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Please call 857-444-1500 x1 to be added to the waiting list.

The conference has sold out and the waiting list is now closed.

We encourage you to attend our Spring conference in NYC. Learn how to change student behavior, reduce stress, increase teacher self-care, and change children's self stories and concepts to increase achievement. Early registration price through February 28. Click here for more information.


HELPING KIDS FEEL CALM AND CONNECTED

Various reports have found that many children and teens are experiencing significant stress, anxiety, and mental health issues. More than 1 in 20 children ages 6-17 (and one in three teens) suffer from anxiety disorders, according to a June 2018 study in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics. A new UC Berkeley study finds that college students have seen a sharp rise in anxiety over the past decade and an American College Health Association study reveals that sixty-two percent of college students report a significant level of anxiety. In addition, according to a 2016 National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH), almost forty-five percent of all children in the US have experienced at least one Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE). Discover how toxic stress, anxiety, and trauma negatively affect developing brains, student behavior, and academic success. This conference will help you reduce anxiety and stress in your schools and practice; address teen depression and challenging classroom behaviors; foster coping, calming, mindful practices; create trauma-sensitive schools; and improve school success by promoting positive teacher-student relationships.


All sessions will take place at the Fairmont San Francisco at the top of Nob Hill and the Masonic Auditorium which is located less than a 5 minute walk from the Fairmont.

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LEARNING OBJECTIVES

You will gain knowledge about:
  • The brain science of anxiety, adversity, and toxic stress
  • Strategies for dealing with struggling and challenging students and behaviors
  • Fostering positive, secure connections and teacher-student relationships
  • Strategies and activities for coping, calming, and reducing stress
  • Teaching and parenting all children to thrive in a high-stress world
  • Creating trauma-sensitive schools where kids feel safe and supported
  • Reducing parental, grade, and math anxiety to improve school success
  • The importance of relationships, touch, and showing up for children
  • Addressing teen anxiety, school pressures, depression, and bullying
  • The science and practice of using mindful meditation in classrooms
  • Addressing the impact of trauma and adversity on learning
  • Strategies for close reading and struggling readers



WHO SHOULD ATTEND

This conference is applicable for K-12 teachers, administrators, curriculum and staff developers, learning specialists, school psychologists and guidance counselors, early childhood professionals, math, science, and reading teachers, superintendents, principals, assistant principals, and school heads, staff development trainers, behavior, school discipline, and school safety professionals, trauma, mental health and bullying prevention staff, social workers, school climate professionals, college and university professors, and other educators that support classroom instruction.

Featured Speakers
Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD
Nadine Burke Harris, MD, MPH
Daniel J. Siegel, MD
Jessica Minahan, PhD, BCBA
Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, EdD

Director, USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning, and Education (CANDLE) who has been studying and monitoring the brains of effective teachers to see how they connect with and motivate their students; Professor of Education, USC Rossier School of Education; Professor of Psychology, Brain, and Creativity Institute; Faculty, Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern California; Member of the Council of Distinguished Scientists at the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development, Aspen Institute; Past President, IMBES (International Mind, Brain and Education Society); Recipient of the 2008 Transforming Education Through Neuroscience Award from the Learning & the Brain Foundation and IMBES; Author, Emotions, Learning, and the Brain: Exploring the Educational Implications of Affective Neuroscience (2015); Co-Author, “Understanding Emotional Thought Can Transform Educators’ Understanding of How Students Learn” (2020, Educational Neuroscience), “Building Meaning Builds Teens’ Brains” (2020, Educational Leadership), “The Brain Basis for Integrated Social, Emotional, and Academic Development” (2018, Aspen Institute), and "Embodied Brains, Social Minds, Cultural Meaning: Integrating Neuroscientific and Educational Research on Social-Affective Development (2017, American Educational Research Journal)
Pamela Cantor, MD
Madeline Levine, PhD
Ross W. Greene, PhD
Christine L. Carter, PhD
Christina D. Bethell, PhD

1) ANXIOUS BRAINS: HELPINGS KIDS THRIVE IN A STRESSFUL WORLD

Ready or Not: Preparing Our Children to Thrive in an Anxious, Uncertain World

Madeline Levine, PhD

Proactive Solutions for Challenging Children: Moving From Power and Control to Collaboration and Problem Solving

