Rebecca Magdalena Escobedo-Steele, MSW Founder of Seventh

Conference Agenda
Rebecca Magdalena Escobedo-Steele, MSW
Founder of Seventh Generation Warriors for Peace
Rebecca Magdalena Escobedo‐Steele has dedicated her life to violence preven on.
Having had experience as a gang‐involved youth, Escobedo‐Steele understands complex
issues that young people face today. Working as a consultant with community coali ons
and programs like Friday Night Live, California Mentor Coali on and Indian Educa on,
Escobedo‐Steele acts as a peacemaker, storyteller, singer/drummer, ar st, educator,
trainer, warrior healer and youth role model. Seventh Genera on Warriors for Peace
works to prevent youth violence and gang conﬂict to promote healing and empowerment.
Escobedo‐Steele is a cer ﬁed mediator, and has worked with many cultures, as well as the elderly and migrants. She is a
California Wellness Fellow and has created conﬂict resolu on programs for youth.
7:45 a.m.
Registra on and Con nental Breakfast
8:30 a.m.
MORNING KEYNOTE:
The Ancient Wisdom of Mentoring
Rebecca Magdalena Escobedo‐Steele, MSW
10:15 a.m.
Morning Breakouts (select one):
The Basic “How‐To’s” of Mentoring
Judy Strother Taylor
“I was just given a mentee ‐ now what?” This workshop, provided by Judy Strother Taylor of Mentor Management Systems, focuses
on the basics of developing a sustainable rela onship with your mentee. You will learn what cons tutes “appropriate” a en on;
how to plan eﬀec ve, fun and age‐appropriate ac vi es; how to set and maintain limits and boundaries; how to manage both your
own and your mentee’s expecta ons; how to communicate eﬀec vely in a one‐on‐one rela onship; and how to mo vate and
inspire. A must for both the beginning and experienced mentor.
Drug Trends and How to Talk to Kids About Drugs
Alicia Cas llo and Dwayne Wilson
Kern County youth begin experimen ng with substances at a young age. This workshop will provide informa on on the latest drug
trends (e.g. Spice, Molly, Bath Salts) and provide parents and mentors with strategies to keep youth from engaging in drug use.
Cas llo and Wilson are seasoned professionals providing adolescent substance abuse treatment using programs such as Matrix
Treatment Model, Aggression Replacement Training and Brief Interven on.
Helping Kids Deal with Trauma
Leigh Collins, LCSW
Mentors o en work with children who have experienced trauma. This work can make a huge diﬀerence in a child’s life, but it can also
leave mentors feeling heartbroken, helpless, and exhausted. This workshop will help you understand how trauma aﬀects a child’s
behavior and feelings. It will include ps for communica ng eﬀec vely with trauma zed children of all ages, and it will also provide
techniques to increase your inﬂuence on the behaviors and a tudes of these children.
Straight Talk: Young People Talk about the Roles of Mentors in their Lives
Dixie King, Ph.D. and Rosi Rosas, MA
In this workshop we will be conduc ng a “ﬁshbowl focus group” with 18‐and 19‐year‐olds who are ﬁrst genera on college students.
Some are also ﬁrst genera on immigrants or have spent me in the foster system; many come from underprivileged backgrounds or
have spent me in the juvenile jus ce system. Discussion will focus on the mentors that gave these young people the vision and
support they needed to move forward in their lives, and on their needs as they face the diﬃcult challenges of the 18‐to‐25
“transi on” years.
Ingrid Ricks, BA
Co-Founder of WeAreAbsolutelyNotOkay.org
Ingrid Ricks is passionate about using narra ve wri ng to give teens a voice.
Author, speaker, essayist and teen mentor. For the past two and a half years,
she has partnered with an English teacher at an alternative high school, using
her New York Times best selling memoir Hippie Boy as a guide to help students
ﬁnd their voice and power through personal storytelling. This collaboration has
resulted in two published student story collections, We Are Absolutely Not Okay
and You’ve Got It All Wrong, and a life changing experience for the student
authors involved. It’s also led to a newly launched memoir about her journey
with the blinding eye disease Retinitis Pigmentosa.
12:00 p.m.
