Learn How Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE) Can Help Families Overcome Their Child’s School Avoidance

  • Date: Wednesday, March 12th

  • Time: 7:30 PM EST Eastern Time (US and Canada)

  • Expert Speaker: Jessie Patton, LCSW

  • Location: Online (Zoom)

  • Duration: 1 hour (25 minutes Presentation and 35 minutes Live Q&A)

Webinar Overview

Does every school morning feel like a battle? If your child is struggling with school avoidance—experiencing anxiety, stomachaches, tears, or outright refusal—you’re not alone. Watching your child struggle can be heartbreaking, leaving you feeling frustrated, helpless, and unsure of what to do next. But there is hope, and proven strategies can help.

Join us for an exclusive Ask the Expert session with Jessie Patton, LCSW, a leading child and family therapist at Child & Family Associates of Greater Washington (CFA). She’ll introduce Supportive Parenting for Anxious Childhood Emotions (SPACE)—a groundbreaking, evidence-based approach designed to help families navigate and overcome school avoidance.

What You’ll Learn:

  • The science behind school avoidance: Understand why some children develop intense anxiety around school and how avoidance behaviors become reinforced.

  • The core principles of SPACE: Learn how this structured, research-backed approach helps parents reduce their child’s anxiety and foster independence—without pressure, force, or coercion.

  • How to balance support and accommodation: Many well-intended parental responses to anxiety actually reinforce avoidance. Discover how SPACE shifts the dynamic to empower your child while maintaining a loving, supportive connection.

  • Real-world success stories: Hear how families have successfully used SPACE strategies to help their children return to school with confidence.

  • Practical takeaways for home and school: Gain actionable tools to start making changes immediately, whether you’re a parent, teacher, or school professional.

Meet our Guests

Jessie Patton

LCSW

Jessie Patton, LCSW is a clinical social worker specializing in school avoidance, anxiety, ADHD, OCD, and more. She played a key role in developing the School Refusal Program at Dominion Hospital and has since focused on SPACE therapy, helping parents create lasting change for their children.

Who Should Attend?

This webinar is designed for:

  • Parents of children struggling with school anxiety and avoidance

  • Educators looking for effective strategies to support students with anxiety

  • School professionals (counselors, administrators, and support staff) seeking evidence-based interventions to help students return to the classroom

Why Attend?

  • Gain practical tools to help children overcome school avoidance

  • Understand how to provide effective support without reinforcing anxiety

  • Learn from an experienced expert with real-world success stories

  • Get the chance to ask questions and receive guidance in a supportive setting

Secure Your Spot Today

Don’t miss this opportunity to gain valuable insights and practical strategies to support your child’s education and emotional well-being.

© Copyright 2022 School Avoidance Alliance. All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: This site is designed by School Avoidance Alliance to assist parents, family, friends, caregivers, educators, advocates, and other professionals involved with helping children and finding resources to understand, help and cope with school avoidance, as well as to increase public awareness regarding school avoidance. The contents of this website are presented for informational and educational purposes only. Nothing on this website is to be construed as professional advice on medical, legal, technical, or therapeutic matters. By accessing and using the information on this site, you agree to waive any rights to hold the site developer(s), or any individual and/or group associated with this site, liable for any damage that may result from the use of the information presented.