January 14, 2025 @ 8:15 am – 2:30 pm
In person registration is closed. Virtual registration closes on January 13, 2025 at 11:59 pm.
Registration: 8:15 – 8:45 am
Conference: 8:45 am – 2:30 pm
Attend In Person or Via Zoom
Assabet Valley Regional Vocational Technical School
215 Fitchburg St.
Marlborough, MA 01752
To receive PDPs, participants must attend this conference and the conference, Youth Mental Health and Social Media: Understanding the Challenges and Opportunities, on January 28, 2025. Members can participate in-person, virtually or by viewing the recording. Following the live conference, registrants will be emailed a link to view the recorded conference. The recording will be made available for 10 days after the conference.
Speakers
Description
The drug overdose crisis is a clear and present public safety, public health, and national security threat. Adolescent substance use is at its lowest point in decades, yet the number of overdoses has increased significantly. This dynamic conference will highlight the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) campaign, One Pill Can Kill, to educate youth on the dangers of Fentanyl and other illicit substances.
Participants will learn the increased danger of today’s drugs, best practices for educating students and new evidence-based individualized addiction treatment approaches. A behavioral psychopharmacologist will discuss how drugs are used alone and in combination, the novel route of administration, such as vaping, and the appearance of very potent and lethal synthetic opioids like fentanyl and its cousins. Finally, a health educator will examine the current trends in adolescent recreational intoxication, focusing on how drugs like alcohol, nicotine, marijuana, cocaine, and fentanyl are impacting today’s youth. Speakers will also discuss the intersection between mental/behavioral health and the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s Comprehensive Health and Physical Education Frameworks.
About the Speakers
Scott E. Lukas, Ph.D., (he/him) joined McLean Hospital in 1984 and is currently the Director of the McLean Imaging Center, the Behavioral Psychopharmacology Research Laboratory, and the McLean Sleep Diagnostic and Treatment Laboratory. He is Professor of Psychiatry (Pharmacology) at Harvard Medical School and has 42 years of experience conducting both preclinical and human laboratory studies as well as randomized clinical trials of drugs for alcohol abuse, sleep disorders, and psychiatric disorders. He has served two terms on the Board of Directors of the College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD) and served as president from 2011-2012. He also chaired the CPDD Program Committee for 5 years, Chaired NIDA-K Study Section for 10 years and was Chair of the McLean Hospital Institutional Review Board for 4 years. He has mentored 26 NIH K Awardees and 24 postdoctoral fellows and has received numerous awards including the CPDD Mentorship Award, the Stuart Hauser Mentorship Award from Harvard Medical School, both the Ann Cataldo Mentorship and Jack H. Mendelson Research Awards from McLean Hospital and the Petra T. Shattuck Excellence in Teaching Award from Harvard University where he has been teaching a course at Harvard University entitled Psychopharmacology—Your Brain on Drugs Psychology since 1996.
Brian O’Keefe, MSCJA, (he/him) is an innovative professional with almost thirty years of leadership experience in both law enforcement and the nonprofit sector within New England. Currently serving as the first full-time Community Outreach Specialist for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) since 2021. In this role, he has been a passionate advocate for drug prevention playing a crucial role in developing partnerships with federal, state, and local stakeholders to support the DEA’s Operation Engage. His responsibilities include coordinating community outreach initiatives, managing programs such as the DEA Educational Foundation Dance Drug Prevention Initiative, and organizing the Annual Red Ribbon and Family Summit Events. He also maintains a strong social media presence to support the DEA’s mission and effectively communicate essential public safety information. Prior to his current role, Mr. O’Keefe dedicated 25 years to the Manchester Police Department (MPD), where he retired as a Captain in charge of the Community Police Division in 2021. Mr. O’Keefe holds a Master of Science in Criminal Justice Administration from Western New England University (2000) and a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell (1996). He has also completed executive training, including the FBI LEEDA Media and Public Relations course in 2018 and the FBI Crisis Negotiator Course in 2007.
Shanyn Toulouse, DNP, M.Ed., R.N., NCSN, (she/her) has been a practicing Registered Nurse since 1995. Shanyn is passionate about the unique role of School Nurses bridging healthcare and educational stability for all students. In her current role as the Northeast Regional School Nurse Consultant, Shanyn provides support, training, technical assistance, and consultation for all public, charter, non-public, collaborative, and other school districts in Northeast Massachusetts. Shanyn currently serves on the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) Safe and Supportive Schools Commission representing the Massachusetts School Nurse Organization (MSNO) and has been appointed to serve on the National Association of School Nurses Board of Directors. She serves on the National Center for Children’s Vision and Eye Health Advisory Committee at Prevent Blindness and was recently appointed to the Advisory Board at the University of Oregon’s HEDCO Institute for Evidence-Based Educational Practices.
Greg West, M.Ed., (he/him) is a retired Health Education teacher of 30+ years. He has designed and implemented middle and high school Comprehensive Health Education programs as well as courses in emergency medicine. He now presents topics of adolescent health and wellness to high school students as well as offering programs for parents and school personnel through WEPS Education (www.wepsEducation.com).
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. The PDP quiz will be made available only to participants who have registered for and attended both conferences.
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.
- Enrollment in this course closed on 01/14/2025.
Registration: 8:15 – 8:45 am
Conference: 8:45 am – 2:30 pm