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 MA. Please contact her to learn more at jordanawillers@healthrecovery.org.
Vannasang Souksavath, LICSW is the Massachusetts Statewide A-CRA Trainer with the Bureau of Substance Addiction Services Office of Youth & Young Adult Services and Institute for Health and Recovery. She has 18 years of experience working with youth, young adults, and their families in residential and community-based programs. Her work is dedicated to helping youth and young adults struggling with substance use disorder, co-occurring disorders, and at-risk and juvenile justice-involved youth. Vannasang is a certified Global Appraisal of Individual Needs (GAIN) Interviewer and a certified Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach (A-CRA) and Assertive Continuing Care (ACC) clinician and supervisor. She received her Master’s in Social Work from Boston College Graduate School of Social Work.
Sponsored By
Mass. Department of Public Health, Bureau of Substance Addiction Services, Office of Youth and Young Adult Services, Institute for Health & Recovery, and 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.
Supporting Youth and Young Adults Impacted by Substance Use in Massachusetts
The purpose of this toolkit is to provide professionals with education and resources in supporting young people, and their families who are impacted by substance use in the community and in programs. The toolkit demonstrates this through outlining prevention, intervention, and treatment approaches within various professional capacities.