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Human Services Network of Colorado

Upcoming events

  • Motivational Interviewing - May 6,8,12,14

    • 05/06/2025
    • 05/14/2025
    • 4 sessions
    • Zoom webinar
    • 0
    • 32 registrants
    Registration is closed

    This evidence-based approach has consistently shown positive outcomes in dealing with resistance and defensiveness. Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative conversation style for strengthening a person's own motivation and commitment to change. It has been successfully used with populations where resistance is prevalent, including adults and adolescents who deal with legal problems, substance abuse and mental health issues. 

    Motivational Interviewing provides a “tool box” of techniques and strategies which will help you to be more effective in working with clients who bring a wide range of challenges. This is a four-day online training with a four-hour session each day. A broadband Internet connection and working webcam are required for participation. You must be on-camera during the event to receive a certificate of completion.

     Attendees will: 

    • Understand the basic principles and skills of Motivational Interviewing

    • Experience a collaborative versus an authoritarian communication style and see how you can effectively decrease defensiveness in clients​;​

    • Learn and practice resistance skills​;

    • Learn and practice directive skills that help move a client towards positive behavior change​;​

    • Be able to elicit commitment language from a client that is correlated to positive outcomes​;​

    • Explore proven implementation strategies that help improve your Motivational Interviewing skills in the field​.

    _____

    Presenter: Avani G. Dilger, MEd, MA, LPC, BC-DMT, CAS 
    Avani specializes in substance abuse prevention and treatment with adults, teens and their families. She is the founder and director of the “Natural Highs – Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol” nonprofit program. Avani has been training professionals in in Motivational Interviewing and other evidence-based practices worldwide for over 20 years. Find out more about Avani HERE.

    Eligible for 16 hours MINT Certificate of Completion, valid worldwide.

    Show details

  • Advanced MI Training focusing on MI Strategy

    • 05/22/2025
    • 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 38
    • 12 registrants
    Register

    A lot of practitioners are familiar with the basic MI Skills and comfortable with using the OARS Skills. Are you interested in going to the next level with your MI Practice and gaining more confidence around the strategic use of MI?

    Motivational Interviewing can achieve powerful results in a very short amount of time when a practitioner knows the MAP of CHANGE and understands how to use MI skills strategically, so when to use which skill set for maximizing the client’s momentum towards positive change.

    During this training you will:

      • Understand and be able to utilize the Map of Change
      • Review the different Skill Sets in MI and their STRATEGIC use
      • Practice MI Strategy with client examples
      • Learn how to assess for success in your MI practice

    Presenter: Avani G. Dilger, MEd, MA, LPC, BC-DMT, CAC III, ADS

    Avani is a Licensed Professional Counselor, a Certified Addiction Counselor, a Somatic Psychotherapist, an Acupuncture Detoxification Specialist, and a Motivational Interviewing Trainer (MINT), who specializes in substance abuse prevention and treatment with adults, teens and their families. She is the founder and director of the “Natural Highs – Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol” nonprofit program, an innovative, grassroots substance abuse prevention and intervention program that teaches teens to become leaders around healthier lifestyles and positive peer culture. In addition to teaching the Natural Highs program at several high schools in Boulder and at Naropa University, Avani works as a psychotherapist with teens, families and adults with issues around substance abuse, addiction and trauma using approaches such as Somatic Psychotherapy, Brainspotting and Systemic Constellationwork. She is a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT) and trains Motivational Interviewing for criminal justice, mental health, health care, and substance abuse professionals.

    Show details

  • Financial Health for human service providers - I bust my butt every day, so why am I still broke?

    • 05/28/2025
    • 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 37
    • 13 registrants
    Register

    What habits and behaviors are within your control in order to feel more reflective of how hard you work? We'll go over actions you can take to be more financially empowered! Nothing happens overnight; habits are built one action, one step at a time. Often, the steps are easy individually even when all together, it can feel overwhelming. You are more than your portfolio - financial life isn't just your investments or just your retirement. Understanding your money story is your starting point, and financial goals are your next stops on the journey.

    The goal of this workshop is that participants leave having created a financial foundation and a better understanding of their money story.

    Our follow-up, in-depth, two-workshop series in June (event details and separate registration to be posted shortly) will cover:

    June 23 Financial Wellness Considerations for Caregivers  Now you are aware of your spending and we've laid a foundation for savings and debt management, let's talk about some of the risks you don't usually think about: 

    June 30: Why Investing Is Not Simple, But Not Impossible. Why is investing so hard? What does it mean to align your money with your values, and how do we keep fear from making decisions for us? 

