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• Psychodynamic Peer Clinical Consultation Group (August 2025)

  • When
    Saturday, August 09, 2025
  •  
    9:00 AM - 10:30 AM
  • Location
    ONLINE ZOOM Meeting

  Register

  Join us for a monthly peer consultation group designed for clinical social workers interested in understanding and working through a psychodynamic lens in a supportive, collegial environment. Transference, countertransference and other relational dynamics will be explored to further our understanding and clinical work with our clients. This is a CSCSW members only group open to those at all levels of practice, including students, ASW’s and LCSW’s.

  This group will meet the second Saturday of each month from 9:00 - 10:30 AM PST.

  NOTE: This Consultation Group does not meet supervision requirements for licensure hours, and neither the leader nor the CSCSW is responsible for the participants’ clinical work. 

  If you are not a member join today - click here to learn more. 

  MEMBER'S ONLY EVENT - FREE FOR ALL MEMBERS This Consultation/Support Group does not award CEUs.

  
  

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• Engaging with Families Impacted by Individual, Intergenerational, and Historical Trauma

  • When
    Sunday, August 17, 2025
  •  
    9:00 AM - 12:15 PM
  • Location
    Online ZOOM

  Register

  ONLINE ZOOM WEBINAR -  WILL NOT BE RECORDED
  

  Costs: Member - $95.00 | Nonmember - $135.00 | Student - $30   
  Presenter:  Jeanette Lopez-Urbina, LCSW

  In this training, participants will learn about principles of engagement that can be applied when providing services to families who have experienced generations of trauma, including individual, intergenerational, and historical trauma. Typical challenges found in the engagement process in supporting this population will also be identified, such as cultural implications, bias, and social justice issues. Lastly, we will discuss practices and effective strategies for the engagement process and in building a positive alliance with families from a trauma informed and multicultural perspective.

  Workshop Objectives:   

   Review definition and importance of engagement in service delivery.  

  Review, at least, 3 principles typically valued and applied in the engagement process during service delivery.  

  Identify, at least, 3 challenges found in engagement as well as identify, at least, 5 strategies to address the challenges.  

  Review and apply, at least, 3 approaches in building positive alliance from a multicultural perspective.   

  ___________________________________________________________

  About the Presenter:

  Jeanette Lopez-Urbina, LCSW has worked in the mental health/social services field since the year 2000, in various settings in Northern and Southern California, including residential and community-based services, through services such as Wraparound, psychotherapy, and violence prevention work. Jeanette has worked extensively with youth and families, especially in the area of trauma, including supporting youth and families in specialized services that address gang involvement, sexual exploitation, immigration trauma, and issues related oppression, racism, and acculturation issues. Jeanette is a bilingual first-generation Salvadoran American practitioner who enjoys practicing mostly from a social justice, relational, and psychodynamic approach. She currently is the owner of a group Private Practice in Berkeley, is adjunct faculty at the Wright Institute in Berkeley, and has been a lecturer at UC Berkeley’s School of Social Welfare. Jeanette provides trainings throughout the Bay Area on topics related to best practices in serving the Latine population, trauma informed care, and culturally responsive services. 

  This webinar meets the qualifications for 3.0 hours continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.  Note: With supervisor approval, registered ASWs may use CEs toward LCSW hours. Cancellation Policy 14 days or more before event date: Full refund 13-7 days before event date: 75% refund 6 days or less before event date: No refund Note:  Registration will be canceled if payment is not made at least 7 days prior to the event.

  
  

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• Retirement Discussion Group - August 2025

  • When
    Tuesday, August 26, 2025
  •  
    8:30 AM - 9:45 AM
  • Location
    Online ZOOM

  Register

  Retirement! Is it on the horizon for you? The California Society for Clinical Social Work (CSCSW) invites you to join its Retirement Discussion Group (RDG). 

  Free group for CSCSW Members who are thinking about retiring

  The group will provide a mutually supportive space for participants to explore how it's done, logistics, tapering down, clinical issues with clients, and our feelings about it. As we benefit from consultation and assistance at the beginning and middle phases of our careers, it is no different when it comes to closing out a fulfilling career in a way that we feel is ethically and practically sound. 

  Make a cup of coffee and join us 8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. 

