You can obtain the specialized knowledge, expertise, and counseling skills needed for working with those who have problems with alcohol and other drugs.

Rio Salado is committed to support you in achieving your professional and personal advancement goals. We provide unique solutions that enable you to achieve success in your workplace with industry-recognized certificates, programs and continuing education credits. We offer affordable and convenient programs designed to meet your busy schedule. This is a great way to complete your degree, obtain continuing education credits or additional education in your field.

Our continuing education seminars are offered online and at Rio Salado College located at 2323 West 14th St. in Tempe, Arizona. If you are working in a State-licensed recovery home or outpatient clinic, non-degreed or non-licensed, or interested in preparing for a counseling career in the addictions field, our program has something for you!

Most of our seminars are 1 credit hour. See our Fee Schedule for information on current rates and payment options.

The AZ State Board of Behavioral Health and many other state and national certification boards award 15 hours of continuing education for each 1 credit hour course completed at a college or university accredited through the North Central association of Schools and Colleges.

eLearning Seminars - Online and Print-Based

We offer affordable eLearning Chemical Dependency continuing education credit courses with most starting every two weeks. For a complete listing, refer to our annual class schedule or www.riosalado.edu/CHDseminars

For official course descriptions, refer to our College Catalog (www.riosalado.edu/catalog) and/or Annual Class Schedule (www.riosalado.edu/schedule).

Below are listed short one-credit hour online courses.

Treatment for Stimulant Use CHD 285AA
Disorders Seminar

Humans have used and abused stimulants like coffee, tobacco, chocolate and coca leafs for thousands of years. A large amount of even a mild stimulant can make a person feel energetic, nervous and/or jittery. All stimulants, even a fairly mild one like caffeine, change the way the human brain works. When a person ingests stimulants, they speed up activity in his/her brain and spinal cord, which in turn cause his/her blood pressure to raise and the heart to beat faster. In addition, metabolism increases and induces feelings of exhilaration. Though all stimulants change the way the human brain works this course will focus on some of the stronger stimulants like cocaine and methamphetamines that significantly alter brain chemistry, which frequently leads to abuse and/or dependency.

Adolescent Substance CHD 285BB
Abuse Treatment Seminar

This course overviews adolescent substance abuse/addiction and methods used in adolescent treatment. The consequences of adolescent substance abuse/addiction is one of the most important problems facing youth in the U.S. today. Adolescent dependency on drugs/alcohol can create significant negative, personal and societal consequences such as: crime, acts of violence, dysfunctional families, pregnancy, physical abuse and sexual abuse of other adolescents, school absenteeism, personal injuries, and fatalities.

Addiction Review Seminar CHD 285CC

There is nothing simple about the drug problem and it therefore follows that the attempts to put it in perspective will be complex as well. This course will help you distinguish some of the myths that have surrounded the use of drugs/alcohol in our culture from the more informed, factual, less emotional and more scientific perspective of chemical abuse and addiction.

Motivation for Change CHD 285DD
in Substance Abuse Treatment Seminar

This seminar covers inssues regarding motivational change in substance treatment. Emphasis on current and developing treatment information. Covers common motivational change techniques. Also includes community resource information.

Domestic Violence CHD 285EE
and Substance Abuse Seminar

This seminar course addresses the special topic of domestic violence and its relationship to substance abuse. While there is not necessarily a direct cause-and-effect link between substance abuse by either batterers or their victims, it is certainly a risk factor for domestic violence. The connections between substance abuse and domestic violence are strong. Another purpose of this seminar is to provide substance abuse and other behavioral health professionals with an overview of domestic violence so that they may better understand the particular behaviors of batterers and the specific needs of survivors of domestic violence.

Street Drugs Seminar CHD 285FF

The use of street drugs is exploding in the state of Arizona and across the nation. The damage caused by street drugs has affected almost all of our lives in some manner. If you are a parent, counselor or teacher, this seminar has vital information you need. Physiological factors and symptoms of use will be covered.

Addictive and Medical CHD 285GG
Plants Seminar

Humans have used and abused plants as drugs since the most primitive people discovered that some plants caused visions, other plants lessened their pain, while still others help in the recovery from illness or injury. This course examines the Opium Poppy, Aspirin and the Willow Tree, LSD and Ergot, Quinine, Digitalis, Belladonna, Mandragola, Coca and Yew as medicine and as substances of abuse and addiction. This course also discusses the history of how humans derived drugs and medicines from plants; and how these simple drugs and medications were used and abused historically for their effects on love, sex, religion, work and health.

