Crisis situations can arise in any setting. It is essential for individuals and organizations that support or interact with adults or children in the human services field to be equipped with the knowledge and skills to respond effectively to crisis situations or when others are experiencing emotional or behavioral distress. The CONNECT Crisis Intervention for Everyone program is a comprehensive training program that provides foundational insights into why people behave the way they do and how to respond when others are in distress and experiencing anger, stress, and loss of coping abilities.
The purpose of this class is to give attendees the knowledge and skills needed to help people when they are in crisis. The program explores key topics such as understanding the brain, creating safe environments, building resilience, emphasizing effective communication for connection, and exploring regulation techniques, including crisis navigation and safety planning. The training offers practical tools to foster safe environments and to de-escalate heightened situations through connection, regulation, and achieving felt safety.
Classes can be conducted in full or partial days and may be presented as a series or a stand-alone class.
To further empower your organization, The Academy offers a comprehensive train-the-trainer program to certify CONNECT trainers within your agency. This enables your team to deliver this valuable curriculum in-house, ensuring its sustainability and broad reach across your staff. Contact us today to learn more about becoming a certified CONNECT training site and expanding your organization’s capacity to create truly supportive environments.
Explore the Curriculum
Module 1: Introduction and Understanding the Brain
- Explores the brain’s function in relation to safety, connection, and regulation.
- Introduces the House Brain Model and the CONNECT Thermostat.
- Aims to challenge perspectives on behavior and improve communication.
Module 2: Felt Safety
- Focuses on creating safe and secure environments.
- Addresses the impact of trauma and stress.
- Explores seven resilience factors.
Module 3: Connection
- Emphasizes the importance of connection.
- Covers nonverbal and paraverbal communication.
- Provides strategies for fostering felt safety and genuine connection.
Module 4: Regulation
- Explores co-regulation and self-regulation.
- Covers navigating the crisis cycle.
- Focuses on creating personal safety plans.
Additional Behavior Support and Crisis Intervention Training Available
Relationship & Safety Non-escalation/De-escalation Techniques
Explore safe and healthy relationships, and the four domains of safety: physical, psychological, social and moral. Discussion will include tips for de-escalation, the three de-escalation ‘checks’ and the necessity of dealing with both facts and feelings to help a person resolve their escalation. Finally, the importance of debriefing following an escalation will be discussed including tips for doing so effectively.
Understanding Trauma & Establishing Resilience
This class emphasizes the importance of a trauma-informed approach in supporting individuals. It explores trauma symptoms, the “Hand Brain” model, factors that influence resiliency, and the healing power of healthy relationships, belonging, voice, choice, and control. The speakers will discuss how understanding and empathizing with the impact of trauma is crucial for healing. They will also explore how healthy relationships, belonging, voice, choice, and control contribute to healing and resilience after trauma.
Communication and Personal Styles
Explore verbal and nonverbal forms of communication, the purposes of communication, the causes of communication breakdown, and methods to avoid breakdown. The class also investigates 4 personality styles and the traits and strengths associated with each style, as well as potential negative behaviors of these styles when under stress. The class provides specific ‘tools’ that can be used to enhance communication, listening and relating to others.
Conflict, Anger and Crisis Cycle
This class will address conflict, anger and the crisis cycle. Topics will include: conflict and the 5 major types of conflict as well as the conflict cycle; anger, how anger is actually good for us, and the process behind why we get mad; and a walk through the crisis cycle to examine each phase in the cycle.
Self-Care for the Human Services Professional: From Surviving to Thriving
This course explores the vital role of self-care for direct support professionals, emphasizing that you can’t pour from an empty cup. It examines the natural rhythms of life and how disruptions can impact well-being. Participants will learn seven strategies to regain their “groove,” along with practical tips for getting started and overcoming potential roadblocks to self-care..
Stress and Self-Care – It’s the little things!
This This training identifies the significance of the “Stress Cycle” and the use of Self-Care to “Complete the Cycle”. You will explore the difference between stressors that are present and those that are perceived. When we don’t complete the stress cycle, we carry the weight of it in our body and mind. That stress changes the way we express our emotions, resulting in unsafe responses.
Silent Signals: How Non-Verbal Cues Impact Your Support Role
This interactive session will delve into the critical role of non-verbal communication in building positive and empowering relationships between Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) and the individuals they support. Participants will gain a deeper understanding of how body language, facial expressions, tone of voice, and other non-verbal cues can impact interactions and either build trust or create unintentional power imbalances. Through practical exercises and real-life scenarios, DSPs will learn how to use non-verbal communication to foster respect, trust, and autonomy in their relationships with the people they support. The session will particularly emphasize recognizing and avoiding non-verbal behaviors that can inadvertently diminish a person’s sense of control and autonomy, thus undermining the supportive relationship. Participants will leave with actionable strategies to create a truly supportive and empowering environment where individuals feel valued, heard, and respected.
Achieving Excellence: Values-Driven Support
This session lays a strong foundation for professional practice for frontline employees. We’ll define the frontline role, explore core values and ethical principles (including self-awareness and bias recognition), and cultivate a positive, person-centered approach with effective communication. We’ll also define excellence in this role, empowering self-advocacy, build competency in various support areas, and address professional conduct and boundaries, including empathetic and professional responses to challenging behaviors.
Achieving Excellence: Proactive Behavior Support
This session guides frontline employees and supervisors in creating positive and empowering environments. We’ll focus on understanding the reasons behind behaviors to inform proactive support and explore how a positive culture reduces behaviors of concern. You’ll learn practical ways to become an effective ally by fostering healthy relationships, providing consistent support, and promoting choice and control, leading to more person-centered and empowering care.
Our team is equipped to deliver comprehensive crisis intervention training tailored to the unique needs of a broad spectrum of agencies and organizations. We are proud to partner with and provide vital training for diverse groups, including but not limited to, developmental disabilities providers, health care sites, educational institutions, first responders, retail locations, and faith-based organizations like churches. This wide-ranging expertise allows us to empower various sectors with the essential skills and knowledge needed to effectively navigate and respond to crisis situations.
Schedule a training which fits your needs
The Academy will quickly learn about the specifics of your organization and will identify both your goals and needs. We will develop a training curriculum that is tailored to your situation and will schedule your team accordingly. Programs may last a portion of a day or several days, depending on your needs.
Purchase training materials online
We offer a variety of training materials which may be purchased online. Please feel free to explore these offerings. The materials will be promptly shipped after purchase.
Contact us today
Utilize The Academy for Professional Development to meet your Crisis Intervention Training and behavior support training needs. Contact us by telephone at 513.237.2449, by email, or by clicking the button below to be taken to our contact form. We look forward to discussing how crisis intervention training could be beneficial to your organization. We are located in Cincinnati, Ohio and provide training throughout the state and are able to provide training throughout the United States. In order to meet your needs we also offer our training programs online.