Southeast Department of Mental Health Conference

Supportive Conversations for Better Transitions: A Collaborative

Approach for Transitional Age Youth and Families

Thursday March 19, 2015 ~ 8:30 a.m. 4:15 p.m.

The Shaws Conference Center, Brockton, MA
Conference Schedule
Registration & Continental Breakfast
8:30 a.m. 9:00 a.m.
Welcome & Opening Remarks, Buddy Baker-Smith,
Massachusetts DMH
9:00 a.m. 9:15 a.m.
Keynote Address Supporting Transition Age Youth

with Mental Health Concerns through Understanding

and Collaboration, Sloan Smith Huckabee
9:15 a.m. 9:45 a.m.

Panel Adult Providers

9:45 a.m. 10:45 a.m.
Sloan Smith Huckabee,
Keynote Speaker

Registration deadline:
Friday, February 27, 2015

Break
10:45 a.m. 11:00 a.m.
Morning Round Table Discussions
11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.
Lunch
12:00 p.m. 12:45 p.m.
Panel Parents of Transitional Age Youth
12:45 p.m. 1:45 p.m.
Panel Field Specialists
1:45 p.m.-2:45 p.m.
Break
2:45 p.m. 3:00 p.m.
Afternoon Round Table Discussions
3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
Closing Remarks & Next Steps
4:00 p.m.-4:15 p.m.

WELCOME & OPENING REMARKS

9:00 a.m.-9:15 a.m.

Howard (Buddy) Baker-Smith is the Southeast Area Director for the Massachusetts Department of

Mental Health. Buddy has extensive background and tenure in delivering mental health services in the
Southeast area. He had served as Director of Community Services and before that as the Southeast Area
Housing Coordinator and has been an integral member of the Southeast management team since joining the
Department in 1988. He holds a Masters degree in Planning from MIT and an undergraduate degree from
Boston University in Urban Studies and Economics.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS Supporting Transition Age Youth with Mental

Health Concerns through Understanding and Collaboration
9:15 a.m.-9:45 a.m.

This address will briefly describe challenges and considerations for transition age youth with mental health
needs. Relevant research on promising practices for supporting these youth and their families will be
reviewed. The challenges of providing support to Transition Age Youth and their families will be discussed
including: engagement (of the youth and those who provide support to them); meeting the unique needs of
this population; consideration of the laws and policies governing service provision and communication with
and about this population. Involvement of family members will be shared from a parents perspective. This
address will also be informed by youth voice.

Sloan Smith Huckabee is a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Boston University Center for Psychiatric

Rehabilitation and Center for Learning and Working During the Transition to Adulthood. Sloan is a
certified teacher and has nine years of experience teaching general (high achieving through at-risk) and
special education students in various secondary settings. She has been involved for five years in research
pertaining to special education and transition age youth with mental health disorders. Sloan has presented
numerous lectures and presentations and has co-authored journal articles. She is also the parent of a
transition age youth with a serious mental health diagnosis.

PANEL
Adult Providers
9:45 a.m.-10:45 a.m.
MODERATOR: James Fay, LCSW, CBFS Team Director, Department of Mental Health
PANELISTS:

Shanon Knight, LMHC, Case Management Supervisor, DMH Brockton Multi Service Center
Rachel Gunderson, LSW, Director, CBFS, BAMSI
Caroline Shearer, LMHC, CBFS Clinician, DMH Brockton Multi Service Center
Participants will hear from a panel of staff from the adult service delivery system on a variety of program
types, including CBFS, PACT, Case Management, Emergency Services and Crisis Intervention. Participants
will also learn about some of the differences between adult and child services, as well as resource availability.
Panelists will share barriers and solutions to effective transition including service recipient engagement.

MORNING ROUND TABLE DISCUSSIONS

11:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

MODERATOR: Teresa Belsan, LMHC, Director of Mental Health Services, BAMSI

Participants will engage in a discussion with a vignette developed on a fictional client and family to highlight
needs and challenges with this target. The discussion will solicit input from a variety of perspectives to help
identify areas of strength to build onand need areas for continued system development.

PANEL

Parents of Transitional Age Youth

12:45 p.m.-1:45 p.m.
MODERATOR:
Tresa Salters, Parents of Transitional Age Youth Coordinator, Parent Information Network (PIN), BAMSI
Participants will hear from a panel of parents of transitional age youth who have personally experienced
working with the DMH service system. Each parent will share his/her unique story, successes and
challenges working within the system.