Intervention and Treatment CHD 285HH
for Chemical Dependency Seminar

Brief therapies have become increasingly important substance abuse treatment options.  The appropriate brief therapy will vary depending on the substance being abused and the severity of the problem being addressed.  Brief therapies are often less costly yet have proven effective in the treatment of substance abuse.  Treatment professionals have increasingly preferred brief therapies to treatment gaps.

Multicultural Aspects of CHD 285 II
Counseling the Chemically Dependent

This seminar examines cultural competencies and how human differences affect the counseling relationship. When a counselor is unaware or ignores cultural differences that counselor risks the growth of misunderstanding and mistrust. It will also examine the implications of chemical use/abuse/addiction on multicultural and diverse populations. Please join us as we explore a variety of cultures with compassion and curiosity. This course will also include 3 contact hours of professional ethics. (The Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners requires professionals to have a minimum of 3 clock hours in behavioral health ethics or mental health law and a minimum of 3 clock hours in cultural competencies for license renewal.

Training the Trainers: CHD 285 JJ
Seminar for Clinical Supervisors

This seminar is designed for mental health professionals who are providing supervision in academic, training and treatment sites. Students and professionals who are not currently supervising may also benefit from this seminar, as it discusses the latest legislative initiatives regarding mandated supervisory training. Contemporary theory and research regarding best practices in clinical supervision will be presented, along with the identification and development of competencies for supervisees and supervisors.

Professional Ethics in Counseling CHD 120
the Chemically Dependent

This course explores topics relative to the professional and ethical development of the chemical dependency counselor, including manpower utilization, professionalism and the meeting of individual counselor needs within the field.

AIDS and Chemical Dependency CHD 145

This course examines AIDS and its relationship to substance abuse, chemical dependency and drug/alcohol treatment. The course places emphasis on the myths and realities of AIDS, personal values, feelings, limitations and treatment goals.

Special
3-credit seminar

Preparation and Review CHD 294
for Certification Exams
(Advanced Foundations of Chemical Dependency)
In-depth review of the principles and concepts of the chemical dependency field for paraprofessionals and professionals working in the area and/or preparing for certification exams. Emphasis on historical antecedents of treatment efforts and legislation, pharmacology, special populations, family issues, co-dependency, ACOA, and self-help groups.


June 15-16, 2007
Clinical Supervision Training of Supervisors
Instructor: Bob Rhoton, Psy.D.
This seminar is designed for mental health professionals who are providing supervision at academic training and treatment sites. Students and professionals who are not currently supervising will also find this seminar beneficial, as it discusses the latest legislative initiatives regarding mandated supervisory training. Contemporary theory and research concerning best practices in clinical supervision will be presented, along with the identification and development of competencies for supervisees and supervisors.
CHD 285 JJ Section 2081
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

June 22- 23, 2007
The Addictive Brain
Instructor: Bob Meighan, M.Ed., LISAC
This seminar will examine the neurochemistry of addiction, while exploring the various effects on the brain and central nervous system from abusive drug use, as well as from psychotherapeutic drugs. (This course will provide behavioral health professionals and students with the current thinking on the disease process of addiction.)
CHD 285: section 2082
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

July 13-14, 2007
Abusive Personality
Bob Rhoton PsyD
There have been many advances in our understanding of the psychology of intimate rage, violence, and abusiveness. Much of this has come from the area of research known as developmental psychopathology, which charts the many microfailures in the attachment process. Rage and intimate abusiveness are closely tied to issues in early development, and under- standing this connection can move our understanding beyond the stimulus-response models of social learning theory that have been so popular and enable us to chart cyclical buildups of internal tension as a key element in intimate abusiveness. Such cyclical tension is a personality consequence of a disrupted attachment process, a pathway linking early problems with adult pathology.

