July/August 2007

CCF Conference to Focus on "Bringing It Back Home"

The 2007 Children Come First Conference will be held at the Chula Vista Resort on October 18 and 19. This year's conference--whose theme is "Bringing it Back Home"--will have a slightly different structure. Workshop sessions will be longer, and the conference will feature in-depth plenary sessions for both parents and services providers. Professionals who work with children with emotional and behavioral disorders and parents of those children will come together to learn creative ways to strengthen families, advocate for children and families, and become community leaders for the support and treatment of children with complex needs. The Children Come First Conference offers sessions for parents and service providers at different levels of experience.

Keynote speakers at this year's conference are:

Mark Reinecke, PhD, ABPP, ACT, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Chief, Division of Psychology.
Reinecke will speak to professionals about research and treatment strategies of cognitive behavioral therapy for youth. Reinecke's plenary will focus on the topic of childhood depression as an important societal problem and the root concern for seriously at-risk youth. Depression places children at risk for academic and social problems, alcohol and substance abuse, recurrent depression during adulthood, and suicide. Reinecke will explore recent advances in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy with youth. The session will also discuss modular treatment strategies and review recent outcome research and treatment guidelines.

Conni Wells, Owner, Axis Group, LLC and Former Executive Director, Florida Institute for Family Involvement.
Wells will work with parents and families to help build their capacity to meet their family and children's needs in a system that is often intimidating, fragmented and difficult to navigate. Participants will fine-tune their communication and advocacy skills to better serve as partners with others to ensure that services are responsive to the needs of their families and others like them. Wells will facilitate a highly interactive session of networking, problem solving and targeting activities that will reinforce new approaches and ideas that can improve outcomes for families and their children.

To find out more about the Children Come First Conference or to register online, or to nominate a special child, or a team or parent who works with children with complex needs, for an award, please visit http://www.wccf.org/event_ccf2007.php.