Grieving and Growing: Helping Families Navigate Bereavement Together 

Join Sesame Workshop and leading experts for this webinar on childhood grief. This webinar will explore the latest research-based information in the childhood bereavement space, approaches families can take to help young children communicate and cope with their grief, and resources available to support young children and families on their grief journey.  

Over the course of this webinar, participants will:   

• Explore Sesame Workshop’s newest Grief resources for young children and their families. 

• Learn about the latest findings from Judi’s House’s annual Childhood Bereavement Estimation Model, including the primary causes of death and analysis of gaps in resources.  

• Gain insights from Experience Camps and the Child Trauma Research Program at University of California San Francisco on tools, strategies, and resources that you can integrate into your work to support grieving children and their families.   

About the Speakers:  

Tara Wright serves as Senior Manager of Content Design for U.S. Education Programs on the Research, Education, Data, and Impact (REDI) team at Sesame Workshop. In her work at Sesame, Tara creates engaging content for young children and families, as well as practical, approachable tools for the providers who serve them—all with the goal to help nurture smarter, stronger, and kinder communities.  

Michaeleen (Micki) Burns, PhD, is the Chief Executive Officer at Judi’s House/JAG Institute (JH/JAG) and adjunct faculty at the University of Colorado. JH/JAG is a comprehensive family bereavement center in Metro Denver. She serves on the board of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief and is an advisor to Speaking Grief, a national public media initiative seeking to the grief experience. Before becoming the CEO, Micki oversaw the direct service, research, and training departments at JH/JAG, working towards a vision where no child is alone in grief. 

Jeffrey Lin, PhD, is the Director of Evaluation and Research at Judi’s House/JAG Institute. He has a passion for applying research evidence to develop public policies and practices that best serve the community. With decades of experience working in partnership with public and non-profit agencies, he has seen the impact of good research on people’s lives. Jeff was a sociology professor for 15 years, focusing his research and teaching on addressing pressing public issues such as criminal justice and youth services reforms. This experience deeply informs his commitment to producing data and evidence that can help bereaved children and families.  

Brianne “Brie” Overton is the Chief Clinical Officer of Experience Camps, a national nonprofit that provides no-fee, clinically informed programs for kids who have experienced the death of a parent, sibling or primary caregiver – as well as resources and advocacy so all grieving children can live a life rich with possibility. Brie received her MA in Thanatology from Hood College, her M.Ed. in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from University of Missouri – St. Louis and is a doctoral candidate in counseling at the University of Missouri – St. Louis. She has spent 17 years in the field of thanatology providing grief education, support, counseling, death education, suicide prevention and intervention, and consultation. 

Gina Samson, PsyD is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist at the University of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Sciences. She works at the Child Trauma Research Program providing care to infants, young children, and families who have experienced traumatic events. Dr. Samson’s passion is to help children, families, and communities thrive. In addition to providing direct service, she supports this mission by offering training and consultation to community organizations to help them meet their mental health, wellness, and trauma-informed goals. 

Did you know you can earn a certificate for participating in this training? Register above and watch the video before taking our assessment quiz. Pass the quiz to download your certificate for this 2 hour webinar. 

Already passed the quiz? To access your certificate go to your profile and tap “certificates.”