As you know everything is different this year, including the LACPA Convention. It will be held virtually via Zoom on Saturday, October 17, 2020, and the sessions will be recorded. That was always a request from our attendees… “There are too many great presentations to choose from, I want to attend them all!”
If all goes well, you will now have your wish!
Cheryl Kempinsky, Ph.D.
PSY 13481
(310) 724-8718

LACPA's 2020 Award Honorees
Awards presentation will be available during the lunch break between
Session II and Session III approximately 1:15-2:15 PM

Distinguished Service to the Community, Diversity, or Social Justice
James Incorvaia, Ph.D.
Distinguished Service to LACPA by a LACPA Member
Lynne Steinman, Ph.D.

Distinguished Service to LACPA by a Graduate Student
Bennie Harris, B.A.

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Session I
2.0 CE Credits
8:30 -10:30 a.m.
Addressing Sexuality Concerns of College-Age Men
Course Level: Advanced
In the era of #MeToo, women are finding platforms to reclaim their sexual rights and collective power. However, what is happening for men, specifically college-aged men, as they navigate seas of confusion and defensiveness? This workshop will examine an integration of education and therapy to help male emerging adults and college-age men explore and celebrate their sexualities in responsible ways.

Daniel J. Alonzo, Psy.D., is a California Licensed Psychologist and a California Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist. In addition, he is an AASECT Certified Sex Therapist and Certified Supervisor. In addition to his private practice, he works as a Staff Psychologist in University Counseling Services at California State University, Northridge, specializing in Men’s Issues and Concerns on campus.
Attendees will be able to:
1. Name one characteristic of male “emerging adults” in the current cultural context of the early 21st Century United States.
2. Explain one concern of college-age men as they explore sexuality in an era of heightened awareness of sexual harassment and sexual assault.
3. Explain one way that psychologists and other mental health professionals can invite college-age men into conversations about sexual health, sexual pleasure, and sexual responsibility.
Outline
I. Introduction (3 minutes)
II. Self-Introduction of Presenter, explaining interest and involvement in this topic. (2 minutes)
III. Either a brief case example of a young man in therapy discussing sexuality concerns – or a brief example of an outreach presentation on a college campus to a group of young men. (15 minutes)
IV. An explanation of the objectives to the presentation (2 minutes)
V. A discussion of Emerging Adulthood in the 21st Century as applied to college-age men (15 minutes)
VI. A discussion of the mental health risk factors among college-age men in 2020 (15 minutes)
VII. A listing and discussion of the sexuality concerns of college-age men (30 minutes)
VIII. A discussion of various outreach and therapeutic approaches to addressing sexuality concerns of college-age men (23 minutes)
IX. Question and Answer (15 minutes)
What did you Understand me to Say?:
The Importance of Recognizing Hearing Loss in Older Adults
Course Level: Intermediate
Hearing loss is an epidemic affecting 30-50% of individuals over the age of 65. Undiagnosed hearing loss can negatively impact an individual's social, intellectual, and emotional functioning. The need to clinically assess the existence and role of hearing loss in understanding their symptoms is a critical one.

Alison Freeman, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist in private practice and works half time at California State University, Northridge Counseling Services. Having a severe hearing loss herself, she completed her post-doctorate at UCSF Center on Deafness and has 35 years of experience in providing therapy, consultation, and assessment for individuals with hearing loss across the lifespan.
Attendees will be able to:
1. Learn clinical tools in diagnosing communication issues that may be related to untreated hearing loss in older adults.
2. Increase knowledge of differential diagnoses between misinterpretation or miscommunication due to hearing loss or other comorbid clinical factors i.e. personality disorders, cognitive decline, PTSD, etc.
3. Identify common clinical errors associated with both untreated and diagnosed hearing loss and the effects on communication systems in marriages and families.
COURSE OUTLINE
I. Introduction - Recognizing the magnitude in understanding the epidemic of hearing loss (10 min)
II. Need for Clinical Assessment of Possibility of Hearing Loss (40 min including video)
III. Comorbidity of Hearing Loss (10 min)
IV. Unseen Dangers of Untreated Hearing Loss (10 min)
V. Distinction between personality dynamics vs characteristics of hearing loss (5 min)
VI. Impact of Hearing Loss in Relationships (5 min)
VII. Common Diagnostic and Clinical Errors (10 min)
VII. Case Examples (5 min)
VIII. Clinical Interventions (15 min)
IX. Summary and Resources (5 min)
X. Q and A (10 min)
Imperfect, Beautiful, Loving Relationships that Last
Course Level: Advanced
This interactive workshop is an opportunity to witness how love grows within ordinary and imperfect lives of real couples. The presenter will show clips from a documentary that she and her colleagues filmed of interviews with more than forty couples in satisfactory long-term love relationships. Themes that emerged from the interviews will be discussed.

