Date: November 3, 12:30 pm to 4:30 pm

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To understand trafficked children, you must first understand cognitive and social-emotional child development and the impact of trauma upon the developing psyche. This workshop will provide an extremely comprehensive view into the potential developmental etiology of child trafficking, beginning with cognitive development, infant attachment and behavioral learning influences. The attachment pattern developed between an infant and the primary caregiver can have extensive influence across the entire life cycle. The deficits and resultant needs that develop through early attachment can unconsciously impact upon subsequent relational and safety choices.

This workshop will demonstrate how the development of certain infant attachment experiences can lead to subsequent juvenile trafficking vulnerability, and how traffickers fulfill the inherent social-emotional deficits to trauma bond with and exploit youth. The presentation will proceed to the impact of trauma, teen cognitive and social-emotional development and learning, relational influences, media impact (advertisements, social media influencers, music videos), recruitment techniques, gaslighting, trauma bonding, the neuroscience of recidivism, and red flags and language affiliated with the commercial sex industry. The workshop concludes with engagement tips for work with trafficked and traumatized youth. PowerPoint, video clips, and recent media cases will be utilized to facilitate learning. This proprietary workshop, updated every time it is presented, has been provided at multiple national and regional conferences.

Presenter: Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, Executive Director, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services

Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, United States Army Veteran been the inaugural Executive Director of the NYC Administration for Children's Services' Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy (OCTPP) since its launch in 2015 as the first office within a NYC public agency dedicated to helping trafficked and at-risk youth. OCTPP coordinates all aspects of policy and practice concerning children involved in human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation, including identification, assessment, prevention, intervention, safety planning and service coordination for the entire NYC child welfare system. OCTPP also consults with and supports Federal, State, City and community-based agencies, assists in law enforcement recovery operations and coordinates the Safe Harbour Program for New York County. Through Selina's creative initiatives, OCTPP provides training for professionals and communities, facilitates a variety of groupwork models for youth, coordinates free tattoo removals, provides lived experience "Credible Messenger' mentorship, hosts a Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Awareness project, envisioned and helped develop a cloud-based database through which children are screened for sex trafficking, and maintains a large-scale Child Trafficking Awareness Campaign. Selina has worked in the field of child welfare for over 30 years. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-R) with a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology, a Master of Social Work, and post-graduate certifications in Infant-Parent Dyadic Therapy and Trauma Assessment, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (partial) and Social Work Administration. Since 2015, she and her training partners have provided trafficking related trainings for over 50,000 attendees, either through conference production or by providing her own original trainings which have been presented at national and international conferences, including multiple workshops at Shared Hope International's Juvenile Sex Trafficking (JuST) Conferences. She has also developed/co-developed several therapeutic/anti-trafficking groupwork models for youth. Publications include articles, a medical textbook chapter on Human Trafficking in the Foster Care System and the Child Trafficking and What YOU Can Do About it: Tools for NYC Child Welfare Professionals toolkit. Selina has been honored as a 2020 Advocate of New York City, a 2023 Liberators Award finalist, selected as "Outstanding ACS Staff" for the 2024 Ally Awards for innovative contributions to the LGBTQAI+ community, and is the recipient of the Workforce Institute's 2025 Social Work Month Award. You can learn more about OCTPP's work at Preventing Youth Trafficking.

Date: November 5, 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST

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This training is designed as an advanced level training for direct care staff and field staff working with Commercial Sexually Exploited Children (CSEC) and trafficking survivors. We will be discussing aspects of the child pornography industry that are too often overlooked… boys: the forgotten victims.
We will hear the stories and voices of male youth survivors in this training on the commercialized aspects of the child pornography industry, enhance your knowledge base on trafficking, discuss myths & facts, current trends, and step inside the experiences of the forgotten victims themselves.

Presenter: Nathan LaChine, Founder, Evergreen Caregiver Support

Nathan LaChine has been a Therapeutic Foster Parent for the last 18 years, specializing in early childhood traumas. Nathan's current role as Board of Director and Webmaster for MaleSurvivor involves the oversight of the volunteer staff along with the daily operations of the site which sees over 100,000 visitors and 2.5 million pages views annually. Nathan cohosted a local radio show "Real Family Matters," a live resource show for community members to call in and ask questions.

Date: November 6, 11:00 am to 12:00 pm EST

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This training will include information on how a response to trafficking was developed specifically in the Safe Harbour – Herkimer County program, obstacles and milestones; as well as an insight on how trafficking may appear in rural areas.

