Institute sessions will offer a more in-depth learning opportunity on specific topics.  All institute sessions will be from 2:30 - 5:30pm. 

It is important to remember when registering for the annual conference that you will be bound to the institute you select during registration.

Institute One
Bridging the Gap - Promoting Success in Youth Transitioning from Foster Care
CASA of Travis County staff, volunteer and former foster youth, Austin, TX

Gain practical tools to combat the challenges facing older teens in care - Youth Court Reports, Meet-Up’s, Genograms, and other great Best Practices. Hear from a CASA volunteer about the challenges and successes working with teens. Learn how to leverage state benefits.

Take away tips, training and practices that can motivate volunteers to serve, persevere and find success in these cases. Be inspired by former foster youth as they share insights about the challenge of being on their own at 18 and how CASA volunteers can make a difference.

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Institute Two
Tactical Communications - Using “Presence and Words” to Address Difficult Situations
Peter Harrell, Master Trainer, Verbal Judo Institute, Austin, TX

Verbal Judo, the only tactical communication course in America, will provide some wonderful tools for CASA volunteers and staff. Learn how to calm difficult people, redirect the behavior of hostile people, diffuse potentially dangerous situations, and perform professionally under all conditions. This presentation will teach you how to use words effectively; employ empathy and the art of “representation”; effectively deliver words that are on target by first understanding another’s point of view.

Participants will also learn about the art of “mediation” – delivering words in the form of a personal appeal to achieve voluntary compliance from persons under temporary emotional influences, ranging from uncertainty and confusion to anger, mistrust and even prejudice.

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Institute Three
Undocumented and At Risk: Advocacy for Immigrant Children and their Families
Carly Salazar, Pro Bono Coordinator, ProBAR - South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project, Harlingen, TX

Of all the vulnerable children in the child welfare system, the children and youth who are undocumented are at particular risk for poor outcomes. This important presentation will provide CASA volunteers and stakeholders with information about our complex and poorly understood immigration system and why so many have by-passed that system to enter and live within our borders illegally. That understanding will clarify for CASA volunteers and staff why some children have fallen through the cracks and appear in CPS custody as undocumented or with undocumented parents.

The presentation will advise CASA volunteers and staff on how to recognize immigration options and advocate for the best interests of immigrant children. We will explore what options are typically available for children who have been abused, abandoned or neglected. Volunteers will also learn how to prepare undocumented children for their 18th birthday and adult lives if they remain undocumented in the United States.

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Institute Four
Four Big Ideas for Foster Care in Texas
Dr. David Cross, PhD., Director, Texas Christian University Institute of Child Development, Fort Worth, TX

Tragically, foster children with a history of abuse or neglect are at significantly increased risk for behavioral disorders, relationship failures, and early-onset mental illness. This institute will discuss four big ideas for foster care in Texas based on current research findings, and will discuss key concepts for working with children involved in the court system.

Come and learn about Complex Developmental Trauma, the Hardwired to Connect concept and the role it plays in a child’s brain development, in the shaping of the child’s brain and the role of Adult-Child conversations as the shaping mechanism. Hear how Biologically Respectful Caregiving can be incorporated into all of this and what Authoritative Communities can do to address children’s needs. Important and critical information for CASA advocates and staff seeking good outcomes for foster children.

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