Keystone Crisis Intervention Team 2022 Virtual Conference Sept 13-14

NOVA has announced that its Keystone Crisis Intervention Team (KCIT) will hold their 2022 Virtual Conference on September 13-14, 2022.The event is free, virtual and the theme for this year’s conference isHealing is a Social Equation.TheKCITconsistsof trained volunteers acrossPennsylvaniawho respond to individuals and communities impacted by serious crimes.The conference aims to explore healing from the standpoint of human beings’ interdependence and social nature to support each other in aftermath of these types of events. To register, visit:https://www.kcitpa.org/conference/.

The conference will feature 24 speakers and 20 workshops. The keynote speakers are:

• Nakita Valerio, September 13, 10:30 a.m. Valerio is a writer, researcher, and Muslim community organizer based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Sheserves as an advisor and research fellow to the Chester Ronning Center for the Study ofReligion and Public Life at the University of Alberta and is the sponsor for the Fatima Al-Fihri Graduate Award in Islamic Studies.After the Christchurch Mosque massacre in New Zealand, Valerio posted the following message on Facebook that has since continued to go viral, "Shouting 'self-care' at people who need 'community care' is how we fail people."She will discuss the viral post and will offer a research and experience-based look at the future of community care for all.

• Travis Heath, September 14, 10:30 a.m. Heath is a licensed psychologist and an Associate Professor at San Diego State University where he serves as Chair of the Department of Counseling & School Psychology. He has been involved in the shift from a multicultural approach to counseling to one of cultural democracy that invites people to heal in mediums in which they are culturally familiar. Heath will talk about the phrase “self-care” as it related to trauma and how it has inadvertently led to an individualist way of working with people in distress, since it places the responsibility on the traumatized person to “get better”. Heath will discuss the possibilities that can emerge when the shift is from an individualistic methodology to one that takes into account the ideas, knowledge, and practices of the community.

KCITis a state-wide resource that is offered by NOVA to help people and communities as they work through and heal from traumatic events and serious crimes. Upon request,KCIT will provide trained volunteers to serve a community affected by a crime such as a school or mall shooting.To request KCIT services, call the 24-hour toll-free hotline 1-855-SOS-KCIT/1-855-767-5248.To become a KCIT volunteer, contact the KCIT coordinator at 215-343-6543 or email at info@kcitpa.org.

About NOVA
NOVA supports, counsels and empowers victims of sexual assault and other serious crimes in Bucks County and works to prevent and eliminate violence in society through advocacy, training, community education and prevention programs. Founded in 1974, NOVA is a non-profit 501(c)(3), community-based organization operating out of three offices in Fairless Hills, Jamison and Perkasie. Services are made possible through the financial support of federal, state and local government grants and contracts, corporations, foundations and private donations. All contributions are tax deductible to the extent provided by law. For more information, visit www.NOVABucks.org.

About KCIT
KCIT is a state-wide resource offered through NOVA, developed to assist individuals and communities as they process and heal from serious crimes. Keystone Crisis Intervention Team (KCIT) supports crime victims and communities throughout Pennsylvania in their recovery from traumatic events.

KCIT strives to provide all communities throughout Pennsylvania with access to timely, competent and caring support from appropriately trained KCIT volunteers following a traumatic event. Their core values include: compassion, quality, responsiveness, collaboration and volunteerism. For more information about KCIT, visit www.kcitpa.org.