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National Training Day 2 - November 18, 2020

All times below are Eastern Standard Time. Once logged into Hopin, all session times in the Reception area will be local time to each participant. Each session will be open 5 minutes prior to the start of each session. 

Go to Event

11:00 a.m. ET - 6:00 p.m. ET

National Training Information Center Open

The Information Center will be staffed and available for questions during the Pre-Institute and National RHY Grantees Training activities. Request information and support by using the Event Chat in Hopin, or emailing us at [email protected].

Virtual Display Center Open

Click on Expo to peruse our Virtual Display Center and interact with exhibitors and other participants.

  • Exhibitors - Visit virtual exhibit booths of companies and organizations that provide resources and supports to RHY Grantees. Exhibitor videos and live sessions will highlight services relevant to youth serving organizations.
  • Networking - Connect with RHY Grantees, youth service organizations, youth and young adults, and allies in these virtual networking sessions. Hear directly from providers and young people about their experiences with RHY programs. Discuss trends particular to each program, and brainstorm solutions to challenges. Get ideas and support from colleagues doing the work. This networking is available throughout the National Training in the Expo area and will also host live sessions at times listed in the program.
  • Self-Care - World renowned speaker, musical performer, and facilitator Aisha Fukushima will lead attendees through a series of mindfulness practices. Her interactive performance lecture style will help us process what is going on inside of our bodies through guided meditation, artistry, and exploration that will include reflection prompts. Participants can access this recorded self-care session at any time in the Expo area.

12:00 p.m. ET - 12:50 p.m. ET

Self Care Session: Cultivate Hope and Resilience

Katelyn Song, Somatic Therapist, will lead attendees through a series of somatic practices that will help cultivate resilience and mutual connection. Song is a private practice Somatic Therapist in unceded occupied Duwaish Territory. Song has more than a decade of experience as a youth worker and received her Masters in Social Work from the University of Washington School of Social Work.

Virtual Display Live Sessions

During this hour exhibitors will be live in their exhibit booths to share about their organizations and services, and connect one-on-one with participants. Visit the Expo area to peruse virtual exhibit booths and connect with companies and organizations that provide resources and supports to RHY Grantees. Exhibitor videos and live sessions will highlight services relevant to youth serving organizations.

1:00 p.m. ET - 2:10 p.m. ET - Workshop Session III

Bridge2Home: Creation of a Host Home Model in Western Pennsylvania

Summary

Valley Youth House Bridge2Home program was initially created with Home4Good funding awarded in January 2019. Additional funding was awarded from FYSB RHY/BCP in October 2019. With this funding, the Host Home Model is being used as an innovative approach for emergency sheltering of youth under age 18 for up to 21 days. Bridge2Home is implementing a promising program model. The workshop will address the successes, challenges, and barriers to building a continuum of Host Homes. A host and youth experience will be presented that will assist the program moving forward to guide a path for youth success.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Learn how to build and implement a promising program model and Host Homes in a rural/urban area.
  • Take away lessons on addressing challenges and barriers to building a continuum of Host Homes and matching youth and host for a path of success.
  • Benefit from in-person and video Host and Youth experiences on how the Host Home Model is working.
  • Take away lessons about how to conduct outreach and marketing for this innovative program in an evolving community climate with decreased volunteerism.

Presenter

  • Carol Dunlap, Bridge2Home Host Home Coordinator, Valley Youth House

Workshop Audience

  • Basic Center, Transitional Living
  • RHY 101/New to the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Mezzo Level: This practice deals with small-to-medium-sized groups, such as neighborhoods, schools, or other local organizations.

Transitioning from the Basic Center Program-Overcoming Barriers Through Evidence-Informed Practices

Summary

Youth must have a support system and an orchestrated plan to aid in the transition into adulthood. This workshop will focus on the components involved in that transition from the Basic Center Program (BCP). Critical areas for transitioning youth will be explored.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Be informed about the obstacles transitioning runaway and homeless youth (RHY) face.
  • Discuss techniques to assist youth with transitioning from the BCP.
Presenters
  • Jennifer Paulsen, Program Manager, Synergy Services, Inc
  • Heidi Hartmann, Director of Youth Services, Ocean's Harbor House

Workshop Audience

  • Basic Center
  • RHY 201/Experienced in the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Mezzo Level: This practice deals with small-to-medium-sized groups, such as neighborhoods, schools, or other local organizations.

