Virginia Tiered Systems of Supports

Virginia Department of Education

MTSS for Student Success 2025: Pathways to Integrated School Mental Wellness


October 28th and 29th, 2025!

Hampton Roads Convention Center


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MTSS for Student Success: Pathways to Integrated School Mental Wellness

CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Day One

7:30-8:30 Registration Day One
8:30-9:00 Welcome: Dr. Sam Hollins, VDOE
9:00 -10:00 Keynote:  Dr. Brittany Patterson
10:00 -10:15 Transition to Sessions
TIME and SESSION

Strand 1
Student and Educator Voices
Room 106

 Strand 2
Family, Community, and Supportive Environments
Room 107		 Strand 3
Innovative Approaches and Future Directions
Room 108

Spotlighted Topics
Room 109
Session 1
10:15-11:45
(90 Minutes)

Little Minds, Big Feelings: Supporting Mental Health in Early Childhood
Jackie Brock (PPD/LEND)

 Emotional and Psychological Safety Aren’t Fluffy, They’re Foundational: Practical Strategies to Foster Trust, Belonging, and Student Success
Kara McCulloch (William & Mary TTAC)

Come Sit With Me: The Power of Belonging
Renesha Parks & Angela Jones (Richmond Public Schools)

Wired for Connection: Guiding Youth Toward Healthy Relationships 
Keith Cartwright (DBHDS)
11:45-1:15

Lunch and Resource Alley
Wellness Activities
Room 106 Mindful Art Session 12 - 12:30 pm and 12:40 - 1:10 pm
Room 107 Journaling Session 12 - 12:15 pm, 12:30 - 12:45, and 1 - 1:15 pm
Room 101 Energizing Movement 12 - 12:15 pm and 1 - 1:15 pm

Poster Tables: 
Botvin Life Skills Training/Opioid Abatement Education Plan/Recovery Schools (VDOE)
Community Schools (VDOE)
Prevention Services (suicide prevention, opioid, tobacco, substance use) Hampton - Newport News CSB
In Plain Sight (an interactive experience) Hampton City
Kindness Week (VDOE)
School-Based Mental Health Sustainability Modules (VDBHDS)
The Campus Suicide Prevention Center of Virginia (JMU)
Tier 3 Mental Health Supports - Hanover County Public Schools
1:15-1:30 Transition to Sessions
Session 2
1:30 - 2:30
(60 Minutes)

The Connection Toolkit: Five Approaches to Foster Relationships and Emotional Awareness
Sarah Bazemore (VDOE)

Stronger Together: Building Effective School & Mental Health Partnerships
Chris Taylor, J-Lynne Wineberger (New River Valley Community Services) Robert Graham, Mary Cheverton School Person (Pulaski County Public Schools)

 Beyond Self-Care: Holistic Approaches to Wellbeing for Clinicians and Educators
Dr. Brittany Patterson

Making the Connection to Prevent Addiction: How relationships with our students, families, and communities reduce teen substance use
Fiona Brown - Loudon County Public Schools
2:30-2:45 Snack/Break
Session 3
2:45 - 4:15
(90 minutes)		 Student Voices on Student Mental Well-being: A Dive into Youth-Led School-based Mental Health Initiatives
Cat Atkinson & Akshar Paduru (Voices for Virginia)

Revealing the Secret Sauce: Ingredients for Fostering Authentic Family Engagement for Strong Schoolwide Mental Wellness
Kelly Henderson, Rachel Hamilton (Formed Families Forward), Charlene Carpenter & Alexis Miller (Henrico County Public Schools)- 

An Integrated System: Unified Mental Health Model
Fiona Brown & Shanna Mechiche Alami (Loudon County Public Schools)

From Report to Resolution: Building Schoolwide Systems for Bullying Response
Sarah Bazemore (VDOE)

Day Two

7:30-8:30 Registration Day Two
8:30-8:45 Welcome: Dr. Nicole Hollins, VTSS
8:45 -9:45 Keynote: AnneMoss Rogers
9:45-10:00 Transition to Sessions
TIME and SESSION Strand 1
Student and Educator Voices
Room 106		 Strand 2
Family, Community, and Supportive Environments
Room 107		 Strand 3
Innovative Approaches and Future Directions
Room 108		 Spotlighted Topics
Room 109
Session 4
10:00-11:30
(90 Minutes)		 Youth MOVE and Formed Families Forward presents Straight from the Source: Family, Youth, and Young Adult Experiences Managing Mental Health in Schools
Matty Stewart-Boldin, Kelly Henderson, Torrey Piper, Naysa Piper-Fisher, Rebekah Raze, Juana Reymundo-Gallego, Richie Martin

