School Mental Health: Treating Students K- 12
- Continuing Education
Tackle the youth mental health crisis head-on with this dynamic, multi-day course that equips professionals with the latest clinical insights, real-world strategies, and collaborative tools to support school-aged children through inclusive, evidence-based, and culturally responsive care.
- In Person
This course requires in person attendance.
Fairmont Copley Plaza Hotel Boston | 138 St. James Avenue, Boston, MA
$555 Save with early registration
For a full list of profession pricing see below.
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Fee increases to $595 after
Continuing Education
Earn up to:
14.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™
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Two Days
Please view the Schedule for a full description of the program.
On This Page
Overview
Mental health issues among school-aged children and adolescents have continued to overwhelm students, schools, and communities. The impacts are far reaching—from academic performance and financial challenges to long-term public health outcomes and societal well-being. Because schools are a primary access point for mental health screening and services for many children, the school setting can offer prime opportunities for early identification, treatment, and coordination of care.
Mental health professionals in and out of educational systems can play a key role in addressing the mental health crisis. Still, too many of us struggle to stay up to date on changing diagnosis, treatment, and best practice guidelines in school settings. To promote the best outcomes, providers need guidance on screening and treatment tools, care coordination, referral pathways, and larger systemic strategies.
Our popular course is designed to offer participants the latest clinical information and practical strategies that address current topics in school mental health through a mix of lectures, case studies, lived experience, interactive panels and Q&A. Faculty this year will delve into the evidence-based psychotherapies ACT, UP-C and DBT, school avoidance, fostering awe in youth, the adultification of Black girls, pharmacotherapy updates, eating disorders, ADHD in girls, and supporting immigrant students. In addition, we'll hear about effective ways to process lived experience via the arts.
Each year we strive to create a warm, energizing and fun learning experience to enhance connection and networking among attendees. We welcome all mental health and health clinicians, educators, school administrators, researchers, and others interested in the development and treatment of school-aged children and adolescents to join us in 2027!
Learning Objectives
- Identify and apply how actionable awe—fostered through a youth participatory action–based awe literacy program—increases a sense of belonging, improves school-community relationships, and expands school-based mental health support.
- Articulate strategies to support the integration and participation of immigrant students.
- Describe the nuances of eating disorders, including their diverse presentations and the populations they affect, and utilize practical tools for supporting students experiencing eating disorder–related symptoms.
- Identify the decision architecture in Dialectical Behavior Therapy and match the pertinent skill to a student's state of regulation.
- Explore an example of processing lived experience using art and graphic novels.
- Review updates to pharmacologic treatments for mental health disorders in children and adolescents.
- Discuss how ADHD presents differently in girls.
- Identify the correct DSM 5 diagnosis for students with school avoidance using empirically backed screening tools, and list several medical conditions that may be at root of school avoidant issues.
- Identify the manifestations of adultification in the school setting and discuss key strategies to ameliorate its harmful impact on Black girls.
- Discuss the effectiveness and student experiences of integrating spoken word poetry into group therapy.
- Review elements of the Unified Protocol for Children, and implement evidence-based strategies to help children cope with and build resilience to difficult emotions.
- Map their own clinical reactive habit patterns using the CARE framework (Cue → Affect → Reaction → Effect), distinguishing reflexive responses from intentional clinical moves in complex student, family, and school-system interactions.
- Discuss ways to engage school or clinic administration teams and promote the implementation of targeted mental health programs for students.
Developed and Offered By:
Continuing Education courses are developed by faculty from Harvard Medical School's teaching hospitals and accredited by Harvard Medical School. This course is offered by Cambridge Health Alliance.
Who Should Participate
Specialty Physicians, Primary Care Physicians, Social workers, Counselors, Family Therapists, Psychologists, Nurses, and Others.
Schedule
All agenda sessions are in Eastern Time.