    Presenters

    JO Suttles: I have always considered myself a Helper. The first stop on my professional journey was as a Police Officer in Texas. It was in this position I worked diligently to develop relationships using a “community policing” philosophy where trust and understanding are critical, as they are similarly essential in financial planning.  I left police work at the end of 2016 to attend The University of Texas at Dallas as a non-traditional student. I graduated in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science in Finance (BSF) and started my new career in financial planning. I have found my professional home with Better Pockets Financial.

    Sarah Lassberg: I’m a veteran of the financial industry, starting in 2005, through the Great Recession of 2008 and the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. I have seen and experienced how quickly life changes while we are each simply trying to survive. I was able to leave the corporate world in 2019 to found Elf Army of Light – a 501(c)3 providing nonreligious resources and support for families experiencing pregnancy loss and infant death. My heartfelt motivation for helping others with finance resulted from my years as an analyst, underwriter, and process consultant where I talked to many people who suddenly had to confront their financial plans, leaving them feeling overwhelmed and vulnerable. The opportunity to combine my passions, activism, and professional skills ultimately led me to Better Pockets Financial, where I can focus my time on what I enjoy the most: being a resource and service to help those who help others.

    Better Pockets Financial: We understand that achieving financial wellness can be intimidating and overwhelming. We care, and we want to help you align your financial life with your values. We believe that family, life experiences, creating memories, and bettering our community are more valuable than money. We see organizations - businesses and non-profits - as agents for change. We believe in empowering our clients through education and engagement. As fiduciaries, we will ALWAYS act in your best interest, no matter what. Because everyone deserves financial advice, we strive to make advice accessible, available, and affordable so we do not have a minimum asset requirement. Our fees are clear and transparent and we don't earn commissions of any kind. Our process is about intention and behavior, so we meet you where you are and walk through it together.

    Eligible for one-hour Certificate of Completion.

    Show details

  • Understanding and Supporting Immigrants & Refugees

    • 06/03/2025
    • 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 15 registrants
    Register

    For those working in social, medical, mental health, and legal services, understanding how immigration impacts our clients is imperative. Ten percent of Coloradans and 12% of Denver-metro residents are immigrants. Nearly 175,000 (25%) children in Denver and 276,000 (20%) children in Colorado have at least one parent who is an immigrant. 329,000 residents of Colorado are at risk of detention and deportation.

    Working with refugees and immigrants in changing environments requires flexibility and adaptability from human service providers. This training will provide an overview of the mental and psychological impact of migration and immigration systems while offering hands-on experience with culturally responsive interventions. Through creative innovative ways participants will gain practical tools to support the unique needs of the population.

    T A K E A W A Y S

    • Help simplify the complexities involved in working with refugee and immigrant populations.
    • Learn about the psychological and psychosocial impact unique to this population.
    • Learn to apply interventions through case-based discussions.
    • Learn how to advocate for refugee clients.
    • Understand the compound impacts of individual trauma, forced migration, US racism oppression, and limited service access on immigrant clients
    • Implement best practices for working with immigrants and refugees

    ____

    P R E S E N T E R

    Osmara Medrano, LCSW, PsyD candidate, is a bilingual clinician specializing in trauma-informed, culturally-responsive mental health care for immigrants, refugees, and individuals with severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI). With a background in clinical social work and psychology, she seeks to promote healing and resilience in marginalized communities. Currently she serves as a doctoral intern at Aurora Mental Health & Recovery, where she delivers individual and group therapy to refugees and immigrants from diverse cultural backgrounds.

    Eligible for two hours Certificate of Completion

    Show details

  • Direct Service Provider Series 2025

    • 06/09/2025
    • 06/29/2025
    • 4 sessions
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 42
    • 8 registrants
    Register

    Join our live, virtual sessions and learn practical therapeutic theory and approaches that you can implement immediately to provide effective and efficient direct care services. Theory and techniques have been successfully modified to fit helping relationships that are not primarily therapeutic in nature. The goal of each workshop is to enhance knowledge, skill and confidence in providing effective, efficient, client-centered care.

    Topics include Direct Professional Success, Self Care, Healing (Trauma) Informed Approaches, Boundaries, and De-Escalation. Please see the learning objectives below for more information. Attendants are encouraged to define their own learning objectives, as well, for example, “I want to … feel better/have more energy at the end of the day… jump to solutions less & allow participants to work harder…use more empathy.”

