Melissa Reeves is a speaker working with Kirkland Productions through Safe & Sound Schools.

About

Dr. Melissa Reeves, Ph.D., NCSP, LPC is the past-president of the National Association of School Psychologists (2016-17). She is also a national certified school psychologist, licensed special education teacher, licensed professional counselor, and former district coordinator of social/emotional/behavioral services. She formerly worked for the Cherry Creek School District in Colorado and is currently an associate professor at Winthrop University. She most recently worked as a school psychologist at a preK-12 grade school. She teaches both undergraduate and graduate psychology courses for Winthrop, in addition to supervising graduate school psychology students in their field-based traineeship and internship placements. She has also previously provided mental health services in day treatment and residential treatment settings.
 
Dr. Reeves is a co-author of the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) PREPaRE School Crisis Prevention and Intervention curriculum, the first nationally disseminated school crisis prevention and intervention curriculum. She is also former Chair of the NASP National School Safety and Crisis Response Committee which provides consultation and support to school districts across the country after large scale crisis events including school shootings and natural disasters. She was a founding member of the Colorado Society of School Psychologists State-Wide Crisis Response Team, which trained school districts across Colorado in crisis response and was also a crisis responder to support students after Columbine. In addition to responding to various crises over the years, she travels both nationally and internationally training professionals in the areas of crisis prevention and intervention, threat and suicide assessment, the impact of trauma and PTSD on academic achievement, and cognitive behavior therapy in the school setting. She has conducted more than 250 workshops and presentations and works with schools on establishing a positive and safe school climate that focuses on prevention programs and positive discipline measures to decrease behavioral incidences while increasing academic achievement. She has also provided consultation and staff development training to United States Department of Defense Educational Activity Schools located on military installations. She also is involved in school safety and advocacy work with two parents who lost their children in the Sandy Hook tragedy.
 
Dr. Reeves is co-author of four books: School Crisis Prevention and Intervention: The PREPaRE Model (original and 2nd Editions); Identifying, Assessing, and Treating PTSD at School; and Comprehensive Planning for Safe Learning Environments: A School Professional’s Guide to Integrating Physical and Psychological Safety: Prevention through Recovery. She has contributed multiple articles to the Communiqué, the nationally disseminated publication for the National Association of School Psychologists and has co-authored numerous book chapters and journal articles. In addition she has testified, at the invitation from United States Senator Mary Landrieu from Louisiana, in front of the U.S. Senate Ad Hoc Subcommittee for Disaster and Recovery regarding "Children and Disasters: A Progress Report on Addressing Needs." Dr. Reeves has twice been awarded the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) Presidential Award (2006, 2012) and NASP Crisis Interest Group Award for Excellence (2007, 2011). She was a 2007 national finalist for the Joseph E. Zins "Purpose" Award for Early Career Practitioners in Social Learning; in 2006 awarded Golden Heart Award, presented by Cherry Creek School District Parent Special Education Advisory Council; and received the University of Denver, College of Education Leadership in Learning Alumni Award (2006). She has received numerous other awards throughout her career in addition to serving elected terms as a NASP Delegate and Executive Council leader.

popular programs

Addressing Mental Health Needs in the Schools
This workshop discusses the impact of mental health on academic achievement and social-emotional functioning. Participants will learn the developmental indicators of mental health challenges and identify the barriers that schools face in addressing mental health needs. Strategies to implement proactive and universal approaches to addressing mental health needs and interventions to promote skill building will be discussed. In addition, how schools can provide intensive supports and utilize community services to supplement school-based services and programs will be reviewed.
School-Based Crisis Prevention and Intervention
This advanced-level workshop will assist you in enhancing the crisis procedures already in place in your school district. Specifically, learn cutting-edge tips on conducting crisis exercises and drills in the school setting. In addition, strategies for using social media, dealing with the press, and planning memorials will be offered. The legal ramifications of crisis response and the spiritual dimensions in the aftermath of a crisis also will be highlighted.
Reunification for the School Community
1 full-day training

Melissa co-presents with Michele Gay to share personal and professional experiences in school-based reunification, examine best practices and current reunification models, and conduct scenario-based, table-top exercises to prepare participants for successful reunification planning and preparation.
Psychological Safety: How Can We Help? – The M-PHAT Approach
3 hours Lecture or Round Tables for Group Interaction

The M-PHAT approach involves a Multi-Phase, Multi-Hazards, Multi-Agency, and a Multi-Tiered approach to establishing a comprehensive plan for a safe schools environment that aligns with current response to intervention and positive behavior supports initiatives. This session focuses on development of school and district safety and crisis teams and plans; understanding the different components to a comprehensive school safety plan vs. a crisis plan; conducting psychological and physical safety assessments, and establishing a data collection system to enable data-driven decisions.

