The Alliance Against Seclusion And Restraint Podcasts

Please join us for “Solutions to end the school-to-prison pipeline an interview with Leonard Webb” Mr. Webb retired from law enforcement to focus on improving the education outcomes of students and improving relationships between administration, teachers, parents, and students. He is focused on directly addressing the school-to-prison pipeline by p…

An interview with Polina Shkadron, a trauma-informed speech-language pathologist, discussing the impact of stress. Polina Shkadron is a trauma-informed speech-language pathologist with specialties in the areas of autism, ADHD, language, and literacy. She earned her Master of Art degree in speech-language pathology from CUNY Queens College where she…

HELPme: Join us for an interview with Kerrie Ackerson the creator of an app to help students, staff, & families. Now more than ever, students and staff need a comprehensive safety and wellness program that includes a pathway to anonymously connect with assigned helpers i.e. (Family Engagement Coordinators, School Counselors, Social Workers, School …

I had an amazing conversation with Fergus Murray, a Scottish science educator, writer, autistic advocate and author of the Monotropism.org website. We talked about the concept of monotropism, which was co-founded by Murray’s late mother, Dr. Dinah Murray, as well as Fergus’s experiences growing up in a neurodivergent household and the joys of Autsc…

Special Educator Karen Bures will share how she was able to reduce and eliminate the use of restraint and seclusion in her classroom. Karen Bures is a special education teacher working with students who may display intense behaviors in Bend, Oregon. Karen started her career working in residential treatment care, transitioned into child welfare thro…

I had a fascinating conversation with Finn Gardiner, Director of Policy & Advocacy for the Autistic People of Color Fund about the incredible work of the Fund’s mutual aid project that positively impacts so many individuals’ lives. We also discussed institutional ableism, racism and “nice white lady syndrome”, as well as the troubling problems with…

Join us for a special interview with Jordyn Zimmerman. Jordyn will share her lived experiences as a nonspeaking autistic student who was denied effective communication and inclusive education. We will discuss Jordyn's experiences with school, as well as her experience with restraint and seclusion. We'll talk about augmented alternative communicatio…

Join us for “An interview with Brian Dalla Mura: A special educator’s journey to reduce and eliminate restraint and seclusion.” Brian is a special education teacher in Vermont. He holds a master’s degree in special education from Arizona State University. He has experience teaching students with emotional disabilities in kindergarten through high s…

. In this episode, I spoke with health historian Matthew Smith from the University of Strathclyde. We discussed his new book, The First Resort: The History of Social Psychiatry in the United States, as well as neurodiversity, the promise of Universal Basic Income and more. Listen to the podcast on the audio link below or on streaming sites like Spo…

An Interview with Robert and Ryan Delena about their book “Without Restraint: How Skiing Saved My Son’s Life.” As a child, Ryan DeLena had difficulty controlling his emotions and he was placed in therapeutic schools that relied on detrimental methods of behavior modification such as physical restraint. Nothing helped from a team of doctors to heavy…

A discussion with Mr. Chazz Mr. Chazz about how we can see, guide, and trust children Chazz Lewis' mission is to help adults truly see, guide, and trust children. He is pushing the needle a little closer toward world peace with his approach. He is an Educational Specialist, Parent Coach, Conscious Discipline Practitioner, and Content Creator. He go…

I spoke with Guy Stephens, executive director of the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint (AASR) and Chantelle Hyde, lead Canadian Volunteer with The Alliance Against Restraint and Seclusion and co-founder of the Canadian Coalition Against Seclusion and Restraint in Schools, founded early in 2023. We discussed the high prevalence of the use of …

Today I spoke with Julie Roberts, founder of Therapist Neurodiversity Collective (TNDC). We talked about the ABA industry’s troubling attempts to dominate autism services and funding, as well as the culture shift needed to increase support for neurodiversity-affirming autism supports and services. Listen to the podcast on the audio link below. Also…

I wrote this short spoken word about the experience of grief after all we’ve been through in the pandemic. It’s really just a story, without a message except: we need to talk about our feelings, perhaps now more than ever. https://noncompliantpodcast.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/Anne-Matt-Extra-File.mp3…

Today I spoke with Professor Alan Levinovitz, author of Natural: How Faith in Nature’s Goodness Leads to Harmful Fads, Unjust Laws, and Flawed Science. We talked about the myth of the natural, pseudoscience, neurodiversity and post-pandemic life. Listen to the podcast on the audio link below. Also available on Spotify, Stitcher or iTunes. https://n…

Join us for a special discussion with McAlister Greiner Huynh the educator also known as The Neurodivergent Teacher. McAlister Greiner Huynh is a National Board Certified special educator, behavior support specialist, consultant, and international speaker who calls North Carolina, USA home. She has been working with and learning from Neurodivergent…