The abusive personality possesses a thread of ambivalence toward the partner, intimates, work and normal socialization. This dysphoria produced by ambivalence creates upward spirals in self-amplifying ruminations that produce unbearable tension states that culminate in violence or addiction. These tension states drive thought processes into obsessional loops and generate self-fulfilling prophecies when negative actions follow negative anticipations.
CHD 285 Section 2053
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

July 27- 28, 2007
Street Drugs Seminar
Sean Walsh LISAC
The use of street drugs is exploding in the state of Arizona and across the nation. The damage caused by street drugs has affected almost all of our lives in some manner. If you are a parent, counselor, or teacher, this seminar has vital information you need. Physiological factors, and symptoms of use will be covered.
CHD 285FF: Section 2054
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m

August 3-4, 2007
Prejudice and Inter-group Relations
Bob Rhoton PsyD
Much of social psychological theory and research over the past century has been concerned with inter-group biases (stereotypes and prejudice) and how they lead to discrimination and violence. This workshop will draw upon the rich psychological literature to explore the origins and operation of such biases. Included will be discussion of classic to contemporary approaches, from the "Authoritarian Personality" to modern methods for measuring unconscious biases. Implications for inter-group conflict and violence, and the substance of the psychology of stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination, focusing on factors such as personality, cognitive mechanisms, group processes, and the unconscious.
CHD 285 Section 2055
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

August 10-11, 2007
Addiction and Criminal Behavior
Instructor: Charles, Roth M.A., NCAC l
This seminar will cover three essential areas. First, will be a presentation and discussion of Yochelson and Samenow’s theories on the criminal personality. Of primary importance will be coverage of the 52 thinking errors most prevalent in the substance-abusing criminal. Second, there will follow a presentation of Glen Walters’ groundbreaking theories on the “lifestyle criminal” and their use of psychoactive drugs. Third, and last there will be a presentation of the specific therapeutic techniques known to interrupt the core beliefs of a substance abuser, as well as criminal thinking.
CHD 285: section 2056
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

August 24-25, 2007
I Can't Stop...The Intervention and Treatment of Problem Gamblers
Instructor: Amy Sheridan, MSEd, LISAC
The National Center for Compulsive Gambling estimates that Americans will gamble more 380 billion dollars this year. Compulsive Gambling’s destruction has no age limit or cultural barrier. The two fastest growing populations of compulsive gamblers are 18 to 35 year old sports gamblers and, the over 40 year old female, empty nester.

This seminar will discuss options for intervention, assessment, treatment, and disease management. First hand real-world recovery journeys will be provided. The seminar will also explore the compound transfer of addictions and compulsive gambling in combination with co-occurring substance abuse disorders. This is a very important seminar for counselors, social worker, the clergy, persons suffering with the disorder and their family members.
CHD 285 Section 2069
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

September 7-8, 2007
Intervention and Treatments for Chemically Dependency Seminar
Instructor: Carolyn Brown, M.A., L.P.C., NCCH
Brief therapies have become increasingly important substance abuse treatment options. The appropriate brief therapy will vary depending on the substance being abused and the severity of the problem being addressed. Brief therapies are often less costly yet have proven effective in the substance abuse treatment. Treatment professionals have increasingly focused on brief therapies to treatment gaps
CHD 285HH Section 8695
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

September 14-15, 2007
AIDS and Chemical Dependency
Instructor: Mary McKeever, M.A.
This course examines AIDS and its relationship to substance abuse, chemical dependency, and drug/alcohol treatment. The course places emphasis on the myths and realities of AIDS, personal values, feelings, and limitations and treatment goals. (This is a required course in the Rio Salado Chemical Dependency Program.)
CHD 145 Section 8696
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

September 21-22, 2007
Co-Occurring Disorders
Instructor: Michael Loos, Ph.D.
This course is critical to the practitioner who will be working in a clinical setting with clients suffering co-occurring disorders, whether in an agency setting, public or private, or private practice clinicians who wish to be cross-disciplined trained to work with individuals suffering co-existing disorders. Students can be expected to learn about the evolution of co-occurring treatment, some of the critical issues facing clinicians who work with this special needs population, and will be able to develop treatment plans and approaches consistent with competencies expected of the practitioner who must simultaneously work effectively with both disorders during a client's course of treatment and continuing care. Students will also be introduced to the DSM-IV TR, the ASAM Patient Placement Criteria. Use of case studies will highlight and integrate other teaching strategies.
CHD 285* Section 8697
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

September 28-29, 2007
Multicultural Aspects
Instructor: Carolyn Brown, M.A., L.P.C., NCCH
This seminar examines cultural competencies and how human differences affect the counseling relationship. When a counselor is unaware or ignores cultural differences that counselor risks the growth of misunderstanding and mistrust. It will also examine the implications of chemical use/abuse/addiction on multicultural and diverse populations. Please join us as we explore a variety of cultures with compassion and curiosity. This course will also include 3 contact hours of professional ethics. (The Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners requires professionals to have a minimum of 3 clock hours in behavioral health ethics or mental health law and a minimum of 3 clock hours in cultural competencies for license renewal.)
CHD 285 II Section 8698
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