Strategic Planning for Results

Summary 

The workshop will identify the necessary steps for developing and following a comprehensive Strategic Plan that drives organizational successes and outcomes. Board involvement, buy-in from staff, and the importance of establishing a strong mission statement and values will all be covered in this workshop. Tips and practices for keeping the plan alive within a changing organization will also be useful as many organizations are adjusting to new external factors and influences in communities.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Learn the importance of a strategic plan to drive the mission and work of the agency.
  • Learn to engage staff, board, youth, and the community in the strategic planning process.
  • Acquire tools and practical strategies to establish an action-oriented plan that includes measurable objectives and outcomes.

Presenter

  • Joseph Alonzo, Chief Executive Officer, Cocoon House
  • Chelsea Monroe, Senior Director of Operations and Development, Cocoon House

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals
  • RHY 201/Experienced in the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Mezzo Level: This practice deals with small-to-medium-sized groups, such as neighborhoods, schools, or other local organizations.

The Necessity of Authentic Engagement: 5 Strategies to Build Connection with Youth Facing Adversity

Summary

A foundational and essential component of effective practice in RHY work is the ability to engage youth in services on an ongoing basis. We must be able to answer the often-unasked question: "What's in it for me to accept what you have to offer?” This workshop will aid participants in tailoring a practical approach that is responsive to the unique needs of youth who are experiencing circumstances such as homelessness, sexual exploitation, and social disconnection.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Understand the reasons why the practice of authentic engagement is necessary for RHY work.
  • Discover five ways staff can strategically engage youth facing adversity.
  • Learn to promote resilience and protective factors by incorporating evidence- informed/based practices.
  • Design engagement strategies for SOP, BCP, TLP/MGH programs.

Presenter

  • Risa Rehmert, Director, Program Development, Wichita State University Center for Combating Human Trafficking

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals
  • RHY 101/New to the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Micro Level: This is the most common practice, and it happens directly with an individual client or family.

Responding to Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children in a Small City or Rural Area

Summary

For 15 years, Covenant House Alaska has been a leader in the state of Alaska in identifying and serving runaway and homeless youth (RHY) victims/survivors of human trafficking and creating a systemic response to the commercial sexual exploitation of these youth. There are only 750,000 people living in the whole state of Alaska, and nearly half of those people live in Anchorage. Even with so few people, sex trafficking is a major issue impacting youth, including RHY. This workshop will discuss the systemic response implemented in Anchorage to address this issue with vulnerable youth who grew up in small urban areas, rural areas from across the state, and who are disproportionately Indigenous young people.

Objectives

  • Participants will gain practical knowledge on how to create and leverage partnerships to create a systemic response to the commercial sexual exploitation of RHY.
  • Participants will learn how to overcome the challenges of serving RHY survivors of commercial sexual exploitation from rural areas in an urban one.
  • Participants will share practical examples of creating resilience and empowerment of Indigenous RHY survivors through culture-specific programming.

Presenter

  • Josh Louwerse, Senior Program Officer, Covenant House Alaska
  • Tafi Toleafoa, Housing Coordinator, Covenant House Alaska

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals
  • RHY 201/Experienced in the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Mezzo Level: This practice deals with small-to-medium-sized groups, such as neighborhoods, schools, or other local organizations.

Building Clinical Confidence in RHY Staff: Lessons Learned From a Staff Training Curriculum in Problem-Solving, De-Escalation, and Crisis Response

Summary

Building the confidence and ability of RHY staff in providing practical problem-solving interventions improves outcomes for youth experiencing homelessness. However, many programs struggle to meet the training and supervision needs of the staff. In this workshop, participants will learn conventional approaches to staff training in RHY programs and perceptions of staff concerning their needs around clinical training. Participants will then learn the steps to an evidence-based intervention around problem-solving, de-escalation, and crisis response. Participants will also review a curriculum for staff training along with outcomes from the implementation of this curriculum at two RHY agencies.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Learn conventional approaches and challenges to staff training in RHY programs.
  • Learn RHY staff perceptions on training experiences and their feelings of preparedness for clinical work with youth.
  • Learn an evidence-based approach to problem-solving, de-escalation, and responding to crises.
  • Review a staff training curriculum and the outcomes of implementing this curriculum at two RHY agencies.

Presenter

  • Peter Ducharme, Director of Clinical Services, Bridge Over Troubled Waters, Inc.
  • Ben Thornton, Director of Outreach, Anchor House, Inc.

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals
  • RHY 201/Experienced in the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Micro Level: This is the most common practice, and it happens directly with an individual client or family.

2:30 p.m. ET - 3:40 p.m. ET - Workshop Session IV

Unprecedented Times: How can RHY Programs Support Youth Well-Being In and Beyond the Pandemic?

