Professional Training Program
Judge Baker Children's Center is a nationally recognized institution providing professional training that has developed leaders in the field of mental health and special education for nearly 100 years. We work with both students and established professionals in the fields of psychology, social work, early childhood, special education, psychiatry, nursing, and mental health counseling to learn and apply the principles of evidence based practice. Our approach to professional training helps improve the quality of services for children and their families by developing trainees into outstanding professionals.
Judge Baker offers several different training opportunities for professionals:
Community Training Program
In connection with our Quality Care Initiative, Judge Baker collaborates with other service provider organizations, state agencies, schools, and institutions to assist in workforce development trainings. We can help organizations enhance the skills of their providers through multiple evidence-based practices and structured quality improvement strategies. We can provide training in a range of evidence-based practices and programs in multiple settings (e.g., home, school, outpatient).
The Judge Baker Training in the Community Program focuses extensively on the application of adult learning principles and use of ongoing consultation to effectively introduce evidence-based practices to an organization's workforce. We work with individuals and groups of clinicians to provide consultation on their own cases, monitor trainee progress, and analyze outcomes to evaluate progress.
Our expert staff and affiliates specialize in training professionals in:
- The Modular Approach to Therapy for Children with Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, or Conduct Problems (MATCH-ADTC), an evidence based treatment for children ages 6-15 with emotional or behavioral challenges;
- Parent Child Interaction Therapy (PCIT), an evidence-based treatment for young children (ages birth-6) with emotional and behavioral disorders that places emphasis on improving the quality of the parent-child relationship and changing parent-child interaction patterns; and
- Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), an evidence-based treatment for children and adolescents impacted by trauma and their parents or caregivers. Click here to access the web-based resource TF-CBTWeb, also click here to review the CEU statement pertaining to the online course.
- Family Talk, an online course developed to train clinicians to use a family-based intervention for families with a depressed parent.
Trainee-in-Residence Program
In collaboration with our multiple direct service programs, Judge Baker offers distinctive experiences for trainees seeking professional development and training in evidence-based practices. We offer volunteer, practicum, internship, and fellowship opportunities for students enrolled in graduate training programs as well as established professionals who are interested in re-specializing.
Using a competency-based learning strategy, trainees spend a year or more embedded in our direct service programs building advanced skills to help children succeed. The foundation of the Judge Baker competency-based Training Program includes:
- The application of scientific evidence to practice
- A focus on the importance of interpersonal interactions
- Sound understanding of ethical and legal professional decisions
- Strong emphasis on individual and cultural diversity in all service delivery
As they develop competency in these foundational areas, Judge Baker trainees gain experience in assessment, treatment planning, intervention strategies, consultation services, supervisory skills, and the application of implementation science.
For more information or to apply for one of our current trainee-in-residence program openings, visit our Training Positions page.
For more information, please contact:
Daniel Cheron, Ph.D., ABPP
Director, Professional Training Program
Phone: 617-278-4265 or EMAIL
Child Mental Health Forum
The Child Mental Health Forum is one of the longest continuously running lecture series in the country.
Forum presenters are renowned clinical, research, and academic leaders in child and adolescent mental health.
The Forum aims to provide intellectually stimulating information on scientific advances and evidence supporting clinical practice and research.
Clinical Research Training Program
The Clinical Research Training Program (CRTP), originally founded by legendary scientist Stuart T. Hauser, MD, Ph.D., has been in operation for 35 years. It is distinguished by its commitment to multi-disciplinary training, including that of outstanding students drawn from a spectrum of sciences relevant to clinical psychiatry research. Student fields range from basic biological brain research, to family studies, to longitudinal developmental studies of psychopathology and resilience.
Doctoral Psychology Internship Program
Judge Baker Children’s Center has a long history of training influential professionals in the field of children’s mental health. The original doctoral psychology internship was started at Judge Baker in 1949 and became one of the oldest internships accredited by the APA seven years later in 1956. In 1998, a change in institutional priorities at Judge Baker resulted in the transferring of the internship program to the leadership at Boston Children’s Hospital, where it continues today. However, Judge Baker has renewed its commitment to offering pre-doctoral training for professionals in psychology and initiated a new independent internship program in 2017.
