Presenters
Mary Sue Williams, OTR/L, & Sherry Shellenberger, OTR/L
ALERT Program®
www.alertprogram.com
Shifting “Gears” Easily: Using Alert Program® Sensory Strategies
Mary Sue and Sherry, internationally acclaimed occupational therapists, have each dedicated their 30+ year careers to enhancing children’s lives at home and and school. Their work focuses on developing practical ways to teach people of all ages how to incorporate self-regulation strategies and sensory integration theory into everyday living. Since 1991, over 25,000 parents, teachers, and therapists have attended Alert Program® trainings. Their books, songs, and games have been met with enthusiastic reviews here in the states and abroad. They take great pride in the current research that validates the success that they have experienced in their work with the Alert Program®. The American Occupational Therapy Association recognized their contributions (2003) by honoring them with the “Excellence in Intervention, Development, and Dissemination” Award.
Traci Tippett, LISW
La Familia Namaste
Therapeutic Parenting 101
Traci Tippett, LISW is currently employed with La Familia Namaste as a clinical trainer and therapist for TFC children and their families. Traci is a clinician in the Post Adoption Clinic and a trainer for the FIESTA Project; providing support and training for adoptive families. In addition to her work in New Mexico, Traci trains for San Francisco State University, the University of California at Davis, and on the east coast. Traci has 20 years of experience in child welfare including residential work, psychotherapy, foster parenting, and curriculum writing. Traci and her partner are currently licensed foster parents in NM.
Heather Forbes, LCSW
Beyond Consequences Institute
www.beyondconsequences.com
Beyond Consequences: Helping Children Heal
Heather T. Forbes, LCSW, is co-founder and owner of the Beyond Consequences Institute. Forbes has worked with nationally recognized attachment professionals in the field of trauma and attachment since 1999. She is an internationally published author on the topics of adoptive motherhood, raising children with difficult and severe behaviors, and self-development. Forbes lectures, consults, and coaches parents throughout the U.S., Canada, and the U.K., working to create peaceful, loving families. She is passionate about supporting families by bridging the gap between academic research and “when the rubber hits the road” parenting. Much of her experience and insight on understanding trauma, disruptive behaviors, and adoption-related issues comes from her direct mothering experience of her two adopted children.