The Invisible Kids: From Care to Criminalization – Rethinking Care and Justice Through a Developmental Conditions Lens

Gaslighting in Intimate Partner Violence (IPV)
September 27, 2026

 

When:
Tuesday, November 10th, 2026
10:00am-12:00pm Eastern

Where:
Zoom

Registration:

Free general registration

For Continuing Education: $35


Register Here:

Register for Conference

Following registration, you will be sent the zoom link.


Continuing Education Registration:

Request CE Credits

For payment for CEs:

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About:

Children and youth involved in both the child welfare and youth justice systems, often referred to as crossover youth, are among the most vulnerable and frequently overlooked young people in our communities. Drawing on the Care or Criminalization? work undertaken through The Sonor Foundation in Ontario, Canada, this presentation will examine how children’s experiences of trauma, instability, disrupted relationships, unmet needs, and system responses can create pathways from care into criminalization and justice involvement. Particular attention will be given to how behaviors rooted in adversity may be interpreted and managed in ways that escalate rather than support children and youth.

Using a developmental conditions lens, the presentation will explore how relationships, placement stability, belonging, service access, organizational practices, policies, and cross-system responses can either increase vulnerability or serve as protective conditions that alter developmental trajectories. Key findings and lessons from the work will be used to identify opportunities for prevention, early intervention, and systems transformation across child welfare, mental health, education, policing, and youth justice. Ultimately, the presentation asks how we can make these “invisible kids” more visible and create conditions that support healing, stability, connection, and better long-term outcomes.

Learning Objectives:

Upon completion of this conference, participants will be able to:

  1. Identify key pathways and system responses that contribute to the criminalization of children and youth involved in child welfare.
  2. Describe how developmental conditions and protective factors can shape trajectories toward or away from justice involvement.
  3. Apply a developmental conditions lens to identify prevention, early intervention, and systems transformation opportunities across child- and youth-serving systems.
Leena Augimeri, PhD_Headshot_Aug_2026_B

Leena K. Augimeri, PhD

Senior Fellow, The Sonor Foundation, Toronto, Canada & Co-Founder of SNAP

Dr. Leena K. Augimeri is a scientist-practitioner and Senior Fellow with The Sonor Foundation. For more than 40 years, her work has advanced children’s mental health, violence prevention, early intervention, youth justice, risk assessment, and evidence-based practice. She is co-founder of the evidence-based SNAP model and chaired Ontario’s Youth Justice Task Force.

References:

  1. Augimeri, L.K. (2026). CARE OR CRIMINALIZATION? How system design shapes whether children and youth at heightened risk of adverse outcomes receive support or become involved in the justice system. The Sonor Foundation: Toronto, Canada.
  2. Edwards, T., Laylor, A., King, B., & Parada, H. (2023). When home reminds me of jail: The carceral nature of out-of-home care for Black youth in Ontario’s child welfare system. Children and Youth Services Review, 155, 107309. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2023.107309
  3. Finlay, J., Scully, B., Eaton-Kent, M., Farrell, T.-R., Dicks, P., & Salerno, J. (2019). Cross-Over Youth Project: Navigating Quicksand. Cross-Over Youth Project. https://coyproject.ca
  4. Maguire, D., May, K., McCormack, D., et al. (2024). A systematic review of the impact of placement instability on emotional and behavioural outcomes among children in foster care. Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 17, 641–655.
  5. Paterson-Young, C., Corrales, T., Warren, I., & McNamara, P. (2024). Impact of trauma and placement in residential or congregate care on the criminalisation of children in England/Wales and Australia. Children and Youth Services Review, 166, 107947.

 

Other References:

  1. Baglivio, M. T., Wolff, K. T., Howell, J. C., Jackowski, K., & Greenwald, M. A. (2018). The search for the holy grail: Criminogenic needs matching, intervention dosage, and subsequent recidivism among serious juvenile offenders in residential placement. Journal of Criminal Justice, 55, 46–57. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2018.02.001
  2. Bonnie, N., & Facey, K. (2022). Understanding the over-representation of Black children in Ontario child welfare services (Ontario Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect 2018). One Vision One Voice, Ontario Association of Children’s Aid Societies. https://www.oacas.org/onevisiononevoice
  3. Pinheiro, M., Magalhães, E., Calheiros, M. M., & Macdonald, D. (2024). Quality of relationships between residential staff and youth: A systematic review. Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal, 41(4), 561–576.

 

CE BROKER COURSE 20-1408071

  • All CEs require additional steps during registration including a pre-training survey, a $35 fee, and an evaluation form returned to us following the training.

Continuing Education (CE) information:

  • 2 CE for Psychologists through APA.
  • 2 CE for School Psychologists through NASP.
    *Florida License Only
  • 2 Credit Hours provided for LCSW, LMHC & LMFT in the State of Florida only.

*Upon request, The Melissa Institute will provide a certificate of completion that can be self-reported to other state boards. We cannot guarantee that it will be accepted by other boards for approval.

The Melissa Institute is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists and maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

Important Disclosure:

None of the planners or presenters of this educational activity have any relevant financial relationships to disclose with ineligible companies, defined as those whose primary business is producing, marketing, selling, re-selling, or distributing healthcare products used by or on patients.

For the purposes of this disclosure, financial relationships are considered relevant when the content an individual can control is related to the business lines or products of such ineligible companies.

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