Advanced Practices: Enriching Systems and Supporting Professional Growth (Series Begins Oct. 1, 2026)

For this webinar series, participants will automatically be enrolled in all 5 sessions.

Speaker

Melissa Pearrow, Ph.D., Executive Director, BIRCh Center, Professor of School Psychology, UMass Boston

Description

This five-session professional development series is designed for advanced school-based behavioral health (SBBH) providers ready to deepen their knowledge of community changes, partnership dynamics, interagency collaboration, and clinical and supervisory experiences. Sessions meet bi-weekly October through December, allowing time between workshops for reflection and application. Each session builds on the last – from knowing the dynamics of your changing community, to building partnerships, to strengthening teams, to rethinking how professionals are supported and evaluated.

Optional Follow Up Sessions

To enhance the learning experience, participants will also have the opportunity to attend optional follow-up sessions to ask questions and engage in discussion. Follow-up sessions will not be recorded. PDPs and/or CEUs will not be awarded for the optional live follow up sessions. All sessions are 9:30 – 10:30 am. 

  • Session 1: Follow-Up – October 8, 2026
  • Session 2: Follow-Up – October 22, 2026
  • Session 3: Follow-Up – November 5, 2026
  • Session 4: Follow-Up – November 19, 2026

To receive PDPs and CEUs, participants must attend all 5 sessions, either live or via the recording, and successfully pass a quiz following Session 5. Within 24 hours of the live webinar, registrants will be emailed a link to view the recorded webinar. The recording will be made available for 7 days after each session. If you are not eligible for PDPs and/or CEUs, you may apply for a Certificate of Attendance.

Effective school-based behavioral health practice begins with a thorough understanding of the dynamic community context. This session guides participants in gathering, analyzing, and organizing information about their district and its schools, including demographics, resource availability, and ecological factors that influence student wellbeing and access to care.

Students with intensive behavioral health needs require coordination across school and community systems. This session helps professionals map the full spectrum of student needs to available supports, identify barriers to accessing services, and establish structured, role-clarified partnerships with community organizations and outside providers.

High-functioning SBBH teams depend on clear roles, shared leadership, and strong collaborative norms. This session equips professionals with frameworks for effective team communication, data-driven decision-making, critical incident planning, and navigating the interpersonal challenges that arise in any team setting.

Many administrators responsible for evaluating SBBH professionals do not hold formal mental health training, often relying on observation or compliance indicators. This session focuses on how districts can design systems where professional growth, meaningful supervision, and accountability are embedded, making evaluation more purposeful and less burdensome for both administrators and clinicians.

In this culminating session, participants build a personalized professional growth plan that carries their learning beyond the series. Drawing on the skills and connections developed across all five sessions, participants identify training resources, establish peer accountability structures, and align their ongoing development with both personal goals and organizational priorities.

About the Speaker

Melissa Pearrow, Ph.D., (she/her) leads the Behavioral Health Integrated Resources for Children (BIRCh) Center, providing professional development and resources for schools and coordinating behavioral health supports across school and community agencies. She teaches graduate courses in legal, ethical, and professional practices and draws on a decade of experience as a special educator, school psychologist, and program coordinator. Her research on school-based mental health is informed by training in inpatient, outpatient, and community mental health, including her partnership with Boston Public Schools and Boston Children’s Hospital in the Comprehensive Behavioral Health Model.

Membership Information

Most MPY webinars are available ONLY to current staff from member districts and organizations. Public school memberships include police and fire personnel. Former and retired employees and members of committees, including but not limited to, PTO/PTA, PAC, School Improvement Councils, Health Councils, Drug/Alcohol Councils, and school volunteers, are not considered MPY members.

PDPs and CEUs

MPY is an approved Professional Development Provider through the Massachusetts Department of Elementary & Secondary Education (Provider No. F20180079). Professional Development Points (PDPs) are offered for most MPY professional development webinars. PDPs are issued in 10 hour increments, per DESE requirements.

Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available for clinical staff through the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) and the Massachusetts Mental Health Counselors Association, Inc. (MaMHCA). The NASW and the MaMHCA approve each event individually. CEUs may be given in hourly increments.

To receive PDPs and CEUs, participants must pass the quiz.

Event Cancellation Policy

If you are unable to attend a MPY webinar you must cancel, through Bonnie Mullen at bonnie@mpyinc.org, one business day before the webinar.

For MPY hybrid conferences, the date in-person registration closes will be posted on MPY’s website. Virtual conference registration will close one business day before the hybrid conference. You cannot cancel or switch your registration from in-person to virtual after in-person registration closes. Please email Bonnie Mullen at bonnie@mpyinc.org with any questions regarding registration.

 

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All sessions are 9:30 – 11:30 am

  • Session 1: October 1, 2026, Ecological Context and Its Impact on Service Delivery: Knowing Your Community
  • Session 2: October 15, 2026, School-Based Needs and Dynamic Community Partners
  • Session 3: October 29, 2026, Building Collaboration Within School Teams
  • Session 4: November 12, 2026, Advanced Professional Roles and Supervision
  • Session 5: December 3, 2026, Advancing Clinical Skills in the Educational Context