Technical Assistance Series
Fall/Winter 2026 SeriesProgram Overview
The Massachusetts Child and Adolescent Assessment Protocol (M-CAAP) is a comprehensive assessment framework and protocol supporting developmentally informed assessment and case formulation. The M-CAAP is used across Massachusetts and in sites nationally.
We’re happy to present our Fall/Winter 2026 Technical Assistance Series, practice- and utilization-focused seminars on key topics in comprehensive assessment. These seminars are perfect for anyone already assessing children and youth with problematic sexual behavior, anyone on the receiving end of these assessments in residential treatment, child welfare, juvenile justice, and K-12 school settings, and the assessment-curious!
This series is brought to you free of cost thanks to financial support from Childhood USA/The World Childhood Foundation.
Each workshop in the series has been submitted for 1.5 units of continuing education credit for LMFT, LMHC, MSW, and Psychology. Approvals are pending.
Dates & Topics
November 19, 2026 | 3-4:30pm
Writing Case Formulations for Utilization with Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
November 30, 2026 | 12-1:30pm
Too Much, Too Little, or Just Right? Navigating Information Needs in Comprehensive Assessment with Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
December 16, 2026 | 3-4:30pm
What Do I Do With This?: Making Comprehensive Assessment Recommendations Work in the Real World with Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
Writing Case Formulations for Utilization
Presenter: Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
One of the benefits of comprehensive assessment is the ability to use the assessment for individualized treatment planning, case management, effective referrals, and communication with stakeholders in a young person’s care. And, one of the most time-consuming parts of comprehensive assessment is moving beyond writing an executive summary of the case history and supporting documents to tell a story about who a child is, their resources and limitations, and what they need. Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC will take participants through the format of effective case formulation, tools and strategies for organizing an effective case formulation, and examples of how to approach common issues in your case write-ups.
Learning objectives:
- Differentiate between a summary of case history and a clinically meaningful case formulation that integrates assessment findings to develop a developmentally informed understanding of the young person, including their strengths, resources, vulnerabilities, and needs.
- Apply structured formats, tools, and strategies to organize assessment information into a cohesive, individualized case formulation that identifies clinically relevant patterns and informs an understanding of the young person’s needs.
- Translate assessment findings into actionable recommendations for individualized treatment planning, case management, referrals, and communication with key stakeholders involved in the young person’s care.
About Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC
Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC is the Director of Assessment and Research at the Whitney Academy in East Freetown, MA. He has over 40 years of clinical experience treating children, adolescents, and their families working extensively with sexually and physically aggressive youth. Over the past 30 years, his primary focus has been on issues of trauma and attachment difficulties, especially regarding the impact of trauma on behavior. Kevin has authored several articles and book chapters on the neuro-developmental impact of trauma on sexual behavior problems and harmful sexual behavior. He was also a contributing writer to the ATSA Adolescent Treatment Guidelines and the ATSA Child and Adolescent Committee’s paper on Children with Sexual Behavior Problems 2nd Edition.
Mr. Creeden has served as the board Chair of MASOC, the president of the Massachusetts chapter of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC), a Teaching Fellow at Boston College, an Instructor in Psychology at the Harvard Medical School, and a guest faculty at the Boston University School of Social Work and the Simmons School of Social Work. Mr. Creeden trains and consults nationally and internationally to youth service, community mental health, and forensic service programs.
November 30, 2026 | 12:00 – 1:30 PM ET
Too Much, Too Little, or Just Right? Navigating Information Needs in Comprehensive Assessment
Presenter: Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
For anyone who has done more than a few assessments of children and youth with harmful sexual behaviors, you have likely encountered polar opposite situations with regard to your underlying materials. Some files arrive in your inbox bursting at the digital seams with incident reports, family histories, test results spanning years, and a lengthy list of caregivers and collateral stakeholders to speak to. Others arrive with so little information you wonder where to begin your assessment process. This seminar will explore how to look at where the child is, contextually and developmentally, to understand where further information is needed, what family members and care partners to talk to first, and whether additional testing or evaluation is needed or needs updating.
