Information Hub / Events Continuing Education
Working with Youth Aging Out of Foster Care
1:00 PMFriday, May 16 2025
12:00 PMFriday, May 16 2025
11:00 AMFriday, May 16 2025
10:00 AMFriday, May 16 2025
9:00 AMFriday, May 16 2025
7:00 AM
Karen Zilberstein, MSW, LICSW is a practicing psychotherapist and Clinical Director of the Western Massachusetts chapter of A Home Within. She is also a researcher who has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles on various aspects of working with children and families in the child welfare system, with a special focus on youth with intersecting differences. She serves on numerous national committees tasked with improving how the mental health and child welfare fields handle racial inequities, service delivery, and the treatment of children and families. She currently chairs the Task Force on Visitation in Child Welfare for The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children and sits on the Child Welfare Special Section committee for NASW. Her narrative nonfiction book, Parents under pressure: Struggling to raise children in an unequal America, won two 2019 Next Generation Indie Book Awards.
Transition-age youth aging out of foster care often enter adulthood with a history of trauma, disrupted attachments, and limited social and financial support, leaving them at high risk for mental health issues, housing instability, and difficulties in education and employment. Psychotherapists working with this population must be prepared to address complex trauma, attachment disruptions, and executive functioning challenges while fostering trust and engagement in therapy. Many youth exhibit mistrust toward providers due to past systemic failures, making it crucial for therapists to prioritize relationship-building, offer trauma-informed care, and empower youth in the therapeutic process. Understanding the intersectionality of race, sexual and gender identity, and systemic barriers is also essential, as many transition-age youth, particularly BIPOC and LGBTQ+ individuals, face additional discrimination and marginalization. Effective interventions include strength-based approaches, skills training, advocacy, and integrating social and instrumental supports that extend beyond traditional psychotherapy. This presentation provides insights into working effectively with transition-age youth, emphasizing therapeutic strategies that enhance resilience, autonomy, and long-term well-being.
This course is eligible for 1.5 continuing education credits.
This course is suitable for Psychologists, LMHCs, MFTs, Social Workers, LPCs, and Counselors.
Intermediate
00:00-00:05 - Introduction/Overview
00:05-00:30 - Obstacles and Catalysts for Former Foster Youth Navigating Early Adulthood
00:30-00:40 – Unique Challenges of Minoritized Youth
00:40-01:20 - Psychotherapy with TAY
01:20-01:30 - Conclusion/Q&A
At the end of the workshop, the participant will be able to:
- Identify five key challenges TAY face and how they affect engagement in therapy.
- Describe three ways of tailoring interventions to the unique needs of TAY to help them develop trust and interdependence.