JULY 14 | FRIDAY | 8:30 am – 9:45 am

Room: Catalina A1

Disruptive Groups, Pre-Gang Indicators & Gang Culture

Disruptive groups, gang associates and full blown gang members adversely affect the learning environment for all students at a school by raising general anxiety and making students feel unsafe. They often exert influence over communities, school children and classrooms through messaging with graffiti, social media, words, symbols, hand gestures, songs and many other ways.  They commit crimes, sell drugs, carry weapons, and use threats of violence to intimidate and bully others. In this workshop, attendees will learn how these groups operate, the culture and values influencing their behavior, pre-gang indicators, and how to utilize law enforcement resources to reduce their influence at school. 

Presenters: Deputy Wayne Hicken and Investigator Michael Garcia – Orange County Sheriff’s Department 

Room: Catalina A2

Empowering Students to Save Lives: Bleeding Control, Hands-Only CPR, and Overdose Reversal

As educators of our nation's children, we must constantly adapt to changing threats in our communities and prepare the next generation to address these life-threatening situations. Every year, approximately 475,000 people in the United States die from cardiac arrest, many of which could have been prevented with properly administered CPR. By increasing the number of individuals who know CPR, we can save more lives.

Additionally, trauma is the leading cause of death in children over one year of age. To prevent death, timely hemorrhage control after injury is essential. Studies have shown that students are more likely to assist an injured person after taking a bleeding control course, with 80.8% of students being willing to help compared to only 43.8% without the training (Okereke 2022). Furthermore, multiple state-wide bills, such as AB 1719 and AB 71, propose the inclusion of compression-only CPR instruction and Stop the Bleed training in high schools.

Lastly, the dangers of illicit fentanyl and other opiates are increasing in our children’s lives. In this session, educators will learn hands-only CPR, bleeding control techniques, including tourniquet application and an overview of the First Aid for Severe Trauma program, and naloxone (Narcan) administration for opiate overdoses. This program is brief and effective, providing a simple solution for complex times.

Presenter: Dr. Tabitha Cheng, Faculty Physician, Medical Director – Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, UCLA Center for Prehospital Care, & Burbank Fire Department

Room: Catalina A3

Trauma Informed Care: How to Approach Mental Health and Our Youths

Trauma impacts everyone, and can be especially detrimental during developmental years. So how can we help?!  Mental health awareness in schools is a crucial element in supporting our next generation toward success. This workshop will focus on approaching youths within a trauma informed lense, and provide information to aid in crisis de-escalation, identifying trauma-related behavior, and establishing internal motivation to succeed. Your role is crucial to our future generations and the support within education can truly make the difference. Collaboration with educators and mental health professionals provides supportive working relationships to our youths…it takes a village!

Presenter: Ashley Brown, Psy.D., M.A., M.S - Clinical Forensic Psychologist - Clinical Evaluation Guidance Unit (CEGU) – Orange County Juvenile Hall 

Room: Catalina C1

Which Way Do I Turn!? – Choosing The Right Direction When The Map Is Unclear and The Road Is Fraught With Danger…

Schools are required to afford every student a safe place to learn.  However the roadmap to ensure this happens is not always clear. This presentation will explore the intersection of Title IX, the IDEA, Section 504, and California Education Code discipline provisions, and the conundrums faced by school administrators when responding to sexual harassment allegations involving students with special needs. We will discuss best practices for ensuring the rights of all students are met and how to navigate those sticky turns when the road is not straight and difficult choices must be made at the crossroads. 

Presenters: Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud and Romo – Adam J. Newman, Partner; Cathy S. Holmes, Partner; and Sara C. Young, Partner – Law Firm

Room: Catalina C2

How to Talk, so Teachers Will Listen

Teaching is a challenging profession! It takes someone with a myriad of skills to pull it off. Teachers are currently experiencing high levels of stress in their profession. Then to top it off, teachers are put in the precarious position of worrying about the possibility of an active shooter in their school.

