Morning Breakout Sessions

Session 1: Is She Cinderella or Medusa? Adolescent Female Firesetting

Presenters:

Approximately 10-15% of juveniles involved in firesetting are females, yet, these young woman have received less than 1% of our research attention and as a result we know very little about these girls and whether, or how, they might differ from the boys with whom we work. This workshop will provide a review of the current body of knowledge on adolescent females who display serious conduct problems with a specific look at firesetting behavior. Implications for gender specific assessment and interventions will be presented.

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Session 2: Taking a Firesetting History from a Clinical Perspective

Presenter:

This class targets clinical and human service professionals who may find themselves in a situation where they are evaluating youth for firesetting behavior. For a variety of reasons, many instances of youth set fires are not reported to authorities, this depriving the ongoing professionals who evaluate the youth the benefit of a carefully constructed origin and cause report regarding the index fire. The class will help clinical and human services professionals, many of whom are not trained in arson investigation and fire science, to begin to take a clear, functional history of a youth's firesetting behavior. A good history can be extremely beneficial in understanding the clinical issues relevant to the firesetting behavior and also serve a valuable role in constructing a viable safety plan for the youth. This advanced skills workshop will not only cover the importance of taking a fire history, but also entail focused group work on ways to approach the interview process with youth to try and obtain a clear understanding of the factors associated with how the fires were set.

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Session 3: Puppets, Tools & Toys: Fire Education for Latency Youth

Presenter:

How do we engage and build a rapport to get the message of Fire/Life Safety and Fire Science to our target audience? Our goal as interventionists and educators is to give children and their families the necessary educational tools to make better choices in the future with regards to fire and life safety issues. The interactive use of puppets to communicate with younger children, as well as age appropriate educational games, will be explored during this program. Attention will be spent on intervention/education approaches for boys and girls and for differing learning styles.

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Session 4: Identifying, Examining and Responding to Juvenile Bomb-makers

Presenter:

Description coming soon!

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Afternoon Breakout Sessions

Session 1: Bullies, Victims, Fire setting and JFSI Programs as Community Activist

Presenter:

Youth fire play and fire setting remain important concerns in the United States. They require understanding and systematic prevention and intervention efforts. Recent reviews of fire incidents reveal that fire is sometimes used to harass others and as a tool of revenge. This presentation will review the motivations of youthful fire setters and bullying dynamics and will discuss creative interventions when fire setting is motivated by bullying.

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Session 2: Pulling Rabbits Out of Hats: Complex Cases and Creative Interventions

Presenters:

Children and adolescents involved in firesetting come from some of the most diverse and/or deprived family and social backgrounds, present with some of the most complicated and concerning psychiatric profiles that increase their likelihood to continue to engage in behaviors that place themselves and others at risk. Treatment and intervention resources can be difficult to find. The combination of these factors can create serious challenges and limitations when intervention and treatment plans are being developed. This advanced skills workshop is designed for more experienced professionals and will provide practice guidelines balancing public safety needs with the individual needs of the firesetting child or family. Participants will also be given the opportunity to participate in live treatment/intervention planning exercises for actual cases within structured small groups.

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Session 3: The Firesetting Intervention Triangle

Presenter:

This advanced skills workshop offers a concept to take three elements that surround a youth firesetting event and use those to form the educational intervention component. The three elements mirror most interview/screening tolls: Family Information, Child Information and Incident Information. Participants will work in groups to generate their approach to random combinations of scenarios. This will fit well for the interventionist who also provides educational intervention.

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Session 4: How The Courts Can Help

Presenters:

Consistent with the conference theme of "Building Pathways for Successful Interventions," this session will address:

1. Maximizing Interdisciplinary Collaborations & Resources
2. Prevention Strategies
3. Investigative Techniques
4. Overcoming Barriers

Multiple presenters will play roles in an enhanced mock trial format, designed to illustrate how the court system can be a resource to help children. Narration will be used to highlight relevant procedural protocols and the importance of early intervention. The session will (most likely) take place off-site at a local Worcester courthouse. A fictitious, fact pattern scenario will be presented involving an alleged fire incident, a young juvenile suspect, the manner in which the alleged incident became known, and the responses and actions taken (or not taken) by parents, school administrators (including counselors), and law enforcement and fire safety personnel. The simulated courtroom drama will be followed by a general discussion and PowerPoint presentation to enhance public safety, promote early intervention and accountability, and provide appropriate services for children, families and communities.

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