Practical Knowledge for People and Professionals

The Highland Rivers Connect Training Institute connects you with practical knowledge about mental health through trainings that can be custom-designed for your business, organization, school or community. Highland Rivers Connect offers trainings for professionals and community groups on a range of behavioral health topics. We work with first responders, elected officials, educators and community members to increase knowledge of the mental health challenges faced by individuals in the community, available treatment and support services, and how to refer individuals with acute or ongoing mental health needs to local services.

Training Menu

Mental Health First Aid

Mental Health First Aid is a course that teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. The training gives you the skills you need to reach out and provide initial help and support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem or experiencing a crisis.

Youth Mental Health First Aid

Youth Mental Health First Aid is designed to teach parents, family members, caregivers, teachers, school staff, peers, neighbors, health and human services workers, and other caring citizens how to help an adolescent (age 12-18) who is experiencing a mental health or addictions challenge or is in ...crisis. Youth Mental Health First Aid is primarily designed for adults who regularly interact with young people. The course introduces common mental health challenges for youth, reviews typical adolescent development, and teaches a 5-step action plan for how to help young people in both crisis and non-crisis situations. Topics covered include anxiety, depression, substance use, disorders in which psychosis may occur, disruptive behavior disorders (including AD/HD), and eating disorders. To learn more, download the Mental Health First Aid for Youth one-pager.

CIT Youth

To address the growing number of young people with mental illness in the juvenile justice system, communities around the country have expanded their Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) programs to meet the specific needs of youth. CIT for Youth programs teach law enforcement officers to connect young ...people who need help to effective services and support in their community by training officers about adolescent brain development and how mental health symptoms present in youth. These programs build partnerships between schools, school-based police officers, children’s mental health providers and parents. The goal is to intervene early to prevent youth from becoming involved in the juvenile justice system.

Hearing Voices

The Hearing Distressing Voices Simulation is a groundbreaking, empathy-building experience which helps students, mental health professionals and first responders understand the challenges and strengths of people who experience psychosis.

QPR

Just like CPR, QPR is an emergency response to someone in crisis and can save lives. QPR is the most widely taught Gatekeeper training in the world. The key components of this training include: how to Question, Persuade and Refer someone who may be suicidal; how to get help for yourself or learn ...more about preventing suicide; the common causes of suicidal behavior; the warning signs of suicide; and, how to get help for someone in crisis.

Vicarious Trauma for Law Enforcement

Enables someone to recognize trauma, secondary traumatic stress, compassion fatigue, burnout, resilience, and vicarious resilience. Participants will be able to discuss how working with a traumatized population affects law enforcement staff and the impact of vicarious trauma on o...rganizations. Participants will be able to identify particular strategies that enhance both personal and professional resilience.

Community Resiliency Model (CRM)

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The Community Resiliency Model (CRM)® trains community members to not only help themselves but to help others within their wider social network. The primary focus of this skills-based, stabilization program is to re-set the natural balance of the nervous system. CRM’s goal is to help to create... “trauma-informed” and “resiliency-focused” communities that share a common understanding of the impact of trauma and chronic stress on the nervous system and how resiliency can be restored or increased using this skills-based approach.

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Continuing Education (CE)

Winter 2026 CE Training Calendar | Spring 2026 CE Training Calendar | Summer 2026 CE Training Calendar

Trauma and Substance Use: The Ways of Seeking Safety in Trauma-Informed Care

The purpose of this course to provide an introduction to Seeking Safety as an integrated treatment for trauma and substance abuse. This course will review the definition of trauma, how trauma impacts the brain, the link between tr...auma and substance, and how to utilize Seeking Safety to guide clients to safety. This course will review Seeking Safety principles, format, and topics.

Common Ethical Dilemmas in Community Behavioral Health

Common Ethical Dilemmas in Community Behavioral Health is a course focused on the most common ethical problems of clinicians working in a community-based practice, like a Community Service Board or Certified Community Behavioral Health Center. This c...ourse will focus on the importance of ethics in behavioral health practice, a brief history of the NASW and ACA Codes of Ethics, the values, principles, and standards of those Codes. This course will also review and practice common Ethical Decision Making Models. Finally, this course will focus on these common dilemmas and the values, principles, and standards that apply to those ethical dilemmas through an interactive discussion format.

Introduction to Polyvagal Theory

Introduction to Polyvagal Theory will provide an overview of the principles of polyvagal theory. In this course, you will review the work of Dr. Stephen Porges, Deb Dana, and others to understand polyvagal theory and its applications for working in the behavioral health arena. This course will pr...ovide a foundational understanding of polyvagal theory, the states of the autonomic nervous system, the impact of the autonomic state on functioning, and provide tools to manage autonomic state.

Overview of Trauma Informed Care

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of Trauma Informed Care. This course will review the definition of Trauma Informed Care, the definition of trauma and how it impacts physical and psychological functioning. This course will review the core principles of trauma informed care and... examine trauma informed approaches and trauma responsive language.

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