PEAK: Relational Training System

Mark Dixon will take the attendees on a journey into the fascinating world of Acceptance and Commitment and how to apply it to children with a wide variety of social and emotional challenges. The presentation will showcase the data, treatments, and outcomes from a tiny school in rural Illinois that did the unexpected – rebuilt itself from the ground up with ACT serving as its foundational core.  At this school, students start each day with group ACT activities and practice the therapeutic techniques throughout the entire school day.  A growing number of replication sites have started, and the outcomes are dramatic.  Higher GPAs, better attendance, and a feeling of belonging in children that have struggled for years.  Following the success of the first school, the treatment approach was retooled for a variety of childhood summer day camps.  Dixon will discuss all aspects of these amazingly novel education settings, including staff and administration buy-in, training for personnel, student progress monitoring, and clinical outcomes.