When it comes to training teachers for an active intruder event, many of them say things like:
“This isn’t what I signed up for.”
“I just want to teach.”
“It can’t happen here.”
“That’s Law Enforcement’s job.”

Teachers don’t seem to understand, and few leaders in the school safety field have convinced them that teachers are uniquely equipped to take on this challenge. Teaching, above all other professions, comes with remarkable attributes:

1. Teachers are masters at “situational awareness.”
2. Teachers have a history of creative problem-solving.
3. Teachers are champions at thinking under pressure.
Leaders in the field of school safety have missed an invaluable opportunity to remind teachers of these and other remarkable attributes. This workshop will look at best practices for training, empowering, and exercising for school safety.

Presenter: Vicki Abbinante, Ph.D., Assistant Professor – National University, IL

Room: Catalina C3

North Park School Shooting: Before, During and After

In this presentation, you will hear from the Emergency Manager on how the San Bernardino City USD preparing for, responding to, and recovering from the tragic North Park Elementary School Shooting.

Objectives:

  • Actions schools should take in preparation for school crisis
  • Steps to take during a crisis to ensure coordinated response and communications
  • How to recover from a school tradjedy (emotional, physical, and legal aftermath)

Presenter: Eric Vetere, Emergency Manager / Res. Police Officer – San Bernardino City Unified School District and Joseph Paulino 

Room: Avalon 2

Deconstructing the Culture of Bullying: Balancing Emotional, Mental, and Behavioral Health

Bullies, targets of bullying, and bystanders all have one thing in common: trauma experience. But each of these people reacts differently. A bully was bullied in the past and has now become the bully. The bully targets individuals because they lack self-awareness, confidence, and a healthy support circle. They become easy targets because of the perceiving of being weak. The bystanders either step in or ignore the bullying, but they usually have no idea how to respond to the trauma appropriately. People in all three of these categories have poor emotional health and lack self-awareness, confidence, and a healthy support circle. This mindset results in their having low or no coping and resiliency skills. Without these skills, they cannot experience or give kindness, empathy, or compassion at a healthy level.

Solutions: Techniques, Strategies, and Tools: Identify and replace malicious and unwanted behaviors by shifting distorted perspectives and by changing self-limiting beliefs. This practice is supported by setting boundaries and expectations of growth and fostered by a supportive, compassionate, and empathic circle. We are not asking you to change. We are helping you find your authentic self.

Presenter: Pamela Gockley, Executive Director – The Camel Project, PA

Room: Avalon 3

It's All About The "Ships"

The schools that our students and staff call home for one-third of their day are a place for friendship, fellowship, membership, partnership, mentorship, leadership, and a host of other "ships".  What is happening in our schools today is a surprise to some yet may just be exactly what we should have expected post-pandemic.  The students who attend school and the employees who work in schools have all been affected by the situations they have been placed in.  Now, it is our time and opportunity to help build back the "ships" that we had and create the new "ships" that we want.  Maybe the most important "ship" is the "Relationship".  With relationships, we can accomplish so much more.  How do we utilize the "ships" when we are dealing with behaviors we have not seen before, changes in attitudes about fighting, substance use, abusing social media, and a seemingly steady flow of blame for the behaviors that are happening on campus?  Pre-pandemic we seemed to be on a path to more engagement, opportunities, and less student discipline.  Post-pandemic, we have the chance to develop engagement, opportunities, and less student discipline, but things keep getting in the way- like the student discipline issues!
This session will provide ideas to re-engage students and staff with one another, help align student discipline with student support, and balance the needs that we see among our student populations.  We will also explore how the right relationship with School Resource Officers can be one of the most powerful relationships for everyone on campus from students and parents to staff, faculty, and administrators.  A current School Resource Officers will provide information on their insight and practices that build strong relationships within the school community while keeping schools safe for everyone.
Presenters: Steve Behar, Ed.D., Director II – Lake Elsinore Unified School District and Deputy David Anderson, School Resource Officer – Riverside County Sheriff's Department