Supporting Youth and Young Adults Impacted by Substance Use in Massachusetts

Join us to learn about our new Toolkit for professionals, covering key concepts of youth and young adult substance use and IHR's role in supporting providers statewide to help young people who may be struggling with substance use and co-occurring disorders.

We will review the toolkit's focus on understanding youth and young adult substance use, signs and symptoms, screening and assessment, emerging trends in Massachusetts for young people, engaging in meaningful conversations to support youth and young adults around substance use, and how to access substance use treatment, supports, and family recovery resources.

We will also review IHR's Youth and Young Adult Training Team services, including in-person and virtual trainings, technical assistance, and online trainings.

Download Supporting Youth and Young Adults Impacted by Substance Use in Massachusetts: Toolkit for Professionals below.

Trainers

Jordana Willers, Ed.M. is the Youth Training Supervisor for the Institute for Health & Recovery (IHR), a statewide policy, program/systems development, training, services and research organization. In this role, she provides trainings, technical assistance, and support for youth and young adult substance use treatment programs and works collaboratively with youth-serving systems and state agencies across Massachusetts, in partnership with DPH, BSAS (Bureau of Substance Addiction Services). She has over 30 years’ experience supporting youth and families in recovery from trauma, mental health, and addiction, with a focus on systems-level change, training, and consulting over the past two decades. Her work for youth-serving nonprofits in Philadelphia, Newark, New York City, and Boston led her to pursue a Master’s degree at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, with a focus on trauma and resilience for adolescents. Her systems-level work on behalf of youth and families prior to the Institute for Health and Recovery includes positions at the Harvard Kennedy School, NYU Child Study Center, and a wide variety of nonprofit organizations across the country. She loves hiking and living in Western Mass. Please contact her to learn more at jordanawillers@healthrecovery.org.

Jennie Whittaker, Jennie is the Statewide Coordinator of the Youth Drug Awareness Program at the Institute for Health & Recovery (IHR). She also assists in providing training and technical assistance on understanding substance use issues for agencies, providers, and community members across Massachusetts. In Addition, Jennie collaborates with the Massachusetts General Hospital and the Bureau of Substance Addiction Services Youth and Young Adult Team in the curriculum development and implementation of iDECIDE (Drug Education Curriculum: Intervention, Diversion, Empowerment) and the parent component, iCARE.

Jennie has over 20 years’ experience working with at-risk youth. Her background combines a blend of experience working in trauma crisis intervention, development and coordination of community-based youth programs and youth substance use treatment and education.

Jennie received a master’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Massachusetts with a certificate in Domestic Violence.

Sponsored By

Mass. Department of Public Health, Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Youth and Young Adult Services, Institute for Health and Recovery, & ADEPT Educational Institute, Inc

Accommodations

If you are Deaf or hard of hearing, or are a person with a disability who requires accommodation, please contact Gina Colon at ADEPT Educational Institute, Inc. at (508) 752-7313; Fax: (508) 752-8111; TTY: (508) 754-0039 or email: gina@adepteducational.org at least three weeks prior to secure accommodations.