For over a decade, The Trauma Center at JRI has offered a state-of-the-art advanced training program in traumatic stress studies. Geared toward licensed mental health professionals, this nine-month, weekly program offers post-graduate specialized training in the treatment of posttraumatic and dissociative disorders in children and adults. The program includes extensive didactic training, integrative group discussion, and small group consultation on case application. Program faculty are recognized experts in the field, including Bessel van der Kolk, M.D., Trauma Center founder and medical director.

Distance Learning Initiative

The Trauma Center at JRI is pleased to announce availability of the Certificate Program in Traumatic Stress Studies in Pennsylvania and Maryland, with our new distance learning initiative. Two sites will be available in Maryland (in the Upper Shore/Chesapeake area and in Hagerstown, MD), and there will be one site in Pennsylvania (Sellersville). For more information on these distance learning sites and for application information, please visit the links below.

• Maryland
• Pennsylvania

Program Schedule

The program runs on Mondays, from mid-September through mid-May.

• 9:30—12:30 Core Seminar
• 12:30—12:45 Brief Break
• 12:45–2:00 Small Group Clinical Consultation

Selected Topics

• Neurobiology of trauma
• Attachment theory
• Understanding trauma in developmental context
• Complex and acute trauma
• Dissociation and memory
• Stabilization
• Trauma Processing: Cognitive, Expressive, Mind-Body, EMDR
• Play therapy with traumatized children
• Trauma and resiliency
• Vicarious trauma and self-care

Curriculum

Readings for this seminar are drawn from an array of sources, including the text Traumatic Stress: The Effects of Overwhelming Experience on Mind, Body and Society (van der Kolk & McFarlane, 1996), classic and recent journal publications, and related works. Readings are available for purchase in a bulk pack at the start of the program year. Please click here to view our most recent seminar syllabus.

Clinical Consultation

Program participants will attend small-group consultation, with particular attention paid to the configuration of groups so that participants are complementary in terms of experience level, population, and areas of interest. These groups are led by Trauma Center faculty, and provide an opportunity to discuss application of seminar concepts to individual cases and to the participants' general practice, as well as opportunity for further small-group discussion of seminar content.

Application Procedure

This program is geared toward licensed mental health professionals; unlicensed and affiliated professionals with appropriate training and/or practical experience, and who work with trauma-impacted populations will be considered, at the discretion of the program director. Upon submission of application, appropriate applicants will be invited to an in-person interview.

Although applications are accepted throughout the year, preference is for receipt of applications from May-July for the following September. Admission to the program will occur on a rolling basis until all positions have been filled. Interested applicants are encouraged to apply early, to ensure securing a position.

To apply for admission to the program, please submit the application form along with an updated curriculum vitae, two letters of recommendation, and a copy of your license to:

Elizabeth Hopper, Ph.D.

Associate Director of Training
The Trauma Center at JRI
1269 Beacon Street
Brookline, MA 02446
(617) 232-1303 x 211
ehopper@jri.org.

Fee Schedule

Course Offerings:

Core Seminar
Clinical Consultation
Integrative Discussion
Cost for 9-month program:$4,300 total

Fifty percent of tuition is due two weeks before classes begin; the remaining fifty percent is due by January 1.

For a refund, cancellations must be submitted in writing and received one week prior to the beginning of classes. No refunds will be issued after classes begin, and enrolled participants will be expected to honor the payment plan until payment in full is made. For participants for whom payment of the fee in two installments would represent a financial burden, alternative payment plans may be arranged; however, payment in full must be received by the final day of the course. The Trauma Center reserves the right to cancel this program with full refunds to paid registrants.

Selected Faculty

• Margaret E. Blaustein, Ph.D.
• Alexandra Cook, Ph.D.
• David Emerson, E-RYT
• Janina Fisher, Ph.D.
• Frances Grossman, Ph.D.
• Frank Guastella Anderson, M.D.
• Steven Gross, MSW
• Michele Henderson, LICSW
• Elizabeth Hopper, Ph.D.
• Kristine Kinniburgh, LICSW
• Richard Jacobs, Psy.D.
• Deborah Korn, Psy.D.
• Erika Lally, LMHC, ATR-BC
• Lynn Sanford, LICSW
• Joseph Spinazzola, Ph.D.
• Bessel van der Kolk, M.D.
• Elizabeth Warner, Psy.D.
• Anne Westcott, LICSW
• Marla Zucker, Ph.D.

Continuing Education Credits

Psychologists:

The Justice Resource Institute is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. JRI maintains responsibility for all programs and their content.

Social Workers:

TC-JRI will apply to the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) for Category I continuing education credits for all educational programs.

Licensed Mental Health Counselors:

TC-JRI will apply to MMCEP for Category 1 continuing education credits for all educational programs.

Nurses:

Educational programs offered by TC-JRI meet the requirements specified by the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Nursing-244 CMR 5.04.

*Note: Continuing education credits are NOT available for time spent in clinical consultation groups. Continuing education credits can not be guaranteed until approvals have been received. Receipt of a certificate of attendance is contingent upon your attendance of a full program and completion of an evaluation form; partial credit can not be provided.