Recorded Training Events
Understanding and Working with LGBTQ Youth
This 1.5-hour training provided by the Lexington Pride Center serves as a guide to understanding LGBTQ youth and the obstacles they face to acceptance and teaches you how to serve as an affirming and compassionate advocate for LGBTQ youths’ needs.
View the slides for this training directly here.
Download accompanying materials for this training here: Vocabulary and Notes | Trans Pamphlet | Gender Unicorn | Genderbread Man | LGBTQ Language | Terms to Avoid | LGBTQ Resources | Lexington Transgender Resources | LGBTQ Mental Health Provider List
This training was made possible by a 2021 grant from JustFundKY's Cliff Todd Endowment Fund.
Trauma-Informed Care with The Ridge
This one-hour training provided by The Ridge Behavioral Center covers the effects of trauma and ways to provide trauma-informed care. It is worth 1 CEU credit for CASA of Lexington volunteers. You can email training@casaoflexington.org for copies of the Powerpoints from this training.
IEPs, 504s and Looking Into Special Education
CASA staff member and former teacher Liz Matherly and School Psychologist and Instructional Resources Consultant Cindy Matherly discuss the acronyms, processes and services that make up the special education system. This training will provide an overview of the difference between RTI, 504s and IEPs and what to expect at an ARC. This recorded continuing education training is worth 1.75 CEUs for CASA of Lexington volunteers.
LifeSet: A Resource for Youth Aging Out
Recorded Training
This 1-hour training walks you through the services offered by LifeSet for foster youth getting ready to age out of the system. It is especially useful for CASA volunteers assigned to older children.
Chair Yoga Self-Care
Recorded Training Event
In this virtual chair yoga session, CASA of Lexington Volunteer Manager Gudrun Allen spends an hour guiding you through a specific form of yoga practiced sitting on a chair or standing using a chair for support. The poses are often adaptations of asanas in modern yoga as exercise. The training starts with a check in on how we are feeling, followed by gentle movement warming, stretching and strengthening our bodies, and finishing up with a relaxation segment.
Juvenile Justice 101
Recorded Training Event
This virtual training led by Vicki Reed covers everything you ever wanted to know about juvenile justice but were afraid to ask.
Do you know the difference between an adjudication and a conviction? What the laws are about taking a youth into custody? What happens to youth in Kentucky who are committed to the Department of Juvenile Justice?
This training explores Kentucky’s juvenile laws, the philosophy behind Juvenile Court proceedings, as well as national and state trends related to the care and custody of youth. Particular attention is given to “cross over” or “dual status” youth who are involved with both the child welfare and juvenile justice system.
CASA Book Club: The Car Thief
Recorded Training Event
CASA of Lexington’s September 2021 continuing education was a book club discussion and training with Vicki Reed, author of the acclaimed novel, The Car Thief.
In addition to a discussion of “The Car Thief” with Vicki, she shares her program, Lessons From The Car Thief, which highlights some of the educational aspects of her book, including tips on interviewing children and youth, trauma-informed care, the importance of relationships, how children become “dual status” youth involved with both child welfare and juvenile justice, why children should be in families instead of congregate care, and the role of empathy and hope in helping children overcome troubled backgrounds and thrive.
Reading and Receiving CEU Credit
CASA of Lexington has several copies of The Car Thief available to loan to CASA volunteers from our library. Copies of the book are also available from the public libraries in Fayette, Bourbon, Woodford, Scott and Jessamine counties. You can purchase your own copy of The Car Thief from Amazon or nobadkid.com.
Time spent reading The Car Thief counts for CEU credits, as does watching this recorded training. Only four hours of reading maximum can count toward your annual requirement of 12 hours.
About Vicki Reed
Vicki Reed lives in Lexington and has combined her passion for horses, nature, and kids in trouble to create her debut novel The Car Thief. With a degree in law enforcement, a master's in criminal justice, and decades spent working in the juvenile justice field, she is able to take readers behind the closed doors of a system the public seldom sees.
How to Succeed as a CASA Volunteer in an Imperfect Court System
Recorded Training Event
Many times the legal system takes our kids’ cases in directions that immensely frustrate us as CASA volunteers. We know that they are not in the children’s “best interest” by any means. But the overburdened social work system, or the legal and constitutional framework of the court system may compel results that we discussed in CASA PreService Training as “mimimal sufficient level of care,” rather than ideal outcomes.
In this continuing education training, we discuss how to remain motivated when these “sharp right turns” or even “about faces” happen; how to sharpen our advocacy by focusing on resilience and resources for our kiddos regardless of where they may be placed; and how to celebrate those important, life-changing victories we play a role in achieving even where a perfect outcome at case closure might remain elusive.
Only current CASA volunteers can watch this 2-and-a-half-hour training; it is available to watch in-person at the CASA of Lexington office. Please email info@casaoflexington.org if you would like to schedule a time to watch it.
Using Your Therapeutic Communication Toolbox
Recorded Training Event
This one-hour training teaches you about the benefits of therapeutic communication. It is led by Allie Barnett, Executive Director of Justin's Place, a therapeutic farm serving children with diagnoses of Down Syndrome and autism.
Therapeutic communication is an excellent tool for individuals in every environment. It can help CASA volunteers diffuse challenging situations, comfort people in distress or build new trust with the children you serve.
Barnett will help participants unpack a therapeutic communication tool box and come away with tools for effective communication with all types of people.