Presenter: Taylor Money, RCFI, Director of Safe Harbour & TREATY, Catholic Charities of Herkimer County

Taylor Money, RCFI, is the Program Director for the Safe Harbour and TREATY Programs, for Catholic Charities of Herkimer County. She has been an advocate for youth that are at risk or have been identified as victims of sexual exploitation. Taylor has been providing trainings on commercial sexual exploitation of children, internet safety and violence prevention since 2019. She also is the main point of contact for Internet Safety/Human Trafficking trainings for the schools in Herkimer County.

Date: November 12, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST

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Co-developed by the Hetrick Martin Institute and the NYC Administration for Children's Services' Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy and Office of LGBTQAI+ Equity Strategies, this curriculum will offer both awareness and practical guidance on how to identify and provide the necessary support and resources LGBTQ+ youth who have experienced trafficking or are at risk for trafficking. Participants will:

• Develop an understanding of what is child sex trafficking.
• Gain insight into the unique vulnerabilities faced by LGBTQ+ youth and the intersection with trafficking.
• Learn about trauma-informed approaches and their application in supporting sex trafficking survivors.
• Develop cultural competency and sensitivity to better understand and connect with LGBTQ+ trafficking survivors.
• Learn how to create safe and inclusive spaces where LGBTQ+ survivors can access the help they need.
• Learn about the NYC child welfare system's policies that support LGBTQ+ and trafficked youth.

Presenters:

• Steven Gordon, Director of LGBTQAI+ Equity Strategies, NYC Administration for Children's Services
• Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, Executive Director, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services
• Coleen Grant, MPA, Child Trafficking Supervisor I, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services

Steven Gordon has over 18 years of government, nonprofit direct service, administrative, development, and technical assistance/capacity building experience. His areas of expertise include, but not limited to HIV/AIDS, youth development, homelessness, sexual and behavioral health, program development and implementation, grants management, race equity, social justice, community organizing, LGBTQAI+ equity, gender equity, and policy/advocacy. Currently, as the Director of LGBTQAI+ Equity Strategies at ACS, Steven leads the agency's LGBTQAI+ equity efforts. Steven's past professional experiences includes:

• Principle of Steven Gordon Consulting where his primary functions were development, fundraising, grant writing, technical assistance, and capacity building to private companies, nonprofits, hospitals/healthcare centers, and colleges/universities. Some of his clients include: Gershwin Lehman Group, Sage Publishing, Howard University, Vera Institute of Justice, Substance Abuse Mental and Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), etc.
• Executive Director of The Pride Network, a small Brooklyn based non-profit whose mission is to empower and support the next generation of LGBTQ Leadership through social justice education, workforce development and leadership training.
• Director of Drop-In for Ali Forney Center. There he managed a large program budget, 6 grant contracts, a team of staff, interns and consultants of over 20, and a very busy triage center for youth in crisis.

Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, United States Army Veteran been the inaugural Executive Director of the NYC Administration for Children's Services' Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy (OCTPP) since its launch in 2015 as the first office within a NYC public agency dedicated to helping trafficked and at-risk youth. OCTPP coordinates all aspects of policy and practice concerning children involved in human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation, including identification, assessment, prevention, intervention, safety planning and service coordination for the entire NYC child welfare system. OCTPP also consults with and supports Federal, State, City and community-based agencies, assists in law enforcement recovery operations and coordinates the Safe Harbour Program for New York County. Through Selina's creative initiatives, OCTPP provides training for professionals and communities, facilitates a variety of groupwork models for youth, coordinates free tattoo removals, provides lived experience "Credible Messenger' mentorship, hosts a Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Awareness project, envisioned and helped develop a cloud-based database through which children are screened for sex trafficking, and maintains a large-scale Child Trafficking Awareness Campaign. Selina has worked in the field of child welfare for over 30 years. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-R) with a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology, a Master of Social Work, and post-graduate certifications in Infant-Parent Dyadic Therapy and Trauma Assessment, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (partial) and Social Work Administration. Since 2015, she and her training partners have provided trafficking related trainings for over 50,000 attendees, either through conference production or by providing her own original trainings which have been presented at national and international conferences, including multiple workshops at Shared Hope International's Juvenile Sex Trafficking (JuST) Conferences. She has also developed/co-developed several therapeutic/anti-trafficking groupwork models for youth. Publications include articles, a medical textbook chapter on Human Trafficking in the Foster Care System and the Child Trafficking and What YOU Can Do About it: Tools for NYC Child Welfare Professionals toolkit. Selina has been honored as a 2020 Advocate of New York City, a 2023 Liberators Award finalist, selected as "Outstanding ACS Staff" for the 2024 Ally Awards for innovative contributions to the LGBTQAI+ community, and is the recipient of the Workforce Institute's 2025 Social Work Month Award. You can learn more about OCTPP's work at Preventing Youth Trafficking.

