IN PERSON-Friday, March 28, 2025, 9:00-4:00pm-Group Leadership- Finding your Style, Strengthening your Skills and Confidence with Kerrin Westerlind, LICSW & Jean Brickman, LADC I 

IN PERSON-Friday, March 28, 2025, 9:00 AM-4:00 PM-$219 including CEUs

Group Leadership- Finding your Style, Strengthening your Skills and Confidence

Kerrin Westerlind, LICSW and Jean Brickman, LADC I 

Group is a powerful experience that can have a significant impact on participants and group leaders. Yet, many people shy away from group facilitation. This training will take the mystery out of leading groups with practical information and resources on group facilitation skills and developing your own style as a leader. 

Our trainers will share a range of strategies for leading groups that people want to attend. The training will focus on creative means for engagement and incorporating strategies for building an empowering and growth-oriented group culture.   Emphasis will be placed on Evidence Based Practice (EBP) curriculum-based groups, as well as ideas for integrating Motivational Interviewing and CBT strategies into any group experience. Additionally, the trainers will use examples, storytelling, and build off their group leadership experiences in addressing common challenges and solutions. 

The day will include several practice opportunities and leaders will offer various experiences to help translate concepts into action. The training will be helpful for those newer to leading groups and those with experience who are looking to add to their skill set. 

Following this training the participants will understand:

• Participants will have a number of ideas for enhancing engagement for group.
• Participants will have at least one strategy for enhancing an empowering group culture.
• Participants will be able to share one strategy for using Motivational strategies in a group setting.
• Participants will have increased knowledge in group planning, structure, and facilitation strategies.

Your Trainers:

Kerrin Westerlind, LICSW, is the Director of Evidence Based Practices at Open Sky Community Services.  For more than a decade, Kerrin has assisted interdisciplinary teams in the implementation of Evidence Based and Best Practices.  Kerrin is an expert in Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) and has been involved in this practice since 2005.  She has overseen the implementation of IMR services in residential and supported housing programs with diverse populations, adapted materials for various populations and has provided consultation on using adaptations of IMR with adolescents, those who are justice-involved and individuals who are dually diagnosed with a mental health and a substance use disorder.   She has provided training and consultation on IMR and its adaptations to specific populations to various agencies in Massachusetts, throughout the United States and at National Conferences.

Additionally, Ms. Westerlind has training and leadership experience in implementing multiple modalities for working with people who experience psychosis, including CBT for Psychosis and Recovery Oriented Cognitive Therapy (CT-R).  

Kerrin’s interests extend to using trauma informed care principles in culture transformation, to promote healing, growth, and resilience for those using and providing services.   She is currently working with others from all around the Open Sky community to advance the agency’s efforts in becoming a fully trauma informed and responsive organization. 

Kerrin is passionate about providing person-centered, recovery-oriented practices, and training others in the provision of these treatment models.  Her experience in the mental health field includes over 20 years of work in a range of settings from residential, supported housing, day treatment, outpatient, community-based services for adults and adolescents and clubhouse model. Her interests have led her to serve on the MassPRC (Massachusetts Psychiatric Rehabilitation Collaborative) Board of Directors, since 2018. 

Jean Brickman LADC I, RCPF, is the Co-Occurring Disorders Clinical Supervisor at Open Sky Community Services.  In her role, she oversees the provision of services for supporting individuals with co-occurring mental health and substance use challenges.  She also provides supervision, training and consultation organizationally to support staff teams in providing recovery-oriented, person-first care and to enhance the capacity of specialty practitioners in delivering these services.

Ms. Brickman has over 15 years of experience, specializing in supporting individuals who are navigating co-occurring disorders, providing direct care across a variety of residential, community-based and outpatient settings. 

Ms. Brickman is passionate about the use of evidence-based practices and has driven agency-wide practice implementations that support multiple pathways to recovery and enhance equitable access to these supports.  These practices include: Harm Reduction strategies, Motivational Interviewing and the use of Seeking Safety and Recovery Life Skills groups, to provide care to individuals at any stage of change. 

Ms. Brickman is a graduate of City University of New York, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, where she earned an MA in Forensic Psychology.  Jean is a licensed alcohol and drug counselor and licensed social worker.  She holds the designation of Recovery Coach Professional Facilitator through Connecticut Community For Addiction Recovery.