In response to a growing need for early childhood mental health services, a multi-agency partnership is bringing CPP training to Alaska with the goal of training 30 clinicians in this nationally recognized, evidence-based practice.
Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP) is an intervention model for children aged 0-5 who have experienced at least one traumatic event and/or are experiencing mental health, attachment, and/or behavioral problems, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The treatment is based in attachment theory but also integrates psychodynamic, developmental, trauma, social learning, and cognitive behavioral theories.
Therapeutic sessions include the child and parent or primary caregiver. The primary goal of CPP is to support and strengthen the relationship between a child and his or her caregiver as a vehicle for restoring the child’s sense of safety, attachment, and appropriate affect and improving the child’s cognitive, behavioral, and social functioning.
Dates: Successful applicants will participate in a 18 month training process that includes:
Location: Mat-Su College; Wasilla, AK; Fred and Sara Machetanz Building, Room 204
Cost: $1,000 per clinician (scholarships available).
Participation will be limited to practicing mental health clinicians who are either licensed or actively pursuing licensure. Participants will be selected through a competitive application process. Applicants must be currently working with at least four early childhood clients suitable for CPP or have the ability to do so during the course of the training.
CPP is designed for implementation in an agency setting; however, private practitioners working with infant and early childhood populations are welcome and strongly encouraged to apply.
Agency applicants are encouraged to form CPP teams, consisting of 1-3 clinicians who will participate in the training cohort, along with a clinical supervisor and program administrator who will participate in the initial didactic training and provide support to the clinical team throughout the training process. It is important to note that each individual clinician from an agency wishing to complete the training must fill out an individual application and be accepted into the cohort.
Below please find fillable applications for the Child-Parent Psychotherapy. Instructions for completing and submitting the applications are included on the forms. We recommend downloading the application and saving it to your computer before completing. If you plan to print and fax the completed application, please limit text to visible text boxes (no scrolling) or attach additional pages as needed. Note that any applicant working for an agency should fill out an agency application; private practitioners should fill out a solo application:
Agency CPP_Application (fillable)
Solo CPP_Application (fillable)
CPP Learning Collaborative Overview
Alaska Association for Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health
Link to Recorded Informational Webinars
Link to Course Registration Page
If you have questions about the training, please contact Chris Gunderson at cgunderson@denalifs.org .