Using Play Techniques to Support Emotional Regulation 
Dr. Alex Javna (VDOE)

 From Insight to Impact: Using Data to Drive Student Wellness and Staff Supports
Dayla Brown, Charlome Pierce (VTSS), Derrick Riddick, & Jac’Quail Jones (Portsmouth Public Schools)		 MTSS in Roanoke City:
Tier I and Beyond...Advancing
School-Based Mental Health for Students
Hayley Poland (Roanoke City Public Schools)

11:30 - 1:00
(Panel 12 - 1)

 Pathways to Integrated School Mental Wellness - Illuminating the Journey Together
Melissa Ackey - LCSW, Prevention Services Manager, Chesterfield Community Services Board
Charlene Carpenter - Mom & Advocate
Charika Carter - Mental Health Liaison, Danville Public Schools
Valentina Hebb - Student, Chesterfield County Public Schools, Current VCU student
Ashley Hupp - LCSW, Clinical Counselor, Salem City Schools- Salem High School
Dr. Herb Monroe - The Proud Superintendent of Surry County Public Schools
Dr. Shenita Williams - PhD, LCSW,  Social Work Coordinator & Adjunct Professor,  HCPS/VCU
1:00-1:15 Transition to Sessions
Session 5
1:15 - 2:15
(60 Minutes)

The Real High School Experience: Mental Health Needs from the Source
Patrice Beard, Dawn Snow, Kim Drudge-(PPD)

Brave Classrooms: Creating a Culture of Care for Kids and Colleagues
Sharon Zuckerwar (Radford TTAC) 

Supporting Students Together: Preventing Youth Suicide in K-12 Schools with a Comprehensive Approach
Danette Gibbs (The Campus Suicide Prevention Center of Virginia) 

Forever Changed: Understanding and Navigating Grief
Mary Beaven (Mary Washington Healthcare)
2:15-2:30 Snack/Break
Session 6
2:30-3:30
(60 minutes)

Fun and Games: Mental Wellness Activities to Build Connection and Awareness - AnneMoss Rogers

Keynote Speakers

Dr. Brittany Patterson

Dr. Brittany Patterson smiling in front of a series of plants flower bushes

Dr. Brittany Patterson is a Licensed Psychologist and Assistant Professor at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where she has served on the faculty within the National Center for School Mental Health (NCSMH) since 2016. She has worked in schools for over a decade in various capacities and has specialized in school-based mental health services in underserved school communities since joining the faculty. Dr. Patterson has collaborated across numerous federally and state-funded grants focused on trauma-responsiveness, cultural responsiveness and equity, resilience, and evidence-based approaches to youth mental health and well-being.

These include the HRSA-MCHB Collaborative Improvement and Innovation Networks on School Based Health Services (COIIN-SBHS), the SAMHSA National Center for Safe and Supportive Learning Environments (NCSSLE), and Maryland’s Early Intervention Program for Psychosis (EIP).

She has also served as a technical assistance specialist to diverse local, state, and national school stakeholders, including grantees of the U.S. Department of Education’s Promoting Student Resilience (PSR) and School Mental Health Demonstration programs. Dr. Patterson’s research, training, and technical assistance efforts are grounded in centering youth, family, and consumer voice in the development and delivery of high-quality, equitable well-being supports and services.

Outside of her professional life, Dr. Patterson is a proud daughter, sister, auntie, and mother who enjoys spending time with her family engaging in arts and crafts, sharing meals, cheering on sports teams.

AnneMoss Rogers

AnneMoss sitting in a very modern white room

As one of the most relatable motivational mental health speakers and suicide education experts, AnneMoss transforms her tragedy of losing a son to suicide into a powerful message of post-traumatic growth. Far from a story of despair, she focuses on the human capacity to grow through what we go through. In 2019, AnneMoss published her award-winning memoir, Diary of a Broken Mind and in 2020, she co-wrote the best seller Emotionally Naked: A Teacher’s Guide to Preventing Suicide with Dr. Kimberly O’Brien, now translated into three languages.

She has been a TEDx speaker, featured in the New York Times, Variety Magazine, and interviewed by CNN’s Erin Burnett on teen mental health at the prestigious Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference. She was the first non-clinician invited to speak on suicide at the National Institute of Mental Health and is one of the editors of the American Academy of Pediatrics Blueprint for Youth Suicide Prevention.

AnneMoss is a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill and lives in Richmond, Virginia with her husband. Their surviving son is a filmmaker in Los Angeles.

AnneMoss is her FIRST name. It’s a Southern thing.