October 19-20 2007
Pornography & Other Sexual Addictions
Instructor: Carolyn Brown, M. A., C.P.C., NCCH
Pornography and other sexual addictions often go undiagnosed and therefore untreated. Many chemical dependency relapses can be rooted in untreated sexual addiction. A counselor's own assumptions and/or issues can play into avoiding this area of recovery. This class will cover assessment and core PTSD. Stages of recovery will be outlined and treatment strategies will be discussed. Recovering couple's issues will be explored and outlined.
CHD 285* Section 8699
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m

October 26-27, 2007
Creating Clinical Metaphor from Everyday Life
Instructor: Bob Rhoton, Psy.D.
Metaphor, story and analogy are powerful therapeutic tools. These tools can be employed to set aside resistance and increase motivation to change. To use Metaphor, story and analogy is to adopt the stance that the client has inner resources to draw upon that will help them create resourceful problem-solving states. Formulating metaphor from common ordinary experiences enables the therapist to engage the client in such a way as to elicit an environment of change that is non-critical and undefended. This workshop explores the mechanism of how the human mind creates meaning and how to use that mechanism to form metaphor, story and analogy that will improve and enhance therapeutic outcomes.
CHD 285* Section 8700
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

November 2-3, 2007
Clinical Supervision Training of Supervisors
Instructor: Bob Rhoton, Psy.D.
This seminar is designed for mental health professionals who are providing supervision in academic, training and treatment sites. Students and professionals who are not currently supervising may also benefit from this seminar, as it discusses the latest legislative initiatives regarding mandated supervisory training. Contemporary theory and research regarding best practices in clinical supervision will be presented, along with the identification and development of competencies for supervisees and supervisors.
CHD 285 JJ Section 8701
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

November 9-10, 2007
Professional Ethics in Counseling the Chemically Dependent
Instructor: Carolyn Brown, M.A., L.P.C., NCCH
This course explores topics relative to the professional and ethical development of the chemical dependency counselor, including manpower utilization, professionalism, and the meeting of individual counselor needs within the field. (This is a required course in the Rio Salado Chemical Dependency Program. The Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners requires professionals to have a minimum of 3 clock hours in behavioral health ethics or mental health law for license renewal.) Note: Debra Rinaudo, the Director of the Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners, will be a guest speaker.
CHD 120 Section 8702
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

December 7-8, 2007
Adolescent Substance Abuse Treatment Seminar
Instructor: Sean Walsh, LISAC
This course overviews adolescent substance abuse/addiction and methods used in adolescent treatment. The consequence of adolescent substance abuse/addiction is one of the most important problems facing youth in the United States of America today. Adolescent dependency on drugs/alcohol can create significant negative, personal and societal consequences such as: crime, acts of violence, dysfunctional families, pregnancy, physical abuse and sexual abuse of other adolescents, school absenteeism, personal injuries, and fatalities.
CHD 285BB Section 8703
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

December 14-15, 2007
Chronic Pain and Addiction
Instructor: Robert Meighan, M.Ed., LISAC
This seminar will examine chronic pain issues that may be encountered by counselors. A brief review of the body's mechanisms for the perception of pain will be included in this seminar. Here are some of the questions that will be addressed: What is the mind set of the chronic pain sufferer and how can they best be helped? What are the implications of the use of opiate medications in the treatment of chronic pain? What are the alternatives to pain medication and what kinds of therapies work best with different populations? Frequently encountered causes of chronic pain such as fibromyalgia, failed back syndrome, and arthritis will be reviewed. This seminar will be useful to counselors and nurses, as well as anyone who either suffers from chronic pain, or who has a significant other who suffers from chronic pain.
CHD 285* Section 8704
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

December 21-22, 2007
Addiction and Criminal Behavior
Instructor: Charles Roth, M.A., NCAC l
This seminar will cover three essential areas. First, will be a presentation and discussion of Yochelson and Samenow's theories on the criminal personality. Of primary importance will be coverage of the 52 thinking errors most prevalent in the substance-abusing criminal. Second, there will follow a presentation of Glen Walters' groundbreaking theories on the "lifestyle criminal" and their use of psychoactive drugs. Third and, last there will be a presentation of the specific therapeutic techniques known to interrupt the core beliefs of a substance abuser, as well as criminal thinking.
CHD 285* Section 8705
Friday 6:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m.
Saturday 8:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.

* For registration purposes, official course title for CHD 285 is Chemical Dependency Seminar