True to DCAC’s values of excellence, trauma-informed, child-centered, inclusion, and compassion, several members of our team participated in leadership conferences and opportunities throughout the nation. From San Diego to Washington, D.C., our team members broadened their skills and deepened their knowledge of how to better prevent abuse, strengthen families, and restore childhood.
Learn more about where some of our team members ventured to and what they learned in this first of two blog posts.
Crimes Against Children Conference
DCAC staff members Hollie Reinhart, Marlen Montanez, and Amy Bell, together with members of the District Attorney’s Office and Dr. Steffey from Denver Health attended the 37th Annual Crimes Against Children Conference in Dallas, Texas in early August. Thousands of people from around the world attend the conference every year as it’s considered one of the largest of its kind.
Hollie, DCAC’s Director of Rapid Response and a Forensic Interviewer, attended several multidisciplinary team (MDT) sessions, which emphasized the importance of how strong collaboration, clear communication, and a child-centered focus transform team responses to providing unified and compassionate care.
“The opportunity to attend the sessions with several team members of the newly-established Child Victim Unit at the DA’s Office, plus one of our medical providers, allowed us to strengthen relationships in real time, reflect together on best practices, and begin aligning our approaches so that we return to Denver with a shared vision for building a more cohesive and effective MDT,” Hollie said.
Marlen, who, in addition to being a Community Mental Health Coordinator is in a new role as Intake Manager at DCAC, shared, “My experience at the Dallas Conference was very rewarding, and I am excited to implement what I learned into my work.”
Marlen attended several treatment-focused sessions, where she learned more about different therapy modalities, case studies, and supervisory skills. To enhance her outreach role, she participated in community sessions led by the FBI on internet safety and grooming, which deepened her awareness of the signs to look for and gave her tools to better support families.
“Overall, it was inspiring to see so many professionals across the country dedicated to this important work,” Marlen said. “The case studies and especially the grooming sessions left a strong impression on me.”
Northeast Child Abuse Conference
In April, Angel Gudeman, Bilingual Forensic Interviewer, attended the Northeast Child Abuse Conference in Rochester, New York.
“One of my main interests in this field is the presence of child abuse in spiritual/religious communities, and how that impacts a child’s spirituality and sense of self,” Angel said.
A highlight of her trip was meeting Victor Vieth, one of the nation’s leading experts on this topic (pictured on the left with Angel below).
“I got to pick his brain about how we bridge some of the gaps in the child advocacy center (CAC) world around this topic to provide more support to kids who may be experiencing spiritual crises because of their abuse in religious contexts,” Angel shared.
Angel looks forward to brainstorming new tools that CACs could use to improve their services around child abuse by spiritual learder and promost whole-person healing
“I would love to see more CACs engage in conversations about the unique dynamics victims encounter when experiencing sexual/physical abuse at the hands of spiritual leaders, or in spiritual contexts,” she said. “A growing body of research identifies the wounds and layers of this type of abuse to be uniquely complex and harmful.”
Look for more about what DCAC staff learned through various conferences and experiences in our next blog post.