We’re excited to announce the launch of Connected Communities, The TBRI^® Podcast!

Our first episode gives an overview of the history of our Institute and Trust-Based Relational Intervention^® (TBRI^®). This conversation between host Sarah Mercado and Dr. David Cross emphasized why connection is even more crucial in a global pandemic.

LISTEN HERE

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Show Notes

Linked references from this episode

• TCU
• TCU Psychology Department
• UNT Center for Play Therapy
• The Neighborhood Walk
• Brenda Bryant
• The Parent Network for the Post-Inst. Child
• Child Study Center Fort Worth
• Starpoint School
• The Strange Situation
• T Berry Brazelton
• Allan Schore
• The Connected Child
• Trust-Based Relational Intervention
• Adult Attachment Interview
• Travis County Collaborative
• Anna Palmer/ Crossroads NOLA
• Methodist Children’s Home
• Daren Jones
• Amanda Purvis
• Casey Call
• Sarah Mercado
• TBRI Mantra
• Tami DeCoteau
• Neither Wolf Nor Dog Book
• The Wolf of Twilight Book
• Dr. Cross Resiliency blog post
• Amy Abell

About our Guest

Dr. David Cross is the Rees-Jones Director of the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development and a Professor in the TCU Department of Psychology. Dr. Cross leads the Institute in its triple mission of research, education and outreach to improve the lives of children who have experienced abuse, neglect, and/or trauma. He has authored many peer-reviewed publications about issues regarding at-risk children.

Dr. Cross earned his B.S. from California State University Fresno with a major in Psychology, and then attended The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor for graduate study, beginning in 1980.  He earned an M.A. in Psychology and an M.A. in Statistics. He later earned a Ph.D. in Education and Psychology.  In 1985, he accepted a position as Assistant Professor in TCU’s Department of Psychology.

Dr. Cross, with his former colleague Dr. Karyn Purvis, co-authored “The Connected Child: Bringing Hope and Healing to Your Adoptive Family” to help adoptive parents understand the needs of children who have experienced trauma. “The Connected Child” continues to be a best-seller among adoption books. Together, Drs. Purvis and Cross created Trust-Based Relational Intervention^® (TBRI^®), a holistic, attachment based, trauma-informed, and evidence-based intervention for children who have experienced relational trauma.

Dr. Cross and his staff at the Institute regularly train professionals from around the world in TBRI^®. The Institute is actively engaged in research that not only demonstrates the efficacy of TBRI^® as an evidence-based intervention, but also in research about how to grow trauma-informed organizations and communities.

In addition to his responsibilities at the Institute, Dr. Cross has taught many TCU courses including Case Studies in Child Development, Generalized Linear Models, and Graduate Developmental Psychology.

About the Host

Sarah Mercado is a Training Specialist with the Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (KPICD). As training specialist, Sarah’s main focus is instructing professionals working with children who have experienced trauma, in Trust-Based Relational Intervention^® (TBRI^®). TBRI^®, a holistic, attachment-based, and trauma-informed intervention designed to meet the complex needs of vulnerable children, offers practical tools for caregivers to help those in their care reach their highest potential.

Sarah earned her Bachelor’s Degree from Sweet Briar College in Virginia. She began her career as a direct care staff working with adolescent boys living in a Residential Treatment Center (RTC). After serving in the RTC for several years, she shifted her focus to foster care, where she was Regional Director for a foster and adoption agency.

Sarah spent 20 years serving youth and families within residential and foster care settings as a direct-care worker and trainer before beginning her work with the Purvis Institute in May 2016. Sarah lives near Austin, TX with her husband, AJ, and their two children.