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Click here for more information! (PDF)Cost: $15.00 non refundable - Includes lunch buffetWhat:Increasingly faced with students who present very challenging behavioral issues, most school staff have not be trained as treatment providers, but as educators. Punitive and reactive strategies are often the response of choice, in spite of the frequent negative side effects and drawbacks of such approaches. We will take a look at another approach to classroom management of oppositional and defiant students. A montana licensed psychologist in private practice in Billings, Dr. House was a school psychologist in Bozeman for a dozen years before returning to graduate school in Oregon to earn a Masters and Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. He practiced a couple of years in a private psychology clinic and a year in a psychiatric hospital for children and adolescents, and then shifted to a psychiatric residential treatment facility, where he filled several professional roles during his twenty one years of service, resigning from there this past summer to pursue his private practice. He is still licensed as a school psychologist and is a NCSP.When:March 14, 201211:30 am - 1:30 pmWhere:Student Union Building, Lewis and Clark RoomMSU-Billings, Billings, MTContact:Debra Miller Phone: (406)657-2312Email: dmiller@msubillings.edu

Bullying is a major issue. This is especially true among the disabled. A recent study focused on bullying within the school aged autistic population, and I discussed that at the Autism Science Foundation blog. Another study has just come out recently in School Psychology Quarterly, National prevalence rates of bully victimization among students with disabilities in the United States.

Looking back on the past three years, I wanted to document the critical factors that seemed to make a difference in my son’s experience. Some of these factors parents can influence, and some are more difficult. I can personally attest to difficulty of rolling the ball up hill so-to-speak, when it comes to implementing change in schools. But if we start identify what is working well, then, perhaps, we can start to advocate and change schools so that they work for kids with autism instead of against them.

Click here to download the full brochure (PDF) Topic: In this engaging workshop, national expert Dr. Douglas Gentile will discuss the scientific research on many of the ways in which the media can affect children, adolescents, and adults. Topics covered will include brain development and the media, the psychology of advertising and what educators should learn from advertisers, the multiple effects of media violence, the positive and negative effects of  video games, how the media fit into the larger picture of risk and protective factors, and how the media can influence school readiness and school success.

The American Psychological Association (APA) is changing the definition of Autism Spectrum Disorders, a change which will occur in May of 2013. You can view the draft criteria here and a short explanation here. There are several changes which concern parents, education professionals and people with autism spectrum disorders. Very briefly, these changes are: 1. The new APA criterion for autism spectrum disorders is different from the current APA, IDEA and Montana educational criteria for autism spectrum disorders. 2. Asperger's Disorder and Pervasive Developmental Disorder will no longer exist as separate APA diagnostic categories, but will be subsumed in the revised APA criteria for "Autism Spectrum Disorder." What will these changes mean for students with autism spectrum disorders in Montana's public schools? 1. Montana is unlikely to change the current criteria for identification of a student as having autism until the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA) is reauthorized. 2. The IDEA was last reauthorized in 2004 and the revised regulations were published in 2006. There is no anticipated date for when the next reauthorization will occur. 3. When the IDEA or Montana educational criteria for educational disabilities change, there is no requirement that students who are currently identified as eligible for special education and related services be reevaluated to determine eligibility under the new criteria. These students have previously been determined as eligible using the criteria which were in effect at the time of their identification. 4. Children and youth who are evaluated and diagnosed by non-school agencies as meeting the current or revised APA definition of Autism Spectrum Disorder are still required to have a separate educational evaluation by the school district. 5. If necessary, the OPI Division of Special Education will provide guidance and technical assistance in interpreting any differences between the new APA criteria for autism spectrum disorders and the current Montana educational criteria for autism. If you have questions, please contact Doug Doty, Statewide Coordinator of the OPI Montana Autism Education Project at ddoty@mt.govor 459-5303

In relation to new state licensure requirements, we will be offering supervision training for experienced Class 6 School Psychologists in the Spring of 2011. Successful applicants will have at least three years full-time experience and be willing to offer supervision to Class 5 school psychologists holding an alternative license who are completing their formal internships within districts. Training will be provided with the support of the Office of Public Instruction and two applicants from each CSPD region will be welcome to attend. The two-day course will be based on an NASP format and taught by staff from the University of Montana, Missoula, and members of the MASP Competency Review Board. Training will be held in Helena on March 18 and April 15, 2011,  and will include both group work and independent study.  A small stipend will be offered to psychologists who plan to offer supervision within their region. Office of Public Instruction recertification credit will be available or one continuing education credit from the University of Montana, based on a minimum of 15 hours attendance. For more details and an application form, please contact Ann Verploegen by e-mail at annsnp@yahoo.com.

Every September, millions of parents try a kind of psychological witchcraft, to transform their summer-glazed campers into fall students, their video-bugs into bookworms. Advice is cheap and all too familiar: Clear a quiet work space. Stick to a homework schedule. Set goals. Set boundaries. Do not bribe (except in emergencies).

And check out the classroom. Does Junior’s learning style match the new teacher’s approach? Or the school’s philosophy? Maybe the child isn’t “a good fit” for the school.

Such theories have developed in part because of sketchy education research that doesn’t offer clear guidance. Student traits and teaching styles surely interact; so do personalities and at-home rules. The trouble is, no one can predict how.

What: Montana Families Speak of Missoula is hosting a meeting for Parents of Children with Emotional or Behavioral Challenges. Please join us in creating a group for families and caregivers to share  information and resources Together our voices will be heard. When: Thursday, October 28 from 6:00–8:00pm Where: Christ the King 1400 Gerald Ave., Missoula (Side entrance on Keith Ave. Lower Level)        Dinner will be provided. On-site childcare provided by University of Montana School Psychology graduate students. If you have questions, please contact Marry Hall at 888-406-1914 or mary.hall@pluk.org

A significant amount of attention, money and resources are devoted to soldiers who return home after war and experience a host of issues that fall under the diagnosis of post-traumatic stress disorder. Yet according to a leading expert on childhood trauma, the number of affected veterans is dwarfed by the legions of American children who are being abused and neglected. Those children, Bessel van der Kolk told Missoulians last week, experience their own psychological, emotional and physical trauma on a daily basis. And they are much the worse for it.