Webinar: April 17, 2013 - Multi-disciplinary Team Investigations: A Victim-Oriented Approach

The Missing and Exploited Children's Program (MECP) invites you to view April's presentation on multi-disciplinary team (MDT) investigations. This webinar is the second in our series on reducing the trauma to victims of abduction and exploitation during the investigation and recovery process.

Participants will learn the importance of victim-oriented approaches to child-exploitation investigations and how coordinated responses, like MDT investigations, are effective in reducing victim trauma. Panelists will explore the foundations of MDT investigations and will offer strategies for beginning and/or improving multidisciplinary responses. Panelists will also discuss the role of victim advocates and how this role supports the investigation efforts of all members of the MDT team.

All juvenile justice professionals and practitioners are encouraged to participate in this webinar.

Date: April 17th, 2013

Time: 2:00 -3:00 PM EST

Cost: Free

David A. Betz, Lieutenant (Retired), is a twenty-five year veteran of the Harford County, MD Sheriff's Office and is the former director for the Harford County Child Advocacy Center. During his career, Mr. Betz spent several years working in the child abuse field, serving as a child abuse investigator, a Public Information Officer/Spokesperson, supervisor of the School Policing Unit, member of the Special Response Team, and various other assignments within the Patrol Division. He serves as a member of the Board of Directors and an Accreditation site reviewer for the National Children's Alliance. Mr. Betz is the former President, Vice President, and Treasurer of the Maryland Children's Alliance. He has a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration from Liberty University and a Master's Degree in Management from Johns Hopkins University.

Maria M. Gallagher, MSW, is a Project Outreach Coordinator for the Northeast Regional Children's Advocacy Center (NRCAC). She provides training, technical assistance, information, and consultation to communities working to develop and/or sustain Children's Advocacy Centers and Multidisciplinary Teams. Ms. Gallagher's work covers communities in the nine northeast states from Maine to Pennsylvania. She has over seventeen years of experience working in the child abuse field and is a professional social worker with experience in community social work, Child Protection Services, Child Advocacy Center (CAC) operation, team facilitation, Family Advocacy services, and non-profit organizational development. She also provides therapy to children and their families. Her previous position was as a Family Advocate at the Aetna Foundation Children's Center in Hartford, CT. She served as Chair of their MDT and has been a member of the CT Children's Alliance (NCA state chapter) since its inception. Ms. Gallagher has offered training and workshops on Child Sexual Abuse, Non-offending Caretakers, the Child Advocacy Center model, Victim/Family Advocacy Programs, Cultural Diversity, and Domestic Violence to a variety of professionals. She co-developed a curriculum for Non-offending Caretakers on Child Sexual Abuse, which she facilitated for six years. In addition, Ms. Gallagher is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC); a member of CT National Association of Social Workers (NASW), and board member of the Connecticut's Governor's Task Force on Abuse Children among many others.