Join us at CPA’s 38th Annual Convention!

November 7th & 8th, 2024

#CPACON2024

Dear Esteemed Colleagues,

We are thrilled to extend a warm invitation to you for the Connecticut Psychological Association’s (CPA) 38th Annual Convention. This two-day event begins with a virtual evening session on Thursday, November 7th, 2024, followed by a full-day, in-person conference on Friday, November 8th, 2024, at Yale University West Campus in Orange, CT.  Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with groundbreaking ideas and connect with fellow professionals committed to advancing the field of psychology. Register now to secure your spot!

We are honored to announce that our distinguished keynote speaker for the convention will be Dr. Sunil Bhatia, presenting The Promise of Decolonial Psychology: Reimagining Psychological Knowledge, Practice, and Interventions. Dr. Bhatia will explore how decolonial perspectives challenge the dominance of Euro-American psychology and validate knowledge from indigenous and majority world communities.  Dr. Bhatia is the Lucy Marsh Haskell ’19 Professor of Human Development, Connecticut College, President of the Society for Qualitative Inquiry in Psychology, and the 2015 recipient of the APA International Humanitarian Award.  Dr. Bhatia’s insights and expertise in these areas have had a powerful impact on the field of psychology and beyond, making him an ideal speaker to address our community.

CPA’s Annual Convention will feature a broad range of workshops, presentations, and networking opportunities. Engage in stimulating discussions, share your valuable experiences, and exchange ideas with esteemed colleagues from across the state and beyond. This convention is an excellent opportunity to expand your professional network and stay at the forefront of the latest developments in the field.

Yale West Campus, located in Orange, CT, provides an ideal setting for our gathering. Immerse yourself in the academic atmosphere of Yale University while enjoying the facilities that will enhance your convention experience.

We invite you to mark your calendars for Friday November 8th, 2024, and join us at Convention!  We will be offering a Pre-Convention Virtual Session the evening before on Thursday, November 7th, for a total of 5.5 CE that can be acquired. Early registration is highly encouraged, as spots are limited and demand is expected to be high. Together, we can inspire each other, learn from one another, and create a positive impact on our profession and the communities we serve.

We welcome your presence at this exciting event. Join us for a day filled with learning, inspiration, and camaraderie, as we strive to shape the future of psychology together.

Warmest regards,

Stephanie Pennington, PhD.
Convention Chair
Connecticut Psychological Association

Convention Schedule

Friday, November 8th, 2024 – Convention Day Schedule (IN PERSON)

7:45 am – 8:45 am: Registration & Networking Breakfast – Meet Division Representatives

7:45 am – 3:00 pm: Poster Session

9:00 am – 9:30 am: President’s Welcome – Derek Fenwick, Psy.D., Annual Business Meeting, Presentation of Lifetime Achievement Award

9:30 am – 10:30 am: Keynote Presentation (1 CE)

10:30 am – 10:50 am: Break

10:50 am – 11:50 am: Workshops Session I (1 CE)

12:00 pm – 1:00 pm: Luncheon

1:00 pm -1:30 pm:  Awards Ceremony

1:40 pm – 2:40 pm: Workshops – Session II (1 CE)

2:40 pm – 3:00 pm: Break

3:00 pm – 4:00 pm : Workshops – Session III (1 CE)

4:00 pm – 5:00 pm: Social Hour

1. “I don’t want to be just accepted; I want to be understood”: Applying a liberation psychology framework to clinical work with transgender and gender expansive Veterans.  Presented by, Philippa Le Cesne Byrne, M.A., Nadika Paranamana, Psy.D., George Gross, Ph.D.

This workshop shares clinicians’ experiences and clinical recommendations based on lessons learned from treating transgender Veterans. Participants will learn how to become better allies, move away from deficit-focused approaches, and embrace strength-based clinical skills. Moreover, skills for supervising queer and non-queer trainees will be discussed.

2. Evidence-Based Treatment for OCD – Strategies for Improving Access to Care.  Presented by, Christina J. Taylor, Ph.D., Laura Damm, M.B.A., Anne Yacoviello, B.S., Audrey Medd, Esq., Rocco Clericuzio, B.S.

Significant advances in evidence-based treatment for OCD have been made over the last 50 years, but many individuals with OCD continue to struggle in their effort to find effective professional help. The work of OCD Connecticut points the way for developing resources to expand the availability of expert care.

3. Get Your Shift Together: How to help kids more by worrying less. Presented by, Susan Bauerfeld, Ph.D., Chris Parrott, B.P.S.

Worrying is the driving force behind many modern parenting trends. But worrying doesn’t help children. This workshop describes the adverse impact that worrying has on the parent-child relationship and on the development of children’s coping skills. Strategies are presented that help parents worry less and help kids more.

