Description

Upon completion of this conference, participants will be able to:

1. Identify key systemic and cultural barriers that limit mental health access and continuity of care for Latino youth.
2. Examine how culturally responsive institutional practices influence clinical engagement, trust, and treatment outcomes for Latino youth and their families.

 

Presenter Bio:

Appolonia Barnett, LMSW, CSW-I, is a Doctoral Candidate in Clinical Social Work at the University of Kentucky College of Social Work. She holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Kentucky and a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Hawaiʻi Pacific University. Appolonia currently serves as a school social worker in a Title I middle school in Las Vegas, Nevada, while also practicing as a clinical social work intern providing outpatient therapy in a private practice setting.

Appolonia’s professional background includes crisis intervention, child welfare, school based mental health services, and clinical practice with children, adolescents, families, and couples. Her work is grounded in systems theory, trauma-informed care, motivational interviewing, and culturally responsive practice. She brings extensive experience working with marginalized and underserved populations, particularly youth impacted by structural inequities.

Her doctoral capstone project focuses on improving culturally competent mental health access for Latino youth through the development of a Cultural Accountability Model that integrates Latinx critical theory, ecological systems theory, and trauma-informed frameworks. Her research interests include culturally responsive mental health practice, diagnostic equity, and the ethical application of clinical frameworks within historically marginalized communities. She was recently elected to the Board of the Nevada School Social Work Association, where she contributes to advancing professional advocacy and practice standards.

Her scholarly work is oriented toward bridging theory, practice, and applied knowledge dissemination within systems serving marginalized communities.

 

Delivery Method: Live Interactive Training via Zoom Video Conferencing

Credit Hours: 1.0 (ACE)

Target Audience: This conference is intended for social workers and students.

Accreditation: University of Kentucky College of Social Work, Provider # 1377, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 9/29/25-9/29/28. Social workers participating in this conference will receive up to 15 general continuing education credits.

Claiming CE Credit: Instructions for claiming CE credit will be disseminated at the beginning of each session.

Questions: If you have any questions regarding CE credit or to report a grievance, please contact Christina Krantz at Christina.Krantz@uky.edu. For technical assistance, please contact lmshelp@uky.edu.

 

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in these presentations are those of the individual presenters and do not necessarily reflect the official policies or positions of the University of Kentucky or the College of Social Work. The inclusion of any topics, perspectives, or discussions is intended for academic engagement and does not constitute endorsement by the institution.