Nancy Gardner, Ph.D., is certified by the International Center for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT) as an EFT Trainer and Supervisor. She is a co-founder of the Los Angeles Center for EFT. Nancy taught couple therapy for more than a decade at Alliant International University, Los Angeles. She is a past president of LACPA. She has a private practice in Westlake Village where she sees individual adults and couples.
Attendees will be able to:
- Describe how repairing a relationship hurt even after forty years into a marriage helps strengthen a couple’s attachment.
- Describe three ways that couples in long-lasting love relationships discuss how their bonds grew stronger
- Describe ways therapists can incorporate the stories of these couples to help normalize relationship struggles to couples with whom they work.
Outline
Lasting love and why it is good for you 10 minutes
The film: History, goals, recruitment of the couples 10 minutes
Commitment (10 minutes)
Appreciating and supporting differences in partner (10 minutes)
Having a united vision (10 minutes)
Physical affection (10 minutes)
Humor (10 minutes)
Getting through adversity together (10 minutes)
Change over time (10 minutes)
Repairing hurts (10 minutes)
Group discussion of what the group learned from these couples and how it might apply to clinical work with couples 20 minutes
Brain-Based Multidisciplinary Care
Course Level: Intermediate
The talk highlights the science of neuropsychology with a focus on using brain-based data to drive multidisciplinary care. Neuropsychology offers a multidimensional, personalized, and precise characterization of functioning and abilities. Thus, this science allows for individually-tailored multidisciplinary treatment plans in the age of quantified health.

Lev Gottlieb, Ph.D., is a Neuropsychologist and UCLA Assistant Clinical Professor. He assesses children, adolescents, and young adults, and coordinates their care. Dr. Gottlieb also offers Cognitive Style (non-clinical) testing to youth and adults informing decisions on school, work, teams, and wellness. Finally, he co-founded and manages a multidisciplinary clinic and neuroscience technology company with Taylor Kuhn, Ph.D.