4. Trauma-Informed Mindfulness:  Practices to Promote Regulation and Resilience.  Presented by, Vamsi Koneru, Ph.D.

Trauma is an event or series of events that is highly stressful, profoundly difficult to integrate and can leave us feeling overwhelmed, helpless, and profoundly unsafe. Trauma is shockingly commonplace and individuals who have endured trauma can experience significant psychological distress marked by intrusive memories and flashbacks as well as intense feelings of shame, self-blame, and guilt. Offering mindfulness practices to individuals who have experienced trauma can be a highly effective approach to support well-being and recovery. However, asking individuals to pay focused, sustained attention to their experience can be challenging and potentially dysregulating, thus, it is important to offer mindfulness meditation in a trauma-informed manner. This workshop will offer theory, practices and skills to effectively and safely support trauma survivors.

5. Keynote Presentation: The Promise of Decolonial Psychology: Reimagining Psychological Knowledge, Practice, and Interventions. Presented by, Sunil Bhatia, Ph.D.

Scholars have established that Euro-American psychology is based on the findings of 5% of the population of the world, yet these “local” findings are framed as universal and relevant for 95% of humanity (Arnett, 2008). In contrast, decolonial perspectives disrupt the standard practices of EuroAmerican and WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrial, Rich, Democratic) psychology (Henrich et al., 2010) and validate knowledge produced from majority world settings and indigenous communities (Adams et al., 2015; Bhatia 2018, 2021in press; Decolonial Psychology Collective, 2021; Fernández et al., 2021; Kessi, Suffla, Seedat, 2022). Indigenous resistance entails doing research that reclaims “place-based wisdom to produce forms of knowledge that resonate with local realities and better serve local communities” (Adams et al, 2017, p. 534). Decolonial scholars have highlighted the need for embracing decolonial and antiracist practices that lead to collective and individual liberation and healing (Comas-Díaz, 2021; French et al., 2020). Indigenous scholar Linda Tuhiwai Smith (2012, p. 204) writes that “Decolonization must offer a language of possibility, a way out of colonialism.” This presentation will articulate a “decolonial” language that provides us with counternarrative to the dominant forms of US-centric narratives of psychology. This talk is organized around three goals: 1) to focus on concepts constructs, and theories (i.e., knowledges) that are distinct from, and stand as alternatives to, those offered by Eurocentric psychology; 2) to surface and foreground the historical and contextual factors that support and attend the development of these decolonial knowledges; and 3) to promote the multidirectional flow of intellectual exchange between decolonial scholars in the majority world and scholars in the minority world, and among diverse decolonial scholars themselves. The presentation will provide concrete examples of what decolonial psychology means for rethinking psychology practice and intervention.

6. Ghosts, Trauma, and Secrets.  Presented by, Steven Prasinos, Ph.D.

The Ghost experience is universal across cultures. Core elements of the ghost narrative involve trauma, secrets and injustice. Viewed psychologically, ghosts represent what haunts both individuals and society. Social maladies reveal what haunts us and what must be kept secret. Resolving hauntings (Integrating ghosts) leads to personal and social growth.

7. Contemporary Psychodynamic Psychotherapy: Myths, Research, Application. Presented by, Brianna Pollock, Ph.D., Elisabeth Scherpenisse, Ph.D.

To many, the practice of psychodynamic psychotherapy can seem obscure and archaic. This presentation aims to dispel myths, review current research including psychodynamic psychotherapy as an evidenced-based treatment, and make accessible introductory theory and practical clinical application.

8. Suicide Prevention in Clinical Practice: Update on Assessment, Treatment and Community Resources. Presented by, Kathleen Chapman, Ph.D.

Suicide is a leading cause of death nationally, with increased risk where there are obstacles to accessing care. We will review current information on risk factors, and warning signs, and discuss screening and assessment, and determining risk level. Evidence based intervention will be reviewed, with training and Connecticut resources provided.

9. Addressing Pediatric Racial Pain Inequities through Patient and Family Partnerships.  Presented by, Emily Wakefield, Psy.D., Vaishali Belamkar, B.A., and chronic pain patient Kelsey Freeman (pediatric pain patient) and Tajmaletty Freeman (parent).

Youth of marginalized races endure greater medical provider bias and symptom dismissal than white pediatric patients, leading to racial health inequities and poorer health outcomes. This presentation will be co-presented with patient advocates to highlight the critical need to work together to address the health inequities marginalized families face.

10. Evidence Based Strategies for Integrating Stress Management Practices into University Courses.  Presented by, Lisa B. Smith Psy.D.

Research reveals that high stress levels in undergraduate students may negatively impact their emotional and physical well-being. Many college campuses offer a variety of programs to address student well-being. However, this presentation will provide college instructors with several evidence based stress management techniques they can implement within their college courses.

11. Using a Hybrid Model with INSIGHTS to Support Parents of School-Age Children.  Presented by, Sandee McClowry, Ph.D., R.N., F.A.A.N. and Mark Spellmann, Ph.D.

Supporting parents of school-age children involves teaching content and processing. This presentation demonstrates a hybrid model using INSIGHTS into Children’s Temperament, an evidence-based program. Parents learn content in 6 self-paced lessons. A session with a clinician follows each lesson during which parents process and apply the content to their children.

12. Addressing the Trauma Epidemic: Collaborative Care and Intensive Therapy Solutions.  Presented by, Joanna L. Rosen, Psy.D.