Discipline for Learning Not Shaming with Jodi Place. Jodi Place has served as a public educator for over 25 years. Prior to becoming a school administrator, she was a Nationally Board-Certified English teacher. As an administrator, she has experience leading in traditional high school and middle school settings as well as alternative education. She…

5 Tips to Assist in the Emotional Regulation of Humans: Trauma-Informed Lessons Learned from a Therapist a presentation from Stacy G. York Nation, LCSW. Stacy has worked with families for over 20 years. Her passion is working with the "tough" humans, including adopted families and veterans. With intensive training in trauma-informed practices, Stac…

Join us for a special interview with Dr. Damiso A. Josey. Dr. Josey will share his story of success from a turbulent past, and how he uses his lived experiences to help students succeed. Through a turbulent past, Dr. Damiso A. Josey learned to analyze the experiences of his life and to use them as a catalyst for success rather than a reason for fai…

Join us for a special presentation from Rob Beltz, "Safety, Connection, & Validation: Creating Spaces of Culture and Identity." Rob Beltz, ACTRP-C, has over 20 years of experience in education and leadership. He is certified in English Language Development, Trauma and Resiliency, Equity and Inclusion, and Applied Educational Neuroscience. His curre…

Dr. Lori Desautels, has been an Assistant Professor at Butler University since 2016 where she teaches both undergraduate and graduate programs in the College of Education. She was also an Assistant Professor at Marian University in Indianapolis for 8 years where she founded the Educational Neuroscience Symposium. Currently, the Symposium is in its …

Classroom Teacher to Social Emotional Learning Specialist: How to Create a Community of Safety and Belonging with Angelina Zara. Angelina is Washington, DC educator with a philosophy rooted in trauma-responsive care, inclusion, and racial and social equity. She holds her Masters in Education from Trinity Washington University and completed her Cert…

A presentation from Dr. Dustin Springer titled "You're Getting on My Nerves: Understanding and Addressing Dysregulation Through the Lens of Applied Educational Neuroscience". Dr. Springer has served the children and community in the Kansas City Metro area for nearly 25 years. He has been a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and community schoo…

“Basically they’re slowly being poisoned with a corrosive agent.” It is difficult to hear about what happens to children who are trapped by the so-called bleach cult, a multi-level marketing scheme that has spread across the continents, promising “cures” for everything from broken bones and cancer to Covid-19 and autism. The 4 leaders of a major MM…

Kristina House I had such an inspiring conversation with Kristina House, who’s co-founded Passages, an experimental hybrid learning space for neurodivergent students and other students, in Toronto! Listen to the podcast on the audio link below. Also available on Spotify, Stitcher or iTunes. Read the transcript below audio link. https://noncompliant…

Jorn Bettin I had a fascinating conversation with AutCollab co-founder Jorn Bettin about new approaches to autism; namely, thinking outside the box of the pathologizing approach of the DSM and moving towards a collaborative, de-colonizing, grassroots approach to autistic liberation—one that also helps to heal our broken world. (Just some light, cha…

Supporting children and youth: An interview with author Michael McKnight. Michael worked for the New Jersey Department of Education in the Cape May County office of education for 17 years. In those years he served as a resource for school districts in the county as well as throughout southern New Jersey. Beyond the work of the department of educati…

Creating a fully functioning trauma-informed school: An interview with James Moffett Jr. James Moffett is an elementary school principal who has created, implemented and helped others create and implement trauma-informed practices in their schools. Throughout his career, he has taught various demographic groups, observing the differences and simila…

Since she started her role as the Director of Education at Brook Lane Behavioral Services Rachel Hull has been on a mission to reduce the use of restraint and seclusion. Rachel applied for a grant from the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint to participate in a training program in the Collaborative and Proactive Solutions approach from Lives i…

Join us for a special discussion with Jim Sporleder, The Power of One. We will discuss alternative strategies to the traditional practice of seclusion and restraint. The Power of One is a mindset that draws connection, and promotes positive caring adult relationships, as compared to punitive seclusion and restraint techniques that create disconnect…

An interview with Heather Forbes. We'll be discussing Classroom180: A Framework for Creating, Sustaining, and Assessing the Trauma-Informed Classroom, by Heather T. Forbes, LCSW. Classroom 180 is a comprehensive roadmap of what it means to fully create, implement, and sustain a trauma-informed classroom from kindergarten through the twelfth grade. …

In 2005 Dr. Maggie Bennington-Davis co-authors a book "Restraint and Seclusion: The Model for Eliminating Their Use in Healthcare". Maggie will be joining us for a discussion of how she has influenced change in an acute psychiatric inpatient unit. Maggie is Chief Medical Officer at Health Share of Oregon, a Coordinated Care Organization serving 400…

In this presentation, Sandi Lerman will discuss "The Five Behavior Roots" and encourage us to dig down to identify the underlying reason, and then respond with compassion to make things better. Sandi Lerman is the Founder and Program Director of HEART-STRONG International, a global education company that provides training and coaching programs for …

