Presentations
February 2021
In February 2021 a virtual School Health and Wellness Institute was held for Alaska. During this time of COVID-19, presenters and room hosts offered their time and wisdom regarding important topics for our schools’ students, staff, and families. We wish to thank all who participated and are offering these recordings for those who could not attend those days in February.
Addressing Teen Vaping in Alaska
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenter: Katie Steffens
The 2019 Alaska YRBS results revealed that 1 in 4 of Alaska’s teens use vapes and that nearly half have ever tried them. To help address this issue, we will discuss the health harms of e-cigarettes, how to identify vapes in schools, best practices for tobacco-free school policies, alternative-to-suspension, and cessation programs for students, and how vaping has impacted Alaska’s youth. We will also share new, interactive resources available for schools and parents of teens.
Katie Steffens is a Public Health Specialist for the State of Alaska’s Tobacco Prevention and Control Program. Having work in the tobacco prevention field for the past five years, she specializes in smoke and tobacco-free policy implementation, youth prevention strategies, and e-cigarette education.
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Alaska Activities Association on their COVID plans for school sports/activities
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Billy Strickland
School districts face many difficult decisions on how to best manage student activities during this school year. This session is intended to help you understand ASAA’s role in that decision and how ASAA hopes to offer assistance.
Billy Strickland – (Alaska School Activities Association): – Since 2015, Strickland has served as the Executive Director of the Alaska School Activities Association. Prior to beginning his career with ASAA, Strickland worked 25 years for the Lower Kuskokwim School District. A graduate of Bethel Regional High School (Bethel, Alaska), Strickland earned his bachelor’s degree from Ouachita (Wash-sha-ta) Baptist University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas and his Teaching Certification from Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
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Best Practices for Meals in the Classroom
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Elizabeth Seitz
Breakfast in the Classroom has been a known method to increase meal participation, more meals than ever are served in classrooms now during pandemic planning. This session provides an opportunity to hear what is working by school nutrition professionals across the state.
Elizabeth Seitz is the Program Coordinator for the School Meal Programs at the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development. Ms. Seitz enjoys working with the schools across the state. She is a long-time resident of Alaska, is married and has two children and a team of chihuahuas.
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Coaching Boys to Men – An Introduction
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Brian Hosken
Coaching Boys into Men (CBIM) is a comprehensive violence prevention curriculum and program that inspires athletic coaches to teach their young athletes that violence never equals strength and violence against women is wrong. The program comes with strategies, scenarios, and resources needed to talk to boys, about healthy and respectful relationships, dating violence, sexual assault, and harassment. The curriculum is designed to be incorporated into a coach's weekly practice plan. CBIM provides support and follow-up communications throughout the season. The CBIM Football Coaches Clinic will provide the future generation of coaches and leaders with the skills, strategies, and advice necessary to empower players on and off the football field.
Mr. Brian Hosken is a former Anchorage School District administrator with nearly 30 years experience overseeing school activity and athletic programs. A 3rd generation Alaskan, he earned his Bachelor's in Education and Master's degree in Public School Administration from the University of Alaska, Anchorage. Mr. Hosken coached high school football and basketball coach for many years and now fulfills the role of Student Services Director at the Alaska School Activities Association (ASAA) where his primary focus is facilitating the Coaching Boys Into Men (CBIM) program. Mr. Hosken continues to serve as the National Federation of High School (NFHS) Rules Interpreter for Football while overseeing football officials statewide. He currently officiates in both Alaska and overseas in the International Federation of American Football.
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Linking Families to Learning
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenters: Lisa Worl and Claudia Plesa
Parents and family members are often a child’s first teacher. Now more than ever, we have a responsibility and opportunity to partner with families for learning and positive student academic and health outcomes. The session will dedicate discussion time to consider family-school partnership strategies for co-regulation, linking to learning and adapting practices to student and community needs. Participants will have an opportunity to discuss how educators and school staff incorporate these principles into their practice and think about ways to stretch out their own work.