    This series of four intensive workshops will be conducted from June 9 through June 29. All are four-hour webinars. The goal of each session is to enhance knowledge, skill and confidence in providing effective client-centered care.

    16 hours of intensive personal online training with 6 hours of supplemental virtual training for a total of 22 hours training.

    Learning Objectives

      • Define my Success
      • Understand Self Care
      • Review Best Practices in Case Management/Navigation
      • Understand the Process of Change
      • Learn about the Care Cycle (Intake through Discharge)
      • Learn about Therapeutic Communication
      • Understand Crisis Management
      • Learn about the Care/Treatment Cycle (Intake through Discharge)
      • Apply MI and Other Skills in Work with Clients (Intake through Discharge)
      • Apply Information and Skills to Case Scenarios
      • Plan to Implement Information & Skills on the job

    Supplemental Online Trainings cover the following topics:

      1. Helper as a Person (50 minutes)
      2. Therapeutic Communication (40 minutes)
      3. Multiculturalism (1 hour 10 minutes)
      4. HIPAA (45 minutes)
      5. Mandatory Reporting (45 minutes)
      6. Stages of Change (40 minutes)
      7. Harm Reduction (30 minutes)
      8. Service Planning/Monitoring (40 minutes)
      9. Approaches to Difficult Situations (30 minutes)

    Optional Coaching Sessions - Dates TBD - 9–10:30am 

    Put theory and approaches into direct practice with Coaching. Join others who want to enhance their effectiveness and efficiency by applying Trauma (Healing) Informed Care, Motivational Interviewing & other approaches in this group setting. Melinda will facilitate discussion of relevant direct care topics and will follow your lead. Our goal is to celebrate successes and problem solve struggles with participant scenarios. Available to DSP attendees for an additional fee of  $50 per session or $160 for all four. Registration for coaching opens after DSP ends on June 29.

    Direct Service Provider Certificate: Aspire Training will provide a 22 hours Certificate of Completion for the Direct Service Provider Certification Program, documenting all hours of both in-person and online trainings.

    Presenter: Melinda Marasch, LCSW

    Aspire Training & Consulting

    It is my honor to do exciting work with the amazing, compassionate people in the nonprofit world! It has been my life’s passion to help others, first as a psycho-therapist and now as a consultant. I specialize in clinical supervision in the form of training (in-person and online), as well as individual and group sessions. We serve licensed and unlicensed individuals, as well as programs and organizations. I have expertise in many areas, including HIV/AIDS, domestic violence, mental illnesses and much more. I also provide coaching to clients who are motivated to maximize their assets.

    Show details

  • Why is this so hard? Learning how to work alongside Personality Disorders

    • 06/12/2025
    • 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 2 registrants
    Register

    Are you a helping professional, frontline staff, crisis intervention worker, case manager, or non-clinician supporting individuals with personality disorders? This workshop is designed to help you navigate challenging interactions, improve client outcomes, and prioritize self-care in high-stress environments.

    Serious mental illness scares many providers. A great deal of stigma exists about personality disorders; many believe that they cannot be treated - adding to the cloud of misunderstanding. Personality disorders are typically a long-standing impairment of mental health, identified by maladaptive thoughts and behaviors that arise during adolescence or early adulthood. These emotional disturbances can cause significant and pervasive distress to the whole person if left untreated. This presentation will develop an understanding of personality disorders and the latest evidence-based, science-driven treatments.

    What You’ll Gain:

    • Practical skills to interact effectively with individuals with personality disorders
    • Self-care techniques to prevent burnout and maintain workplace safety at an individual and organizational level

    By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

    • Discuss how personality disorders develop.
    • Explore the stigma associated with personality disorders.
    • Describe evidence-based, research-driven treatments available to providers.

    Kate Leslie, MSW, LCSW, is a licensed clinical social worker, originally from Atlanta, GA. She received her Honors BA in Modern Culture and Media (Semiotics) from Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island in 2001 where she focused on post-colonial literature and politics. Kate received her MSW from Smith College School for Social Work in Northampton, MA. She completed her post-masters training fellowship at the McAuley Institute at St. Mary's Hospital in San Francisco, a psychiatric inpatient unit for adolescents.

    Kate is a member of the AAPCSW, NASW, and the mental health provider representative on the Colorado Medicaid MPRACC committee. Kate works with severe mental illness in families, eating disorders, and trauma, and is private practice in Boulder, CO.

