Wednesday, May 21, 2014, 7:00 p.m. at The Savings Bank Theater, Wakefield High School. Tickets are $5 at the door. 

Back by popular demand! Rick Irving, MSW, a social worker who has extensive experience working with children, adolescents, and families, and our keynote speaker for Wakefield Parent University will discuss: 

• Adolescent development;
• Communication strategies to use and/or avoid when talking with your adolescent;
• Signs and symptoms of stress and depression in adolescents;
• Healthy and maladaptive coping skills and defenses of adolescents;
• Strategies parents and teachers can use to help teens and tweens develop the self-esteem skills necessary to navigate safely toward maturity; and
• Questions and concerns you have about your own child or student.

This presentation is being co-sponsored by Wakefield Parent Partnership and Wakefield Unified Prevention Coalition (WAKE-UP). Recommended for parents of kids ages 9 and older.

Rick Irving is a clinical social worker with over 37 years experience working with children, families, and schools.  He most recently presented the keynote lecture for Wakefield Parent University on “Raising Confident, Competent Children in a Culture of Pressure.”  He has worked for many years in the Andover public schools, maintained a private practice that is currently located in Winchester, and presented at conferences in Massachusetts and overseas.  He has also consulted to schools in Brussels, Amsterdam, Madrid, and Rome.