Lisa Worl joined the AASB team in April 2018. As a STEPS Partnership Coordinator, she is working with the education partners throughout Southeast Alaska to align their work while coordinating Family Engagement practices within the schools and communities. Prior to AASB, Lisa worked as a legislative aide to Rep. Parish who served as Vice-Chair of House Education. Lisa worked for 16 years in public education as a parent volunteer, substitute teacher, 8 years (4 as Chair) on Auke Bay Elementary and Floyd Dryden Middle School site councils. Lisa was elected and served 4 years on the Juneau School Board. Lisa has volunteered for several years with Great Alaska Schools and the Huna Totem Scholarship committee. Lisa’s priority while serving on the Juneau School Board was focusing on student retention and graduation, however, in doing so she learned how equity policies and programs inherently impact all areas from student learning to graduation. She is a product of our Alaska public schools starting in Hoonah City Schools in kindergarten before moving to Juneau and graduating from Juneau Douglas High School. Lisa graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Oregon.
Claudia Plesa is a graduate Eastern Oregon University with a Bachelor of Science in Sociology, with a minor in Gender Studies. She also has her Master of Science Degree in Sociology from Portland State University. After receiving her Master’s, she spent a year teaching undergraduate level sociology classes. Although she enjoyed teaching, Claudia wanted to work in a field where she could feel that she was making a real difference. This brought her to Alaska, where she spent over 8 years working to engage youth and communities in violence prevention programming. She is enjoying working with communities and school districts to engage youth in leadership and advocacy work.
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Management of students with mental health/somatic complaints in a school setting
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenter: Wendy DeGraffenried
Management of Students with Mental Health & Somatic Complaints in the School Setting. This presentation will teach assessment skills and interventions that are fun and playful, as participants understand the underlying reasons that contribute to the need to handle this population with care, grace, patience, and trauma sensitive practices. We will briefly review ACES, common mental health issues that arise in the school setting, then dive deeper into the neuroplasticity of the brain and how behavior can be reshaped through resiliency building, mindfulness-based, and trauma sensitive strategies.
Wendy DeGraffenried is an advocate for trauma sensitive school practices in the community at Mat-Su Central where she is in her 14th year of school nursing practice. Hired as a part-time School Nurse Consultant with the State of Alaska, Public Health Department, Wendy supports nurse leaders around the state and the COVID-19 Alaska Smart Start team. Wendy is a nationally certified school nurse and practitioner of mindfulness and resiliency building.
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Monitoring marijuana and alcohol sales trends during the pandemic and implications for public health.
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenter: Eliza Muse
This session will provide an update as to what is happening regarding alcohol and marijuana sales during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Eliza Muse, MSc has worked for the Alaska Department of Health and Social Services since 2011. Her first professional public health experience was working with the Alaska Tobacco Prevention and Control program on tobacco policy and prevention efforts. Post marijuana legalization, Eliza joined a team to focus on marijuana policy and education efforts. During this time, Eliza designed, and is currently implementing, Alaska’s Marijuana Education Program which is funded through state marijuana excise taxes. The program uses evidence-based strategies to develop public health interventions to minimize marijuana-related adverse health consequences in Alaska.
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Physical activity for stress relief and good mental health
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Lauren Kelsey
Physical activity is good for physical and mental health for kids and adults. Regular activity can reduce your risk of depression, reduce anxiety and help you sleep better. Practicing self-care is especially important during stressful times. Join us for a webinar to find out more about the importance of keeping kids and adults active and example resources to support schools during a time of school closures and social distancing.
Lauren Kelsey, MPH is a Public Health Specialist with the State of Alaska Physical Activity & Nutrition Unit, working to ensure every Alaska child has the opportunity to grow up at a healthy weight, free from preventable weight-related diseases. She provides training and technical assistance to schools, tribal organizations, and other partners to implement strong wellness policies and other systems changes to support making the healthy choice the easy choice for Alaskans.
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Practical Tools for Chronic Disease Management
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Barbara Pennington
Practical tools for chronic disease management, including asthma and allergy emergency responses will be discussed. This presentation will also include how the pandemic is affecting students with chronic illnesses. Teachers and school staff in schools without school nurses, will learn how to identify these students in your school, and understand basic medical knowledge of these conditions. For school nurses, increase skills in case managing these students including what training your staff needs to be better prepared for medical emergencies.
Barbara Pennington as the State of Alaska School Health Nurse Consultant, Barbara provides consultation and assistance regarding best practices for school nursing and health services statewide. She holds a master's degree in community health nursing and was a school nurse in ASD for over 21 years. She can offer a number of resources, guidelines, and publications regarding school health and nursing services through the division of public health. Barbara has been working very closely with school mitigation efforts during the COVID-19 pandemic. She is one of the HUB team members on the weekly school health echo.