Learning objectives:
- Evaluate available assessment materials to identify relevant developmental, family, relational, and contextual information, as well as gaps that may impact clinical understanding of the child or adolescent.
- Prioritize additional information-gathering activities based on the young person’s developmental presentation, assessment needs, and available history, including identifying key collateral contacts, family members, and care partners to engage.
- Determine when additional testing, updated evaluations, or consultation with other professionals is warranted to support a comprehensive, developmentally-informed assessment and individualized case formulation.
About Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC
Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC is the Director of Assessment and Research at the Whitney Academy in East Freetown, MA. He has over 40 years of clinical experience treating children, adolescents, and their families working extensively with sexually and physically aggressive youth. Over the past 30 years, his primary focus has been on issues of trauma and attachment difficulties, especially regarding the impact of trauma on behavior. Kevin has authored several articles and book chapters on the neuro-developmental impact of trauma on sexual behavior problems and harmful sexual behavior. He was also a contributing writer to the ATSA Adolescent Treatment Guidelines and the ATSA Child and Adolescent Committee’s paper on Children with Sexual Behavior Problems 2nd Edition.
Mr. Creeden has served as the board Chair of MASOC, the president of the Massachusetts chapter of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC), a Teaching Fellow at Boston College, an Instructor in Psychology at the Harvard Medical School, and a guest faculty at the Boston University School of Social Work and the Simmons School of Social Work. Mr. Creeden trains and consults nationally and internationally to youth service, community mental health, and forensic service programs.
What Do I Do With This?: Making Comprehensive Assessment Recommendations Work in the Real World
Presenter: Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC
For non-clinical professionals in child welfare, juvenile justice, education settings, and even for families and caregivers whose young person is being assessed, it can be challenging to know where to start when you receive a comprehensive assessment report. Systems have limited resources, waitlists for services and placements are long, and families and caregivers are tied up in the day-to-day grind of just trying to care for one or more children. A good comprehensive assessment will have a range of suggestions, options, and opportunities for additional resourcing. Kevin Creeden, MA, LMHC will talk with participants who are on the receiving end of comprehensive assessments and assessors who need to present their findings to stakeholders on how to make resource prioritization decisions and opportunities for short-term action even if it takes time to establish longer-term treatment and resourcing.
Learning objectives:
- Identify priority recommendations within a comprehensive assessment report and distinguish immediate needs from longer-term treatment and service recommendations.
- Apply practical resource prioritization strategies to make informed decisions about next steps when services, placements, and other supports are limited or delayed.
- Develop short-term action plans that translate assessment findings into meaningful, realistic interventions and supports for children and youth while longer-term treatment and resources are being established.
About Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC
Kevin Creeden, M.A., LMHC is the Director of Assessment and Research at the Whitney Academy in East Freetown, MA. He has over 40 years of clinical experience treating children, adolescents, and their families working extensively with sexually and physically aggressive youth. Over the past 30 years, his primary focus has been on issues of trauma and attachment difficulties, especially regarding the impact of trauma on behavior. Kevin has authored several articles and book chapters on the neuro-developmental impact of trauma on sexual behavior problems and harmful sexual behavior. He was also a contributing writer to the ATSA Adolescent Treatment Guidelines and the ATSA Child and Adolescent Committee’s paper on Children with Sexual Behavior Problems 2nd Edition.
Mr. Creeden has served as the board Chair of MASOC, the president of the Massachusetts chapter of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC), a Teaching Fellow at Boston College, an Instructor in Psychology at the Harvard Medical School, and a guest faculty at the Boston University School of Social Work and the Simmons School of Social Work. Mr. Creeden trains and consults nationally and internationally to youth service, community mental health, and forensic service programs.
Continuing Education for Clinicians
Looking for more professional development and continuing education opportunities? MASOC offers two annual conferences, regular lunch and learns, and on-demand webinars to inform practitioners of best-practices, treatment approaches and emerging research on problematic sexual behaviors.