Taylor Kuhn, Ph.D., is a Neuropsychologist and UCLA Assistant Professional Neuroscientist. He assesses adults across the lifespan and manages their care. He also conducts a broad array of clinical research primarily involving neuroimaging and neuromodulation techniques. Finally, he co-founded and manages a multidisciplinary clinic and neuroscience technology company with Lev Gottlieb, Ph.D.
Attendees will be able to:
-Describe the brain science of cognitive and psychodiagnostics evaluations
-Describe the multidisciplinary treatment team that integrates neurocognitive and psychodiagnostic conclusions into patient plans and treatment care
-Begin utilizing brain science to understand clients and inform treatment
Outline:
- Opening Introduction (3 minutes)
- Talk Overview (5 minutes)
- Imaging Review: MRI, fMRI & DTI (5 minutes)
- The Brain & Treatment (95 minutes)
- Neurodegenerative Disorders
- Injury and Insult to the brain
- Psychiatric illness treatment driven by neuropsychological evaluations
- Q & A 12 minutes
Bi+ Intimacy: Understanding the Sex and Love Lives of Bisexual, Pansexual, and Non-Monosexual Adults and Adolescents
Course Level: Advanced
More and more people are coming out as bisexual, pansexual, sexually fluid, or queer (or “bi+”), and clinicians may have basic knowledge about terms and definitions. This presentation delves further into bi+ people’s challenges maintaining healthy sexual and romantic relationships with partners of various genders/sexual orientations, whether monogamous or polyamorous.
Mimi Hoang, Ph.D., is a nationally-recognized psychologist, author, and activist specializing in LGBTQ+ intersectionality. Her leadership since the 1990s includes co-founding 3 organizations for bisexual, pansexual, and fluid (AKA "bi+") individuals, multiple publications, and being named “One of the Most Significant Women in the Bisexual Movement.” Currently, Dr. Mimi works as a Staff Psychologist at Loyola Marymount University, Professor at Antioch University, and is the creator of the "Bi on Life" self-empowerment series. www.drmimihoang.com.
Attendees will be able to:
1) Describe unique dynamics bi+ individuals face in relationships with heterosexual men and women, gay men and lesbians, and transgender and nonbinary people.
2) Explain ways biphobia and bi-erasure manifest in sexual and romantic relationships for bi+ individuals
3) List bi-affirmative clinical interventions therapists can use in promoting healthy intimate relationships for bi+ individuals
Course Outline:
- Introduction (5 min)
- Bi+ Basics (20 min)
- Bi+ Women/Girls in Relationships (25 min)
- Bi+ Men/Boys in Relationships (25 min)
- Becoming a Bi-Affirmative Clinician (15 min)
- Case Vignettes (20 min)
- Wrap-Up (10 min)
When Suicide Comes Out of the Blue
Course Level: Advanced
This presentation is designed to identify how the development of hidden cumulative trauma states, manifesting pre-reflectively within family systems, often remains misdiagnosed and untreated. As a result, the unintended consequences of which may lead to the potential emergence of suicidal ideation or completion of the act of suicide.
This workshop may be counted toward the suicide requirement.

Katrina Wood, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist in California and owner of the Wilshire Valley Therapy Centers in Los Angeles. www.wilshirecenter.net. She writes a therapy blog http://drkatrinawood.com/ and specializes in the treatment of adults who have experienced trauma in childhood. She continues postdoc training at the Institute of Contemporary Psychoanalysis and continues to be mentored by Dr. Robert D Stolorow.
Attendees will be able to:
- Recognize how the development of hidden cumulative trauma states over time may create the presence of suicidal ideation, or suicide, resulting from negative, repetitive impactfulness of untreated mental illness, addiction or personality disorders within family systems.
- Identify how the presence and consequences of trauma repetition develops within teens and adults, including painful mental states that manifest from experiences of being “unseen” from an affect-based, inter-subjective model of treatment.
- Analyze the deep impact of shame as it relates to suicidal ideation and suicide. and how to alleviate this entrenched state of existence with affect intersubjective treatment interventions.
Timeline
An overview of how cumulative-trauma leads to suicidal ideation through the lens of affect-misattunement. 30 MINUTES
Communication Styles, Values, and Organizing Principles 20 MINUTES
Present vignette case of Heather J 20 MINUTES
Lack of consistent empathic attunement and contextual meanings 25 MINUTES
Discuss the more subtle signs of danger in the treatment of suicidal ideation 15 MINUTES
The concept of “backlash” 10 MINUTES
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Session II
2.0 CE Credits
11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Treating Neurodevelopmental Disorder-Related Trauma
Course Level: Intermediate
For children with neurodevelopmental disorders, school can be traumatizing. The secondary effects of trauma experienced by these children are frequently more detrimental to learning and development than the primary neurodevelopmental disorder itself. This presentation explains the connection between neurodevelopmental disorders and trauma and provides strategies to address school-related trauma.

Daniel Franklin, Ph.D., holds a Master’s degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a Ph.D. from UCLA in Education. He has over 30 years of experience in education and is the Clinical Director of Franklin Educational Services. Daniel is the author of Helping Your Child with Language-Based Learning Disabilities (2018) and a co-editor of The Los Angeles Psychologist.

