and relevant interdisciplinary standards, this webinar provides behavioral health providers with the knowledge and tools to integrate three core pet-related questions into clinical practice. Participants will learn how to approach these conversations in ways that promote emotional safety, respect lived experience, and strengthen trust. The session emphasizes collaborative problem-solving, empowering clients to make informed choices, and using resources like the national Pet Help Finder database to support human–animal well-being.
October 28th
10am - 11:30am
Prevention 101: Building Your Foundation in Substance Misuse Prevention
Whether you're just starting your journey in prevention work or looking to strengthen your foundational knowledge, this webinar will equip you with the essential tools and frameworks that drive effective substance misuse prevention efforts. Join us for an engaging introduction to the prevention field, where you'll discover how prevention work differs from treatment and intervention approaches. We will guide you through foundational prevention models including the continuum of care and Strategic Prevention Framework, while exploring evidence-based strategies that are making a difference in communities across the country. This webinar is perfect for prevention newcomers with 0-2 years of experience, coalition members, community leaders, and anyone passionate about creating healthier communities through proactive prevention efforts. (IC&RC-1)
October 29th
9:30am - 12:30pm
Person-Centered or Provider Driven?
As providers we always want to maintain our objectivity and compassion when supporting individuals in their recovery. It becomes challenging when the provider’s experience drives the client’s process and the potential for collaborative engagement and successful outcomes are lost.
This interactive three-hour learning opportunity will discuss how stigma and cognitive bias develop and the importance of intentionality in language and engagement. Content will also discuss strategies to reduce the provider-driven potential by using person-centered and recovery-oriented approaches that focus on client strengths and goals. When people are heard and supported, they are more likely to commit to their own recovery and wellness process.
October 29th
12pm - 1:30pm
Befriend Your Brain, Heal Your Behavioral Health
This interactive webinar introduces essential principles and clinically practical methods from the presenter’s two recent books on recovery resilience. We will focus on working with process - or behavioral - addictions, providing numerous real-life examples and creating a rich and dynamic learning opportunity. First off, we will invite all participants into an exercise in self-compassion, after which we will creatively apply clinical insights from current research in nervous system regulation and memory reconsolidation. We will integrate a whole host of key intervention resources: everything from cognitive-behavioral strategies and mindfulness to polyvagal theory and interpersonal neurobiology. We will wrap up with a lively Q & A dialogue regarding implications for process addiction recovery and relapse prevention.
October 29th
1pm - 2:30pm
What’s So Wrong About the Righting Reflex?
This learning community conversation focuses on help that is helpful and help that is not. This interactive opportunity explores the complex reasons workers are drawn to the helping professions and how some forms of helping can become a worker-evoked barrier to positive health/life outcomes. Being client-centered and nondirective are more than ideas; they require intentional approaches and actions. Effective methods of helping and their related skills will be reviewed and practiced.
October 29th at 3pm - 4pm OR
October 30th at 10am - 11am
A Brief Introduction to Motivational Interviewing (MI) - Starting Your Journey
"I've heard of MI for a long time and I'm still not really sure what MI actually is." "I'm new to MI and I'd like a clearer understanding of it." If this is where you are, this intentionally brief (one-hour) introduction is for you! Join the learning community and start your relationship with this evidence-based method of conversation. For people more experienced with MI watch our training calendar for intermediate and advanced MI opportunities.
October 30th
9am - 12:15pm
Strengthening a Person’s Own Motivation and Commitment to Change
The ability to recognize change talk is essential to assisting a person in exploring their reasons for why they would want to engage in behavior change. Identifying and developing an individual’s motivation for change and strengthening a person’s change talk is essential to establishing their commitment to change. Participants will be introduced to specific techniques to elicit and enhance change and will have an opportunity to practice these techniques through roleplay and group exercises. (C2)
October 30th
12pm - 1:30pm
Getting “Unstuck” - Developing Discrepancy to MOVE Forward
This interactive learning community conversation explores the strategy of developing discrepancy. The intentional use of this strategy sparks contemplation, supports forward movement, and stops circular conversations about behavior change. Participants will reframe their frustration in the moment as an opportunity for insight that can inform and reshape their next steps in the conversation. Demonstrations, practice opportunities and feedback will be used to illustrate the practical application of this effective engagement/conversation strategy.