PANEL

Field Specialists
1:45 p.m.-2:45 p.m.
MODERATOR: Julia Meehan, LICSW, Director of Child/Adolescent Services, Department of Mental
Health, Southeast Area
PANELISTS:

Jeffrey Isaacson, Assistant General Counsel, DMH

Bonny Saulnier, Consultant, DMH, STAY Together Grant
Kate Cronin, LCSW, Senior Intensive Care Coordinator, Childrens Friend and Family Services, Lawrence
CSA

The Field Specialists Panel will outline both the legal issues regarding transitional age youth and a best
practice engagement model for working with young adults. Attorney Jeffrey Isaacson, an Assistant General
Counsel with 30 years of experience with the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health will speak on the
topics of Consent, Guardianship, Advanced Directives, Health Care Proxies and the Durable Powers of
Attorney and how they relate to working with youth age 18 and over. Bonny Saulnier, a consultant on the
STAY Together Grant for the Department of Mental Health and Kate Cronin, LCSW, a Senior Intensive
Care Coordinator with Childrens Friend and Family Services will speak about the STAY Together Grant,
the developmental needs of transitional age youth and the Achieve My Plan (AMP) approach to Wraparound for young adults. Conference attendees will have the opportunity to ask panelists questions related
to their presentations in the last portion of the panel discussion.

AFTERNOON ROUND TABLE DISCUSSIONS

3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

MODERATOR:
Teresa Belsan, LMHC, Director of Mental Health Services, BAMSI
Participants will engage in a discussion about the challenges and strengths discovered throughout the day
and will collaboratively identify solutions to improving the transition of young adults and optimizing family
engagement to improve outcomes.

CLOSING REMARKS
4:00 p.m.-4:15 p.m.

Richard Jobin, LICSW, Department of Mental Health Site Director, Brockton Multi-Service Center
Julia Meehan, LICSW, Director of Child/Adolescent Services, Department of Mental Health, Southeast
Area

THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!

Massachusetts Southeast Department of Mental Health,
in collaboration with BAMSI and BAMSIs Parent Information Network (PIN) program.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

DMH Brockton Area Case Management and Service Authorization Staff

DMH Southeast Area Child/Adolescent Staff
Parents/Guardians of transitional age youth
Transitional age youth
Brockton Area ESP/MCI Staff
Brockton Area CCS Staff
Brockton Area CBFS & PACT Program Staff
Brockton Area RLC Program Staff

REGISTRATION & GENERAL CONFERENCE INFORMATION

This conference is free of charge

Space is limited. Advance registration is required. Registration is available on-line at

http://goo.gl/8Y9OEC

You will receive confirmation by email once registration is accepted.

Walk-ins will NOT be accepted. Substitutions (from the same agency/program) will be allowed.

Meals will include vegetarian options.

Conference location is The Shaws Conference Center, 1 Feinberg Way,

Brockton, MA www.theshawscenter.com
Directions from the South
Route 95 North to Massachusetts. Take Exit 6A Route 495 South. Take Exit 7A to Rte. 24 North. Exit at
17A Route 123 East/Brockton. After Brockton High School bear right at 7-Eleven. After Fire Station take
first right onto Feinberg Way The Shaws Center is on the right.

Directions from the North

Take I-93 South. Take Rte-24 South exit towards Brockton, Exit 4. Merge on Rte.-24 South. Take Exit 17A
123 East to Brockton. Proceed .7 mi. go past Brockton High School bear right at 7-Eleven. Take first right
after fire station onto Feinberg Way. The Shaws Center is on your right

Directions from the West (I-90/MassPike)

I-90 East to Exit 14 I-95/128. Take I-95/128 South turns into I-93 at Exit 12. Follow I-93 bear right
onto Rte. 24 South. Take Exit 17A/123 East to Brockton. Proceed .7 mi. past Brockton High School bear
right at 7-Eleven. Take first right after fire station onto Feinberg Way. The Shaws Center is on your right.

Directions from the East (Plymouth/Hingham area)

Take Rte. 3 North. Take I-93/128 South to Dedham. Bear left taking Rte. 24 South to Brockton. Take Exit
17A/123 East to Brockton. Proceed .7 mi. past Brockton High School bear right at 7-Eleven. Take first
right after fire station onto Feinberg Way. The Shaws Center is on the right.

Registration deadline is February 27, 2015

Questions? Contact Sonia DAlarcao at 508-484-7119 or soniadalarcao@bamsi.org

Application for 5.5 MaMHCA/MMCEP and NASW CE credits has been submitted for Social Workers,
MH Counselors and Nurses.