Dominique Marinello, M.S., earned her Master’s degree in Psychology and is currently completing her Doctorate in Education at Johns Hopkins University. Dominique is a Child and Adolescent Trauma Certified Professional, has conducted neuropsychology and social psychology research at USC and Harvard University, and currently serves as Director for the Orange County region of Franklin Educational Services, Inc.
Attendees will be able to:
- Describe the connection between neurodevelopmental disorders and school-related trauma.
- Perform a trauma assessment.
- Apply effective strategies to address school-related trauma.
Outline:
5 minutes LACPA Representative Introduction
15 minutes Introduction/Overview of Presentation
10 minutes Gauge familiarity with topic, and the reason why people are attending.
10 minutes A brief overview of the relationship of between neurodevelopmental disorders and trauma.
17 minutes Explain impact of trauma on learning, behavior, development.
10 minutes Discuss why neurodevelopmental disorders and trauma frequently co-occur.
25 minutes Discuss strategies to support children affected by trauma.
18 minutes Group Activities
10 minutes Q&A
Erotic Countertransference: The Radical Search for Truth
Course Level: Advanced
This presentation will focus on how to manage and use erotic energy and what to do in the absence of erotic energy in the therapeutic setting. Through case studies we will parse out the various parts of patient’s selves that are revealed in therapy and speculate on the disavowed selves they keep sequestered.

Alexandra Katehakis, Ph.D., L.M.F.T., is Clinical Director of the Center for Healthy Sex in Los Angeles and faculty for the International Institute of Trauma and Addiction Professionals. Dr. Katehakis’s most recent books include Sexual Reflections: A Workbook for Designing and Celebrating Your Sexual Health Plan (2018) and Sex Addiction As Affect Dysregulation: A Neurobiologically Informed Holistic Treatment (2016).
Attendees will be able to:
- Define working definitions of erotic transference and countertransference
- Describe blind spots where inviting transference and working with countertransference are concerned
- Utilize guidelines for how to effectively use erotic processes in therapy
Timeline
Introduction 5 minutes
I. Role Play #1 related to sexual transference and countertransference 20 minutes
II. Sexualized transference 10 minutes
III. Erotic transference and countertransference 10 minutes
IV. Role Play #2 related to erotic transference and countertransference 20 minutes
V. Managing erotic energy 15 minutes
VI. Signs of erotic transference and countertransference in the therapy 15 minutes
VII. The effect of working with sex and sexuality on the therapist’s sex life 15 minutes
VIII. Questions 10 minutes
Reconceptualizing the First Visit’s Purpose and Power
Course Level: Advanced
Studies since the 1960s continue to confirm that the modal number of care visits new clients pursue is one. Our intake “practices” turn off too many of those seeking care. This workshop teaches how to alter the structure of the encounter to use it to build a robust working alliance.

Arthur Kovacs, Ph.D., has been in independent practice for more than 60 years. He is Founding Campus Dean Emeritus and Distinguished Professor, CSPP, Los Angeles. He has taught or supervised over 1500 members of the profession during the years of his career now scattered everywhere in this country and in many nations abroad. He has served APA in a variety of leadership positions.
Attendees will be able to:
- Shift their conduct from consent procedure and information gathering to delivering meaningful care from the first moment.
- Appreciate the wisdom of offering an initial consultation without cost.
- Use principles of life-span developmental theory and attachment theory to offer initial insights to new clients that help build the evolving working alliance.
Timeline:
- Introduction 3 minutes
- How to respond to the initial call for help 10 minutes
- Managing the first 15’ of the initial visit: empathic contact 15 minutes
- Managing the second 15’ of the initial visit: offering some wisdom 15 minutes
- Managing the final 15’ of the initial visit: joint treatment planning 15 minutes
- Case illustrations of initial visits 35 minutes
- Q and A 27 minutes
Psychologists and Social Security Disability Programs
Course Level: Advanced
Some patients treated by psychologists and other clinicians may become disabled and become eligible for Social Security Disability benefits. The Social Security Disability Administration typically requests records and professional opinions from the various treating providers. This presentation will discuss best practices for clinicians whose patients apply for Social Security benefits.

