Professional Development & learning collaboratives
RIAIMH sponsors many professional development opportunities every year to educate professionals about the latest infant mental health research and policy developments, and help professionals apply Infant Mental Health Principles and Practices in their work.
If you work with pregnant women, infants, young children, or their families—whether in their home, a hospital, pediatric or primary care office, service agency, classroom, courtroom, or child care center, and beyond—we encourage you to take advantage of these programs.
Continuing education units are available for many of our workshops and trainings. RIAIMH members qualify for discounted rates at all RIAIMH-sponsored events.
To find upcoming RIAIMH professional development opportunities, see our Calendar
Healing Practices: What Works to Support Connection RIAIMH Learning Collaborative Intensives *NEW* |
RIAIMH is offering 3 new Learning Collaborative Intensives designed for the infant/family workforce to help babies, young children, and families thrive through HEALing Practices (Humility, Equity, Access, and Love). Each Intensive involves conversations to center family voice, strength-based and culturally relevant practices, and community connection to create a positive impact on individuals, programs, and policies.
Registration is offered at NO COST to participants (and includes NASW CEUs & CELP credits, as desired).
Participants have the opportunity to receive a $1,000 stipend and a RIAIMH membership for 2025.
All training content is aligned with IMH Competencies® to support Endorsement®.
Registration is limited to 15 participants per Intensive.
Registrants are expected to attend all sessions.
Strong Communities, Strong Babies: Join one of our new Learning Collaboratives!
- CARE-ing for the Workforce: Connecting to Promote Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH): Completed.
- Reflection in Action: Parent Engagement through Touchpoints: Completed.
- Reflective Practice in the Context of Culture and Language: Levantando la comunidad: Registration closed.
Please email info@riaimh.org with any questions about PD programs.
Infant/Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH): Core Principles and Practices Training
RIAIMH is offering a 12-hour training series designed for professionals in the infant and early childhood community who are interested in learning about (or reviewing) core IECMH concepts. In this series, professionals will have the opportunity to deepen their understanding of the importance of IECMH principles and practices as related to their work. We will discuss and explore: a) early development and mental health core concepts; b) the critical role of relationships for optimal developmental outcomes; c) the role of culture in relationship building and caregiving practices and d) the power of reflection and self-awareness to support a strong working alliance with families. We use a social justice and cultural humility lens to deepen understanding of our work and to appreciate the critical role of parents, family members, and other key caregivers in the development and ongoing mental health and wellbeing of infants and young children. This includes collaborating with families and honoring their parenting perspective and experiences (Weatherston, 2012).
Next Offering TBD
Parent Engagement through Touchpoints” is a 30-hour learning collaborative on the Touchpoints approach, an evidence-based model linked to building strong family-child relationships from prenatal through age five. Participants who implement Touchpoints in their practice partner with families to lay the vital foundation for children’s early learning and healthy development. Touchpoints provides a practical, preventative approach that supports professionals in forming strengths-based partnerships with families. This learning collaborative centers on reflection and cultural humility to support infant/early childhood mental health, early learning, and development. In addition to 3 full training days, this Intensive includes 6 1-hour virtual reflection sessions. This training is offered by RIAIMH in partnership with Meeting Street. Next Offering TBD
PAUSE-ing to Keep Babies in Mind: Reflective Practice Model to Promote IECMH This 18-hour learning collaborative offers tools and training to better understand the importance of infant/early childhood mental health principles and reflective practices for the work we do to serve vulnerable families. It offers a model for reflective engagement with families called PAUSE (Perceive, Ask, Understand, Strategize, Evaluate). In this training, cross-sector professionals will increase foundational knowledge, awareness and skills to use the PAUSE model to: a) reflect on infant/early childhood mental health challenges; and b) deepen reflective practice to support a strong workforce alliance between the family and providers. We center this work around issues of racial equity, diversity, inclusion, and access to promote positive relationships for thriving and healing. Six 1-hr. reflective practice sessions are offered to support providers to implement the model. Next Offering TBD