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Recognizing Child Maltreatment: How to Fulfill Your Mandated Role in a Virtual World
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenter: Cassie Frost
Come together with fellow educators to discuss child safety in the context of online learning. Explore strategies to recognize signs of child maltreatment in a virtual classroom and engage families and students during this challenging time in history. Brought to you by the Child Welfare Academy, the statewide training center for Child Welfare workers.
Cassie Frost is a trainer with the Child Welfare Academy at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Her professional background includes being a Case Manager II with AK Child & Family, the Family Services Manager with Camp Fire Alaska, and as an Advocate with Victims for Justice. Through these experiences she has developed a strong passion for strengths-based and trauma informed practices in youth and family work. She loves to share this passion with others through community education, advocacy, and outreach. Cassie has an extensive training background and is certified to teach the following curriculums: Strengthening Families/ Youth & Families Thrive, Youth Mental Health First Aid, Weikart Center: Youth Works Method, Foundations: Academy of Competent Youth Work, and AYDC: Second Order Change. She further teaches courses in child development, ACES, behavior management, mandated reporting, child welfare, and social emotional learning. Cassie received her undergraduate degree in Psychology and is finishing the Master of Social Work program, both from UAA.
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School Climate Now
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenter: Jenni Lefing
How students, staff and families feel about their school’s climate and how connected they are to adults and peers impacts students’ motivation to learn and the ability of school staff to create positive conditions needed for learning. It is even more important now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, for students and staff to create a positive school climate and for school staff to understand their strengths and challenges with family partnerships, peer climate, and student’s connectedness to caring adults. Attend this session to learn about Alaska’s School Climate & Connectedness Survey, including highlights of 2020 survey results, how survey is being used during COVID-19 and explore what your role is in supporting school climate in Alaska’s schools.
Jenni Lefing is the School Climate and Conference Coordinator with the Association of Alaska School Boards in Juneau. She oversees Alaska’s School Climate & Connectedness Survey and supports districts in using their results in making data informed decisions. This includes facilitating in-district workshops with school boards, staff, and school communities. Jenni holds a master’s degree in Sustainable/Community Development.
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Self-Care – Are You Pouring from an Empty Cup
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenters: Sharon Fishel and Heather Coulehan
Tending to one's own health and wellness is a critical aspect of trauma-engaged practice. Self- care practices can help adults avoid secondary trauma, burnout, and compassion fatigue while providing support and positive role modeling for self, colleagues, and students. In some cultures, taking care of others is part of your own self-care. Taking care of oneself is vital to being able to take care of others. During this session may strategies will be shared.
Sharon Fishel has worked with the Department of Education since 2003. Currently she is the School Counseling Mental Health Specialist on the School Health, and Safety Unit. Some of her duties consist of school counseling, behavioral health, suicide prevention, alternative schools and Title 1D Neglected & Delinquent youth. She currently serves as DEED’s representative on the Alaska Mental Health Board and the Statewide Suicide Prevention Council. Her background is in elementary education, special education PK -12, secondary education, related service counseling and school counseling. She is also a Licensed Professional Counselor. Sharon has a Master of Science in Counseling, and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education.
Heather Coulehan joined the Alaska AASB Team in May 2015, moving to Juneau (and is so happy to be here!) from Anchorage where she had been engaged in social and emotional learning (SEL), positive youth development, and prevention work for over 20 years. Heather brings her experience with supporting educators, developing curriculum, and facilitating professional development for the Anchorage School District to collaboration with school districts across the state. Focused on engaging families in the school community and in planning for and implementing evidence based SEL approaches, these collaborations increase academic achievement and other positive outcomes for students. Heather holds a master’s degree in Education from the University of Alaska Anchorage and an Alaska K-12 School Counseling Certificate.
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Stronger Together: Family and School Partnerships for Equitable Outcomes
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenters: Claudia Plesa and Lisa Worl
Parents and family members are often a child’s first teacher. Now more than ever, we have a responsibility and opportunity to partner with families for learning and positive student academic and health outcomes. The session will dedicate discussion time to consider family-school partnership strategies for co-regulation, linking to learning and adapting practices to student and community needs. Participants will have an opportunity to discuss how educators and school staff incorporate these principles into their practice and think about ways to stretch out their own work.
