Session Proposal Guidelines
2025 Learning Series Session Topics
The 2025 Learning Series theme is Navigating Parenting in Times of Crisis. WithinReach intends to curate three to four sessions to be presented consecutively and recorded via Zoom or Microsoft Teams on Wednesday, February 26, 2025.
To assist you with generating ideas for session proposals, we have listed examples of topics of interest within each track below. We include these as a starting point – WithinReach will not restrict session selections to these topics.
Coparenting After Separation
Separation can be a particularly challenging aspect of parenting and should in itself be seen as a crisis for the family. It requires effective communication, compromise, and a shared commitment to the well-being of the children. The session could explore strategies for helping parents manage conflict, set boundaries, and foster a positive coparenting environment. By addressing coparenting challenges head-on, the event can provide valuable guidance to providers helping parents navigate the crisis that follows a separation of parents and/or a separation of children from their parents. There are many crises that can fit under the umbrella of “separation.” Here are some that will interest our audience: reentry after being in prison; divorce/separation and reunification after being in foster care.
Parenting and Intimate Partner Violence
Intimate partner violence (IPV) poses significant challenges for parents and their children, profoundly impacting emotional well-being, stability, and the overall family environment. The effects of IPV can disrupt parenting practices, leading to heightened stress, anxiety, and fear, which in turn can affect the quality of parent-child interactions. The session could explore emotional and behavioral responses children may exhibit, such as anxiety, aggression, or withdrawal, and how these behaviors can vary depending on age and individual circumstances. Additionally, the session could address the challenges of co-parenting after experiencing IPV, highlighting the importance of establishing safe and effective communication strategies between parents.
Parenting as a Recent Immigrant
Immigrant families face unique challenges while adjusting to a new culture, language, and environment, all of which can significantly impact their parenting practices. These challenges often include navigating unfamiliar educational systems, accessing healthcare, and managing cultural expectations regarding child-rearing. This session could explore practical strategies to support recent immigrant parents in navigating the complexities of raising children in a new country. What tools do parents need to thoughtfully address cultural differences, enhance communication with their children, and build a supportive network within their communities?
Parenting When Basic Needs (food, shelter, clothing, health care) Are Not Met
Parenting without basic needs can have a profound impact on a child’s development and well-being. Studies have shown that when access to food, shelter, health care and clothing is unstable, children who are at higher risk for a variety of negative outcomes, including poor academic performance, behavioral problems, and mental health issues. When parents struggle to meet their basic needs, it can create a stressful and unstable environment for their children. This stress can manifest in various ways, such as increased conflict, neglect, and a lack of emotional support. Understanding the challenges faced by parents who are struggling to meet their basic needs is crucial for developing effective and preventive interventions and policies that avoid child welfare involvement.
Parenting During a Childcare Crisis
The childcare crisis has become a significant challenge for parents across the country, impacting their ability to work, maintain their mental health, and provide adequate care for their children. This session could explore the multifaceted implications of the childcare crisis on parents and families, highlighting the unique challenges and potential solutions. This session could further explore the mental health implications and the emotional toll that the childcare crisis can take on parents, including increased stress, anxiety, and feelings of guilt or inadequacy or the impact of a lack of consistent and nurturing childcare can negatively affect children’s social, emotional, and cognitive development.
Parenting When Facing Mental Health Challenges
Providers are aware that parenting while dealing with mental health issues presents a significant challenge. This session could explore the unique complexities of parenting in such circumstances by emphasizing: how mental health conditions can affect a parent’s ability to provide nurturing and consistent care for their children; how a child’s mental health issues can impact a parent’s ability to parent them and/or other children in the home; or how becoming a parent – both physically and emotionally – affects our mental health and ultimately our ability to parent.
Parenting with Child Welfare Involvement
Child welfare interventions are intended to protect children from harm, but we know they have negative consequences for families. This session could explore the potential risks and challenges associated with child welfare involvement, emphasizing the importance of thoughtful and culturally sensitive supports instead of separation. Our audience would be interested in learning more about the trauma of child welfare involvement, the risks of over-involvement, alternatives to out-of-home placement, or advocacy around child-centered care.