Summary

The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing challenges and created new ones for RHY grantees and the young people they support. In this session, the presenters will discuss emerging evidence about the effects and circumstances of the pandemic related to youth homelessness. Participants will have an opportunity to share with each other and provide input into potential training and technical assistance, assessments, and resources warranting further exploration by RHYTTAC. What we learn through this pandemic, and our response, has important potential to inform preparation for future public health crises and other disasters.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Gain knowledge and access resources on the emerging evidence on the pandemic related to youth homelessness.
  • Contribute to an understanding of the gap between the evidence and the reality of service provision in communities.
  • Provide input regarding training and technical assistance needs related to and beyond the pandemic context and deeper assessments.
  • Learn about the development of a framework for preparing for future public health crises and other disasters.

Presenters

  • Forrest Moore, PhD, Policy Fellow, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago
  • Matthew Morton, DPhil, Research Fellow, Chapin Hall at the University of Chicago
  • Jha’asryel-Akquil Bishop, RHY Systems and Services Consultant

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals

Targeted Assertive Outreach: An Innovative Outreach Method That Can Support Efforts to End Youth Homelessness

Summary 

In this session, presenters will describe an innovative outreach effort used to identify youth who had self-resolved their homelessness and connect those who remained homeless to available services. This systematic approach to outreach, termed "Targeted Assertive Outreach,” helped to inform a more accurate projection of resources and staffing needed to end youth homelessness. Data from outreach efforts showed that Black youth and youth who slept outdoors or couch-surfed were less likely to self-resolve homelessness compared to non- Hispanic White youth and youth who slept in shelters. Presenters will discuss the implications of their findings within the context of community efforts to end youth homelessness.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Receive an overview and guidance in using systematic outreach to determine which youth have self-resolved and who are still in need of housing services.
  • Learn how systematic outreach coupled with cost-analysis can provide more accurate community projections for allocating resources and staffing to end youth homelessness.
  • Learn about youth characteristics associated with the self-resolution of homelessness.
  • Discuss the implications of assertive outreach efforts and analysis of self-resolution of youth homelessness in the ending youth homelessness movement.
Presenter
  • Amy Youngbloom, Research Analyst, LifeWorks Austin
  • Liz Schoenfeld, Chief Research Officer, LifeWorks Austin

Workshop Audience

  • Basic Center, Street Outreach
  • RHY 201/Experienced in the RHY field/workshop topic
  • Mezzo Level: This practice deals with small-to-medium-sized groups, such as neighborhoods, schools, or other local organizations.

Empowering and Engaging Youth in Crisis - Strategies for Runaway and Homeless Youth Settings

Summary

Empowering and engaging youth in crisis is a critical skill. Youth served by RHY programs have experienced difficult and overwhelming situations, which sometimes lead to crisis. It is important to utilize approaches that can empower youth to make healthy and safe decisions. This workshop will take a deep dive into the concept of engagement, strategies to empower and engage youth in crisis, identify barriers to engagement, and how to move beyond resistance. This interactive workshop will provide participants an opportunity to practice skills, have meaningful discussions, and learn to incorporate empowerment and engagement strategies into a solution-focused crisis intervention model.
 
Objectives

Participants will:

  • Outline and integrate engagement strategies with youth served by the RHY programs.
  • Apply trauma informed and youth development strategies into crisis situations.
  • Explore the barriers for youth engagement and ways to reduce these barriers.
  • Learn how solution-focused crisis interventions can assist runaway and homeless youth.

Presenters

  • Lee Osipchak, Chief Program Officer, National Runaway Safeline
  • Chenē Weems, Director of Training & Quality Assurance, National Runaway Safeline
  • Riley Dean, Director of Crisis Services, National Runaway Safeline

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals

We Think Twice

Summary

We Think Twice is a digital media campaign designed to provide support and encouragement to help adolescents avoid adverse risk-taking behaviors. Co-designed with youth, for youth, the campaign seeks to empower adolescents in making smart decisions around sex, relationships, and setting goals for their future. The campaign is targeted to youth ages 13-19 through Instagram, YouTube, and Facebook. The campaign website features digital products such as Buzzfeed-style quizzes, listicles, videos, games, a motivational playlist and other tools as well as user-generated content. This workshop will highlight the lessons learned from the first year of the We Think Twice campaign and will showcase the tools and products that have been developed with and for youth.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Learn key takeaway lessons from the first year of a social media campaign and strategies to improve the use of social media in RHY programs.
  • Learn about tools and products that have been developed for youth and youth-serving providers that can be incorporated into their work with runaway and homeless youth and their parents.
  • Share how their organization can incorporate presented communication strategies to help empower teens in making smart decisions around sex, relationships, and setting goals for the future.

