The Wendt Center Training Institute is a groundbreaking achievement in trauma-informed, community focused mental healthcare. We are building a network of service providers and social leaders equipped to bring hope and healing to the communities in which they work and live. The Wendt Center Training Institute offers trainings and workshops on a variety of topics, to increase the skill, confidence and capacity of mental health professionals and community members as they support persons experiencing grief and loss as well as those impacted by trauma. Our trainings curate cutting-edge information, grounded in theory and infused with the lived clinical experience of the Wendt Center clinicians and trainers; and provide spaces of collaborative learning and real-time engagement to support didactic content.
I have attended hundreds of trainings and this has to be one of the very best I have ever attended. Thank you.
– Wendt Center Trainee
Quick links to our offerings:
I appreciated the balance of theory and interventions. I felt everything that was taught I could implement in my office tomorrow. The presenter was extremely knowledgeable and used a variety of teaching modalities. I would love to attend more trainings.”
— Wendt Center Trainee
Training for Mental Health Professionals
The Wendt Center Training Institute equips mental health providers with the tools needed to bear witness to and support their client’s pain. Our workshops increase the capacity, confidence, and competence of mental health providers, locally and nationally, to support clients at the intersection of grief and trauma. Wendt Center trainings feature cutting-edge information grounded in theory and infused with the expertise of Wendt Center clinicians and trainers. We facilitate spaces of collaborative learning and real-time engagement to support integration and application of content. Topics include our foundation grief training as well as in depth exploration of relational losses (parent/child/spouse) and grief related to a specific cause of death among others.
After three incredible years, the Wendt Center will not be offering our Healing at the Intersection: Grief & Trauma Therapy Certification program in the current iteration. Currently, we are re-imagining this curriculum with an eye to increase accessibility and integration of the material and anticipate a full launch in 2025. Many of the current trainings listed on our Eventbrite page will be incorporated into our reimagined certification program.
Community Trainings
Grief or trauma impacts people living and working in communities, organizations, businesses. The Wendt Center recognizes that healing happens in community and often people struggle to know what the right thing to say and do is in the wake of a difficult event. Our workshops deliver foundational grief and trauma knowledge as well as new tools to support caring community members in providing immediate care in meaningful and effective ways.
Please submit an online request for pricing information or to schedule a training at your agency in any of the following topics:
- Grief
- Trauma-informed systems
- Traumatic grief
- Grief in children and adolescents
- Emotional regulation
- Vicarious trauma and self-care
Crisis Recovery
The death of a colleague, a traumatic event at a school, violence in the neighborhood and other critical incidents can shatter one’s sense of safety and stability and have reverberating impacts within an organization or community. Wendt Center crisis recovery services are a valuable tool in navigating the distress that can follow a sudden loss or traumatic event. Empowered with the right tools and information, organizations and individuals can build capacity to respond empathetically to the presence of grief. Crisis recovery services include:
- A clinical assessment of your organization’s support needs.
- Coaching for leadership around trauma and grief reactions and supportive strategies.
- Small group and/or individual support sessions, which provide an opportunity to put words to feelings, explore reactions and coping strategies, and obtain information to aid in healing.
The trainers were excellent, knowledgeable, dynamic teachers of such an important topic-they conveyed their expertise so well, and I left the training with several concrete tools I will start using immediately!
– Wendt Center Trainee
School Support
Children and teens don’t leave their grief and trauma at the door when they enter a school building. These experiences impact how they engage in the classroom and how they retain information, making it vital that staff are equipped to offer support. The Wendt Center offers training and support to teachers, school-based mental health providers, and school administrators to ensure they have the tools and skills to support students impacted by grief and trauma.
Grief and Trauma Supportive Classrooms
This workshop offers educators and administrators the information and tools necessary to establish and implement grief competent classrooms and responses. Utilizing the Wendt Center’s over 4 decades of clinical experience these trainings provide specific strategies which can be implemented the next day allowing teachers and students to re-focus on learning and educational outcomes.
Coaching support
When a school community is impacted by grief or trauma, administrators, educators and school staff are often left with no road map for how to proceed. The Wendt Center’s coaching support is the roadmap. The Wendt Center will work with school administrators and leaders to customize a plan of support that factors in the unique needs and culture of that school including guidance on communication plans, schedules and rituals, and community meetings.
Crisis Recovery
The Wendt Center can offer small group and/or individual support sessions for staff, which provide an opportunity to put words to feelings, explore reactions and coping strategies, and obtain information to aid in healing. Offering support to impacted staff helps increase their capacity to be present for and focus on the students.
Case Consultation
The Wendt Center offers individual case consultations for licensed mental health professionals. This 50-min consultation session allows you to connect with one of our highly trained grief and trauma clinicians to obtain feedback and support to better work with your client. Consultations are $165.
For more information or questions, please contact Melissa Sellevaag, Director of Training and Education, at 202-204-5033 or training@wendtcenter.org
Continuing education credits are offered through the Association of Social Work Boards
Wendt Center for Loss and Healing Training Institute, 1737 is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved as ACE providers. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. Wendt Center for Loss and Healing Training Institute maintains responsibility for this course. ACE provider approval period: March 13,2021 – March 13, 2024.
FAQ
What happens to my registration fee if a training is cancelled?
In the event that a training needs to be canceled or postponed, participants (or the partnering agency) will be notified and offered a refund or a transfer of registration.
What is your inclement weather policy?
The Wendt Center follows the Federal Government for all closures and delays. In the event the Federal Government is closed the training will be canceled and rescheduled. Participants will be offered a refund or a transfer of registration to the new date. If the Federal Government has a delayed opening the training will begin on time as scheduled.
What are the requirements for completing a course with continuing education credit?
At the beginning of the training, participants will complete a pre-test to measure learning. Participants are required to attend for the entire duration of the workshop, signing in and out for the workshop and a lunch break. After the workshop is completed, participants will be required to complete an evaluation and post-test.
What is the process for receiving my certificate?
Participants will receive a link for an evaluation and post-test by email within one hour of the workshop conclusion. Once participants have electronically completed their evaluation and post-test, they will be sent a certificate for continuing education units by email within a week of completion. A participant’s receipt of their certificate is not contingent upon achieving a particular score on their post-test.
How can I request a refund as an individual participant?
Course participants may request a refund up to 30 days prior to the training date. The registration fee, less a $25 administrative fee will be refunded. To request a refund within this timeframe, please e-mail training@wendtcenter.org. Refunds will be issued electronically within approximately one week of your request.
How do I request an accommodation?
The Wendt Center’s training facilities are handicap accessible. Individuals needing special accommodations, please contact the Director of Training, Melissa Sellevaag at msellevaag@wendtcenter.org. For trainings taking place at a partnering organization, please contact that organization.
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How can I file a complaint or grievance about the course or instructor?
The Wendt Center seeks to ensure equitable treatment of every person and to make every attempt to resolve grievances in a fair and transparent manner. Therefore, we are eager to address any refund requests, complaints about course content, speakers, facilities, non-receipt of certificates, and any other occurrences. To submit all other grievances, please send a written summary of the incident to Emily Prusator, LICSW at eprusator@wendtcenter.org. All grievances will be documented and actions taken to address any grievances will be recorded. These records can be made available to the ASWB ACE program for review upon request. Grievances will receive, to the best of our ability, corrective action in order to prevent further problems. A copy of this policy is available on promotional material and upon request.