Summer Institute on Substance Abuse and Mental Illness Workshops

Working with school personnel to develop effective strategies to meet the rising challenge of substance abuse & mental illness

Schools are becoming battlegrounds in a war against drugs and violence. School personnel are "first responders" to crisis that may include the discharge of a fire arm or an attempted suicide. While Teachers, Guidance and Adjustment Counselors and Nurses have always been on the front lines they are finding that their once familiar landscape has changed, they now need to quickly, efficiently and seamlessly create new strategies to address the urgent mental health needs of their students. This training explores the development of an effective and sophisticated system of care that can be developed for the purposes identifying "at risk" students and then attending to their needs within the school setting.

Learning Objectives

  • gain a general understanding of Dual Diagnosis and its theoretical background.
  • learn specific individual and group treatment approaches and strategies including Dialectical Behavioral Therapy and the Atrium Model through a variety of teaching approaches including lecture, demonstrations and role plays.
  • develop a "Safety Plan" unique to their school’s culture.
  • Increase their knowledge of the continuum of care and wrap around services needed in providing an opportunity for a successful outcome.
  • Increase their understanding and knowledge of local resources including the role of local hospitals, Medical Detoxification, short and long term residential treatment settings, A.A. and N.A. groups and social service agencies.

Worshop Leader: Chuck Weinstein, LMHC

Chuck is currently a Consultant to Massachusetts General Hospital Department of Psychiatry Mood and Anxiety Disorders Institute and a Counselor and Non-Violence Educator working for the Men Against Violence Program in the Metro-West. He is also an Instructor for the University of Massachusetts Alcohol and Drug Counseling Certification Program & is an Adjunct Faculty at Cambridge College. His Masters in Expressive Art Therapies was attained from Lesley University. He also completed several post-graduate programs, one of them being a Certificate in Psychological Trauma from Boston University School of Social Work Professional Education. His career has included clinical and supervisory work. As Director of Facilitator Solutions, he travels throughout the United States conducting workshops on support group leadership, clients include: The Veterans Administration, The National Depression and Manic Depression Association, the Mental Health Association of Arizona and Partners for Youth with Disabilities.