Ross W. Greene, PhD

Raising Joyful Children in a Stressful World

Katie F. Hurley, LCSW

The Power of Showing Up: How Teacher and Parental Presence Shape Who Our Children Become and How Their Brains Get Wired

Daniel J. Siegel, MD

Parenting the Stress-Resilient Child: Building Skills in the Era of Stress and Media Mess

Laura S. Kastner, PhD

Surviving Anxiety: Helping Children, Teens, and Teachers Overcome Fear and Worry

Jennifer Shannon, LMFT

Risk and Resilience: Helping Children Thrive in a World Focused on Success

Suniya S. Luthar, PhD

Risk and Resilience: Helping Children Thrive in a World Focused on Success

Nina Kumar, BA

2) TRAUMATIZED BRAINS: CREATING TRAUMA-SENSITIVE SCHOOLS

The Deepest Well: Healing the Long-Term Effects of Childhood Adversity

Nadine Burke Harris, MD, MPH

The Impact of Trauma and Neglect on the Developing Child

Bruce D. Perry, MD, PhD

Whole Child Development: Dynamics of Trauma, Stress, and Complex Skill Development

Pamela Cantor, MD

The Neuroscience of Adversity and Achievement: Implications for Education

Katie A. McLaughlin, PhD

Stress, Trauma, and Resiliency: Strategies for Classroom Success

Bryan K. Harris, EdD

Consultant; Former Principal, Instructional Specialist, and Teacher; Adjunct Faculty, Grand Canyon University; Author, 17 Things Resilient Teachers Do: (And 4 Things They Hardly Ever Do) (2020), Retraining New Teachers (2015), and Battling Boredom (2010); Co-Author, The Resilient School Leader (2023, Routledge Eye on Education), Battling Boredom, Part 2 (2018), and 75 Quick and Easy Solutions to Common Classroom Disruptions (2013)

Trauma-Informed Classroom Management: Succeeding with Challenging Students

Grace Dearborn, MA

3) CALM SCHOOLS: REDUCING ANXIETY, STRESS, & CHALLENGING BEHAVIOR

Rethinking Stress: Leveraging Mindset to Engage with Stress

Kari A. Leibowitz, PhD Candidate

Rewiring the Anxious Brain: Using Neuroscience to Reduce Fear, Anxiety, and Worry

Catherine M. Pittman, PhD

Beyond Behavior: Using Brain Science to Reduce Anxiety, Toxic Stress, and Behavioral Challenges

Mona M. Delahooke, PhD

Practical Strategies for Reducing Anxiety and Defiant Behavior in the Classroom

Jessica Minahan, PhD, BCBA

Coping Skills for Children: Dealing with Stress, Anxiety, and Anger

Janine Halloran, MA, LMHC

Stress on the Rise and the Pivot: Stress Reduction, Empathy, and Problem-Solving

Laura S. Kastner, PhD

The Science of Stress: Promoting Teacher's Stress Reduction and Wellbeing

Clayton R. Cook, PhD

Things Resilient Teachers Do (and the Things They Hardly Ever Do)

Bryan K. Harris, EdD

Consultant; Former Principal, Instructional Specialist, and Teacher; Adjunct Faculty, Grand Canyon University; Author, 17 Things Resilient Teachers Do: (And 4 Things They Hardly Ever Do) (2020), Retraining New Teachers (2015), and Battling Boredom (2010); Co-Author, The Resilient School Leader (2023, Routledge Eye on Education), Battling Boredom, Part 2 (2018), and 75 Quick and Easy Solutions to Common Classroom Disruptions (2013)

Stress Management for Teachers

Colleen L. Eddy, MA

4) DISTRESSED TEENS: DECREASING ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, & BULLYING

Anxiety Disorders on College Campuses: The New Epidemic

Richard M. Scheffler, PhD

The New Adolescence: Raising Successful Teens in an Age of Anxiety and Distraction

Christine L. Carter, PhD

Brainstorm: Anxiety, Technology, and Mindfulness in the Teen Brain

Daniel J. Siegel, MD

Embodied Brains, Social Minds, and Cultural Meaning: The Effects of Community Violence Exposure on Urban Adolescents’ Brain Development

