Supporting Children, Teens and Young Adults

In this introductory course, Dougy Center offers an enriching grief education curriculum addressing how to support children, teens, and young adults who are grieving. This course provides a class bundle of 7 grief education classes! In addition to learning about loss and grief for children, teens, and young adults, you will have access to classes such as Becoming Grief-Informed, Grief Myths & Misconceptions, and Parents/Caregivers & Grief. 

This self-paced course can be accessed anytime (24 hours a day, 7 days a week) and completed in your own timeframe. Each of the 7 classes will take approximately an hour to complete depending on your pace. The estimated time to complete the course is 7.5 hours. You can stop and resume your work at any point in a class. When you successfully finish the course, a Certificate of Completion will be issued to you within a week.

Pricing & Promotions

Dougy Center is pleased to offer discounts to students and Community Partners trained by Dougy Center.

Classes Included in This Course

  • Class 1: Becoming Grief-Informed

    Becoming Grief-Informed, students are introduced to disparities and biases in grief education, practice and policies, and the ten core principles of grief-informed practice.

  • Class 2: Grief Myths & Misconceptions

    Grief Myths and Misconceptions, students unpack three common myths about grief and explore alternatives to the everyday grief response, “I’m sorry.”

  • Class 3: The Youngest Grievers

    The Youngest Grievers, students learn how to support preschool-age children, explore developmentally appropriate activities for young children who are grieving, and hear from two young children who are grieving the death of their father.

  • Class 4: Children & Grief

    Children and Grief, students learn how children talk about and express grief. Students also learn 12 essential tips for supporting children who are grieving.

  • Class 5: Teens & Grief

    Teens and Grief, students hear teens talk about grief and learn what to do (and not do) when teens are grieving.

  • Class 6: Young Adults & Grief

    Young Adults and Grief, students hear from a young adult who talks about the sudden death of her mother and learn what young adults have to say about grief and ways to support them.

  • Class 7: Parents/Caregivers & Grief

    Parents/Caregivers and Grief, students learn how to support parents who are grieving and hear two caregivers discuss the challenges and experiences of parenting children after their spouse’s death.

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Meet Our Grief Educators

Chief Innovation Officer

Monique Mitchell, PhD, FT

Monique B. Mitchell, PhD, FT is a nationally recognized authority on children, teens, and young adults who are grieving in foster care, and is the National Director of the L.Y.G.H.T. program. Dr. Mitchell has trained and researched extensively on the lived experience of children and youth in the foster care system, taught undergraduate and graduate courses on loss and grief, and developed youth-centered curricula. She is the author of The Neglected Transition: Building a Relational Home for Children Entering Foster Care (Oxford University Press, 2016), co-author of The Dougy Center Model: Peer Grief Support for Children, Teens, and Families (Dougy Center, 2021), among other publications. She has worked directly with children, youth, and young adults who have been impacted by death and non-death losses in Canada, Honduras, and the United States.

Senior Director of Advocacy & Education

Donna Schuurman, EdD, FT

Donna L. Schuurman, EdD, FT previously served as Dougy Center’s Executive Director from 1991–2015 and is an internationally recognized authority on grief and bereaved children, teens, and families, and the author of Never the Same: Coming to Terms with the Death of a Parent (St. Martin’s Press, 2003), co-author of The Dougy Center Model: Peer Grief Support for Children, Teens, and Families (Dougy Center, 2021), among other publications. Dr. Schuurman has worked directly with families and communities impacted by large-scale tragedies and natural disasters, including as a trainer for the FBI and National Transportation Safety Board family assistance staff. She is a national trainer for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, and co-authored Children, Teens, and Suicide Loss, a joint publication of AFSP and Dougy Center.

Director of Training and Program Equity

Cristina Chipriano, LCSW-S

Cristina M. Chipriano, LCSW-S, has been in the field of childhood bereavement since 2015. Her work has focused on overseeing the programming for and outreach to historically marginalized children, teens and families. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in the states of Oregon and Texas. She currently contributes to the National Alliance for Children’s Grief Membership Committee, and the Multnomah County Youth Suicide Prevention Coalition, among others. Her previous roles include serving as a grief professional for Sesame Street Community Grief Project, she served on the Board of Directors of the National Alliance for Children’s Grief and the Executive Board of Latino Social Workers of Greater Houston.

Start Your Journey

Learn how to support children, teens and young adults who are grieving.

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