Coleen Grant, MPA is the Child Trafficking Supervisor I with the ACS Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy. She earned her Master of Public Affairs & Administration from Metropolitan College of NY and B.A. in Sociology with a concentration in Criminal Justice from Morgan State University. She has over 25 years of working with youth and families in NYC's ACS' Divisions of Child Protection on the frontline and Youth & Family Justice as the court-based Program Coordinator providing Person In Need of Supervision (PINS) diversion services with the Family Assessment Program (FAP). Her experience includes evaluating families in crisis, conducting immediate supportive interventions for stabilization, facilitating trainings, and performing community outreach. As an accomplished advocate for youth and family, Coleen's extensive collaboration with multiple stakeholders within the court system, law enforcement, and community agencies serves to mitigate their further involvement with child welfare and justice systems. She initiated research to improve the proper identification of commercially sexual exploited youth at the Brooklyn FAP. As a Child Trafficking Supervisor, Coleen manages the Office of Trafficking Prevention & Policy's electronic mailboxes, collaborates with ACS' internal divisions, collects and records data in compliance with City and State mandates, provides guidance on assessing trafficking indicators and screenings.

Date: November 13, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST

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This workshop will examine the case study of Pieper Lewis, a 15-year-old girl from Iowa who endured human trafficking and was arrested for stabbing one of her rapists to death in 2020. Together, we will walk through Pieper's traumatic childhood, the timeline of her crime, arrest, and legal journey, as well as her initial path toward restoration.

Tragically, Pieper absconded from her restoration program, violating her probation, and has not been seen since April 12, 2024. A nationwide warrant remains active for her arrest.

The presentation will highlight methods that have been used to try to locate Pieper and bring her home. Participants will also engage in a collaborative brainstorming session to explore additional strategies for finding missing survivors and supporting their safe return.

Presenter: Teresa Davidson, ARNP, MSN, MA, Co-Founder and CEO of Chains Interrupted

Teresa Davidson, ARNP, MSN, MA is a Nurse Practitioner and Chaplain who serves as the Co-Founder and CEO of Chains Interrupted, a nonprofit dedicated to preventing human trafficking and fighting for the freedom of youth at risk of exploitation. Her passion for this work was ignited during a mission trip to Africa, where she witnessed children being victimized by trafficking. With more than 14 years of experience in the anti-trafficking movement, Teresa has worked directly with over 400 survivors and actively trains professionals across disciplines-including law enforcement, healthcare providers, attorneys, judges, legislators, and those working with high-risk youth. In 2020, she was appointed by the President to the Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking and continues to support anti-trafficking efforts at the federal level. Teresa's leadership and impact have been recognized with multiple honors, including two Governor's Volunteer Awards and being named a Woman of Influence in the Corridor area. She considers it an honor to speak with you and to partner together in ending this crime that is infiltrating our communities.

Date: November 17, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST

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This workshop will provide an overview of Vicarious Trauma, its definition, risk factors, signs and symptoms, how it impacts upon others and how it can be addressed. Control factors for consideration will include overviews of, and (as virtually possible) participation opportunities for controlled breathing, distress tolerance techniques, sound therapy/healing frequencies, mindful meditation, aromatherapy and the presenter's favorite tactic*. The workshop will then open for a Chat based discussion to share strategies and coping mechanisms participants use to help mitigate and alleviate the impact of stress and trauma within their own lives.
*The presenter's favorite tactic will be revealed during the workshop.

Presenter: Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, Executive Director, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services

Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, United States Army Veteran been the inaugural Executive Director of the NYC Administration for Children's Services' Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy (OCTPP) since its launch in 2015 as the first office within a NYC public agency dedicated to helping trafficked and at-risk youth. OCTPP coordinates all aspects of policy and practice concerning children involved in human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation, including identification, assessment, prevention, intervention, safety planning and service coordination for the entire NYC child welfare system. OCTPP also consults with and supports Federal, State, City and community-based agencies, assists in law enforcement recovery operations and coordinates the Safe Harbour Program for New York County. Through Selina's creative initiatives, OCTPP provides training for professionals and communities, facilitates a variety of groupwork models for youth, coordinates free tattoo removals, provides lived experience "Credible Messenger' mentorship, hosts a Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Awareness project, envisioned and helped develop a cloud-based database through which children are screened for sex trafficking, and maintains a large-scale Child Trafficking Awareness Campaign. Selina has worked in the field of child welfare for over 30 years. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-R) with a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology, a Master of Social Work, and post-graduate certifications in Infant-Parent Dyadic Therapy and Trauma Assessment, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (partial) and Social Work Administration. Since 2015, she and her training partners have provided trafficking related trainings for over 50,000 attendees, either through conference production or by providing her own original trainings which have been presented at national and international conferences, including multiple workshops at Shared Hope International's Juvenile Sex Trafficking (JuST) Conferences. She has also developed/co-developed several therapeutic/anti-trafficking groupwork models for youth. Publications include articles, a medical textbook chapter on Human Trafficking in the Foster Care System and the Child Trafficking and What YOU Can Do About it: Tools for NYC Child Welfare Professionals toolkit. Selina has been honored as a 2020 Advocate of New York City, a 2023 Liberators Award finalist, selected as "Outstanding ACS Staff" for the 2024 Ally Awards for innovative contributions to the LGBTQAI+ community, and is the recipient of the Workforce Institute's 2025 Social Work Month Award. You can learn more about OCTPP's work at Preventing Youth Trafficking.

Date: November 18, 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm EST

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This informative workshop is designed to equip service providers, educators, and community advocates with practical tools to support vulnerable youth who may be involved or at risk for commercial sex work or other exploitive labor settings. Participants will explore the complex factors that increase young people's risk for exploitation, learn strategies to build trust and foster resilience, and practice trauma-informed approaches that prioritize harm reduction, safety planning, and empowerment. Attendees will leave prepared to recognize signs of exploitation, connect youth with safe resources, and advocate for pathways that reduce harm and expand opportunities for healing, safety, and thriving futures.

Presenters:

• Camille Gaji, BA, Specialist -Sexual Health, Hetrick Martin Institute
• Lazara Paz-Gonzalez, DrPH, MPH, Senior Director of Youth Services, Hetrick Martin Institute

Camille Gaji, BA (any pronouns) is a sexual health educator at The Hetrick-Martin Institute. Camille has worked in trauma-informed pleasure-centered sexual health education for the last decade, and currently provides sexual health and gender affirming education for LGBTQIA+ youth aged 13-24 in NYC. They are passionate in collaborating with their communities to ensure equitable sexuality education, healthcare access and affirming resources for all people. Clifton Robertson, LMSW, DBT-C is the

Lazara Paz-Gonzalez, DrPH, MPH (she/her/ella),Senior Director of Youth Services at Hetrick Martin Institute, is an experienced culturally-informed public health leader with over 20 years advancing equity-focused programs across youth services, sexual health/HIV/STI risk reduction, and community health.

Date: November 19, 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm EST

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In 2024, 1 out of 7 missing children reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children who had run away were likely victims of child sex trafficking. Many of these cases involved children missing from the care of child welfare. This presentation will provide a deep dive into the reasons why youth may run away or leave home or a foster care placement, including "push" and "pull" factors, and the increased vulnerability to child sex trafficking that missing youth experience. This session will cover practical lessons learned in developing proactive recovery and response plans focused on increasing rapport, youth engagement, and strategies to understand and reduce running behavior for missing children who are being sex trafficked. These considerations in planning and early engagement can create an environment during recovery that shows survivors that professionals are concerned about their well-being. Attendees will also learn about resources available through the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children that can assist parents, child welfare professionals, and other MDTs members with this effort.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the push/pull factors that may cause a child to run away or leave their home or placement
2. Demonstrate trauma-informed and victim-centered recovery and response considerations for survivors of child sex trafficking
3. Recall NCMEC resources that can assist with locating, recovering, and supporting child sex trafficking survivors

Presenter: Brittany Butler, MA, Resource Specialist, Child Sex Trafficking Recovery Services Team (RST), National Center for Missing and Exploited Children

Brittany Butler, MA is a Resource Specialist with the Child Sex Trafficking Recovery Services Team (RST) at the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). RST is a team of regionally assigned subject matter experts in child sex trafficking who support child welfare professionals with the unique challenges and vulnerabilities present when youth go missing from the care of child welfare. RST provides resources and troubleshooting around safety planning, youth engagement, trauma-informed recovery planning, and connection to specialized resources for child sex trafficking survivors. Brittany has eight years of experience and an expertise in the topics of domestic violence, child abuse, and human trafficking. Brittany's focus has always been on uniquely vulnerable populations, and she passionately advocates for those that she serves. Her educational background includes an undergraduate psychology degree from the University of Virginia, and a master's degree in forensic psychology from Marymount University. Throughout her career, Brittany has served survivor populations in Northern Virginia, Atlanta, New York City, and Baltimore. Presently, in her role as Resource Specialist, Brittany has been able to broaden her impact by supporting child sex trafficking survivors and child welfare professionals across the Northeast (10 states and Washington, DC).