A Special Conversation: Fighting against the Troubled Teen Industry. We'll be talking with Chelsea Maldonado and Robert Bucklin about what is it like being inside a troubled teen facility and what they are doing to save others from the trauma they endured. Chelsea Maldonado is an Atlanta-based activist and investigative researcher with a focus on y…

These strategies were developed through extensive literature reviews and dialogues with experts who have successfully reduced the use of S/R in a variety of mental health settings for children and adults across the United States and internationally. Dr. Kevin Ann Huckshorn is the Executive Vice President-Northeast Region, for Recovery Innovations I…

New guidance from the United States Department of Education warns against ‘informal removals’ and finds no evidence supporting restraint and seclusion to improve behavior. In this special AASR Live event we will discuss the new guidance and take questions from the live audience. Cheryl Poe is the founder and owner of Advocating 4 Kids, Inc. a Speci…

Neurosequential Model in Education: A principal's journey. Lynda Knight-de Blois is principal of Glenview School in Wellington and Co-lead of the Porirua East Kahui Ako ( network of schools). She has a Master of Education, specializing in Special Needs and Pacific learners, and has trained with Dr. Bruce Perry in the Neurosequential Network, comple…

Alex Greninger This is pt 1 of 2 special podcasts about monkeypox, Covid-19 and science communication. I had an amazing conversation with University of Washington virologist Dr Alex Greninger, whose team innovated one of the earliest Covid tests. We talked about how they developed the test; public health policy; the current monkeypox crisis; other …

Stuart Ablon, Ph.D., is Founder and Director of Think:Kids in the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital. An award-winning psychologist, Dr. Ablon is Associate Professor and the Thomas G. Stemberg Endowed Chair in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. He is the author of three books, Changeable, hand-picked …

My guest this episode is Alicia Broderick, author of the new book The Autism Industrial Complex: How Branding, Marketing, and Capital Investment Turned Autism Into Big Business. Her book traces the cultural, political, and economic history of autism. We talk about the history of autism services, how industry greed often gets in the way of useful ap…

Join us for a special presentation by Dr. Charles Bell titled "Exploring Students' and Parents' Perceptions of School Punishment and its Impact on Families." Charles Bell is a professor in the Department of Criminal Justice Sciences at Illinois State University and the author of Suspended: Punishment, Violence, and the Failure of School Safety. His…

We will be joined by Diane Cooper-Gould who will talk about how she helped form a Special Education PTA and how SEPTAs can provide support for children and families. Diane is a dyslexic mother of two neurodiverse children and a lifelong advocate for those in need. Diane has a passion for supporting individuals with disabilities and their families. …

Inclusive education means all children in the same classrooms, in the same schools. It means real learning opportunities for groups who have traditionally been segregated. By building systems to support all learners in the general education classroom students not only have access to the most equitable academic education but all students learn to va…

Lei Wiley Mydske In this episode I speak with the amazing Lei Wiley Mydske, founder of the neurodiversity library movement and creator of the Neurodivergent Narwals. We talk about neurodiversity libraries (including how to start one!), community-building, disability justice, activism, hope and more. Listen to the podcast at the link below. Also ava…

Join us for a special interview with Dr. Mona Delahooke to discuss her new book "Brain-Body Parenting: How to Stop Managing Behavior and Start Raising Joyful, Resilient Kids". Mona Delahooke, PhD, is a licensed clinical psychologist with more than 30 years of experience caring for children and their families. She is a senior faculty member of the P…

Neurodiversity-Affirming Care: Revolutionizing the way we understand, assess, and support autism spectrum conditions. Dr. Alex Klein, PsyD is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in child and family therapy, neurodevelopmental differences such as autism spectrum conditions and ADHD, and parenting. He received his doctorate in clinical p…

All students, means all students a special interview with Lee Collyer. Lee Collyer serves as Director, School Health and Student Safety at the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) in Olympia, WA. Lee has 15-plus years’ experience leading and designing programs for students and families in various educational and residential environ…

Learn about a seclusion inspire art exhibit and hear from the artist about what inspired the exhibit. "Breaking the Rules: A Minor Spatial Inconvenience" doubles as an architectural maze and an immersive mixed-media installation. By recreating seclusion and restraint using architecture, the installation expresses a personal issue of the artist and …

Join us for this special presentation with Caroline Braun. Behavioral approaches to feeding intervention attempt to increase children’s variety and volume of food intake while also claiming to eliminate or diminish challenging mealtime behaviors. Behavioral approaches to feeding do not develop intrinsic motivation for eating, honor children’s mealt…

Joe has been the victim of two separate violent anti-gay hate crimes and what began as a personal healing response to the trauma, he has transformed into professional involvement in the field of community and restorative justice. He is the author of the recently published book, Building a Trauma-informed Restorative School: Skills and Approaches fo…