    Eligible for three hours Certificate of Completion

    Show details

  • How to find Housing when there’s no Housing?

    • 06/17/2025
    • 10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 58
    • 2 registrants
    Register

    As we are all painfully aware, homelessness and the lack of affordable housing are major issues in the metro Denver area. A point-in-time study conducted by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative in January of 2023, showed 9,065 people were homeless on Monday, January 30, the night local volunteers, municipal and county leaders, outreach teams and people who were formerly homeless scattered across the metro Denver region to conduct the annual survey. That’s a 31.7% increase in homelessness compared with the survey’s findings in 2022, which counted 6,884 people.

    Come join us to learn about approaches that can be used to ensure safe and affordable shelter for all. We will:

    • Discuss current local affordable housing resources.
    • Identify and discuss ways to improve support for families in need.
    • Explore additional communication streams for up-to-date resources to best support clients.
    • Discover ways to improve community partnership opportunities for other housing resources, programs, and agency support.

    Workshop Outline

    A Deeper look at affordable housing in Colorado

    • Building a plan to locate housing resources.
    • Finding funding opportunities to help strengthen housing resources for your families.
    Create a plan to obtain specific housing resources.
    • Temporary housing
    • Transitional housing
    • Permanent housing
    • Affordable housing
    Types of affordable housing resources.
    • Preparation and timelines for housing assistance.
    • Building Partnerships to stay up to date on changes.

    Review the specific need to help match housing resources.

    • Identifying additional organizations that address specific requirements for eligibility.
    • Identify existing programs to help increase opportunities.

    Building housing resources for the most up-to-date information on affordable housing.

    • Lottery for Section 8 /Housing Choice Vouchers and other resources.
    • New affordable units and programs for eligibility.

    Two Break-Out sessions will build upon the five topics above.

    Eligible for a two-hour certificate of completion.

    Presenter: Marsha Brown, CORE Inspirate LLC

    Ms. Brown has a multifaceted career history that allows her to serve the community she lives in. She brings her sharpened skills and experience to help inspire and empower others. Ms. Brown has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration. Her career has moved from Customer Service Manager over accounts like The Detroit Zoological Institute to NA Manager for TransUnion LLC., overseeing relationships with homeowners and FEMA guidelines. Ms. Brown’s diverse career path and "lived experience" has allowed her to build a wealth of knowledge- focusing on; advocacy for resilience, job creation; and enhancing self-sufficiency programs. Ms. Brown teaches others how to maximize best practices, advocacy, financial health, and home ownership. She served as a former Commissioner for DHA Board, an Alumni of Warren Village Transitional Housing and a seasoned Storyteller for the Close to Home Campaign to end homelessness.

    Show details

  • Addiction Treatment and Co-occurring Disorder

    • 07/14/2025
    • 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 50
    • Be the first
    Register

    Have you recognized mental illness and substance abuse in working with participants?  Perhaps you weren't sure which symptom needed which approach. Learning more and developing resources and partners to address co-occurring disorders can help you provide more efficient, targeted services and referrals, and help your participants feel better.

    For those who seek to enhance their ability and understanding of Addictions and Co-occurring Disorder; this workshop will present a solid foundation for recognizing substance abuse as well as understanding and working with these issues. "Co-occurring Disorder" is descriptive of people who struggle with both a mental health disorder and a substance use disorder. It is often difficult to tease out a co-occurring disorder, especially when the person is in acute phases of instability.

    There are numerous issues we will discuss related to the struggle of managing this disorder. Stigma and stability issues consistent with the individuals specific combination of disorders, support access, legal, medical health, and cultural uniqueness create a complexity for the care providers approach and management of services for these clients. We will discuss basic strategies, and practical guidelines for providing early intervention, stability and integrated services for Co-occurring Disorder clients.

    Participants will leave with:

    • The ability to identify symptoms of substance abuse and mental health disorders;
    • A working definition of the “co-occurring disorder” and a look at the stigma attached to that definition;
    • An understanding of the most common difficulties (and clues) in recognizing co-occurring disorders
    • Practical strategies in managing co-occurring clients, including; basic CBT skills, Medication compliance concerns, high risk stability, sobriety management, and multiple systems coordination;
    • An understanding of the stability concerns with co-occurring disorder clients; and
    • Approaches to practical and culturally sensitive assessment.


    Presenter: Tracy L. Hutchinson, LPC, MAC, LAC 

    Tracy has been working in the field of Addictions and Mental Health for the past 40 years. Currently, through her Counseling and Consulting private practice, Tracy is a facilitator of professional growth and development for team building. See more information about Tracy HERE.

