Current Trainings

Spring 2024 Course List 

Ethics Reboot: Social Work Practice Today

Friday, April 5th
9:00am-12:00PM
3.0 CE Hours
Format: In Person
Location: 2017 Cathedral of Learning, 4200 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15260

Please complete the information below to register for the continuing education workshop, Ethics Reboot: Social Work Practice Today" led by Ginny Vayda. The training will fulfill credits for those who have a social work license in the state of PA and New York.

Review fundamental ethical principles commonly applied to social work professional practice
Understand how ethical principles and standards respond to social change and the needs of the profession
Explore how traditional modes of ethical social work practice have shifted to newer versions

Ginny Vayda, LCSW, BCD has often been described as a social worker’s social worker because of her career long commitment to advancing the social work profession in the classroom, in the field, in the public arena and in the boardroom.  For many years she was an active leader of social work directors in healthcare serving in many elected state and national capacities.  Most recently she’s served as a subject matter expert and directed social work programs for our nation’s military service members and veterans.  Ginny is a well-known speaker and workshop presenter, locally, statewide and nationally.  She can also be found in the front of the classroom as a social work faculty member at several Pennsylvania universities. For the past 20 years Ginny has been the NASW trainer in Pennsylvania for the social work licensure preparatory class.

Click here to sign up: https://socialworkcontinuined.wufoo.com/forms/qobkyko0abdf17/

Family Systems Theory

Friday, April 12th
1:00PM - 2:30PM
1.5 CE Hours
Format: Live Webinar using Zoom

By the end of the presentation, participants will be able to define and explain the core concepts of Family Systems Theory, including subsystems, boundaries, and homeostasis. Participants will be able to conduct a systemic assessment of a family, identifying key elements such as communication patterns, roles, and power dynamics.

 

Anna Hernandez is an individual, couples, and family clinician. She is a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Florida, and Vermont. She is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in New York. Anna works with patients utilizing a person-centered approach to help clients heal and process trauma, make important career decisions, add new coping skills, and work through life’s frustrations. She has nearly a decade of experience working with various ages and in different settings. She enjoys working with individuals and couples struggling in relationships, sexual/physical/emotional trauma history, and adolescents and young adults enduring life transitions. Anna graduated from Mercer University School of Medicine with her Master’s Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy. Also, she graduated from Wesleyan College with a BA in Psychology and Neuroscience. Anna has worked in a variety of modalities such as EMDR, ACT, DBT, Gottman Method, and task simplification and routine (neurodivergent friendly). She believes that therapy is a dynamic partnership and that therapy should be the choice of the client. There is no determination for how long sessions should be. As someone who struggles with mental health and has overcome multiple life obstacles, being your guide with Family Systems Theory is a pleasure.

Click here to sign up:  https://socialworkcontinuined.wufoo.com/forms/q175djde1dlh7kt/

Healing Grief Through the Embodiment in the Transpersonal Realm

Friday, April 19th
1pm-5pm
4 CE Hours
Format: In Person
Location: 2017 Cathedral of Learning, 4200 Fifth Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15260

1.Students will understand the intersection between grief and somatic embodiment. I will teach experiential exercises including and not limited to somatic embodiment practices, Nervous System Regulation tools, interpersonal attunement and IFS informed curiosity. 
2. I will summarize Transpersonal Grief and Embodiment. Current research will be sited by peer reviewed sources. Attendees will walk away having a broad understanding how the realm of Transpersonal Psychology can influence and support grief.
3.Role Modeling inquiry and curiosity as a facilitator will produce a culture of being present and being with or ‘presencing’ for another. Each trainee will walk away with an opportunity to feel heard, seen and met in vulnerability which leads to a sense of belonging.
4. I will offer a theoretical and historical context for transpersonal psychology. 
5. I will address the intersectionality of race, religion, cultures and sexual orientation in death and grieving practices. 
6. I will offer a framework for Mental Health upkeep, citing the pillars of mental health.
7. Experiential practice will allow a deepening of awareness of the grief each student carries and wisdom in exploring themselves to provide a wider depth of compassion to their future grieving clients. 

Sara Feley got her Undergraduate Degree in East Lansing and worked with grieving children throughout her undergraduate career. She found her passion for working with people in the existential realm through grief. Upon graduation, she worked in the wilderness therapy industry. She saw the healing and transformative effect of being in nature and community. Soon after, she sought out a Transpersonal Psychology program and graduated from CIIS in San Francisco, CA. She immersed herself in the transpersonal realm with insight meditation, diamond approach, and zen practices while grounding her practice in the Soma with Gestalt and a YTT 200 hour yoga therapy training simultaneously. While doing her own intra and interpersonal work, she was introduced to EMDR. She became enthralled with nervous system regulation contextualizing her and her client's experience through the Polyvagal theory. She became interested in extending that healing via getting trained in PACT therapy for couples and family systems. She utilizes somatic experience to create an internal sense of safety. She is IFS informed, trained in Cranial Sacral Therapy and pursuing somatic training regularly. She creates an environment of openness curiosity. She is committed to teaching, learning and being an active member of social justice in the community. In her free time she likes to volunteer, spend time in nature, engage in joyful movement, play music, spend time with community and play with her sweet dog. 

Click here to sign up: https://socialworkcontinuined.wufoo.com/forms/q52fq1w0zwttpp/

CE On-Demand Courses

Continuing education can now be taken on your schedule! Topics include: Ethics, suicide prevention and intervention, anti-racist social work practice, LGBTQIA+ populations, and many more! All at the click of a mouse, at your own pace, and designed to fit your busy schedule! Check out our recorded self-paced CE programs now!