Policy Approaches to Creating Trauma-Informed Change: The Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice's National Campaign and Other Opportunities for Advocacy in Illinois - April 28

Join the Illinois ACEs Response Collaborative on Tuesday, April 28^th at 10 AM CST to hear from the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) on their National Trauma Campaign, its goal of a trauma-informed nation, and applications to policy in Illinois.

This webinar will highlight CTIPP’s efforts to recruit liaisons from all 435 national legislative districts to advocate with their Congressperson on trauma-informed policies and legislation, as well as how they are working to relay coordinated messaging and advocacy on a national stage. It will also discuss the Campaign’s active role in working to influence current legislation around COVID-19 and will update audience members on opportunities to leverage federal funds to promote a trauma-informed response to the pandemic.

Policy Approaches to Creating Trauma-Informed Change - Webinar
Tuesday, April 28, 2020 • 10:00 AM - 11:00 AM CST

Jesse Kohler just accepted a new position as an Advocacy Associate at Council for a Strong America in Washington DC, and is currently finishing up his role at the Director of Development at North Light Community Center and the fundraising chair and a board member for CTIPP. At North Light, in addition to coordinating organizational fundraising efforts, he also successfully launched a trauma-informed initiative called Lowering Overdose and Violence Epidemics (LOVE).

Prior to these positions, Jesse received a Master’s in Educational Leadership while working as an intern for the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General Josh Shapiro in the Office of Public Engagement, working to help develop and launch the Pennsylvania Trauma-Informed Care Network. He is still involved with this effort, now on the advisory board for the initiative. Jesse is passionate about creating positive social change and believes that while addressing trauma does not solve all of the world’s problems, it is a powerful step forward that we can take together to address a multitude of social issues, which will lead to further progress in the future.

Dan Press is a partner in the law firm of Van Ness Feldman, where he has spent the past 45 years representing Native American tribes as well as heading the firm’s pro bono program. From 2012 through 2017, Mr. Press was an adjunct professor at Columbia University where he taught undergraduate courses on current issues facing Native Americans. In the process of teaching, he learned about the ACE study and the neuroscience developments regarding historical trauma. Along with a Native American psychologist, he founded and serves as general counsel to the Roundtable on Native American Trauma-Informed Initiatives.

Recognizing that his decades of experience advocating with Congress on Native American issues could be used to benefit the development of trauma-informed programs, he co-founded and serves as chairman of the policy committee for the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice. In that capacity he helped to advocate for several trauma-informed provisions that have been included in recent Congressional legislation and works with local trauma informed groups to educate their Congressional representatives about trauma science.