MENTOR RECOGNITION AWARDS
Join us in honoring Kern County Mentors
12:30 p.m.
LUNCHEON KEYNOTE:
Ingrid Ricks, BA
Finding Your Power Through Narra ve
1:45 p.m.
The A ernoon Breakouts (select one):
The Roles Kids Play: Understanding and Responding to the Need Beneath the Mask
Dixie King, Ph.D.
Children learn very early to manipulate their environment to get what they want and need. What’s behind the masks children
wear? From the “hero” child who is obsessively perfect to the “scapegoat” child who manages to fail no ma er the number of
opportuni es provided, this workshop will teach about the roots of some of the roles kids play and how to respond in a way that
supports the needs of the child, while gran ng you the opportunity to deepen your rela onship in a produc ve and meaningful
way.
Digital Storytelling for Youth Engagement: PhotoVoice
James Kooler, Ed.D.
Digital Storytelling is a Par cipatory Ac on Research method (PAR) that uses photography as a means for young people to
capture and reﬂect on their community’s issues and assets through their own experiences and perspec ves. In this workshop,
par cipants will learn how to implement this unique program in a way that gives youth an opportunity to exercise their crea vity
while learning important life lessons.
What’s Going On in There? Understanding Addic on and the Teen Brain
Cecilia Mar nez, MPA
Why do young people act the way they act? Why is it essen al to prevent teen drug use during this cri cal developmental stage?
This workshop will provide concrete skills for understanding how adolescents think and process informa on, as well as how to
communicate with them on tough topics in a way that will promote discussion and cri cal thinking.
Tools and Tips for Developing Group Mentoring
Jerry Sherk, MA
This workshop will provide an overview of how to design, implement and facilitate a group mentoring program. It will focus on
two basic models for group mentoring, one formal and one informal. Par cipants will learn how to match mentors and mentees,
how to develop group rules and how to select a curriculum that will meet the speciﬁc needs of the mentees. They will also learn
an eﬀec ve sharing process called “Good News, Bad News.” Aimed both at mentors and mentoring organiza ons, par cipants
will leave this workshop with a be er understanding of how to prepare mentors to be successful in working with groups.
3:45 p.m.
Conference Wrap‐up: MOVING FORWARD TO PROMOTE BEST PRACTICES IN MENTORING
Join us in a discussion of next steps as together we answer the ques ons: What kind of training and support do mentors and
mentoring organiza ons want and need in order to be their best and avoid burnout? How can KernStopMethNow con nue to
support the development of high quality mentoring programs in Kern County?
The Workshop Facilitators
Alicia Cas llo is a Substance Abuse Specialist with Kern County Mental Health. Her career in substance abuse treatment began in 1992. For the last 17
years, she has worked with adolescents using Aggression Replacement Training, Matrix, Seeking Safety, Brief Interven on and Voices. Cas llo has worked to
implement and operate programs like Juvenile Drug Diversion and Juvenile Drug Court and has provided substance abuse treatment in Court and
Community School se ngs. She is currently working to develop and implement online‐based eTherapy for substance abuse clients.
Leigh Collins, LCSW received her Masters in Social Work from Tulane University in 1998. She has lectured throughout the United States, China and
Eastern Europe and has taught at the American University in Bulgaria and the University of Timisoara in Romania. She has authored several publica ons,
including When a Parent is Seriously Ill. Prior to joining the CSUB faculty, Ms. Collins worked in Louisiana, where she helped form the child and adolescent
therapy program at Jewish Family Service in New Orleans; served as Director of Counseling at Country Day School; provided consul ng services for a variety
of schools and worked at a school‐based health center. A er Hurricane Katrina, Collins relocated to Houston to work with displaced children and families.
Dixie L. King, Ph.D. is the founder and president of Transforming Local Communi es, Inc. (TLC), a research and consul ng ﬁrm specializing in the
evalua on of grant‐funded programs. An applied anthropologist with a specializa on in medical and psychocultural studies, Dr. King received her doctorate
from UCLA in 1996. She regularly oﬀers workshops in ﬁdelity assessment, interviewing and communica on skills, small group facilita on skills, team‐
building, leadership development and strategies for working with high‐risk youth.
