Understanding and Supporting Students with School Avoidance (Series Begins Nov. 20, 2024) (Registration Closed) – The Massachusetts Partnerships for Youth, Inc.

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

REGISTRATION CLOSED

Speaker

Sheilah Gauch, LICSW, M.Ed.

Description

This webinar series will look at the rising crisis of school avoidance and the importance of a whole school and team based approach to helping students. We will identify supports and tools to help students return to school and understand how key stakeholders are essential. We will also explore the importance of innovation and thinking outside the box in an effort to gain more tools for our tool box to support these students.

To receive PDPs and CEUs, participants must attend all 5 sessions and successfully pass a quiz following Session 5. Following 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.

In this session, we will look at the rise of school avoidance and the importance of other systems of support. We will look at existing tools that we can use to support students – including evidence based practices that are essential for us to lean into.

Anxiety is at the root of school avoidance. In this session, we will review the basics of the neuroscience of anxiety, stress and trauma. We will explore why diagnostic clarity matters when supporting these students and identify tools to help them regulate their nervous system and begin to re-engage in school.

This session discusses what academic supports and approaches can be most helpful as student’s reengage in learning. A whole school approach is essential and we will discuss best practice tools for to reengage students in academics.

Caregivers are essential to supporting their children with school avoidance – they understand their children best and are their best advocates for care/treatment. This session will look at the stress this type of caregiving causes and how to best support caregivers, so they may in turn support their children.

When we are working with students with what appears to be treatment resistant school avoidance, we should always consider that we may have missed an underlying medical issue. In this session, you will learn about the signs and symptoms of immune mediated disorders, such as PANS/PANDAS, and understand how identifying potential missed cases can support schools during this crisis and allow students to regain health.

About the Speaker

Sheilah Gauch, LICSW, M.Ed., (she/her) holds a Masters in Educational Organizational Management and is licensed as a Principal, Special Education Administrator and School Adjustment Counselor through the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Sheilah has been working with children with significant mental health needs for over 20 years. She is currently the Principal of Dearborn Academy, a Chapter 766 Private Therapeutic Day School. Dearborn Academy serves students with significant social/emotional and learning challenges. She has supported the school in the creation of a robust academic and clinical milieu to support students with the highest level of need.

Sheilah began her career working with children, ages 5-18, in an outpatient treatment setting. She then moved to work as a clinician at a residential treatment program, where she stayed for close to ten years. From there, she moved to join a public school setting as a Special Education social worker. Here she supported students in sub-separate programming and went on to develop and oversee the district’s Tier 3 off-site transitional program.

Sheilah is an active advocate for PANS/PANDAS awareness. She co-founded the Massachusetts Coalition for PANS/PANDAS legislation. This group led the grassroots advocacy effort in Massachusetts that supported the passage of S2984, a health care bill that included both the creation of a PANS/PANDAS Advisory Council and a mandate that insurance companies must provide coverage for the disease.

Evaluation

SESSION 1 SLIDES

Participants must attend all 5 sessions, either live or recorded, to receive PDPs and/or CEUs. If you are not eligible for PDPs and/or CEUs, you may apply for a Certificate of Attendance.

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.

Enrollment in this course closed on 11/20/2024.

If you are seeking to receive CEUs and/or PDPs, please click Register Now. Once you complete the webinar series, you will be able to take quizzes for CEUs and/or PDPs. Upon completion of each quiz, you will receive a certificate.

All sessions are 3:00 pm – 5:00 pm.