Course Overview
Outline
Format
Recommended Audience
CE's and/or Certificate of Completion Available
INSTRUCTOR(S)
Grant Shannon
Grant Shannon is the Founder of Dogs Connect, B.Ed, M.Ed (App. Learning), M.Ed (Student Wellbeing). During his ten-year teaching career, Grant recognized that his students needed more from traditional education. He decided to create a program to help students feel more connected and engaged in their school environment. The Dogs Connect Program is now in over 100 schools as well as in justice and healthcare settings. Grant’s great passion for education has driven him to research the benefits of training wellbeing dogs for the classroom. He willingly shares his knowledge and scientific evidence, teaching students and staff how to build emotional intelligence and resilience. Many schools are now witnessing first-hand the impact the program is having on academic outcomes.
Grant Shannon
Amanda Leonard
Amanda Leonard
Amanda Leonard is the content developer with Dogs Connect BA (Psych. Soc), MSW. Amanda has more than 25 years of experience working as a counsellor in both community and education contexts. She is passionate about all things wellbeing and values strengths-based, trauma-informed practices. Her positive psychology work helps us establish partnerships, develop resources and deliver our programs. Amanda shares a strong interest in staff wellbeing and holistic approaches in building capacity, connection and resilience. Seeing the profound impact of this program in improving wellbeing gives her absolute joy. Visit the Dogs website for more info: https://dogsconnect.net.au/
Stephen W. Porges, PhD
Stephen W. Porges, Ph.D. is a Distinguished University Scientist at Indiana University where he is the founding director of the Traumatic Stress Research Consortium in the Kinsey Institute. He is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and Professor Emeritus at both the University of Illinois at Chicago and the University of Maryland. He served as president of the Society for Psychophysiological Research and the Federation of Associations in Behavioral & Brain Sciences and is a former recipient of a National Institute of Mental Health Research Scientist Development Award. He is the originator of the Polyvagal Theory, a theory that emphasizes the importance of physiological state in the expression of behavioral, mental, and health problems related to traumatic experiences. He is the creator of a music-based intervention, the Safe and Sound Protocol ™ , which currently is used by approximately 3,000 therapists to improve spontaneous social engagement, to reduce hearing sensitivities, and to improve language processing, state regulation, and spontaneous social engagement. Dr. Porges is a founder of the Polyvagal Institute.
Stephen W. Porges, PhD
