Centerstone to host ‘Understanding the Structural Impact of Racism, Racial Trauma and Suicide Prevention’ presentation

Centerstone, a national leader in behavioral health care, will host “Understanding the Structural Impact of Racism, Racial Trauma and Suicide Prevention” presentation on January 25 from 10-11:30 a.m. CT via Zoom. CEUs are available and there is no charge to attend.

Objectives of the training include:

• Define and discuss racial trauma
• Review how racism affects collective and individual mental health
• Gain insight into the implications of racial trauma for suicide prevention

One presenter of the training will be Jeremy Allen with Southern Illinois University – Carbondale (SIU-C). Allen is a Ph.D. candidate in Sociology at SIU-C who specializes in race. He has taught Sociology 108 Introduction to Sociology, 215 Race and Ethnic Relations in the U.S., and 303 Sociology of Deviance. He has academic training in stratification, race, criminology, research methods, and analysis. Additionally, Allen has decades of lived experience relating to his primary area of study.

Tandra M. Rutledge will serve as a co-presenter of “Understanding the Structural Impact of Racism, Racial Trauma and Suicide Prevention.” Rutledge is a mental health advocate, consultant, and certified suicide prevention educator. She is the Director of Healthcare Systems Initiative for Project 2025, a national initiative of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention aimed at reducing the annual suicide rate in the US by 20% by 2025. To achieve this bold goal, Rutledge mobilizes and engages partners across the healthcare field and emergency departments, firearms and corrections, as well as influencers and media at the national and state levels to drive policy changes and implement best practices.

“With a master’s degree in clinical psychology and more than 25 years of healthcare, executive leadership, and clinical experience, Rutledge dismantles stigma and cultivates resilience through a social justice and racial equity lens,” said Hannah Chapman, Centerstone Trauma, Treatment and Training (CT3) Trauma Training and Care Coordinator. “A highly regarded speaker and trusted subject matter expert, Rutledge fosters deep, honest connections with diverse audiences that heal, inspire, and transform individuals, groups, and organizations.”

This training has 1.5 hours of continuing education approved for IL LCPC / LPC, IL LCSW / LSW, and IL Nursing (LPN, RN, APN) under IDFPR Professional Counselor CE License No. 197.000263 and IDFPR Nurse CE Sponsor License No. 236.000184.

To register, visit Centerstone.org/events. For more information, contact Hannah Chapman.

This training is sponsored by Centerstone’s Trauma, Treatment and Training (CT3) program.

Other CT3 training events in 2023 include:

• January 11 – Why Does His Back Look Like That?: The Trauma of Racism
• January 18 – Stop Acting Like a Child: The School to Prison Pipeline
• January 25 – Understanding the Structural Impact of Racism, Racial Trauma and Suicide Prevention