Randy Noblitt, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist licensed in Texas and professor of clinical psychology at the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University he authored Navigating Social Security Disability Programs: A Handbook for Clinicians and Advocates with spouse Pamela Perskin Noblitt was published in February 2020. He helped develop Disability Psychology, a recently offered CSPP elective.
Pamela Perskin Noblitt, EDPNA, is a non-attorney representing claimants for Social Security Disability Insurance and Supplemental Security Income benefits. She has represented more than 1,200 applicants and co-authored several journal articles, a chapter, and a book, Navigating Social Security Disability Programs: A Handbook for Clinicians and Advocates (2020) with her husband of 50 years, Randy Noblitt, Ph.D.
Attendees will be able to:
- Identify Social Security disability programs and their benefits.
- Clarify the roles that clinicians may have in the disability determination process.
- Prepare progress notes and provide professional opinions consistent with professional ethics and Social Security definitions of disability.
Outline
(Introduction – 5 minutes)
Disability defined according to Social Security (30 minutes)
Psychologist’s role in disability determinations (40 minutes)
Disability determination as a collaborative effort (30 minutes)
Questions (15 minutes)
Creating Closeness at a Distance with Teletherapy
Course Level: Advanced
Click here to view Teletherapy Article by Susan Warren Warshow
COVID-19 has pressured therapists to apply their skills online, yet many believe that a virtual medium limits sensory data and compromises trauma work. This presentation offers another clinical perspective and explores the possibilities to attune to subtle emotional and physiological shifts and build capacity for secure attachment without physical proximity.

Susan Warren Warshow, LCSW, LMFT, is the founder of the Dynamic Emotion Focused Therapy Institute (DEFT). She is an international presenter, a Certified IEDTA Teacher/Supervisor, a faculty member of the ISTDP Institute, and has published several articles in professional journals. She treats individuals and couples in her Woodland Hills private practice, offers clinical supervision, online therapy, coaching, and consultation.
Attendees will learn to:
Reassess common misperceptions of the use of teletherapy in trauma treatment
- Develop an online presence and generate confidence in working electronically
- Engage the therapeutic alliance to attune to nuances in bodily signals, visible and invisible
- Describe key factors that create a healing attachment experience while at a physical distance
Course Outline:
5 min. Introduction
I. Lecture (35 minutes):
a) Does teletherapy limit our ability to track subtle physiological changes?
b) Should the therapist avoid trauma work in teletherapy?
c) How to prepare the client for online interruptions
d) Key factors in creating emotional connection, whether online or in the office
II. Demonstration and analysis of specific therapeutic principles discussed during lecture using live recorded material in teletherapy sessions (60 minutes)
III. Discussion (20 minutes)
Click here to go to top of page. (Programs are subject to change.)

Session III
2.0 CE Credits
2:30 – 4:30 p.m.
Treatment of PTSD: From Assessment to
Virtual Reality
Course Level: Intermediate
Click here for a message from Dr. Rothbaum
The signs and symptoms and associated features and comorbidities of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) will be discussed, with an emphasis on mood disorders. The pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy literatures for PTSD will be succinctly reviewed and discussed, focusing on cognitive-behavioral treatments (CBT), and the various CBT techniques will be briefly described, including virtual reality exposure therapy. Pharmacotherapy and combination pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy treatments for PTSD will be discussed and their impact on mood. Innovations in the treatment of PTSD, including medium of delivery, novel combination treatment, and early interventions will be presented. An intensive outpatient treatment model and pilot data will be presented.

