Special Topics
Advancing
Social Change
Enhance your care and career.
Human service professionals work with individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities to promote social justice and social change. We provide training on relevant Special Topics, developed to promote awareness and sensitivity of cultural and ethnic diversity to ensure we collectively live and practice core values.
The Fish Approach to Dementia Care
October 10, 2024 (Virtual)
8:30-10:30 a.m.
Fee: $49
This workshop focuses on communication strategies that build trust, understanding, and improves relationships between care partners and people living with brain changes. We will explore the communication snags that get us stuck in the weeds and how to adjust our responses by "getting in the water." Continuing Education: 0.2 CEUs/2 CEHs.
- Understand the reality of the person living with brain change
- Explore how our communication can support or conflict with our intentions in caring for people living with brain change
- Practice skills to change how we respond to people living with brain change
Sheri Fairman
Sheri Fairman has a Master's degree in Social work with over 10 years of experience working with the elderly and their care partners. She is a Certified Independent Trainer and Consultant with Teepa Snow’s Positive Approach to Care and works as a mentor on her team.
She has worked as a Dementia Care Specialist with the Aging & Disability Resource Center of Brown County and received extensive training in a variety of topics related to dementia. Sheri Fairman is owner of Dementia Care Solutions and provides consulting, coaching, training, and presentations specific to quality dementia care.
Challenging Our Inner Becky: Interventions in White Women-ness in Social Work
October 25, 2024 (virtual)
8:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Fee: $109
Race and gender work together in specific and patterned ways and can manifest in problematic behaviors from white women who are in the helping professions and doing equity work. Many white women engage with clients and colleagues (and society writ large) using ways of being that are shaped by white supremacy, despite stated commitments against it. These “Becky behaviors” are patterned and act as significant barriers to advancing equity and antiracism in our professional lives. In this session, we will examine five of the most common socialized tendencies that white women exhibit in the workplace, with some specific attention to how denial and control are at their roots. We will then explore some of the promising practices engaged by white women who seek to interrupt their racially-gendered conditioning. We will conclude by developing alternatives to denial and defensiveness and uncover some of the significant opportunities that arise when white women co-power and show up differently to advance the work of racial equity in our institutions. Continuing Education: 0.4 CEUs/4 CEHs.
- Develop/deepen a frame for understanding behaviors as racialized and gendered; (white woman-ness)
- Recognize when and how white women-ness is being deployed in ways that damage clients, colleagues and the larger profession
- Explore the promising practices, self reflection tools, and avenues for feedback that open up space for a more effective and antiracist practice of social work
Emily Drew, Ph.D.
Emily Drew is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Sociology at Willamette University, where she teaches courses about racism.
Crisis De-escalation & Interventions
November 15, 2024 (In-Person)
STEM Innovation Center, Green Bay
8:30-12:30 p.m.
Fee: $109
This presentation is designed to equip health professionals with essential skills and strategies to effectively manage and de-escalate crisis situations in any setting. This presentation focuses on fostering a safe and supportive environment while addressing the needs of individuals in distress. Participants will learn to recognize signs of escalating crises, employ evidence-based techniques to defuse tension, and prioritize the emotional well-being and safety of clients and provider alike. Continuing Education: 0.4 CEUs/4 CEHs.
- Identify common triggers that escalate crisis situations
- Explore de-escalation principles, including active listening, empathy, and validation
- Understand the importance of personal safety and boundaries while managing crisis situations
Ignacio Enriquez
Ignacio Enriquez was a fifteen-year police officer in the State of Wisconsin and has four years of experience as a juvenile corrections officer in the State of California. Ignacio served as a patrol officer, school resource officer and as a behavioral health officer.
As a behavioral health officer, Ignacio was responsible for conducting crisis interventions, safety planning, and connecting citizens to mental health services. Ignacio is a trained hostage crisis negotiator and served as the department’s main resource of mental health and substance abuse information and training and was a founding member of the Officer Wellness Committee; furthermore, he was a peer support officer for the department. Ignacio earned a master’s degree in professional counseling from the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh and is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC).
AI Chatbots Writing Like Humans? Implications for Social Work Education & Practice
December 6, 2024 (virtual)
12-2 p.m.
Fee: $59
ChatGPT, Bard, Claude and other chatbots have been in the headlines for their ability to write everything from jokes to policy briefs and treatment plans -- in seconds and for free. Educators have seen that AI can write realistic student papers, including citations and personal anecdotes. Professionals have seen that AI can generate realistic work-related writing such as marketing materials and user instructions. What are the implications for social workers? In this interactive online event, we invite social workers to learn about chatbots in mental health and human services and discuss our experiences, concerns and points of excitement. Participants will have the opportunity to share perspectives and will leave with new ideas from peers, together with a reading list to learn more about the potential impacts on social work education and the social work profession. Prior to attending the online event, participants are asked to create a ChatGPT or Bard account for the interactive portion. Continuing Education: 0.2 CEUs/2 CEHs.
- Understand the background on chatbot technologies for mental health
- Develop new ideas for effectively integrating chat technologies into social work practice
- Understand the ethical and bias considerations of using chatbots in practice
Lauri Goldkind
Lauri Goldkind, PhD, LMSW, is an associate professor at Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service and the editor in chief of the Journal of Technology.
Alexis Speck Glennon
Alexis Speck Glennon, DSW, LCSW-R, is an assistant professor at Colby-Sawyer College and has a clinical practice specializing in treating trauma.
Be the
Change
Self-paced Special Topics courses offered in collaboration with Aspire Training.
We have collaborated with Aspire Training to offer a UW-Green Bay discount on self-paced courses that fulfill Special Topics requirements. Your choice of bundles or individual courses in wide-ranging topics, including therapeutic communication, harm reduction, service plans, multiculturalism and more.
Ethics and Boundaries
Our courses in Ethics and Boundaries are rooted in the core values of service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity and competence.
Need Guidance?
If you need additional guidance, please contact Kayle Petitjean, Office of Professional Continuing Education, at professionaled@uwgb.edu or (920) 465-2642.