Friday, February 5, 2027
Welcome & Introduction
8:05-8:15 am
AWE Literacy: Transforming Schools and Communities Through Actionable Awe
8:15-9:15 am
Supporting Immigrant Students
9:15-10:15 am
Break
10:15-10:30 am
From Awareness to Action: Addressing Eating Disorders in School Communities
10:30-11:30 am
The Right Tool at the Right Time: Tailoring DBT Strategies to Student Needs
11:30 am-12:30 pm
Lunch (on own)
12:30-1:45 pm
Panel by Panel: Finding Growth Mindset Amongst Graphic Novels (lived experience)
1:45-2:45 pm
Break
2:45-3:00 pm
Psychopharmacology Updates
3:00-4:00 pm
ADHD in Girls
4:00-5:00 pm
Close Day 1
5:00-5:05 pm
Saturday, February 6, 2027
Welcome Day 2
8:10-8:15 am
Understanding the Roots of School Avoidance: Why We Have the Wrong Story, and How We can Support Students Differently
8:15-9:15 am
The Tantrum-to-Threat Pipeline: The Mental Health Consequences of the Adultification of Black Girls
9:15-10:15 am
Break
10:15-10:30 am
Poetry, Group Therapy, and the Art of School Mental Health (including spoken word performance)
10:30 am-12:00 pm
Lunch (on own)
12:00-1:15 pm
The Unified Protocol for Children, in Practice
1:15-2:15 pm
Self-Supervision in 30 Seconds — An Advanced ACT-Integrated Practice for School-Based Clinicians With No Time for One More Thing
2:15-3:15 pm
Break
3:15-3:30 pm
Getting Buy-In from Leadership for New Initiatives
3:30-4:30 pm
Wrap-Up Discussion
4:30-5:00 pm
Close Program
5:00-5:05 pm
Faculty
Harvard Medical School Continuing Education attracts the best and brightest faculty from all around the world. As a student in this course, you’ll have access to outstanding course directors and faculty.
Course Directors
Nancy Rappaport
MD | Course Director
- Consultant, School-Based Programs, Cambridge Health Alliance
- Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Part-Time, Harvard Medical School
Christopher Willard
PsyD | Course Director
- Psychologist and Educational Consultant
- Teaching Associate in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Karen Kuc
MPH | Course Director
- Director, Continuing Education in Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance
- Associate in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Mitch Abblett, PhD
Clinical Psychologist in Private Practice, Author, Speaker, and Consultant
Wendy Bamatter, PhD
Program Director, Child Partial Hospital Program, McLean Hospital
Instructor in Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Ashley Cooper, PhD
PhD Student, Yale University
Sheilah Gauch, LICSW, MEd
Principal and Clinical Director, Dearborn Academy
Demond Hill, PhD
Assistant Professor of Health Equity, Eliot-Pearson Department of Child Study and Human Development, Tufts University
Raynard Kington, MD, PhD
Head of School, Phillips Academy Andover
David Klemanski, PsyD, MPH
Chief, Division of Psychology and Co-Director of Postdoctoral Training, Department of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance
Member of the Faculty, Harvard Medical School
Jarrett J. Krosoczka
New York Times Bestselling Author and Illustrator
Gabrielle Oliveira, PhD
Author
Jorge Paulo Lemann Associate Professor of Education and of Brazil Studies, Harvard Graduate School of Education
Lea Petrovic, PhD
Staff Psychologist, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Boston Children's Hospital Instructor in Psychology in the Department of Psychiatry, Part-time, Harvard Medical School
Sharon Saline, PsyD
Clinical Psychologist
Award-Winning Author
International Speaker and Expert Consultant
Timothy Shea, MD
Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist, Part-time, Department of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance Instructor in Psychiatry, Part-time, Harvard Medical School
Rebecca Shingleton, PhD
Clinical Psychologist
Associate Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology, Harvard University
Mary Sun, MD
Resident Physician, Mass General Brigham; Clinical Fellow in Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Location Information
Venue
Fairmont Copley Plaza
138 St. James Avenue
Boston, MA 02116
Hotel Reservations
A block of rooms for the nights of February 4-6 2027, has been reserved at the hotel for this event, under the group name Cambridge Health Alliance.