Provision of Reflective Supervision Training-for Supervisors According to the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health, Reflective Supervision/Consultation (RSC) is an ongoing professional development practice for the infant/early childhood (IEC) workforce. It involves the supervisor holding regularly scheduled sessions for the IEC professional during which a collaborative and reflective alliance can be established. RSC supports the professional to address challenges of their work – and the impact of the work on the self. This model strengthens relationships and promotes growth/development of babies, young children and their families; leads to better service for families; and creates organizational culture of support. This 12-hour learning collaborative builds on foundational core IECMH concepts and reflective practices and provides discussion and experiential opportunities for supervisors to deepen reflective practice knowledge and skills to be applied in a supervision setting. We examine how reflective supervision is distinguished from clinical and administrative supervision, highlighting key characteristics of, and differences between, each strategy. We discuss core elements and strategies of reflective supervision relationships that are layered throughout provider systems. We deepen reflective supervision capacity through careful self-awareness and self-reflection to center culturally humble reflective supervision practices. We discuss core elements including relationship-based responses matter; diversity of perspective, voice and experience matters; emotions (and vulnerability) matter; and connection with colleagues/teams matters to hold uncomfortable conversations (Lewis et al., 2023). Next Offering: June 2, 2025, 8:30am-5:00pm & 2 reflection sessions TBD Location: Meeting Street, 1000 Eddy St. Providence COMPLETED
CARE Foundations 2024 |
Community Advocates for Racial Equity (CARE) groups are starting in 2024. 16-hour training series. The next Cohort begins on October 24 from 1-4p, with four additional 3-hour sessions from 1:00pm-4:00pm (all virtual) through January 2025. If you are interested in participating in this group, use the link below to learn more and register. Participants in the CARE Foundations 2024 groups will learn together and gain skills to integrate DEIB principles and practices into their work with colleagues and the community. Together, we'll build a more inclusive environment for the workforce and families in our home and community-based services. We hope you will join us on this journey to deepen knowledge and self-awareness around DEIB and anti-racism in an effort to “do better” as we serve infants, young children and families in RI. Content aligned with IMH Competencies to support RI's IECMH-Endorsement credential. Registration closed. Stay tuned for information about the next cohort. Questions: info@riaimh.org
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RIAIMH CORE PROGRAMS |
Community Conversations about Infant Mental Health
We hold a series of six " Community Conversations" each year. The Community Conversation series is open to college students and the professional community. RIAIMH members can attend at no cost.
Celebrating Babies Event
We invite all RIAIMH members and professionals in our community to attend our RIAIMH Annual Celebrating Babies Event in the fall. At this event we come together to Celebrate Babies, celebrate those who care for them and provide a report of our work over the past year.
This conference builds on a specific topic of interest, presented by a nationally known speaker. We use this opportunity to offer research-based information that serves to broaden our thinking and transform our practices. RIAIMH convenes a Conference Planning Committee (members are from the community, RIAIMH Board, and RIAIMH staff) to work together on the specifics of these events, including intended audiences, IMH-related topics, fundraising efforts and links to ongoing initiatives in the State.
Learn MoreResources from past trainings
Members can visit our Members page to access presentations and other resources from past trainings.
COMMUNITY TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES |
Online training modules
Foundations of Infant and Toddlers Social Emotional Health and Development (under revision)
During this time of virtual work, we have made our virtual trainings even more available.
RIAIMH partnered with Bradley Hospital to give our members and other professionals access to online training in infant mental health principles and best practices. These modules are under revision and will be available later 2024.
Online courses from CEED (Center for Early Education and Development)
University of Minnesota
Classes aligned with Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant Mental Health® include:
Introduction to Infant Mental Health, RIOS 1 and RIOS 2
Online courses from the Alliance (the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health) - Training Hub
This site is intended to serve as a curation of trainings that were developed and owned by members of the Alliance. If you are interested in participating in a training, please feel free to contact the trainer or register with the links provided in the chart. Please note: The Alliance does not claim responsibility for content provided in trainings. All trainers have verified that the training is compliant with Alliance standards. If you find the training to be inappropriate or inaccurate, please email the Alliance at info@allianceaimh.org.
All courses aligned with Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-Focused Practice Promoting Infant Mental Health®
See All courses offeredOther learning opportunities
Professional Development System
The Brazelton Touchpoints Center has collaborated with partners nationwide to establish scalable and sustainable, low-cost, low-tech interventions that propel children’s healthy development and build the internal capacity of – and strengthen the collaborative relationships among – families, parents, caregivers, providers, and communities.
RIAIMH is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. RIAIMH is a founding member of the Alliance for the Advancement of Infant Mental Health.
RIAIMH is an affiliate of the World Association for Infant Mental Health. |