This program is effective for very small or large groups of 100+. The ideal audience is administrators, school mental health professionals, safety and security, SRO's, and anyone else serving on a school safety/crisis team and involved in comprehensive safety prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery activities.
Threat and Suicide Risk Assessment: Developing a Proactive and Consistent Approach to Evaluating Risk
This workshop will focus on the process and procedures needed to establish a consistent school/district-wide approach to threat and suicide risk assessment utilizing a multidisciplinary team. Critical factors discussed will include: current statistics and legal cases, early identification of warning signs, primary prevention strategies to “break the code of silence”; an overview of risk assessment models and tools; assessment procedures; and strategies for interventions, postventions, and working with difficult parents. Case study examples and forms will be shared to illustrate the process.

​This program can be presented from 3.5 hours to a full day. Full day is optimal and is required to integrated case studies.
PREPaRE Workshop #1: Prevention and Preparedness: Comprehensive School Safety Planning (2nd Edition)
8-Hour Full-Day Workshop

In this newly updated workshop, participants will learn how to establish and sustain comprehensive school safety and crisis prevention and preparedness efforts. With updated research and strategies, this workshop makes a clearer connection between ongoing school safety and crisis preparedness. It also emphasizes the unique needs and functions of school teams and the steps involved in developing these teams, including a model that integrates school personnel and community provider roles. The PREPaRE model builds on existing personnel, resources and programs, and can be adapted to individual school needs and size. Finally, the workshop explores how to prepare for school crises by developing, exercising, and evaluating safety and crisis plans. This workshop is an excellent course for mental health and educational professionals working at all grade levels in your district that help establish a safe school
climate and respond to crises.
PREPaRE Workshop #2: Crisis Intervention and Recovery: The Roles of School-Based Mental Health Professionals (2nd Edition)
Two Full-Day Workshops of Eight Hours Each

​This two-day workshop provides school-based mental health professionals and other school crisis intervention team members with the knowledge necessary to meet the mental health needs of students and staff following a school-associated crisis event. With updated research and crisis intervention strategies, this workshop teaches participants how to prevent and prepare for psychological trauma, reaffirm both the physical health of members of the school community and students’ perceptions that they are safe and secure, evaluate the degree of psychological trauma, respond to the psychological needs of members of the school community, and examine the effectiveness of school crisis intervention and recovery efforts. This workshop is an excellent course for all mental health professionals in your district who provide mental health crisis intervention services.

Dr. Reeves is also available to present the PREPaRE ToT (Training of Trainers) Workshops that correspond to the PREPaRE workshops described above.
The DSM-5: Implications for School Psychologists 
(3-3.5 hour workshop)

​This session will provide an overview of the DSM-5 diagnostic categories that most impact children and adolescents. A brief history of DSM development will be provided with emphasis on the current shift from a categorical to a dimensional approach. The relevance of these changes to school-based mental health professionals will be explored. Also included in this session will be discussion of how these changes might influence IDEA eligibility determinations, and the impact these changes will have on accessibility to interventions and community services.  Changes to specific diagnostic categories that most impact children and adolescents will be the focus.  
​Cognitive-Behavioral Strategies for Children and Adolescents: Evidenced-Based Interventions for the School Setting
(3-3.5 hour workshop)

This workshop will provide participants with specific cognitive-behavioral intervention strategies to utilize with children and adolescents in a school setting.  Specific topics to be covered include anxiety, school refusal, depression, ADHD, aggression, traumatic stress, bullying. Specific workshop objectives include an overview of the components underlying cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT), how to utilize and teach cognitive-behavioral strategies in a school setting, and the integration and generalization of skills to the educational setting and academic instruction.  Specific examples of techniques and activities will be shared.  

Participants will learn:
  • The components, basic tenets, and goals of CBT 
  • Understand the research-base and efficacy underlying specific components to CBT  
  • How to utilize and teach cognitive-behavioral strategies in a school setting
  • Specific types of activities that can be conducted with students
  • How to integrate and generalize skills to the educational setting and academic instruction
Using Cognitive–Behavioral Strategies with Children and Teens Who Are Anxious or Depressed 
​(1-3 hour workshop)

​This session will highlight a variety of cognitive–behavioral strategies that can be used successfully in school settings with students who exhibit symptoms of anxiety and/or depression. Key components underlying CBT will be reviewed. In addition, participants will learn to use and teach CBT strategies and will explore ways to integrate these skills in an educational setting. Case study examples will be featured, and specific examples of practical techniques and activities will be shared.
ADDITIONAL PRESENTATION TOPICS
​Dr. Reeves is available for panel events and discussions and presents on many other topics including Threat Assessment Management, PTSD in school-aged children, Helping Children and Adolescents Cope with Grief, Loss, and Mourning, Bi-Polar and Depressive Disorders in School-Aged Children, and more. If you are interested in a specific topic, please inquire.

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Dr. Melissa Reeves is a charismatic and motivational speaker who challenges both educators and policymakers to find ways to make our schools a safer place to be. Her knowledge and expertise within the areas of crisis prevention and intervention and suicide and threat assessments clearly define her as an expert in these fields. By using her own personal stories and experience, the information she presents to an audience is relevant, meaningful, and, most importantly, inspiring. She is a change-agent for both our schools and our communities.

Lisa J. Bernard, Ed. S., School Psychologist, II Fort Mill School District, SC

MORE REVIEWS

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Bestselling Author of Permanent Midnight and I, Fatty

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