Presenters

  • Denise Dickinson, MPH, Program Manager, RTI
  • Amanda Seagroves, MPH, Public Health Analyst, RTI
  • Owen Burns, Communications Manager, Family and Youth Service Bureau, Adolescent Pregnancy Prevention Program

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals

Federal Research and Resources to Support Transition-Age Youth

Summary

The purpose of the presentation is to provide information on federal research, supports, and programs all designed with the goal of supporting communities to end youth homelessness. The presentation highlights the ways communities work together to serve transition-age youth. Time will be reserved at the end for a short conversation by the presenters highlighting some promising practices in communities across the programs.

Objectives

Participants will:

  • Learn about research from the Youth At-Risk of Homelessness (YARH) grant program on the design and implementation of interventions to prevent homelessness among youth and young adults with child welfare involvement.
  • Learn about the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development voucher and grant programs focused on youth.

Presenters

  • Andrew Burwick, Senior Researcher, Mathematica
  • Ryan Jones, Deputy Director, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Public and Indian Housing
  • Caroline Crouse, Senior SNAPS Specialist, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Special Needs Assistance Programs
  • Stormy Lukasavage, Young Adult Consultant, Capacity Building Center for States

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals

What Can Runaway and Homeless Youth Programs Do to Identify and Prevent Labor Trafficking Among RHY?

Summary

Runaway and homeless youth are at increased vulnerability to labor trafficking. A study conducted by the Modern Slavery Research Project at Loyola University demonstrated that runaway and homeless youth are particularly vulnerable to being recruited into labor trafficking. Scam traffickers who pose as job recruiters approach RHY and offer them lucrative work opportunities in commission-based, seemingly legitimate industries, such as sales, modeling, domestic work, and agriculture. Force, fraud, or coercion are used to compel RHY to work against their will or without pay or in exploitative conditions.

RHY programs are in a unique position to decrease risk and identify young people who are victims of labor trafficking. This workshop will explore the ways labor trafficking affects RHY, provide tools for identifying and preventing labor trafficking among RHY, and will present practical strategies for incorporating labor trafficking prevention into RHY settings.

Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Understand the legal definition of labor trafficking and the implications for runaway and homeless youth.
  • Identify the most common “types” of labor trafficking victimization impacting youth experiencing homelessness.
  • Incorporate labor trafficking prevention and identification into RHY programs.
  • Utilize effective screening and assessment processes to identify labor trafficking among RHY.

Presenter

  • Laura T. Murphy, Professor of Human Rights and Contemporary Slavery, Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice, Sheffield Hallam University

Workshop Audience

  • All RHY/Youth-Serving Professionals

4:00 p.m. ET - 5:00 p.m. ET - General Federal Session

The annual session features updates from the Family and Youth Services Bureau on activities directly impacting the Runaway and Homeless Youth Program, to include updates on upcoming funding opportunity announcements, plans for virtual program monitoring, and a discussion of data and program trends across RHY programs.

The session will be hosted by:

5:00 p.m ET - 6:00 p.m. ET - Consultations (T/TA and RHY-HMIS)

Abt Associates will be offering 15 minute consultations on program and reporting needs. They will offer a total of 16 sessions on a first come, first served basis during this hour. To access consultation, please visit the Abt Associates Exhibit Booth between 5:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. ET.

5:10 p.m ET - 6:00 p.m. ET - Virtual Networking

Connect with RHY Grantees, youth service organizations, youth and young adults, and allies in these virtual networking sessions. Hear directly from providers and young people about their experiences with RHY programs. Discuss trends particular to each program, and brainstorm solutions to challenges. Get ideas and support from colleagues doing the work. This networking is available throughout the National Training in the Expo area and will also host live sessions. Facilitators will welcome participants and provide guiding discussion questions and prompts, and will reiterate the instructions for how to use the video-chat feature to connect one-on-one.

  • COVID-19: Impact & Innovation - Dina Wilderson, Consultant & Liam Spady, Youth Catalyst Team
  • Shining a Light on Prevention - Lee Osipchak, National Runaway Safeline, Chief Program Officer & Jeff Stern, National Runaway Safeline, Chief Engagement Officer
  • Authentic Partnership with Youth and Young Adults - Alesha Alexcee & Tiffany Haynes, National Youth Forum
  • Reducing the Risk of Youth Homelessness: Moving Beyond Singular Program Focus to a Coordinated System Response - Sherilyn Adams, Larkin Street Youth Services & Sarah Mikhail, A Way Home America
  • Building Culturally Responsive Programs - Desiré Bennett, Design Impact & Michelle Sucher, Design Impact