Early Childhood Trauma Collaborative Forum

CHDI hosted a forum on early childhood trauma at the State Capitol on March 30, 2017. 

The event served to kick-off the The Early Childhood Trauma Collaborative (ECTC), a five-year grant awarded to CHDI from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) as part of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network to expand trauma-focused services to young children in Connecticut. The initiative aims to improve knowledge about childhood trauma among Connecticut’s early childhood workforce and increase access to trauma-focused evidence-based practices for children under seven and their families. 

Governor Dannel Malloy, Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman, and State Representative Diana Urban joined CHDI's Judith Meyers and Jason Lang in speaking about the effects of trauma on young children and the need to support families who have experienced trauma with evidence-based treatments. This was followed by a panel discussion with ECTC partners and child trauma experts. 

Speakers: Governor Dannel Malloy; Lieutenant Governor Nancy Wyman; Judith Meyers, President & CEO, CHDI; Jason Lang, Director of Dissemination & Implementation, CHDI, Diana Urban, State Representative and Chair of the Children's Committee

Panelists: Alice Forrester, CEO, Clifford Beers Clinic; Linda Goodman, Acting Commissioner, Office of Early Childhood; Melissa Mendez, Board President, Connecticut Association for Infant Mental Health; Kristina Stevens, Children and Families Administrator, Department of Children and Families;  Marjorie Sostak, ECTC Advisory Committee member and parent.