Resilience, simply defined, means the ability to recover from difficult life experiences, and often to be strengthened and even transformed by those experiences. Resilient parents have empathy for themselves and others to keep a positive attitude, solve problems creatively, and take life’s events in stride. They are able to “bounce back” from negative experiences. Resilience-- and how we build it-- doesn’t look the same for everyone.

Presenter: Sara Serelson and Nicole Neider, Wyoming Children's Trust Fund (Presenter Bios)

Parents who have some knowledge of basic child development are likely to have more realistic expectations of their children. With that knowledge parents are better able to provide an appropriate amount of nurturing, supervision and guidance. When parents understand their roles in their children’s lives and learn about specific parenting techniques and strategies, they can form positive relationships with their children and have options for appropriate responses to typical child behaviors. Today’s parents have a wide assortment of resources-- from search engines to blogs- to answer their questions and allay their fears.

Presenter: Sara Serelson and Nicole Neider, Wyoming Children's Trust Fund (Presenter Bios)

The antidote to social isolation. Social isolation is usually defined as a lack of social networks or a limited amount of communication with others. In some cases, it also means an absence of close ties with others over a long period of time. When parents feel isolated-- whether that is due to living in a dangerous neighborhood, being far away from family, moving to a new place, or having lives that feel too busy for socializing- they can feel closed in and without support. When parents feel disconnected from other family or close friends, their level of parental stress can become overwhelming, undermining their ability to parent effectively and may potentially lead to abuse and neglect.

Presenter: Sara Serelson and Nicole Neider, Wyoming Children's Trust Fund (Presenter Bios)

Every family- at some point- needs help. It might be when a child is struck with a serious illness, a parent loses a job, or a family moves to a community. If we can help families find and access essential sources of help, we will be building protective factors against stress and -in turn- against possible child maltreatment. “Concrete support in times of need” means that families have access to whatever they need to handle the challenges they face to be successful. Depending on a family’s resources, financial as well as social and other types of resources, some may be able to access the support they need to weather the storm. Others may not. When families don’t have that access, you can help them get it- by providing support or helping them connect to those who can offer them what they need.

Presenter: Sara Serelson and Nicole Neider, Wyoming Children's Trust Fund (Presenter Bios)

This Protective Factor is the only one of the five in the Strengthening Families Protective Factors Framework that addresses issues with children. This protective factor addresses the importance of helping children become more capable of handling life’s challenges-- socially and emotionally-- as they grow. Children’s social and emotional competence is seen in their ability to communicate clearly, recognize and regulate their emotions, establish and maintain relationships with others, and engage in problem solving and conflict resolution. These competencies emerge gradually as a natural developmental process.

Presenter: Sara Serelson and Nicole Neider, Wyoming Children's Trust Fund (Presenter Bios)

This session will examine national trends in youth tobacco use, particularly electronic products. We will review research on the health impacts of vaping and evidence-based interventions for youth tobacco cessation.

Presenter: Michelle L. Mercure, CHES, CTTS, American Lung Society, National Director, Tobacco Programs

This session will examine the comorbidity of substance use and mental health challenges in students. We will discuss how to best support the holistic well-being of students struggling with substance use and how to help identify other support that may be necessary.

Presenter: Jason Svare, M.S., LPC, AWARE Program Coordinator, UW Counseling Center