AASR Live

Interested in learning how to advocate for federal legislation prohibiting the use of restraint and seclusion in schools? Join us for a virtual training by two experts in federal advocacy on how to engage in this advocacy on Capitol Hill. All skill levels are welcome! As a Partner at Stride Policy Solutions, Laura Kaloi provides strategic policy, advocacy, partnership-building, and communications...

Join us for “Protect the Children Project: An interview with Eliphaz Costus of The Satanic Temple.” Eliphaz Costus is the Campaign Director of The Satanic Temple's Protect Children Project, working to protect all TST members in public schools from abusive punishments that violate their religious rights. He began his work with The Satanic Temple in 2021, when he organized the Bladensburg Satan...

Join us for “Balance Auditory Exercises; Patterned, repetitive, Rhythmic Movement for Everyone” with Meagan Baldwin. Meagan is a Bal-A-Vis-X practitioner/trainer, a fierce advocate for her child with a disability, and an educator with 26 years of experience as a public educator in general and special education. Bal-A-Vis-X stands for Balance, Auditory, Vision, and eXercises. The program consists o...

Join us for “Child-Teacher Relationship Training: Seven Skills for Building Meaningful Relationships” with Dr. Claire Cronin. Dr. Claire Cronin is a licensed mental health counselor passionate about supporting resilient communities and training front-line care professionals on trauma-informed care approaches. Her first exposure to restraint and seclusion was while embedded in a public school for c...

Join us for “Restraint and Seclusion in California Schools: Findings and Recommendations from the 2021-22 School Year Data” with Robert Borrelle Robert Borrelle is a Supervising Attorney at Disability Rights California, California’s federally designated Protection & Advocacy Agency. He is part of DRC’s Investigations Unit, where he specializes in abuse and neglect investigations in facilities...

Closing the gap - Why cultural safety matters in promoting mental health, equity, inclusion, and resilient minds in education settings? - Unpacking culturally responsive teaching and trauma-informed care. Balaji Somasundaram and Meera Balaji – We are husband and wife and were lawyers for 20 years in India in our past lives with a focus on children’s rights and family law. Currently, we are registe...

Reducing Seclusion and Restraint for Autistic Students: Using CPS with Nonspeaking and Echolalic Communicators with Stephanie Izzi and Sarah Hamel Stephanie Izzi (she/they) is co-founder and Executive Director of Autism Included. An autistic adult herself, Stephanie uses her unique insight into neurodivergent communication and learning to support inclusion for autistic students. Stephanie works as...

Join us for “One Rule Improv: A Trauma-informed Approach for Classrooms and Beyond” with Mary DeMichele. Mary is the creator of One Rule Improv, a research-based and trauma-informed approach to learning, teaching, and applying improv. Used in a variety of settings, including classrooms, trauma-informed schools, residential treatment centers, and homes, teachers, clinicians, and parents are consist...

Please join us for An interview with Cheryl Poe: Black Collective Advocacy Network Conference. Event Title: Black Collective Advocacy Network Conference Uplifting Black Families in the Disability Community. For Us By Us About Us Date and time: August 11, 2023 -August 13, 2023 August 11, 12-6:00 pm August 12, 2023, 8:30-6:00 August 13, 2023, 9:00 -12:00 Location: Virtual Event Event Description: Th...

Join us for “A Candid Conversation with Dr. Lori Desautels about Restraint and Seclusion from a Neuroscience Perspective.” Dr. Lori Desautels, has been an Assistant Professor at Butler University since 2016, where she teaches both undergraduate and graduate programs in the College of Education. She was also an Assistant Professor at Marian University in Indianapolis for 8 years, where she founded...

Join us for Trauma & its impact on individuals with neurodevelopmental differences with Jennifer Abbanat. Jennifer says: I am a wife and a mom to three neurodivergent kids (ages 20,18, and 15), each with their own unique needs and challenges. Two of my kids are autistic and two of my kids have Tourette’s Syndrome. All three have also had medical complexities, with my two youngest needing ongoi...

Please join us for "Welcoming Neurodivergence: Utilizing Picture Books to Support Acceptance & Belonging" with Connie Persike, M.S., CCC/SLP. Connie Persike, M.S., CCC/SLP, is a highly experienced Speech Language Pathologist and Educational Consultant. She has 20+ years of experience in educational settings and holds a certificate in instructional coaching, positive education, and ap...