  
  

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• Therapists in a Divided World

  • When
    Saturday, September 06, 2025
  •  
    10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
  • Location
    Online WEBINAR

  Register

  Presenter: William Doherty, PhD, LMFT (Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist - State of Minnesota & Licensed Psychologist - State of Minnesota)
  

  ONLINE ZOOM WEBINAR

  Costs:  CSCSW Member: FREE | Students: FREE
  Nonmember: $65 

  CEUs: 2.0

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  Description:

  As the recent election has shown, the nation is more divided than at any time since the Civil War. Polarization enters the therapy room through emotional triggers, relationship distress, and worries for the future. Many people demonize and hold contempt for the political “other,” even when the “other” is in their families. Therapists are not immune to this toxic political culture, and it can affect how we work with clients facing political stress and divisions in their lives. At a broader level, can we apply a larger therapeutic perspective to the problems of our society instead of just taking a side in the contempt and outrage wars? Explore clinical tools and a larger vision for our role as citizen therapists. You’ll discover how to:

  • Develop an understanding of the political "other” inside and outside of therapy
  • Identify the connection between your current clinical work and societal polarization
  • Practice skills in bridging gaps between individuals and groups who see themselves as politically polarized
  • Connect with initiatives where you can use your knowledge and skills for the public good.

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  Learning Objectives:

  At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

  1. Assess the ways in which societal polarization impacts clinical work.
  2. Evaluate different therapeutic stances clinicians can take when faced with clinical situations that evoke political and societal polarizations.
  3. Practice applying depolarization skills in your own work with clients and within the community.
  4. Identify opportunities to go deeper with community-level depolarization.
  5. Limitations and potential risks of these models.

  Workshop Logistics: After registering you will receive a link to the ZOOM WEBINAR.   Closed Captioning available ABOUT THE PRESENTER William Doherty, PhD, LMFT, is a professor and director of the Minnesota Couples on the Brink Project at the University of Minnesota. He’s cofounder of Braver Angels, a nonprofit working to depolarize America. His new book (with Tai Mendenhall) is "Becoming a Citizen Therapist: Integrating Community Problem-Solving into Your Work as a Healer."

  This is a District Meeting coordinated by the Mid-Peninsula District
  

  This DISTRICT MEETING meets the qualifications for 2.0 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.  Note: With supervisor approval, registered ASWs may use CEs toward LCSW hours. Cancellation Policy 14 days or more before event date: Full refund 13-7 days before event date: 75% refund 6 days or less before event date: No refund Note:  Registration will be canceled if payment is not made at least 7 days prior to the event.

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• "Real Talk," a Clinical Consultation/Support Group For Members Who Identify as BIPOC (SEPTEMBER 2025)

  • When
    Tuesday, September 16, 2025
  •  
    5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
  • Location
    ONLINE ZOOM

  Register

  Guest Facilitator: Malika Spencer

  "Real Talk", a clinical consultation/support group developed with the oversight of the CSCSW's Diversity, Equity and Transformation (DET) Committee, the purpose of which is to provide a space for clinical social workers who identify as being Black, Indigenous, Mixed Race, or Person of Color (BIPOC) to meet on a monthly basis. The focus of this group is to provide an opportunity for networking, building solidarity, exploring intersectionality and decolonizing our practice. 

  This group is a closed group for individuals who self-identify as Black, Indigenous or Person of Color (BIPOC). The group's objective is to provide a brave space for those in the field to process the ongoing violence against and politicizing of minority groups' lives.

  This email reminder is sent out widely to all contacts and is not filtered by how individuals self-identify; therefore, if you have received this email but do not identify as BIPOC, we ask that you respect the intention of this group by not logging in to the meeting. However, we invite you to participate in our monthly CSCSW Diversity, Equity and Transformation (DET) Committee meetings as an ally. As a member of CSCSW, you are invited to attend a variety of open groups such as the Telehealth Consultation/Support Group, Support Group for Social Work Students and ASWs, and Ethics Consultation Group.

  Malika Spencer I am a Master of Social Work student at Arizona State University Online, with both a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Criminal Justice. As an African American woman and member of the LGBTQ+ community, I’ve often found myself navigating spaces where I have not always been valued or respected. These moments have fueled my commitment to advocacy, integrity, and holding space for those who are too often dismissed. I hold myself to high standards, which has opened doors, but also brought the weight of constantly having to prove my worth. Over the past three years, I’ve volunteered with several community-based organizations and previously served as Chair of the Western Region Social Action Committee for Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, Inc., where I hosted webinars focused on social issues, education, and advocacy. I am currently completing my generalist practicum with the Association of Black Social Workers in Greater Los Angeles, supporting culturally responsive programming and healing-centered initiatives. With a background in supporting system-impacted youth, families involved in child welfare, and currently, unhoused individuals living with mental illness, I am deeply committed to justice, healing centered care, and creating spaces where BIPOC individuals can feel seen, supported, and empowered.

