News

The Services for Teens at Risk (STAR)-Center is a nationally recognized suicide prevention program that combines clinical and outreach services designed to combat the problem of child and adolescent suicide. 

The STAR-Center annual conference presents best practices in clinical care incorporated into practical guidelines, and this year addressed the theme Creating Partnerships for Just and Inclusive Schools. “The 2025 STAR-Center Conference brought together over 500 individuals committed to addressing the urgent need to enhance suicide prevention efforts for young people. We are grateful to the keynote speakers and workshop presenters who shared their time and expertise, providing attendees with practical strategies to bring back to their schools, clinics, and communities to support at-risk youth,” said Tina Goldstein, PhD (Pittsburgh Foundation Endowed Professor in Psychiatry Research and Director, STAR-Center).

Keynote Speakers

Marisa Marraccini, PhD, NCSP (Donald and Justeen Tarbet Distinguished Scholar and Associate Professor of School Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill), presented a keynote address entitled “Innovative Approaches for Improving the Transition from Hospitals to Schools.” Dr. Marraccini presented ways to support adolescents returning to school following a suicide-related crisis, exploring adolescent, care provider, school professional, and hospital professional perceptions to inform guidelines for school reintegration.

Rachel Vaughn-Coaxum, PhD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), and James Huguley, PhD (Associate Professor, University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work), presented work entitled “The SIRCH (System for Integrated Restorative Change) for Trauma-responsive School-based Care: Empowering students through intensive mental health support in the Just Discipline Project.” SIRCH is designed to reduce racialized educational disparities in harsh and exclusionary discipline practices in schools, which result in poor behavioral, social, and academic outcomes. Dr. Huguley presented the foundational model and its impact to date, and Dr. Vaughn-Coaxum discussed the development of the trauma-responsive tier of intensive mental health support, designed to promote emotion regulation and effective strategies for coping with stress, structural inequity, and biases in the school setting.

Skill Development Workshops

Ligia Antezana, PhD (postdoctoral scholar) presented a workshop on suicidal thoughts, behaviors, and self-injury in autistic people.

Candice Biernesser, PhD, LCSW (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry), facilitated a workshop entitled “Social Media, Chatbots, AI and Adolescents: Current Trends in Digital Technology Use and Considerations for Adolescents’ Mental Health.”

Traci Kennedy, PhD (Assistant Professor of Psychiatry) presented a workshop on attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in adolescence.

Dara Sakolsky, MD, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry), and Kelsey Bero, LPC, NCC (Behavioral Health Therapist – STAR-Center), presented a workshop entitled “Socializing with Social Anxiety: Using an Evidence-Based Approach in Group Therapy.”

Additional workshops included:

• Caring for Our Future (Courtney Abegunde, MA – Steel Smiling)
• Addressing Cultural Barriers to Treatment: How to Be Respectfully Curious When Working with Families (James Russell, MSCP, NCC, LPC – UPMC Center for Children and Families and Brittany Weaver, LMFT, LPC, NCC - UPMC WBH Center for Children and Families)
• Suicidality Screening in the School Setting: Risk Assessment and Safety Planning for Students (Mackenzie Osborn, MSCP, LPC – STAR-Center)
• Successful Transition to Early Adulthood Milestones (STEAM) Program (Erin Belback, MS, LPC - Research Operations Coordinator, UPMC, CABS, STAR, Co-STAR)
• Schools and Providers Working Together: Helping Students Succeed (Sara Goodyear, MSEd, LPC, NCC – A.W. Beattie Career Center)
• Collaborating with Colleges and Universities on Safety Planning for Transitional Age Youth (Salena Binning, LCSW – STAR-Center)
• Supporting Youth After the Traumatic Loss of a Peer by Suicide (Kelly Monk, BSN, RN– UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital and Hanna Gozzard – STAR-Center)