Claudia Plesa is a graduate Eastern Oregon University with a Bachelor of Science in Sociology, with a minor in Gender Studies. She also has her Master of Science Degree in Sociology from Portland State University. After receiving her Master’s, she spent a year teaching undergraduate level sociology classes. Although she enjoyed teaching, Claudia wanted to work in a field where she could feel that she was making a real difference. This brought her to Alaska, where she spent over 8 years working to engage youth and communities in violence prevention programming. She is enjoying working with communities and school districts to engage youth in leadership and advocacy work.
Lisa Worl joined the AASB team in April 2018. As a STEPS Partnership Coordinator, she is working with the education partners throughout Southeast Alaska to align their work while coordinating Family Engagement practices within the schools and communities. Prior to AASB, Lisa worked as a legislative aide to Rep. Parish who served as Vice-Chair of House Education. Lisa worked for 16 years in public education as a parent volunteer, substitute teacher, 8 years (4 as Chair) on Auke Bay Elementary and Floyd Dryden Middle School site councils. Lisa was elected and served 4 years on the Juneau School Board. Lisa has volunteered for several years with Great Alaska Schools and the Huna Totem Scholarship committee. Lisa’s priority while serving on the Juneau School Board was focusing on student retention and graduation, however, in doing so she learned how equity policies and programs inherently impact all areas from student learning to graduation. She is a product of our Alaska public schools starting in Hoonah City Schools in kindergarten before moving to Juneau and graduating from Juneau Douglas High School. Lisa graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Oregon.
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Suicide Prevention
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenters: Leah Van Kirk
The leading cause of death for Alaskan youth, ages 15-19 is suicide. Suicide is preventable. Do you know how you can help prevent suicide, as a parent, a teacher, or a community member? In this presentation we will share meaningful ways that you can play a part in providing a safety net for youth and what we can we learn from Alaska’s data to build protection against suicidal thoughts and behaviors.
Leah Van Kirk is the Suicide Prevention Coordinator for the State of Alaska, Division of Behavioral Health. She also manages and provides technical assistance to prevention grantees for the Comprehensive Behavioral Health Prevention and Early Intervention grant. Leah graduated from Concordia University and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Child Development. She has over 20 years of professional experience working with vulnerable Alaskans in the field of Child Protection, Corrections and Education. Leah was born and raised in Alaska. She and her husband have 4 children and live in the Juneau area.
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Teen Speak: Adolescent-Focused Motivational Interviewing
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenters: Jenny Baker
Research shows that Motivational Interviewing (MI) is one of the most effective behavior-change strategies with youth. MI has been shown to help youth decrease substance use, reduce stress and risky sexual behaviors, improve eating habits, increase exercise – and even to reduce injuries and hospitalizations! Test out Teen Speak with this “Taster” to learn more about motivational interviewing strategies that can improve your ability to identify risks, communicate effectively with youth, and motivate them toward healthy decisions.
Jenny Baker is an Adolescent Health Project Coordinator for the Adolescent Health Program within the Women’s, Children & Family Health Section of Alaska’s Department of Health and Social Services. She has a committed interest in primary prevention, community engagement and social justice. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Alaska Pacific University in 2009. Currently, she supports the advisory and community intervention efforts of the Youth Alliance for a Healthier Alaska and coordinates the programmatic and evaluation efforts of the Teen and Unintended Pregnancy Prevention program. She has previously worked in the juvenile justice and youth enrichment fields in Oregon and in Alaska. She has been in Alaska for 15 years and is a wife, a mom, and a musician who loves recreating in the outdoors.
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Transforming Schools, the SEL Way
Session Recorded: February 24, 2021
Presenters: Heather Coulehan and Sharon Fishel
Skill development is key to mitigating impacts of stress and trauma. A significant factor common to resilient children‚ including those living in adverse conditions, is the ability to self-regulate attention, emotions, and behaviors. Development of social-emotional competencies in early childhood is correlated with improved learning and academic success, mental health, and general well-being. Join us to explore the skill instruction component of the Transforming Schools Framework.