With nearly 70% of adults experiencing lifetime trauma, collaboration among professionals is essential to address trauma’s profound impact on emotional, physical, and relational health. This workshop advocates for an integrative care approach, emphasizing adjunctive intensive trauma therapy to swiftly alleviate distress and foster rapid healing. Case examples demonstrate how targeted treatment can bring significant relief for sufferers amidst soaring demand and limited resources.

13. Staying Unsplit: Maintaining Cohesion Among Clinicians in a Residential Milieu.  Presented by, Benjamin Bernstein, Ph.D. and Emily Calderone, Psy.D.

In residential treatment, clinicians are often faced with toxic defensive strategies by patients with personality pathology, that can severely impact team dynamics. Drs. Bernstein and Calderone will share related ideas and utilize case examples from their psychiatric hospital experience that helped maintain cohesion despite patient attempts to split the treatment team.

14. Challenges for Mixed-Status Couples: Citizenship, Mental Health, and Policy Implications. Presented by, Samantha Ojeda, Psy.D. and Rita M. Rivera, Psy.D., C.B.I.S.

This study investigates how immigration policy affects mixed-status couples, focusing on 20 U.S. citizens with undocumented partners. Through qualitative analysis of interviews, it explores citizenship perceptions, experiences, and mental health impacts. Findings reveal complex challenges and emphasize the necessity for policy reform.

15. Accessing the Inaccessible: How Telehealth Exposure Therapy is Redefining Anxiety and OCD Treatment.  Presented by, Jenna Campagna, Ph.D.

Teletherapy has created a pivotal opportunity for the delivery of cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) and exposure response prevention (ERP) interventions to individuals with anxiety and/or OCD. This presentation will demonstrate how innovative approaches to virtual ERP reduces access barriers and offers a promising paradigm shift for treatment.

16. A Practice Opportunity: Meeting the Needs of Perinatal Women and Families.  Presented by, Barbara Ward-Zimmerman, Ph.D., Sharon Thomason, Ph.D., Sanne Nyke Wortel, Ph.D. 

Perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs) are common serious conditions affecting women during pregnancy and one year post-delivery, often resulting in wide-ranging and long-term negative consequences. This workshop will provide an overview of PMADs, identification tools, evidence-based treatments, racial disparities, and diverse case examples. Practice opportunities abound in various settings!

17. Disentangling Yourself and Your Practice from Weight Stigma and Bias in a Fatphobic World. Presented by, Elizabeth I Rathbun, Psy.D. and Joy Zelikovsky, Psy.D.

Fat phobia and weight bias have been found to be prevalent in multiple healthcare settings. This is especially troubling as individuals are seeking support and help yet met with weight discrimination and unethical treatment. These experiences can be harmful and traumatizing and further keep people from getting their health needs met.

4:00 pm – 5:00 pm: Social Hour

Join us for a vibrant and engaging Social Hour directly after Convention! This event is the perfect opportunity to unwind after a day of insightful sessions and connect with fellow attendees in a relaxed atmosphere. Enjoy complimentary refreshments, lively conversations, and the chance to network with leading professionals in the field. Whether you’re looking to discuss the latest research, find new collaborators, or simply make new friends, our Social Hour promises to be a highlight of the conference. Don’t miss out on this chance to build lasting connections and have a great time!

Tickets:

CPA Members: must have a verified 2024 CPA membership

Earliest Bird – August 1-August 31 2024 =  $99

Early Bird – September 1- September 30 2024 = $125

Regular Tickets- October 1-October 26 2024 =  $149

Convention & Membership Bundles – Best Deal of the Year! *Must be a first time CPA member.  Does not apply to past member renewals.

First Time CPA Member + Convention Ticket = $249

Student First Time CPA Member + Convention Ticket = $65

Non-Members

Earliest Bird – August 1-August 31 2024 =  $149

Early Bird – September 1- September 30 2024 = $175

Regular Tickets- October 1-October 26 2024 =  $199

Students: must be a verified student enrolled in a graduate program

Earliest Bird – August 1-August 31 2024 =  $50

Early Bird – September 1- September 30 2024 = $55

Regular Tickets- October 1-October 26 2024 =  $55

Students – Want to attend for free?  Contact us for volunteer opportunities at info@connpsych.org

Full Program Description:

For our full program description, including speaker biographies and presentation citations, visit our digital program here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/172ZdM1EMDWpYy2PwoH9swQ9RB11qzOjG24rm2qjeXSg/edit?usp=sharing

Continuing Education:

Participants are eligible for up to 5.5 CE credits.  1.5 CE credits can be earned during our virtual pre-convention workshops on Thursday, November 7th. 4.0 CE credits can be earned during our in person convention on Friday November 8th.

The Connecticut Psychological Association (CPA) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. The Connecticut Psychological Association maintains responsibility for this program and its content.  1 CE credit is available per instructional hour for attendees who are present for the entire program. We ask that all participants return the post-program evaluation form at the conclusion of the program.

CPA and our speakers have not received any commercial support for this program or its contents and will not receive any commercial support prior to or during this program.

Refund Policy: