Massachusetts Children's Alliance is pleased to announce our 9th annual statewide conference Healing, Hope and Justice: An Advanced Conversation Join us for a full day of learning, professional development, and networking for professionals working with child victims of abuse and exploitation, including those in child advocacy, law enforcement, child forensic interviewing, social work, prosecution, child protective services, victim advocacy, medical providers, mental health, probation, and more!

Featuring keynote speaker, Sasha Joseph Neulinger, Founder & President of Voice for the Kids, and Co-Founder & Head of Production at Step 1 Films. Sasha has worked behind the scenes on National Geographic's award winning series, "America, The Wild" and has produced, directed, and edited films for corporate and non-profit clients nationally. His feature length, autobiographical documentary, "Rewind," is set to have its world premiere at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival. Sasha travels nationally as a public speaker, advocating for reforms in child advocacy and child abuse prevention. In 2015, Sasha presented at TEDxBozeman; his TED Talk, "Trauma Is Irreversible. How It Shapes Us Is Our Choice," has been viewed over 230,000 times, reaching survivors internationally. Sasha was Keynote Speaker at the 28th Annual Crimes Against Children Conference and Plenary Speaker at the 2018 National Children's Alliance Leadership Conference. To learn more, visit Sasha at www.voiceforthekids.com.

 Also featuring plenary speaker, Jenn Abelson, investigative reporter for   The Washington Post and co-author of the memoir, "I Have the Right To:   A High School Survivor's Story of Sexual Assault, Justice, and Hope," by   Chessy Prout. In 2014, Chessy was a freshman at St. Paul's School, a   prestigious boarding school in New Hampshire, when a senior boy   sexually assaulted her as part of a ritualized game of conquest. Chessy   broke her silence in 2016 to help other survivors know they are not alone   and they have the right to have their voices heard.

The full-day will also feature the following workshops. For the full agenda, session descriptions, and presenter bios, click the links below!

• Core DEC Awareness: Identifying Drug Endangered Children - A Collaborative Approach, w/ Eric Nation & Stacee Read, MSW, National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children
• Turn Up the Beat: The Use of Music in TF-CBT, w/ Jessica Griffin, Psy.D., UMASS Medical School & Jessica Wozniak, Psy.D., Baystate Family Advocacy Center
• Understanding the Neurobiology of Acute Traumatic Events: From the Brain to Behavior, w/ Hilary Hodgdon, Ph.D., The Trauma Center 
• It's Elementary: Legal Options for Sexual Assault Survivors in Primary and Secondary School, w/ Katrina Eberly, JD & Eleni Kalmoukos, JD, Victim Rights Law Center
• Collecting Minimal Facts, w/ Anthony DeVincenzo, MA, Northeast Regional CAC
• The DEC Approach: Moving From Awareness To Action, w/ Eric Nation & Stacee Read, MSW, National Alliance for Drug Endangered Children
• Children's Advocacy Center Response to Children with Problematic Sexual Behaviors - New York's Perspective, w/ Renee Roman, MSW, START Children's Center CAC
• So You Can Identify a Victim of Commercial Sexual Exploitation, Now What? How Your Multidisciplinary Team Can Effectively Engage with Youth Who Are Being Exploited, w/ Rachel Niemiec, MSN, FNP-BC, Nicole Richardi, LCSW, & Amanda Fowle, JD
• Multidisciplinary Team (MDT) Considerations for Children in Foster Care, w/ Heather Forkey, MD, RoAnn Vecchia, LSWA, Charity Bell, MPA, Jessica Berry, JD, MSW, & Courtney Sans, JD
• Complex Trauma in Children: Influence on the Brain, Body, and Behavior, w/ Hilary Hodgdon, Ph.D., The Trauma Center

Registration fees are as follows:

• Early Bird Rate (before March 31st): $150 per person
• Registration (after March 31st): $175 per person
• Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for Social Work, Licensed Mental Health Counselors (LMHC), and Nursing are available for an additional $25 per person

This program has been approved for 5 Social Work Continuing Education hours for relicensure, in accordance with 258 CMR. Collaborative of NASW and the Boston College and Simmons Schools of Social Work (Authorization Number: D 80632).

This program has been approved for 5.25 Category 1 MaMHCA hours (LMHC) for re-licensure, in accordance with 262 CMR (Authorization Number: 19-0359).

This cointinuing nursing education activity was approved for 5.25 contact hours by the Northeast Multistate Division, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center's Commission on Accreditation (Program Approval Code Number: 531-117-050119).

Conference room block is open: Rooms are available at the Sheraton Framingham Hotel for the night of May 6th, at the special rate of $144 per night (plus tax). Click here to book your room online at the special rate. Last day to book is April 7th. 

Questions? Contact: Gina Hargrave-Amodio * 617.573.9800 * gamodio@machildrensalliance.org