Join us for "Putting out the fire: Dissecting and dismantling the dynamics of restraint and seclusion." with Dr. Arielle Silverman. Arielle is a disabled activist and a social scientist who is passionate about improving public understanding of life with disabilities. Professionally, she has spent fifteen years conducting research on the social psychology of disability. Personally, she ha...

Join us for "Creating Safe, Secure, Trauma-informed Environments: An Interview with Dr. Sandra L. Bloom." Dr. Sandra L. Bloom is a Board-Certified psychiatrist, a Temple University School of Medicine graduate, and currently Associate Professor, Health Management and Policy at the Dornsife School of Public Health, Drexel University. For the past forty years, Dr. Bloom has done pioneering...

Please join us for “Solutions to end the school-to-prison pipeline an interview with Leonard Webb” Mr. Webb retired from law enforcement to focus on improving the education outcomes of students and improving relationships between administration, teachers, parents, and students. He is focused on directly addressing the school-to-prison pipeline by providing equity-based solutions, bringing accounta...

An interview with Polina Shkadron, a trauma-informed speech-language pathologist, discussing the impact of stress. Polina Shkadron is a trauma-informed speech-language pathologist with specialties in the areas of autism, ADHD, language, and literacy. She earned her Master of Art degree in speech-language pathology from CUNY Queens College where she held the position of Adjunct Lecturer for the pas...

HELPme: Join us for an interview with Kerrie Ackerson the creator of an app to help students, staff, & families. Now more than ever, students and staff need a comprehensive safety and wellness program that includes a pathway to anonymously connect with assigned helpers i.e. (Family Engagement Coordinators, School Counselors, Social Workers, School Nurses, and others). The pandemic has affected...

Special Educator Karen Bures will share how she was able to reduce and eliminate the use of restraint and seclusion in her classroom. Karen Bures is a special education teacher working with students who may display intense behaviors in Bend, Oregon. Karen started her career working in residential treatment care, transitioned into child welfare through the state, and then took a hiatus to be a stay...

Join us for a special interview with Jordyn Zimmerman. Jordyn will share her lived experiences as a nonspeaking autistic student who was denied effective communication and inclusive education. We will discuss Jordyn's experiences with school, as well as her experience with restraint and seclusion. We'll talk about augmented alternative communication (AAC) and how AAC impacted her life. J...

Join us for “An interview with Brian Dalla Mura: A special educator’s journey to reduce and eliminate restraint and seclusion.” Brian is a special education teacher in Vermont. He holds a master’s degree in special education from Arizona State University. He has experience teaching students with emotional disabilities in kindergarten through high school. Brian began advocating for stronger and saf...

An Interview with Robert and Ryan Delena about their book “Without Restraint: How Skiing Saved My Son’s Life.” As a child, Ryan DeLena had difficulty controlling his emotions and he was placed in therapeutic schools that relied on detrimental methods of behavior modification such as physical restraint. Nothing helped from a team of doctors to heavy medication. Then in 2010, Ryan was voluntarily co...

A discussion with Mr. Chazz Mr. Chazz about how we can see, guide, and trust children Chazz Lewis' mission is to help adults truly see, guide, and trust children. He is pushing the needle a little closer toward world peace with his approach. He is an Educational Specialist, Parent Coach, Conscious Discipline Practitioner, and Content Creator. He goes by, “Mr. Chazz” and he even has a song to...

Join us for a special discussion with McAlister Greiner Huynh the educator also known as The Neurodivergent Teacher. McAlister Greiner Huynh is a National Board Certified special educator, behavior support specialist, consultant, and international speaker who calls North Carolina, USA home. She has been working with and learning from Neurodivergent individuals professionally for twelve years, stea...

Discipline for Learning Not Shaming with Jodi Place. Jodi Place has served as a public educator for over 25 years. Prior to becoming a school administrator, she was a Nationally Board-Certified English teacher. As an administrator, she has experience leading in traditional high school and middle school settings as well as alternative education. She holds her Applied Educational Neuroscience certif...

5 Tips to Assist in the Emotional Regulation of Humans: Trauma-Informed Lessons Learned from a Therapist a presentation from Stacy G. York Nation, LCSW. Stacy has worked with families for over 20 years. Her passion is working with the "tough" humans, including adopted families and veterans. With intensive training in trauma-informed practices, Stacy excels at providing real-life, applica...