Foundation for Culturally Sensitive Relationship-focused Infant Mental Health Practice

Core Competency Training Series

Registration is now open for MI-AIMH’s 10-month curriculum “Foundation for Culturally Sensitive Relationship-focused Infant Mental Health Practice Core Competency Training Series” also known as “Core Curriculum Series”! The Core Curriculum Series focuses on the process and content of Infant Mental Health (IMH) practice as it is applied in 0-6 home visiting programs. This series will take place via Zoom and includes twenty half-day sessions (2 per month) from October 2020- through July 2021. 

This series meets all of the competency requirements for Endorsement® as Infant Family Specialist and many of those for Infant Mental Health Specialist which is helpful for those that are working towards Endorsement®!  The Series offers an opportunity for rich engagement with key theoretical and direct practice competency material in a cohort learning atmosphere that supports exploration of relationship-based work. It is highly interactive, responsive to the diversity our families and practitioners represent, and includes multiple learning methods.  Comprehensive training materials and related articles were carefully curated and will be available for attendees.  While there are not “extra” assignments or homework, there will be some required and recommended readings prior to sessions. Some of the topics that will be covered in this series are: Informal & Formal Assessment, Observation & Listening, Pregnancy & Early Parenthood, Typical & Atypical Early Development, Secure & Insecure Attachment, Trauma, Separation, Grief & Loss, Reflective Supervision, and Termination. This series gives an overview of Infant Parent- Psychotherapy, but clinicians can expect to get the majority of their training on Infant-Parent Psychotherapy through the standardized IMH-HV training curriculum from UofM and MDHHS. These two learning opportunities do not replace one another, they are complementary and both are of great benefit in working with infants, toddlers, and families! 

A little about the history of this Core Series:

Up until now, this series has been offered thanks to contracts, grants or sponsoring organizations. 

For the FIRST time we are opening this series to anyone in Michigan who meets criteria for participation. We have successfully adapted this series to virtual learning that maintains sensitivity to the impact of culture and race, and continues to offer ample opportunity to share and think more deeply about our work, per feedback from recent cohort participants. The virtual adaptation also has allowed for easier commitment to this 10-month series because there is no travel and less time taken from other responsibilities.

Thanks to the Gerstacker Foundation and the Community Foundation of SE Michigan that supported the development, delivery and evaluation of the first series in 2015-17, the curriculum offers a strong foundation of IMH principles, practice, and intervention within the consistency of a community of practice cohort. It includes 9 total hours of group Reflective Supervision for participants (which can be counted on Endorsement® applications) as well as group exploration of 10 case vignettes.  MI-AIMH is grateful to the team who initially developed this series including Alyssa Huth-Bocks, Ashley McCormick, Jan Ulrich, Judy Darling, Karol Wilson, and Sheryl Goldberg, as well as those who advised and reviewed! We have since expanded our Core Curriculum Series training team, allowing us to offer a consistent team of two trainers per cohort.

The initial training series was evaluated by Dr. Sarah Shea, IECMH-E® through Eastern Michigan University and the results were very positive! Outcomes showed:

• Participant’s theoretical and practice knowledge increased
• Participants demonstrated an improved capacity to apply reflective practice skills
• Participants experienced an increased sense of confidence specific to reflective practice skills
• Participants reported use of the IMH strategies and skills in their home visiting practice
• Participants reported greater confidence in their abilities to engage in relationship-based home visiting with infants, toddlers, and families

Who should attend:

Michigan home visitors or supervisors who have at least one case they are working with where the identified client is 0-6 years old.  This series will be best for those who are NOT yet endorsed as an IMH Specialist (III). Ideally, attendees should have one-year work experience (as of October 1, 2020).  Space is limited to 30 participants.  Priority will be given to those who meet that requirement. Exceptions may be allowed if space is available (Exception examples may include: a professional with slightly less work experience, or a combination of internship/work experience in the 0-6 home visiting field). Please email Joni Zieldorff jzieldorff@mi-aimh.org to share your interest in requesting an exception. *Attendees MUST commit to attending ALL sessions to the best of their ability.

Trainers: Amy Delira, LMSW, IECMH-E® and Karol Wilson, LMSW, IMH-E®

Dates: The 1^st and 3^rd Wednesdays from October 2020- through July 2021 (total of 20 half day training sessions)
Oct. 7 & 21; Nov. 4 & 18; Dec. 2 & 16; Jan. 6 &20; Feb. 3 & 17; March 3 & 17; April 7 & 21; May 5 & 19; June 2 & 16; July 7 & 21

Time: 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM (with a 15 minute break) 

Access: All of these sessions will be offered virtually through Zoom.  The Zoom link will be sent to the email used during registration – please be very careful when entering your email!

IMPORTANT – in order to receive a certificate and/or Continuing Education you will need to have a Zoom account (which is free) logged in to view the training.  We are able to export a report from Zoom which will track your attendance.  When you are signed in, your name appears along with the amount of time you were on the Zoom call.  Only those names that appear on the report will receive certificates with continuing education credits/clock hours.  If you have any questions, please email tmartinez@mi-aimh.org

Key MI-AIMH Competencies addressed include: Meets all of the competencies for Endorsement® as Infant Family Specialist and many of those for Infant Mental Health Specialists. Also includes 9 total hours of Reflective Supervision.

Continuing Education Information – 55.0 training hours: for Michigan only

Social Work – Approved for 5.5 Michigan SW CEU’s
IMH Endorsement® – Will count towards the requirements for the MI-AIMH Endorsement® *includes 9 hours of Reflective Supervision. (You will have the option on your Endorsement® application to count 46 training hours and 9 Reflective Supervision hours OR all 55 hours under training) 
Licensed Professional Counselors – NBCC Hours – Michigan Association for Infant Mental Health (MI-AIMH) has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No.6867.  Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified.  MI-AIMH is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

Registration Fee:  Members: $650; Non-Members $750. This fee includes registration for the 20 half-day learning sessions, 55 training hours and carefully created and curated training material.  This fee will also include a set of MI-AIMH’s Development Wheels (Pregnancy; Baby Stages; Pre-school Stages and Fatherhood) and a Digital version of MI-AIMH’s Home Visiting Manual.

Payment Options: One-time FULL payment or Two-partial payments

• During registration you will be prompted to select your payment.  You can pay in-full by credit card through PayPal (you do NOT need a PayPal account – this is just the system we use to process credit cards).
• Or you can select by Check or by Invoice – you will have to put in additional contact information

One-Time Full Payment – you can register and select the payment option you would prefer. To pay by credit/debit you will be prompted to go through Paypal.  You do NOT need a Paypal account.

Two-Partial Payments – DO NOT select Credit Card/PayPal – you MUST select Invoice as your payment option

• 1st payment is due by August 30th; 2nd payment is due by October 31st
• You can mail in a check or pay by credit card over the phone

Registration Info: 

Last day to register: Monday, August 17, 2020

Cancellation policy: Notice of cancellation must be submitted in writing to tmartinez@mi-aimh.org no later than 14 days prior to the event for a refund to be issued.

IMPORTANT: Agency checks should be made payable to MI-AIMH. Please indicate the names of all staff attending the training.  If names are not included on check payment, MI-AIMH cannot guarantee that the check will be attributed to the correct training or participant(s).

Mail checks to: MI-AIMH, ATTN: Tiffanie Martinez, 13101 Allen Road, Southgate, MI 48195

For registration questions, contact Tiffanie Martinez at:
tmartinez@mi-aimh.org or 734-785-7705, Ext. 7617