Positive sexual identity development is critical for sexual minority mental health. This includes individuals within the kink community. As counselors, it is vital to address how the stigmatization of kinks and the disclosure of experiences may affect our clients and their identity development.

• Attendees will be able to define a kink.

• Attendees will understand the stages of kink identity development.

• Attendees will learn internal and external strategies to address stigmatization and bias.

• Attendees will learn how to advocate for their clients on both a micro level and macrolevel.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

Hispanics encounter challenges due to immigration, low wages, language barriers, limited opportunities, inadequate health care, & exposure to discrimination. Research suggests effective interventions include family & cultural values, respect for tradition, & family-oriented interventions. Productive interventions embrace behavior & community-based interventions focused on cultural, familial, developmental, social, & individual factors.

• Participants will define cultural competency & cultural interventions based on current research

• Participants will identify the challenges to cultural competency with the Hispanic community.

• Participants will identify principles for adjusting interventions for use with Hispanic clients.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

Why do we teach boys at a young age to hold it all in and never show weakness? No one knows what people are going through unless we ask them ourselves. Men are seemed less relevant when it comes to emotions and discussions of feelings, especially when it comes to mental health.

• Attendees will learn self-care techniques and accepting a mental health diagnosis, regarding boys and men.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

With few exceptions, persons convicted of a sex offense are released from prison. What happens then? Will they re-offend? What protects the community? Sex Offender Registry, Treatment, longer sentences? What works and what does not? This program will look at the facts and myths of Sex Offender Behavior and Treatment.

Attendees will be able to distinguish between facts and myths in:

Identifying behaviors that indicate an offender’s increased risk for a second offense.

Interventions that can reduce recidivism among sexual offenders.

Defining the differences between Adult and Juvenile offenders.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

For many counselors and counselor educators, 2020 will forever be known for the changes to our societal norms of communication and connection. Our encounter with COVID-19 and the emphatic racial reckoning will forever change our responsibilities and practice of counseling and counselor education. However, this year has revealed a more insidious feature of our social structure and the field of counseling; a truth that predates the madness of 2020. We live and practice in an inflexible system that protects and enhances many of our biases, power structures, and privileges.

The SMCA 15 th Annual Conference Keynote will feature Dr. Marlon Johnson. He will encourage the audience to “get curious” about the counseling field and the counseling work we do in the Smoky Mountain Region of Tennessee. Dr. Johnson will highlight the importance and necessity of making space for underrepresented communities through the assessment and dismantling of bias, power, and privilege within our counseling practice. He will use the work of Day-Vines model of Broaching (2007, 2020) the Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies (Ratts et al, 2015), and Mosher et al.’s (2017) framework for Cultural Humility to create four key strategies to dismantle bias and enhance bravery in our work as counselors in our practice and our communities. Are you ready to add in this Expansion Pack?

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

Site supervisors are crucial members of the counselor training team, working closely with practicum students and interns during their field experience. To support the work of site supervisors, the presenters outline the supervisor’s role, present practical strategies for site supervision drawing from the Integrated Developmental Model, and discuss participants' experiences.

• Understand the ACA code of ethics and CACREP definitions and responsibilities of site supervisors

• Explore the use of the Integrated Developmental Model as it relates to site supervisors’ practice

• Apply potential supervision interventions for counselors-in-training in their current practice setting.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

Discover how Robert E. Lee Elementary School in Tullahoma City Schools, TN, schools/districts/organizations across the nation and the Harmony SEL Program have joined together to create conditions to empower children's voices and choices and develop healthy relationships. Learn how using this CASEL Select resource is transforming into the nation’s first large scale, trauma-resilient expanded learning system, by partnering with Harmony to take traditional SEL strategies to new levels of depth and meaning whether providing virtual or traditional learning opportunities. Participants will engage in Harmony routines and activities that help diverse students connect, communicate, collaborate, and respect one another. Harmony kits and training are available for your organization for NO COST. Join this opportunity to see how these SEL strategies can be utilized immediately while considering the needs of the whole child. This is not ONE more thing to do, but will give you and classroom teachers the strategies/tools to use which align with restorative practices, PBIS, RTI2B, and college/career readiness. FREE online resources and a game app for making connections with students and families will be shared for immediate implementation!

Attendees will learn how to:

1. Develop a stronger understanding of a trauma-resilient informed approach for how to create conditions for social-emotional growth throughout your organization.

2. Utilize evidence-based practices and materials to build positive student relationships and foster an inclusive learning community.

3. Engage in relationship building strategies and activities from the Harmony SEL Program that empower youth to communicate, collaborate and solve problems.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.

Where spirituality and religion were once taboo topics in mainstream professional circles, the need for their integration into counselor training at all levels is increasingly being recognized. Counselor educators must take a lead role in modeling how to promote inclusion and safety within the counseling and counselor education environment.

• Attendees will learn about limitations and recommended advocacy efforts for spirituality in counseling education and supervision.

Link to the sign-in sheet to be completed at the beginning of the sessions.

Link to the evaluation to be completed at the end of the session.