Youth First 2013 will take place on Friday, February 1, 2013
at the Riverside Conference Center in Stafford County.
This Year's Theme & Service Project!
The Youth First Partners have decided that this year's Youth First Conference will not have an official 'theme' but the focus will be on trauma and caring for those who have experienced trauma. As with last year's conference, participants will vote for the vendor that has the best display and that vendor will win the covetedYOFI award.
In addition, the Youth First Partners have decided that this year's service project will be a benefit for Safe Harbor Child Advocacy Center. For more information on this great organization, click here, or watch this video. Participants are asked to provide gift cards of any amount to Wal-Mart, Target, Staples, Michael's, or AC-Moore. These gift cards will be place on a 'Giving Tree' that will be placed in the lobby of Safe Harbor CAC.
If you have questions, email Ben Nagle (ben@officeonyouth.org).
Youth First 2013 Agenda
8:00am - Vendor Registration
8:30am - Participant Registration/Breakfast/Vendor Exhibits
9:00am - Welcome & Introduction
9:15am - 10:15am- Keynote Presentation
10:15am - 11:00am - Break & Vendor Exhibits
11:00am - 11:30am - Panel Discussion on Mandated Reporting
11:30am - 11:45am - Secretary William A. Hazel, MD
11:45am - 12:30pm - Lunch & Vendor Exhibits
12:30pm - 2:00pm - Breakout Session Part A
2:00pm - 2:15pm - Break & Afternoon Snack
2:15pm - 3:45pm - Breakout Session Part B
3:45pm - Vendor Prizes/Closing Remarks
Keynote Presentation
Presenter: Linda Larsen
www.lindalarsen.com
Speaker Bio:
Linda Larsen, entrepreneur, best-selling author, humorist, and former professional film and television actress, has delivered her own unique brand of inspiration, hilarity and practical ideas to
people in over 1000 audiences worldwide.
She is the author of several best-selling CD and video programs including her critically acclaimed book, True Power, which was based on her real-life experience of being taken hostage by an escaped convict and held at gunpoint for over five hours. Her dramatic escape, and the strategies she used to overcome her unimaginable circumstances, led Investor's Business Daily to feature her in its Leaders & Success column and is the foundation of her message: You can achieve any goal, you can overcome any obstacle and you can find solutions to your biggest challenges by suspending your preconceived ideas about what is
possible and what is not.
Linda is one of less than 8% of professional speakers worldwide to receive the highest earned designation in the speaking industry, the National Speakers Association's CSP (Certified Speaking Professional).
Panel Discussion ::
Mandated Reporting
Presenters:
City of Fredericksburg Dept. of Social Services
Spotsylvania County Dept. of Social Services
Stafford County Dept. of Social Services
Session Description:
This session will be a panel discussion on the mandated reporting laws and their application to youth service professionals. Presenters will have a table in the lobby area for questions during breaks.
Breakout Session Part A & B ::
Invisible Scars - Understanding Emotional Maltreatment
Presenter:
Naomi Haines Griffith
www.redclayandvinegar.com
Session Description:
"Stick and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me" - the chant we recited as children...is simply untrue. We are now beginning to evaluate the impact of emotional abuse and emotional neglect on the growth and healthy development of children. Such maltreatment sends children, devoid of physical scars, into adulthood incomplete and unable to respect others or themselves. This session will review what a child needs to be emotionally healty and look at clusters of destructive behaviors that may occur alone or may accompany physical or sexual abuse. This discussion is crucial to all professionals who work with children.
Speaker Bio:
Naomi Haines Griffith is a national speaker and consultant on child welfare issues, speaking at conferences throughout the United States and Canada. A well-known storyteller and family systems specialist, she uses humor and her own experiences to challenge and inspire audiences in business, education, juvenile justice, mental health, child abuse prevention, and family violence systems.
Griffith is a true Southerner, having grown up in Alabama and Mississippi. She holds a BS from the University of North Alabama, an MA from George Peabody College of Vanderbilt University, and a Masters in Social Work from the University of Alabama.
She worked in the North Carolina and Alabama child welfare systems and became Executive Director of PACT, a pioneer child abuse prevention agency she helped to found. She has also served on the State Board of the Alabama Department of Human Resources.
Griffith is a former board member for the Alabama Children's Trust Fund and has worked as a consultant to and trainer for Prevent Child Abuse America. She is the President of Red Clay & Vinegar LLP.
It has been noted that: “Naomi weaves her common sense pragmatism and 30 years experience working with children and families into inspirational and heart-warming stories that motivate her audiences both personally and professionally.”
She is the author of Red Clay and Vinegar: Looking at Family through the eyes of a Southern Child and the co-author of The Unkindest Cut - The Emotional Maltreatment of Children.
Please email any questions you may have to Ben Nagle (ben@officeonyouth.org).
Special Thanks to Last Year's Sponsors!
Keynote Sponsors
Brighton Behavioral Health
Cumberland Hospital
First Home Care
Harbor Point Behavioral Health
The Hughes Center
Jefferson Trail Treatment Center
Kempsville Center for Behavioral Health
Liberty Point
Newport News Behavioral
Poplar Springs Hospital
Lunch Sponsors
Family Priority
Grafton Integrated Healthcare
National Counseling Group
Breakfast Sponsors
Extra Special Parents
Family Preservation Services
Snowden at Fredericksburg
Snack Sponsors
Dominion Youth Services
Family Solutions
Hallmark Youth Care