Mary Helen Immordino-Yang, EdD

Director, USC Center for Affective Neuroscience, Development, Learning, and Education (CANDLE) who has been studying and monitoring the brains of effective teachers to see how they connect with and motivate their students; Professor of Education, USC Rossier School of Education; Professor of Psychology, Brain, and Creativity Institute; Faculty, Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern California; Member of the Council of Distinguished Scientists at the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development, Aspen Institute; Past President, IMBES (International Mind, Brain and Education Society); Recipient of the 2008 Transforming Education Through Neuroscience Award from the Learning & the Brain Foundation and IMBES; Author, Emotions, Learning, and the Brain: Exploring the Educational Implications of Affective Neuroscience (2015); Co-Author, “Understanding Emotional Thought Can Transform Educators’ Understanding of How Students Learn” (2020, Educational Neuroscience), “Building Meaning Builds Teens’ Brains” (2020, Educational Leadership), “The Brain Basis for Integrated Social, Emotional, and Academic Development” (2018, Aspen Institute), and "Embodied Brains, Social Minds, Cultural Meaning: Integrating Neuroscientific and Educational Research on Social-Affective Development (2017, American Educational Research Journal)

Cultivating Youth Resilience to Adversity: Preventing Bullying (and Cyberbullying) and Improving School Climate

Justin W. Patchin, PhD

5) MINDFUL SCHOOLS: USING MEDITATION TO REDUCE STUDENT STRESS

Stressful Schools, Mindful Teachers

Amy L. Eva, PhD

Growing Up Mindful in a Stressed-Out World

Christopher Willard, PsyD

Trauma-Sensitive Mindfulness for Youth

David A. Treleaven, PhD

A Biopsychosocial Perspective on Trauma, Learning, and Mindful Healing in Urban Populations

Sara King, PhD

Taking Time to B.R.E.A.T.H.E.: Research-Based Practices to Strengthen Wellbeing and Resilience

Joelle Hood, EdD
Janeen Antonelli, MA

Co-Founder and Chief Culture Coach, Thriving YOUniversity; Former Teacher, Principal, and County Office Administrator with expertise in reaching and teaching at-promise youth; Consultant; Professional Learning Designer and Facilitator
Jessie Fuller, MA

6) CONNECTED MINDS: BUILDING POSITIVE, SECURE RELATIONSHIPS AND HELPING STRUGGLING STUDENTS

Building Resilience and Executive Function in Adversity: The Role of Parents, Teachers, and Peers

Jelena Obradovic, PhD

Establishing Classroom Greetings and Positive Teacher-Student Relationships

Clayton R. Cook, PhD

Building Teacher Credibility, Collective Efficacy, and Authentic Relationships

Douglas B. Fisher, PhD

Meeting Students in Brain Development with an Emphasis on Regulation and Connections

Lori L. Desautels, PhD

Connections: The Science of Human Interpersonal Touch

David J. Linden, PhD

Neurobiologist; Professor, Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine; Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science; Chief Editor, Journal of Neurophysiology; Author, Unique: The New Science of Human Individuality (2020), Think Tank: Forty Neuroscientists Explore the Biological Roots of Human Experience (2018), Touch: The Science of the Hand, Heart, and Mind (2015), and The Accidental Mind (2009)

Addressing Students' Needs Through the 3 Rs: Relationships, Responsibility, and Regulation

Peter Hall, MA

We Are the Medicine: Relationships as the Heart of Learning, Flourishing, and Healing from Trauma

Christina D. Bethell, PhD

Connected Kids: Nurturing Healthy Attachments and Relationships in Elementary Schools

Barbara Sorrels, EdD

The Zen Teacher: Creating Calm, Focus, Simplicity, and Tranquility in the Classroom

Dan Tricarico, MEd

Co-Sponsors Include:

Graduate School of Education, Stanford University

Greater Good Science Center, University of California, Berkeley

Neuroscape, University of California, San Francisco

Laboratory for Educational Neuroscience (brainLENS), University of Connecticut and University of California, San Franscisco

Dana Alliance for Brain Initiatives, The Dana Foundation

Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara

Mind, Brain, and Education Program, Harvard Graduate School of Education

National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP)

National Association of Secondary School Principals (NASSP)

LEARNING & the BRAIN® Foundation