Barbara O. Rothbaum, Ph.D., is Executive Director of the Emory Healthcare Veterans Program and a professor and Associate Vice Chair of Clinical Research at Emory School of Medicine. She is also the Director of the Trauma and Anxiety Recovery Program and holds the Paul A. Janssen Chair in Neuropsychopharmacology. Dr. Rothbaum specializes in research on the treatment of anxiety disorders, particularly PTSD. She has developed, tested, and disseminated some of the most innovative and effective PTSD treatments available, including pioneering virtual reality exposure therapy in the treatment of combat veterans. Dr. Rothbaum has authored over 350 scientific papers and chapters, has published 11 books on the treatment of PTSD, and edited four others on anxiety.
Attendees will be able to:
- Become familiar with the signs and symptoms of Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The audience will learn to recognize PTSD in patients and understand its consequences and common comorbidities, particularly mood disorders.
- Become familiar with various treatments for PTSD, including the description and rational for treatment as well as available data on its efficacy. Interventions will include pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, and cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT). Specific CBT techniques to be covered include prolonged exposure and virtual reality exposure therapy.
- Learn the basics of these interventions and their relative efficacy with PTSD and comorbidities such as mood disorders.
Outline
Introduction 5 minutes
What is PTSD 5 minutes
Exposure Therapy Treatment for PTSD 10 minutes
New Approaches 20 minutes
Pharmacological therapy and Enhancing Exposure Therapy with Pharmacological Agents 15 minutes
Treatment for MST using VR 30 minutes
Timing of Exposure Therapy: Early Intervention 10 minutes
Treatment Schedule: Massed PE treatment - Treatment for PTSD in WCN and Emory Healthcare Veterans Program 10 minutes
Q&A 15 minutes
Dr. Rothbaum's Books
Those who have experienced a traumatic event and are having trouble moving past feelings of fear, shame and guilt, or helplessness may be diagnosed with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Reclaiming Your Life from a Traumatic Experience: A Prolonged Exposure Treatment Program can help readers to overcome and reclaim their lives from PTSD.
https://www.amazon.com/Reclaiming-Your-Life-Traumatic-Experience/dp/0190926899/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=barbara+rothbaum&qid=1598287889&s=books&sr=1-1
2nd Edition
https://www.amazon.com/Prolonged-Exposure-Therapy-PTSD-Experiences/dp/0190926937/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=barbara+rothbaum&qid=1598287928&s=books&sr=1-2
https://www.amazon.com/Prolonged-Exposure-Intensive-Outpatient-Programs/dp/0190081929/ref=sr_1_7?dchild=1&keywords=barbara+rothbaum&qid=1598287936&s=books&sr=1-7

https://www.amazon.com/PTSD-What-Everyone-Needs-Know%C2%AE/dp/0190930365/ref=sr_1_6?dchild=1&keywords=barbara+rothbaum&qid=1598287936&s=books&sr=1-6
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Convention Rates
Early Registration ends 10/2/20
Registration ends 10/12/20
Online Registration
Live session selections will need to
be made at time of registration.
Changes can be made up to 10/12 if space is available.
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LACPA Member Registration
Max 6.0 Live CEs plus one recorded On-Demand Convention program up to 8 CEs
PURCHASE BY
10/2 / 10/12
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Non-Member Registration
Max 6.0 Live CEs
PURCHASE BY
10/2 / 10/12
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Per Session Registration
Only want one or two programs not the whole package?
PURCHASE BY
10/2 / 10/12
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LACPA Member
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$160 / $175
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$55 / $60
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LACPA Early Career Member
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$120 / $135
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$45 / $50
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LACPA Post-Doc/Pre-Licensed, Student, or Disabled Member No CE Credits
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$20 / $20
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$20 / $20
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Non-Member
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$180 / $195
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$65 / $70
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Non-Member Student (Pre-Doctoral) must submit proof of student status NO CE Credits
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$35 / $35
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$35 / $35
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Registration ends Monday, October 12, 2020
Any questions contact the LACPA office via email [email protected]
Cancellation Policy: To receive a refund, a written request must be received by the Monday preceding the program. Refunds will be processed within 30 days. A $35 processing fee is deducted from all refunds. Should it become necessary to cancel a course, those who have registered will be notified in writing, and the full course fee will be refunded. Programs are subject to change.
The Los Angeles County Psychological Association (LACPA) is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists.
LACPA maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
This presentation may be taken to satisfy the California Board of Behavioral Sciences (BBS) continuing education requirements.