All reservations must be made, modified, or canceled individually through the hotel’s Reservation Department via this link https://book.passkey.com/go/SchoolMentalHealth2027 or by calling 1-800-441-1414 and referring to Group Name. Reservations for rooms accessible to guests with disabilities may be made in the same manner. Reservations must be made on or before January 11, 2027 to guarantee the CHA group rate.
Hotel confirms the following guest room rates per night:
$199 Moderate Room
$215 Fairmont Room (Single or double-bedded)
$250 Deluxe Room
Guest room rates are exclusive of applicable taxes and service fees.
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Course Fees
Registration Details
You may register through our secure online environment and will receive an email confirmation upon receipt of your payment. Prices include CME credit, electronic syllabus, refreshments, continental breakfast. At the end of the registration process, a $10 non-refundable processing fee will be added to your registration.
Early Registration Deadline:
| Role | Course Fee | Early Registration Course Fee |
|---|---|---|
| Physician (MD/DO) | $595 | $555 |
| Nurse (RN/APRN) | $475 | $435 |
| PA | $475 | $435 |
| Psychologist | $475 | $435 |
| Resident/Fellow | $475 | $435 |
| Social Worker | $475 | $435 |
| Allied Health Professional / Other | $475 | $435 |
As there is no livestream or recorded option for this course, we recommend purchasing travel/event insurance in case unforeseen circumstances occur and you are unable to attend in person. Per our cancellation policy, no refunds will be issued <15 days prior to the course start date.
Accreditation
The Harvard Medical School designates this live activity for a maximum of 14.00 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry maintains responsibility for this program and its content. This course offers 14.00 continuing education credits.
Please note: For psychologists, social workers, counselors, and LMFTs, this course has been approved for a set amount of credits and CHA is not able to issue CE certificates for partial credit. Participants must be present for all sessions to claim a certificate. For any questions regarding CE credit, please email cme@challiance.org.
Cambridge Health Alliance is an Affiliate of Harvard Medical School. Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 5444. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is solely responsible for all aspects of the program. This course meets the requirements for 14.00 continuing education hours and is also applicable for Commonwealth of Massachusetts Counseling/Allied Mental Health accreditation for 14.00 credits.
Please note: For psychologists, social workers, counselors, and LMFTs, this course has been approved for a set amount of credits and CHA is not able to issue CE certificates for partial credit. Participants must be present for all sessions to claim a certificate. For any questions regarding CE credit, please email cme@challiance.org.
An application has been submitted to the New England Association for Family and Systemic Therapy on behalf of the Massachusetts Board of Registration of Allied Mental Health and Human Services Professions, for LMFT professional continuing education. The States of CT and RI accept NBCC and NASW approval for marriage and family therapy.
Please note: For psychologists, social workers, counselors, and LMFTs, this course has been approved for a set amount of credits and CHA is not able to issue CE certificates for partial credit. Participants must be present for all sessions to claim a certificate. For any questions regarding CE credit, please email cme@challiance.org.
For the purpose of recertification, the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners Certification Board and American Nurses Credentialing Center accept AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ issued by organizations accredited by the ACCME (Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education). We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
The National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA) states that AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™ are acceptable for continuing medical education requirements for recertification. We would also suggest that learners check with their state licensing board to ensure they accept reciprocity with AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™ for re-licensure.
The American Medical Association (AMA) has an agreement of mutual recognition of continuing medical education (CME) credit with the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS). Additional information regarding this agreement may be found on the Union of European Medical Specialists website.
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada recognizes conferences and workshops held outside of Canada that are developed by a university, academy, hospital, specialty society or college as accredited group learning activities.
Application for social work continuing education credits has been submitted to NASW-MA. Please contact us at cme@challiance.org for the status of social work CE accreditation. NY Social Workers: Cambridge Health Alliance, Division of Continuing Education in Psychiatry is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an Approved Provider #0038 of continuing education for licensed social workers. This course offers 14.00 contact hours.
Please note: For psychologists, social workers, counselors, and LMFTs, this course has been approved for a set amount of credits and CHA is not able to issue CE certificates for partial credit. Participants must be present for all sessions to claim a certificate. For any questions regarding CE credit, please email cme@challiance.org.