Middle and High School Staff Training
We recognize that school staff are overburdened with the mental health needs of their students. Teachers, counselors, and administrators are exhausted and overwhelmed by these needs, which they are not well trained to manage. DBT for You is now offering staff trainings to help special educators and school counselors more effectively teach emotional problem-solving, both in the moment to students in distress during the school day, and as part of a more universal curriculum to teach students how to prevent emotional escalation.
DBT, or Dialectical Behavior Therapy, is a mental health treatment that is popular and effective with people who have difficulty with emotion regulation and impulse control. It is a skill-based approach, where clinicians teach their clients how to regulate their emotions and problem-solve.
Over the past five years, DBT has been adapted for use in schools. The program is called DBT STEPS-A. School counselors and teachers across the country are being trained to provide this psycho-educational skill program to their students.
In a series of 2-hour workshops, staff will be taught the behavioral principles behind DBT STEPS-A, as well as the specifics of how to use the following skill sets with the students: Emotion Regulation, Mindfulness, Distress Tolerance, Walking the Middle Path, and Interpersonal Effectiveness. School counselors and teachers will identify how DBT STEPS-A can be used within the school day with students who present with a wide variety of executive functioning learning needs.
Training Offered:
- 20 hours with CEUs available
- Training can be tailored to your school’s needs (both content and scheduling)
- Facilitated for small groups up to 15 participants including counselors, special educators, psychologists, administrators, and nurses
DBT STEPS-A is not a therapy program. It is a curriculum used to teach skills to youth. We educate staff using the workbook DBT Skills in Schools: Skills Training for Emotional Problem Solving for Adolescents (DBT STEPS-A) by Mazza et al.
In December 2023, the CDC released an action guide for school and district leaders to promote mental health and well being. Our training can be used to help your district implement the six strategies outlined in the guide, using a multi-tiered framework.
CDC: Promoting Mental Health and Well-Being in Schools An Action Guide for School and District Leaders
If you are interested in learning more about what we do please contact us at 603-285-9129 or beth@dbteensnh.org. We are looking forward to talking with you!