James Kooler, Ed.D is the Administrator for the California Friday Night Live Partnership and also leads the California Center for Youth Development
and Health Promo on. Dr. Kooler serves as a Board Member for the United States An ‐Doping Agency and the Na onal Endowment for Financial Educa on.
He is a strong ally to young people and has worked in the preven on ﬁeld for 27 years. He was previously the Director for the Governor’s Mentoring
Partnership and Deputy Director for the Preven on Services Division at the California State Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs. Dr. Kooler also
provides leadership and support to 54 County Friday Night Live programs.
Cecilia Mar nez, MPA began working with Kern County Mental Health’s Substance Abuse System of Care in 2008. Her posi on as Program
Coordinator for the Substance Abuse Response Team focuses on providing services and treatment to adolescents in Kern County. These services are
provided through coordina on and partnerships with contracted community‐based organiza ons. Ms. Mar nez is also the Mental Health Liaison the Youth
Preven on and Treatment Subcommi ee for the Kern County Methamphetamine Reduc on Task Force.
Rosi Rosas, MA is a mo va onal speaker, business coach/trainer, and leader as an Independent Sales Director with Mary Kay Cosme cs, Inc. With a
master’s degree in sociology, her professional background includes managing research and evalua on projects, grant wri ng and public speaking . She is
passionate about helping women discover their gi s and talents and to live their lives to the fullest.
Dwayne C. Wilson, Sr. is a Substance Abuse Specialist for Kern County Mental Health. As a registered addic on specialist, Wilson has been working in
the substance abuse ﬁeld since 2000. In 2002, he began working with adult residen al and outpa ent treatment at Kern County Mental Health. In 2009, he
began working in adolescent treatment. Mr. Wilson facilitates the Matrix Treatment Model for Teens, Intensive Outpa ent Alcohol and Drug Treatment and
Aggression Replacement Training.
Jerry Sherk, MA is president of Mentor Management Systems, a leader in the development and implementa on of youth, employee‐to‐employee,
and ex‐prisoner mentoring programs. Sherk has a Masters Degree in Psychology with an emphasis in counseling, and was the lead writer on the
development of a comprehensive mentor training manual that is currently being used na onally by approximately 80 YouthBuild USA mentoring programs.
Jerry is a former All Pro Defensive Lineman for the Cleveland Browns, and was recently honored as a “Cleveland Browns Legend.” He is currently working with
the Browns to bring a student athlete mentoring and leadership program to the greater Cleveland area.
Judy Strother Taylor is Execu ve Vice President of Mentor Management Systems. She is the one‐ me project director for US Department of
Educa on mentoring programs, and she also provided the training for Children of Prisoners Mentoring eﬀorts. Judy’s publica on, “Training New Mentees,”
wri en for the Na onal Mentoring Center, has been used by thousands of mentoring programs. Judy is currently teaming with Jerry Sherk to bring an
employee‐to‐employee mentoring program to the US Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles.
Mentor Recognition
Join us in honoring Kern County mentors who have made a diﬀerence!
To nominate a mentor for recogni on at the conference luncheon, complete the Mentor Recogni on Nomina on Form and mail or fax to Transforming
Local Communi es, Inc. no later than March 25, 2014. One nomina on per mentoring organiza on, please. All nominees will receive a cer ﬁcate;
however, four nominees will be awarded special recogni on based on their exemplary work in the area of youth mentoring.
For more informa on about Con nuing Educa on credit, addi onal registra on forms, or Mentor Recogni on applica ons, please write or call:
5500 Ming Avenue, Suite 240
Bakersﬁeld, CA 93309
661.827.5245
[email protected]
CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDIT
Con nuing educa on units provided by CSU, Bakersﬁeld Extended University Division, California Board of Behavioral Sciences provider number 3453. Course meets
qualiﬁca ons for 6 hours of con nuing educa on for MFCCS and/or LCSWs as required by California Board of Behavorial Sciences. Con nuing educa on units provided by
CSU, Bakersﬁeld Extended University Division, California Board of Registered Nurses provider number CEP 304. Course meets qualiﬁca ons for 6 hours of con nuing
educa on for nurses as required by California Board of Registered Nursing.

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