Heather Coulehan joined the Alaska AASB Team in May 2015, moving to Juneau (and is so happy to be here!) from Anchorage where she had been engaged in social and emotional learning (SEL), positive youth development, and prevention work for over 20 years. Heather brings her experience with supporting educators, developing curriculum, and facilitating professional development for the Anchorage School District to collaboration with school districts across the state. Focused on engaging families in the school community and in planning for and implementing evidence based SEL approaches, these collaborations increase academic achievement and other positive outcomes for students. Heather holds a master’s degree in Education from the University of Alaska Anchorage and an Alaska K-12 School Counseling Certificate.
Sharon Fishel has worked with the Department of Education since 2003. Currently she is the School Counseling Mental Health Specialist on the School Health, and Safety Unit. Some of her duties consist of school counseling, behavioral health, suicide prevention, alternative schools and Title 1D Neglected & Delinquent youth. She currently serves as DEED’s representative on the Alaska Mental Health Board and the Statewide Suicide Prevention Council. Her background is in elementary education, special education PK -12, secondary education, related service counseling and school counseling. She is also a Licensed Professional Counselor. Sharon has a Master of Science in Counseling, and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education.
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Trauma-Engaged Schools – An Introduction to Alaskan Resources
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenters: Sharon Fishel and Heather Coulehan
Sharon Fishel has worked with the Department of Education since 2003. Currently she is the School Counseling Mental Health Specialist on the School Health, and Safety Unit. Some of her duties consist of school counseling, behavioral health, suicide prevention, alternative schools and Title 1D Neglected & Delinquent youth. She currently serves as DEED’s representative on the Alaska Mental Health Board and the Statewide Suicide Prevention Council. Her background is in elementary education, special education PK -12, secondary education, related service counseling and school counseling. She is also a Licensed Professional Counselor. Sharon has a Master of Science in Counseling, and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education.
Heather Coulehan joined the Alaska AASB Team in May 2015, moving to Juneau (and is so happy to be here!) from Anchorage where she had been engaged in social and emotional learning (SEL), positive youth development, and prevention work for over 20 years. Heather brings her experience with supporting educators, developing curriculum, and facilitating professional development for the Anchorage School District to collaboration with school districts across the state. Focused on engaging families in the school community and in planning for and implementing evidence based SEL approaches, these collaborations increase academic achievement and other positive outcomes for students. Heather holds a master’s degree in Education from the University of Alaska Anchorage and an Alaska K-12 School Counseling Certificate.
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Youth Health Behaviors and School Policies: Findings from the YRBS and School Health Profiles
Session Recorded: February 17, 2021
Presenters: Tazlina Mannix, Gina Agron and Andrea Fenaughty
The Alaska YRBS program shares important data about health and social behaviors for teens, prepares for new survey. School districts and schools, communities, and public and private organizations across Alaska use Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) results to better understand health and social behaviors of Alaska teens. Learn how to access data from our new data dashboards and what we’re doing to prepare school districts and schools to administer the 2021 YRBS. This presentation will also provide a summary of results from two data sources that tell us about Alaska youth and their school environments: the School Health Profiles and the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Highlights will include: promising and worrying trends, and alignment between adolescent risk behavior and school policies and practices.
Tazlina Mannix has been with the Alaska Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) Program for five years, first as the YRBS coordinator and now as the data manager. She received a master’s in public health from the University of Utah and is currently pursuing a DrPH from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Her public health interests include survey methodology, public health surveillance, applied epidemiology, and informatics. When she’s not working or studying, she enjoys cycling, skiing, mountain running, and camping with her husband and two dogs.
Gina Agron is the Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS) coordinator for the State of Alaska, Division of Public Health, Chronic Disease Prevention & Health Promotion (CDPHP) Section. Her early career was spent working in a variety of health and public health capacities in the U.S. Army, she retired in 2008. Gina has volunteered throughout her career in family- and youth-serving organizations. She earned an M.S. in public health in 2001 and an M.B.A with a concentration in health services administration in 2017. Gina has resided in Alaska since 2009; she and her husband have raised two boys in the Anchorage area.
Andrea Fenaughty, PhD currently serves dual roles as Chronic Disease Epidemiologist and Deputy Section Chief for the Section of Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. Andrea has a PhD in Social Psychology and spent a decade at the University of Alaska Anchorage conducting research on HIV risk behavior before becoming an epidemiologist with the state in 2002. Andrea sees surveillance and evaluation as powerful tools that can be used to improve public health programs and, ultimately, the quality of life for Alaskans.
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