KAPSCon 2020: The Year We Went Virtual
Due to COVID-19, KAPSCon 2020 has gone virtual!
Based on membership feedback, we are offering 15 total hours of training this fall–5 hours on 3 separate days. NOTE: Ethics training will follow this spring, hopefully in person 
Registration for our first training date of October 16, 2020 is now open!
Hourly Schedule
October 16th
- 9:00 am - 12:00 pm
- Applied Trauma Informed School Approaches
- Dr. Eric Rossen, National Association for School Psychologists (NASP) Summary: As districts increasingly recognize the impact of stress, adversity, and trauma on students, schools must now consider how to implement these trauma-informed approaches. Schools have the added challenge of implementation within their unique contexts, all while balancing existing demands, school-wide initiatives, and an uncertain school year ahead. This session will help prepare educators with the fundamentals of providing trauma-informed approaches in our schools, both amidst COVID-19 and in the long-term. Dr. Eric Rossen is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist, a licensed psychologist in Maryland, and a credentialed National Register Health Service psychologist. Dr. Rossen has worked in public schools and in independent practice and has served as a college instructor and adjunct faculty at the University of Missouri and Prince George’s Community College. He has presented across the US and internationally, and published dozens of articles and book chapters related to school psychology, school safety, and trauma. He is most recently the editor of Supporting and Educating Traumatized Students: A Guide for School-Based Professionals, 2nd Edition, and co-author of the book Applying a Trauma-Informed Framework to The IEP Process: From Referral to Development.
- 1: pm - 2:00 pm
- Secondary Trauma: How do I Protect Myself and Other Staff?
- Dr. Bethanie Brogli-Opell, School Psychologist, Jefferson County Public Schools Summary: This session will focus on the daily sources of secondary trauma that school psychologists encounter. Participants will be introduced to strategies that can be put in place to to prevent secondary trauma in a field that commonly encounters the traumas of their clients. Participants will also learn of interventions and strategies that can be implemented after exposure to student/staff trauma. Dr. Bethanie Brogli Opell (bethanie.brogli@jefferson.kyschools.us) is a graduate of the University of Kentucky's School Psychology program and has been practicing in Jefferson County Public Schools for 19 years. She also completed a doctorate in Educational Leadership at the University of the Cumberlands, where she researched the relationship between secondary trauma and crisis response. Dr. Brogli-Opell is a national PREPaRE trainer and a JCPS crisis response district lead and trainer.
- 2:00 pm - 3:00 pm
- Stress: Causes, Risks, and Reduction Techniques
- Dr. Cynthia Davidson, School Psychologist, Clark County Schools Summary: Stress! It's everywhere! Learn why stress is important in your life, the health risks associated with it, and how to manage it. This training will review stress paradigms, focusing on the good and the bad of stress. Health risks associated with stress exhaustion will be reviewed along with screeners to measure your own stress levels. Finally, strategies to reduce stress will be implemented and participants will be encouraged to adopt stress reduction techniques in their lives. Dr. Davidson earned her specialist degree in school psychology from Eastern Kentucky University in 2005. After working in the public school sector, she returned to college to complete a doctorate in clinical psychology at Spalding University in 2017. Dr. Davidson has worked in various settings and within multidisciplinary teams, including community mental health, schools, inpatient facilities, veteran’s affairs, and forensic settings. Dr. Davidson presently works as a school psychologist at Clark County Public Schools.