Date: November 20, 10:00 to 1:00 EST

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In September 2020, ACS released Policy and Procedure 2020/05: Identifying, Assessing, and Safety Planning with Child Sex and Labor Trafficking Victims, which articulates guidelines and procedures for ACS and provider agency staff in identifying children and youth for sex and/or labor trafficking, and for safety planning, coordinating with law enforcement, and making referrals for appropriate services. The Child Trafficking Database (CTDB) is the electronic mechanism that all ACS and provider agency staff must use to screen children for sex trafficking. This training will provide an overview of child trafficking, a description of the legislation that led to mandated sex trafficking screenings for children in the NYS and NYC child welfare systems, a detailed overview of the policy and a step by step walk through of CTDB screening procedures, including a hands-on demonstration of CTDB screenings. This training is a must for all NYC child welfare staff and any other professional who needs to understand ACS' trafficking policy and to perform the screenings correctly.

Presenters:

• Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, Executive Director, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services
• Clifton Robertson, LMSW, DBT-C, Child Trafficking Specialist Residential Social Worker, Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy, NYC Administration for Children's Services

Selina Higgins, MA, MSW, LCSW-R, DBT-C, United States Army Veteran been the inaugural Executive Director of the NYC Administration for Children's Services' Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy (OCTPP) since its launch in 2015 as the first office within a NYC public agency dedicated to helping trafficked and at-risk youth. OCTPP coordinates all aspects of policy and practice concerning children involved in human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation, including identification, assessment, prevention, intervention, safety planning and service coordination for the entire NYC child welfare system. OCTPP also consults with and supports Federal, State, City and community-based agencies, assists in law enforcement recovery operations and coordinates the Safe Harbour Program for New York County. Through Selina's creative initiatives, OCTPP provides training for professionals and communities, facilitates a variety of groupwork models for youth, coordinates free tattoo removals, provides lived experience 'Credible Messenger' mentorship, hosts a Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting (FGM/C) Awareness project, envisioned and helped develop a cloud-based database through which children are screened for sex trafficking, and maintains a large-scale Child Trafficking Awareness Campaign. Selina has worked in the field of child welfare for over 30 years. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW-R) with a Master of Arts in Forensic Psychology, a Master of Social Work, and post-graduate certifications in Infant-Parent Dyadic Therapy and Trauma Assessment, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Trauma Focused-Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (partial) and Social Work Administration. Since 2015, she and her training partners have provided trafficking related trainings for over 50,000 attendees, either through conference production or by providing her own original trainings which have been presented at national and international conferences, including multiple workshops at Shared Hope International's Juvenile Sex Trafficking (JuST) Conferences. She has also developed/co-developed several therapeutic/anti-trafficking groupwork models for youth. Publications include articles, a medical textbook chapter on Human Trafficking in the Foster Care System and the Child Trafficking and What YOU Can Do About it: Tools for NYC Child Welfare Professionals toolkit. Selina has been honored as a 2020 Advocate of New York City, a 2023 Liberators Award finalist, selected as "Outstanding ACS Staff" for the 2024 Ally Awards for innovative contributions to the LGBTQAI+ community, and is the recipient of the Workforce Institute's 2025 Social Work Month Award. You can learn more about OCTPP's work at Preventing Youth Trafficking.

Clifton Robertson, LMSW, DBT-C is the Residential Child Trafficking Specialist Social Worker with the ACS Office of Child Trafficking Prevention and Policy. He earned his Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the State University of New York College at Old Westbury, and a Master of Social Work degree from Adelphi University. He is accredited as a Licensed Master Social Worker. As the Residential Child Trafficking Specialist, Clifton is the point person for the residential, group home, and foster care staff that support and provide services to trafficked youth and youth at-risk for trafficking. He also works directly with vulnerable youth, providing psychoeducational awareness, groupwork sessions which includes Dialectic Behavioral Therapy, Creative Arts in Psychotherapy, and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral therapy, and a variety of prevention strategies individualized as per each child's needs and strengths. In addition, he provides support, guidance, and training to NYC child welfare stakeholders. Clifton has over a decade of cumulative experience in the fields of mental health, developmentally disabled and other vulnerable populations.