Continuing Education Center

Dr. Chris Huffine, the Executive Director of Allies in Change, developed this training to provide an overview of intimate partner abuse. During this training, he explores the nuances of domestic violence, including an overview of the nature of domestic violence, an analysis of underlying causes of domestic violence, differentiation between common hurtful behaviors and abuse, and more.

Throughout the training, Dr. Huffine defines terms and provides accessible ways of understanding important concepts, such as the belief systems underlying domestic violence and the complex reasons why partners often remain in abusive relationships. Dr. Huffine then outlines effective approaches to addressing domestic violence while highlighting interventions that have proven ineffective. This training ensures participants gain a well-rounded understanding of this critical issue.

When sexual abuse among siblings occurs, parents and other caregivers often become flooded with emotions such as anger, shame, sadness, fear, confusion, disbelief, regret, helplessness, and self-blame. These feelings make it difficult for parents to determine how best to support both of their children. While research and conferences have begun addressing the treatment of families impacted by sibling abuse, there remains a significant lack of resources specifically tailored to guiding parents as they navigate their way through these complex situations.

Up to 50 % of sex-trafficked youths are male, yet they often remain overlooked in human trafficking cases. This under-recognition leads to inadequate support and identification, resulting in many male survivors not receiving the help they need. In this training, Nathan LaChine addresses this critical issue by focusing on what professionals need to know about working with males who have been trafficked in a key type of commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC): the child sexual abuse material (CSAM) industry, formerly known as child pornography.

In this training, John Henden outlines various SFT techniques designed to address the six common areas of trauma aftereffects. The techniques have proven effective and transferable across many severe trauma and stress areas, including sexual violence; sudden death, mass shootings, terrorist incidents, military combat, and road accidents. During the presentation, Henden discusses specific tools and techniques that can be introduced to clients as part of the therapeutic process.

Safety planning for internet use is now a central component of the community supervision of many justice-involved clients. It is also an emerging facet of collaboration between professionals of different disciplines and their clients. Traditionally, clients with histories of sexual offenses were not allowed to have any internet access at all. However, since the internet has evolved as an accessible provider of resources that are available nowhere else, professionals and clients alike need to be more sophisticated about their use of the internet.

In this training, the presenters provide concrete ideas for how to construct effective safety plans for internet use. This includes:
- Having a conversation with clients about the safety planning process
- Using internet safety planning as a therapeutic process rather than as part of a “to-do list” in treatment
- Clarifying what is needed in a safety plan, including what aspects of the internet pose risks for different clients, and how these risks relate to other risk factors in the client’s life
- Identifying the essential components of an internet safety plan
- Considering cultural factors in safety planning
- Helping clients navigate the sexually suggestive environments of media platforms and understand their subconscious influence

In this training, Amanda Pryor explores methods and techniques for engaging families experiencing these challenges, while also addressing the professionals’ own feelings of being overwhelmed. This includes how to carefully redefine one’s approach when previous providers have not been helpful, such as by shifting from interventions that may unintentionally target parents to more inclusive family support methods.