    Eligible for 6 Hours Certificate of Completion.

    Show details

  • Motivational Interviewing - Aug 5,7,12,14

    • 08/05/2025
    • 08/14/2025
    • 4 sessions
    • Zoom webinar
    • 23
    • 5 registrants
    Register

    This evidence-based approach has consistently shown positive outcomes in dealing with resistance and defensiveness. Motivational Interviewing is a collaborative conversation style for strengthening a person's own motivation and commitment to change. It has been successfully used with populations where resistance is prevalent, including adults and adolescents who deal with legal problems, substance abuse and mental health issues. 

    Motivational Interviewing provides a “tool box” of techniques and strategies which will help you to be more effective in working with clients who bring a wide range of challenges. This is a four-day online training with a four-hour session each day. A broadband Internet connection and working webcam are required for participation. You must be on-camera during the event to receive a certificate of completion.

     Attendees will: 

    • Understand the basic principles and skills of Motivational Interviewing

    • Experience a collaborative versus an authoritarian communication style and see how you can effectively decrease defensiveness in clients​;​

    • Learn and practice resistance skills​;

    • Learn and practice directive skills that help move a client towards positive behavior change​;​

    • Be able to elicit commitment language from a client that is correlated to positive outcomes​;​

    • Explore proven implementation strategies that help improve your Motivational Interviewing skills in the field​.

    _____

    Presenter: Avani G. Dilger, MEd, MA, LPC, BC-DMT, CAS 
    Avani specializes in substance abuse prevention and treatment with adults, teens and their families. She is the founder and director of the “Natural Highs – Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol” nonprofit program. Avani has been training professionals in in Motivational Interviewing and other evidence-based practices worldwide for over 20 years. Find out more about Avani HERE.

    Eligible for 16 hours MINT Certificate of Completion, valid worldwide.

    Show details

  • MI for Supervisors & Champions - Aug 19 & 21

    • 08/19/2025
    • 08/21/2025
    • 2 sessions
    • Zoom Webinar
    • 19
    • 12 registrants
    Register

    MI_cartoon

    Motivational Interviewing provides a “tool box” of techniques and strategies which will help you to be more effective in working with clients who bring a wide range of challenges. This one-day advanced Motivational Interviewing Training is the next step for teams who are serious about an evidence-based implementation of Motivational Interviewing skills. The development and maintenance of MI skills is a challenge for front-line workers. Participating in the workshops is a great start but ongoing feedback and mentoring are needed in order for most workers to use MI skillfully. This workshop can help enhance both supervisor MI skills and the quality and nature of the mentoring process. It’s a win-win for clients and agency staff alike.
    This advanced MI training is only for those who have already taken the Motivational Interviewing Basic Two-Day training series. The training builds on the two-day MI Skills Training and teaches supervisors and professionals who are passionate about MI how to keep the practice of MI alive within their teams. If you have not undergone the MI Basic Series, please register for that course instead of this one; we conduct MI Basic regularly.

    Participants will leave with an understanding of:
    • the research-based building-blocks of a successful MI implementation
    • MI coaching skills
    • how to facilitate MI practice sessions
    • a manual with tailored MI exercises to build & sustain their team’s MI skills

    _________

    Presenter: Avani G. Dilger, MEd, MA, LPC, BC-DMT, CAS 
    Avani specializes in substance abuse prevention and treatment with adults, teens and their families. She is the founder and director of the “Natural Highs – Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol” nonprofit program. Avani has been training professionals in in Motivational Interviewing and other evidence-based practices worldwide for over 20 years. Find out more about Avani HERE.

    ________

    Eligible for 8 hours Certificate of Completion

    Show details

Event Schedule

View the Network's projected training topics and other training information here. To view event information and fees (including member discounts) before registering, click Show details in the lower right -hand corner of each event description above.

 Cancellation Policy

  • Substitutions are welcome; please let us know in advance.
  • No-shows and cancellations 7 days or less prior to an event will be granted neither credit nor refund.
  • Up to 8 days prior to event:  25% refund will be issued in the form of a credit towards future registration.
  • Up to 15 days prior to event: 50% refund will be issued in the form of a credit towards future registration.
  • Up to 29 days prior to event: A full refund will be issued.

Human Services Network of Colorado
PO Box 24788 · Denver, CO 80224

p: 720-252-3628
e: info@thenetwork-co.org

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