Event Schedule

Preliminary schedule and is subject to change.

8:00 – 8:30 am: Registration / Light Breakfast

8:30 – 8:45 am: Welcome

8:45 – 9:45 am | Building Bridges: How Educators and Health Providers Can Partner to Keep Students in School

Presenters
Kelly E. Coates, PhD, MPH
Executive Director, Oregon Pediatric Society

Andrea Barnum, MEd
Office of Education Improvement and Innovation, Director of Systems Improvement and Capacity, Oregon Department of Education

Naomi Orem
Assistant Director for Multi-tiered Systems of Support (MTSS), Portland Public Schools

School attendance is more than an education issue—it’s a window into a child’s overall health and wellbeing. The session kicks off our day will explore how consistent attendance supports healthy development (physically, emotionally, and developmentally), and why chronic absenteeism deserves attention as a student, family, school and community health concern. We will highlight efforts that are helping students and families overcome barriers before patterns of chronic absence take hold. Attendees will also learn how pediatric providers can bring conversations about attendance into routine visits in ways that feel supportive, practical, and actionable—treating attendance as a vital sign for both health and learning.

10:00 – 10:50 am | Cannabis in the Adolescent Brain: Understanding Today’s Risks and Navigating Conversations

Presenters
David Rettew, MD
Director, Lane County Behavioral Health

Pam Pearce
Executive Director, Community Living Above

Adolescent cannabis use is increasingly common, even more so with its legalization over recent years.  Pediatricians play a critical role in supporting young people to make healthy choices. In this session, we will explore current trends in youth cannabis use and the ways cannabis can affect developing brains and behavior. Attendees will also learn about school-based activities aimed at prevention and early intervention and gain practical strategies for using motivational interviewing to have effective, nonjudgmental conversations with teens. This session is designed to help pediatric providers feel confident addressing cannabis use in a supportive, relational way that meets young people where they are.

11:00 – 11:50 am | From 504s to IEPs: A Continuum of Support for Youth with Mental and Physical Health Needs in School Spaces

Presenters
Danielle Pappas, PhD
School Psychologist, Salem-Keizer Public Schools

Mary Sperling, DEd, EdS
School Psychologist, Salem-Keizer Public Schools

Jamie Smith, MPH, BSN
Senior School Health Services Administrator, Multnomah Education Service District

Understanding how schools support students with health- and disability-related needs can be challenging to those not within the education system. This session breaks down the scope, intent and limitations of Individualized Education Plans (IEPs), 504 plans, and Individualized Health Plans (IHPs). Speakers will clarify the forms, processes and support services used by both health and education systems to communicate and actualize student goals, plans, and supports. Attendees will learn to distinguish medical and educational processes for accessing support and explore practical ways pediatric providers can contribute to the development and coordination of health- and disability-related supports for their patients in educational environments.

12:00 – 12:50 pm | The Weight of the World: Supporting Youth Through Societal Anxiety

Presenters
Cameon Gustafson, ME, MBA
School Counselor and District SEL Team Member; Lebanon Public Schools

Heaven-Leigh Forde
Student, Portland State University

Students do not experience school in isolated bubbles free from the stresses of the world—global events, social challenges, and widespread crises can profoundly affect learning, behavior, and mental health. This session explores the multiple ways significant societal and global issues impact students’ academic and personal health and well-being, and how schools are working to meaningfully support them. Attendees will gain insight into the strategies school counselors, psychologists, social workers, and other staff use to help students navigate these challenges. The session will also highlight practical tools and approaches pediatric providers can use during office visits to assist children and families in coping with these stressors.

12:50 – 1:30 pm: Lunch

1:30 – 2:20 pm | Bodies, Boundaries and Balance: Healthy, Age-Appropriate Relationship Guidance

Presenter
Jasmin Zavala, MD, MPH, FAAP
Medical Director, Sea Mar Adolescent Clinic, Seattle WA

Pediatric providers play a critical role in guiding youth toward safe, respectful, and emotionally healthy relationships. This session offers practical strategies to support relational development, appropriate boundaries, and healthy body image development from childhood through adolescence. Attendees will learn to screen for and discuss healthy versus abusive relationships, promote consent and body safety, and address dating violence in pre-teens and teens. Finally, participants will gain tools for talking with teens about the emotional ups and downs of relationships, how to help their patients to build resilience and ways that youth can navigate personal connections safely.

2:30 – 3:20 pm | #HealthyTechHabits: Guidance to Foster Positive Technology Choices at School and Home

Presenters
Lisa Reynolds, MD
Oregon State Senator, District 17

Ami Formica, MA
Well Wired

Technology has become an integral part of children’s lives, both in the classroom and at home. This session explores how K–12 students engage with technology across contexts, highlighting the differences between required school-based use and voluntary home use. Attendees will examine strategies for promoting healthy technological habits, learn evidence-informed guidelines that can be shared with families, and gain insight into how schools integrate digital tools into learning. By the end of the session, pediatric providers will be better equipped to help parents navigate technology use, support healthy digital habits at all ages, and understand the role of technology as both a learning tool and a daily life influence.

3:30 – 5:00 pm: OPS member meeting

5:00 – 6:30 pm: Post-conference social mixer

This conference offers up to 4.75 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. See the FAQ “How many CME credits are offered?” for more details.