  
  

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  This group is FREE; however, donations to CSCSW or the JAF Scholarship Fund are welcome.

  Please note that this group does NOT provide supervision to its members and no CEU’s are offered.

  "Real Talk" will be held via Zoom on a monthly basis. Those who register for the group will be sent a link to participate.

  Cost:

  Members – FREE
  Non-Members - FREE

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• Private Practice on Purpose: Building a Sustainable Business That Reflects Your Values

  • When
    Wednesday, September 17, 2025
  •  
    6:00 PM - 7:00 PM
  • Location
    Online WEBINAR
  • Registered
    1 registrant

  Register

  Presenter: Natalie Moore, LMFT ONLINE ZOOM MEETING -  WILL NOT BE RECORDED Costs: CSCSW Member: $39 | Students: $19 | Nonmember (with CEUs): $59   This workshop will not offer CEUs.

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  Description:

  Starting a private practice is exciting—but navigating the business side can feel overwhelming, especially for therapists who weren’t taught how to think like entrepreneurs. In this presentation, Natalie Moore, LMFT shares practical and values-driven strategies to help clinicians build a sustainable, full-fee practice without burning out or selling out.

  With a trauma-informed, anti-hustle approach, Natalie will walk participants through key elements of private practice success, including niche development, authentic marketing and systems that support both income and impact.

  This talk is ideal for associate and licensed clinicians who want to grow a practice that’s ethical, aligned and built to last.

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  Learning Objectives:

  At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

  1. Identify three foundational elements for launching or growing a values-aligned private practice.
  2. Describe how niche development supports ethical marketing and client fit.
  3. Name at least two sustainable strategies for attracting full-fee clients without relying on insurance panels.

  ABOUT THE PRESENTER Natalie Moore, LMFT is a licensed therapist and founder of Space for Growth Therapy & Coaching in Los Angeles. She specializes in helping millennial women break free from people-pleasing, perfectionism and burnout. In addition to her clinical work, Natalie provides SEO consulting and business coaching to therapists who want to build thriving, values-aligned private practices. Her approach to practice-building is warm, trauma-informed and grounded in real-world experience. Learn more at yourspaceforgrowth.com.

  This workshop MEETING meets the qualifications for 1.0 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.  Note: With supervisor approval, registered ASWs may use CEs toward LCSW hours. Cancellation Policy 14 days or more before event date: Full refund 13-7 days before event date: 75% refund 6 days or less before event date: No refund Note:  Registration will be canceled if payment is not made at least 7 days prior to the event.

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• Support group for Social Work students and ASW’s (September 2025)

  • When
    Thursday, September 18, 2025
  •  
    5:00 PM - 6:00 PM
  • Location
    ONLINE ZOOM Meeting

  Register

  Please join us at our next support group for Social work students and ASWs.

  Feeling lost, stressed, excited? Don't have time for the self care everyone keeps talking about? You are not alone! 

  Bring your questions and concerns, share your journey and connect with others, through this open group for any social work student or ASW in need of support.  The group will meet with members once a month to discuss topics related to being a social work student or graduate in pursuit of a clinical license.

  The forum will provide a semi-structured discussion in a safe and encouraging space. Topics are expected to be broad in range but may include: internships, managing hours and licensing exams, supervisors and supervision.  The goal of this group is to meet with other aspiring clinical social workers and share successes, challenges, stressors and ethical issues.

  Group will meet on Zoom the third Thursday of each month from 5:00 to 6:00.  Cost is free to members and non-members.

  If you have any questions about the support group, please contact Emily Plain, MSW |   cscswgla@gmail.com

  If you are not a member join today - click here to learn more. 