About the Trainer
Allie Barnett is the Executive Director of Justin’s Place, a therapeutic farm serving children with a diagnosis of Down Syndrome and Autism. She is a therapeutic certified foster parent, PATH certified Riding Instructor, and Registered Nurse. She loves learning alongside others to create more inclusive, therapeutic learning environments for children.
ACEs Across the Lifespan
RECORDED TRAINING EVENT
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and household challenges stemming from child abuse and neglect can result in poor health outcomes and decreased well-being across the life span. This training explores the kinds of adverse experiences that can culminate in changes to the structure and function of a child’s brain, which may influence negative health outcomes across the lifespan. The training offers approaches for the prevention of ACEs, and discuss resilience and protective factors.
About the presenter
Jenny Jones is a faculty member at Bluegrass Community & Technical College where she currently serves as an Assistant Dean. She has an earned Ph.D. from Capella University and teaches in the psychology and human services departments. In December 2020, she completed CASA volunteer training in Madison County, Kentucky.
Advocating for Children With Sensory Processing Disorders
RECORDED TRAINING EVENT
The training led by Rebecca Duvall Scott and Hannah Ragan includes:
Discussion of what sensory processing disorder is and the ways it presents in children
How SPD may present differently based on other factors including addiction, attachment disorder, post-traumatic stress and parentified children
Ideas about how to accommodate sensory needs and the importance of advocating for evaluation by an occupational therapist
The presenter's will also discuss their book, "Sensational Kids, Sensational Families: Hope for Sensory Processing Differences" and explain why they are helping to raise awareness about SPD. The training will conclude with an open discussion session, when participants can ask questions and drive the discussion.
This training is worth two hours of continuing education credit for CASA of Lexington volunteers.
Rebecca Duvall Scott is an accomplished writer and the proud recipient of numerous awards throughout her educational career at local, county and state levels. She was awarded the Horrigan's Scholarship at Bellarmine University, where she graduated with a Bachelor's in English. She considered herself a fiction writer, but when her son was diagnosed with sensory processing disorder and she began to blog about her ever-evolving research and his treatment plan, a love for helping others through her non-fiction writing was ignited.
Hannah Ragan, MS, OTR/L graduated from Spalding University with a Master's degree in Occupational Therapy. She has worked at the Kids Center in Louisville, Kentucky, for more than 10 years, contributing her expertise within the public school system, outpatient transitional rehabilitation and early intervention home health services. Hannah routinely performs evaluation and treatment of neurological and orthopedic patients with a variety of diagnoses including but not limited to cerebral palsy, spina bifida, brachial plexus injuries, central nervous system dysfunction, sensory and regulatory disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, learning disorder, pervasive developmental disorder, developmental delay, oppositional defiant disorder, autism spectrum disorders, Norrie disease, Sotos syndrome, Down syndrome, cerebrovascular accident, brain injury and Prader-Willi syndrome.
Understanding Pregnancy and Substance Misuse
Recorded Training Event
Babies born to mothers struggling with addiction is an unfortunate reality in today's world. As a CASA volunteer, you may be appointed to a case involving a child who was born to a mother with a substance use disorder; or a parent on your existing case might get pregnant while still using drugs.
"Understanding Drug Misuse and Pregnancy" is a continuing education CASA of Lexington provided in January 2021 to help you better understand these situations as you write your reports and recommendations.
Ashley Metzger with BrightView Health addresses common pregnancy diagnoses, misconceptions about prenatal care, monitoring options during the delivery process, safety plans for infants and treatment options for things such as postpartum depression, among many other topics.
Accompanying materials (3): PURPLE info, Finnegan scoring tool, Powerpoint presentation
Understanding the Court Process
Recorded training event
This virtual volunteer training was held by CASA of Lexington on May 14, 2020, and featured Joe Schuler and Tiffany Yahr with the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. It summarizes many steps of the court process from an initial petition through return to parents, placement with family members or possible termination of parental rights and adoption.
Watching this recording is worth 2 continuing education hours.
Caring For Children Who Have Suffered Sexual Abuse
Recorded training event
This virtual volunteer training was held by CASA of Lexington on June 25, 2020, and featured Dr. Jacqueline Sugarman and forensic interviewer Kristin Jenkins. It provides an overview of the Children’s Advocacy Center of the Bluegrass, the process of forensic interviews of children when there are allegations of sexual abuse, the importance of case history in substantiating claims of sexual abuse, and myths about what findings from physical exams.
Watching this recording is worth 2 continuing education hours. If you would like to watch this training, please email office@casaoflexington.org for access.
Caring for Kids Who Have Suffered Physical Abuse
Recorded Training Event
Dr. Christina Howard, MD, FAAP, a Child Fatality and Injury Prevention Pediatric Consultant and Child Abuse Pediatrician, explains how signs of physical abuse present themselves, how bruising and injuries differ between accidents and abuse and how doctors work with children who may have suffered abuse.
Watching this recording is worth 2 continuing education hours. If you would like to watch this training, please email office@casaoflexington.org for access. Please complete our review form here after watching in order to receive credit.
Risk Factors for and Signs of Pediatric Abuse
Recorded Training Event
Kentucky leads the nation in cases of child maltreatment. This educational session covers the prevalence of, risk factors for and types of maltreatment, as well as cultural considerations. There is also discussion of signs and symptoms of abuse to help CASA volunteers identify problems. This training was led by Mary Wethington, MSN, RN, CEN, CPEN. It is worth 1 continuing education hour.