Utilizing Sports to Help Traumatized System-Involved Youth

Nicole Klasey, Nancy Acosta

Training Description

There has been a growing acknowledgement that those who’ve experienced trauma need more than talk therapy given that trauma and adversity is stored in our bodies. Sports are one of the ways individuals can work out some of the tension stored in their bodies. Sports can have many positive benefits for system-involved youth such as learning teamwork, coping with adversity, communication skills, etc. This training will teach those who support system involved youth about the positive benefits of sports and physical exercise as well as strategies to use sports to improve outcomes for system involved youth.

Learning Objectives

· Participants will be able to identify at least 1 benefit of sports for system-involved youth.

· Participants will be able to identify at least 1 way to utilize sports to improve outcomes with traumatized system involved youth

· Participants will be able to describe the connection between trauma and it’s impact on the body

Agenda

12:30-12:45pm  Introductions and Welcome

12:45-2:15pm  Benefits of sports

· Kids and sports overview

· Benefits of sports on brains

· Benefits of sports on mental health

· Benefits of sports with peers

· Somatic interventions for youth and young adults who have experienced trauma

· Sports and traumatized youth

2:15-2:30pm  Break (CE Hours will not be offered for this time)

2:30pm-4:15pm  How to be Trauma-Informed

· The importance of trauma-informed sports programs

· Trauma-informed care overview

· Applying trauma-informed care to sports

· “Do Good” curriculum

· Sports based youth development programs

· Barriers to foster youth engaging in sports

· Strategies to address barriers to foster youth engaging in sports

4:15-4:30pm  Questions & Answers, Wrap-Up

Meet Our Trainer

Nicole Klasey is a clinical psychologist who has worked with trauma survivors for 14 years. She currently consults with agencies on trauma-informed care, programming for commercially sexually exploited youth, vicarious trauma, and leadership development. Nicole has been training multidisciplinary audiences on trauma-related topics since 2015 and provides guest lectures at local universities on human trafficking.

Nancy Acosta is a bilingual therapist who has 7 years of experience working with trauma at a sexual assault center. She has provided services to children and adults in various settings including outpatient community mental health centers, college counseling centers, crisis centers, and in an integrated behavioral health setting. She has completed training in Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing Therapy as well as Cognitive Processing Therapy. She has experience providing training and supervision to doctoral level graduate students in trauma related topics including crisis intervention, vicarious trauma, and grounding techniques. In addition to developing a training manual for a student training program at a rape and crisis center, she also has experience supervising practicum students and providing support to staff and advocates. Nancy has experience working as a behavioral health consultant with multidisciplinary staff to improve recognition, treatment and management of behavioral problems and conditions.

This course meets the qualifications for (3.75) BBS CE hours for LCSWs, LMFTs, LPCCs, and LEPs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences & is provided by Fred Finch Youth Center, CAMFT Provider #045295.