The New York State Office of Victim Services (OVS) is pleased to announce a new training course for legal advocates and allied professionals from OVS-funded organizations. 

In partnership with NYU, NYLAG and Columbia University, Trauma Responsive Lawyering is an 8-session virtual training (Fridays, January 22 – March 12, 2021) led by mental health and legal experts who serve interpersonal violence (IPV) survivors and their families. 

This program is open to legal advocates from OVS-funded organizations and sessions are geared toward both newer and more experienced legal professionals. Sessions are free of charge, and Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits, including diversity and inclusion credits, will be provided to those who meet eligible criteria.

Training 2: Neuroscience of Trauma, January 29, 12-2 pm EST

Traumatic stress exposure has been shown to have a clear impact on the body and brain. This workshop will address the neurobiology of the stress response, covering the impact of childhood trauma on the developing brain, and the impact of trauma on the body and brain. This will help legal advocates understand as well as explain symptomatology their clients may present with, including loss of memory and responses to trauma triggers.

Denise Hien, PhD, ABPP, is Interim Dean of the Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Director and Helen E. Chaney Endowed Chair in Alcohol Studies of the Center of Alcohol & Substance Use Studies at Rutgers University-New Brunswick. She also maintains longstanding adjunct appointments as Senior Research Scientist at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, Division on Substance Use Disorders and Adjunct Professor at the Graduate Center at the City University of New York. She and her group have conducted programmatic research on women’s mental health and addictions, with continuous funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse and

National Institute on Alcoholism and Alcohol Abuse (21 grants total: 7 R01, 2R25, 1 multi-site) for over 20 years. Considered a leader in the field, her body of work (over 100 publications and 140 conference presentations) has contributed to the evidence base on the treatment of individuals with trauma-related psychiatric disorders and their comorbidity with addictions, through conducting single- and multisite clinical trials across the United States in community-based substance abuse treatment settings. She is board-certified in clinical psychology (ABPP) and has served as a standing member on the National Institute of Drug Abuse, NIH Institutional Review Groups and a health disparities advisory group to the NIDA Director on Asian American/Pacific Islander issues.

Dr. Hien received her B.A. in Psychology from Cornell University, and her M.S., M.Phil. and Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University. She received her postdoctoral training in substance use research at the Division on Substance Use Disorders at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons. Over her career, she has served on the doctoral and research faculties of the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, City College of New York, Columbia University School of Social Work, and the Derner School of Psychology at Adelphi University. Within each of these institutions, she has held numerous leadership roles in academic and research administration.