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Three Recorded Sessions Available
2024 Mental Health Action Week

May 7 - 9, 2024

Our 2024 Mental Health Action Week webinar series was designed to enhance your toolkit with practical strategies for wellness practices, trauma-informed communication, and effective de-escalation techniques. The sessions were tailored to equip staff, faculty, and administrators with essential skills to navigate personal and professional challenges with confidence and resilience. Each session was 90 minutes long and included time for Q&A.

Webinar Date & Topics

1.5-hour Webinar: Watch Recording | Presentation Slides PDF

Explored the nuanced distinctions between stress, trauma, and grief, and discovered practical strategies for addressing them amidst ongoing uncertainties like the pandemic. Gained insights into leveraging socio-cultural relationships for holistic, healing-centered approaches and applied principles of recovery and renewal to enhance pedagogical practices, classroom environments, and overall school culture.

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Brianna Young, MEd

Reach University’s Oxford Teacher’s College
Brianna Young, is a professor of education at Reach University’s Oxford Teacher’s College and a trauma-informed systems consultant with Trauma Transformed, based in Oakland, CA. After nearly a decade in public school systems, she turned her focus to studying the impacts of trauma on individuals and systems, and leverages her skills and experiences as an educator, curriculum designer, and administrator to support large and small organizations to define and implement actionable, trauma-informed change. She has worked with clinics, healthcare systems, county departments, community-based organizations, companies, nonprofits, and school districts across the country on training, coaching, technical assistance, and systems change support, all emphasizing the importance of human and healing centered cultural shifts.

1.5-hour Webinar: Watch Recording | Presentation Slides PDF

Discovered the power of pedagogical wellness in promoting student and instructor well-being in the classroom. Theresa Duong, PhD, on May 8th explored evidence-based teaching and wellness strategies that foster a culture of mutual care, compassion, and respect. Learned how to integrate these practices into your campus to enhance success for both educators and students.

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Theresa Duong, PhD

Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation (DTEI) at the University of California, Irvine (UCI)
Theresa Duong serves as the Pedagogical Wellness Specialist at the Division of Teaching Excellence and Innovation (DTEI) at the University of California, Irvine (UCI). After several years of research in public health and teaching undergraduate public health courses, she shifted her work towards the intersection of well-being and educational development in higher education. As the only Pedagogical Wellness Specialist in the country, she provides mental health and well-being pedagogy training for members of the instructional team and advances a research agenda around pedagogical wellness. Although her role is still new, it has garnered considerable interest from universities nationwide. Her work has been featured in the Journal for Centers for Teaching and Learning, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and Inside Higher Education.

1.5-hour Webinar: Watch Recording | Presentation Slides PDF

Join us for the last webinar in this series where we delved into managing disruptive behavior and understanding risk perception. Learned essential skills for responding to emotionally charged requests, alongside practical strategies for mitigating the impact of vicarious trauma in the workplace. Drawing on real-life case examples from Palomar College, this session equipped you with actionable insights and best practices for fostering a supportive environment. Enhanced your ability to identify disruptive behavior, recognize risk factors, and implement wellness strategies to maintain healthy boundaries.

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Monique Mendoza, PhD, MM

Psychology and Solutions, Inc.
Monique Mendoza is a licensed psychologist who supports high-risk settings and provides training to redefine workplace violence prevention. She offers consulting services to help campuses prioritize well-being through inclusive services that inspire confidence and resilience while rejecting scare tactics. Dr. Mendoza received her Bachelor of Arts in Cognitive Science from the University of California Irvine and her Doctorate of Philosophy in Counseling Psychology from the University of Missouri.
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Patrick Savaiano, PhD

Palomar College
Patrick Savaiano is a licensed psychologist and the Director of Behavioral Health and Wellness at Palomar College. He has devoted his career in mental health to working with students in higher education. Patrick is committed to social justice and multicultural frameworks as well as preventative services that reduce stigma and reach students who may not historically have had access to mental health services. He brings a specialty in mindfulness and self-compassion-based interventions as well as a wealth of experience in crisis intervention, peer education, student mentorship, outreach and education, and consultation with college staff and faculty. Since joining Palomar College in 2019, Patrick has served as a core member of the college’s Student of Concern team, providing regular consultation to campus partners regarding behavioral and mental health concerns.

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