  This Consultation/Support Group does not award CEUs. Hosted and moderated by Emily Plain Emily-Tamara Plain, LCSW, earned her MSW from the University of Southern California and has specialized training and certifications in Clinical Supervision, Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Psychosis (CBTp), Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT) for PTSD, Trauma Informed Yoga, Yoga and Mindfulness for PTSD, Yoga for Veterans, and Yoga for Military Sexual Trauma. She has worked in the public and private sector specializing in substance use, schizophrenia / schizoaffective, bi-polar, depression, anxiety, PTSD and collective trauma.  For any questions, she can be reached at: cscswgla@gmail.com

  
  

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• Greater Los Angeles Gathering

  • When
    Saturday, September 27, 2025
  •  
    10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
  • Location
    Pico Robertson area

  Register

  
  

  Let’s Get Together, Greater LA!
  CSCSW District Gathering – Saturday, September 27, 2025

  Please join the Greater Los Angeles District for an in-person gathering of fellow clinical social workers and other mental health therapists.  Learn about the benefits of the California Society for Clinical Social Work membership, network with your peers, and get to know new colleagues and friends. Please bring your business cards, brochures, flyers, or any other materials related to your practice and professional activities.  Video meetings have been helpful, but seeing each other in person is great.  We will meet in Monica Blauner’s Rec Room and light snacks will be provided. Feel free to bring a colleague.

  Our meeting will be in the Pico Robertson area. You’ll receive the address and parking information with your registration confirmation.  We look forward to seeing you.

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• The Aperture Effect: The Central Importance of Awareness of Openness

  • When
    Thursday, October 23, 2025
  •  
    7:00 PM - 8:30 PM
  • Location
    Online WEBINAR

  Register

  Presenter: Kathryn Ford, MD. Presenter
  

  ONLINE ZOOM WEBINAR

  Costs:  CSCSW Member: FREE | Students: FREE
  Nonmember: $65 

  CEUs: 1.5

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  Description:

  The most important thing I've learned in over 20 years of working with couples is this: all of our attempts to listen, talk, understand and care need openness to succeed. Everything we want, and try to do, with each other depends on our openness in each moment and our ability to sense that openness–something I call the "aperture effect."

  I have developed a mindfulness-based approach that is a synthesis of my training as a psychiatrist, the neuroscience of relationships and my experiences with meditation. I teach couples to develop in-the-moment awareness of their openness as they interact.

  At some point in teaching colleagues about aperture, I realized that our own aperture awareness is the foundation for all our work. Underneath all our models, techniques, procedures, and words—when we are most effective—we are being guided by our awareness of openness, our own and our clients’. This aspect of our work is often in the background, largely unconscious. By giving it a name, aperture awareness, and putting it in the foreground, we may be able to use this power even more effectively. This is not a model to replace others but a way enhance our current models and skills. This approach can add simplicity and clarity to make your work more effective and more fun.

  - Kathryn Ford, MD. Presenter

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  Learning Objectives:

  At the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

  1. Learn the meaning and importance of aperture awareness as a special application of mindfulness.
  2. Learn the basic neuroscience related to openness.
  3. Learn the relationship of openness and aperture awareness to dialogue.
  4. Learn how to use aperture awareness to increase your effectiveness as a therapist.
  5. Learn exercises to cultivate: mindfulness, aperture awareness, dialogue.

  Workshop Logistics: After registering you will receive a link to the ZOOM WEBINAR.   Closed Captioning available ABOUT THE PRESENTER Kathryn Ford, M.D. is a psychiatrist, couples therapist and author. Her transformative method integrates mindfulness, psychology and neuroscience to help couples quickly shift their dynamics when in distress, and turn their difficulties into stronger, lasting connection. After more than 20 years of helping couples, she has written The Aperture Effect. With this book she teaches couples to use Aperture Awareness to create lasting love. After receiving her M.D. degree from Brown Medical School, Dr. Ford completed a residency in psychiatry at Stanford University School of Medicine. Her meditation practice and training at centers like Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in Massachusetts and Spirit Rock Meditation Center in California developed her understanding of the power of mindfulness for building deeper, more resilient, relationships.

  This is a District Meeting coordinated by the Mid-Peninsula District
  

  This DISTRICT MEETING meets the qualifications for 1.5 hours of continuing education credit for MFTs, LPCCs, LEPs and/or LCSWs as required by the California Board of Behavioral Sciences.  Note: With supervisor approval, registered ASWs may use CEs toward LCSW hours. Cancellation Policy 14 days or more before event date: Full refund 13-7 days before event date: 75% refund 6 days or less before event date: No refund Note:  Registration will be canceled if payment is not made at least 7 days prior to the event.

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