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Tuesday, May 13, 2025 | 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.
Howard Center’s conference Perspectives 2025: Confronting Stigma, Cultivating Compassion will feature international speakers, bringing hope and inspiration to our Vermont community.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Sponsoring this event allows your organization to connect with a diverse audience, including healthcare providers, educators, law enforcement professionals, and community members. We believe relationships are at the heart of our work, and your support can help advance important conversations about reducing stigma and fostering compassionate care.
If you are interested in sponsoring Howard Center’s 7th Spring Conference, please take a moment to review the sponsorship information sheet below and join us in making this a meaningful and impactful event.
If you would like to sponsor the conference or to learn more, please contact:
Denise Vignoe, Director of Development and Communications
dvignoe@howardcenter.org | 802-488-6912
About Howard Center
Howard Center has a long and rich history as a trusted provider in the community. With a legacy spanning nearly 160 years, we provide progressive, compassionate care and supports to those in need.
As Vermont’s largest social service organization, our 1,500 staff help more than 19,000 people each year in over 60 locations throughout Vermont in collaboration with hundreds of community partners.
We offer an array of exemplary mental health, substance use, and developmental services across the lifespan. Our annual conference, numerous professional trainings, and free public education events help to improve care, inform our community, and decrease stigma.
Our events are designed to accommodate a broad audience, including mental health and healthcare providers, educators, clients and families, representatives of state and local government, law enforcement professionals, and community members.
Meet Our Event Host
Our host, Beth Holden, MS, LCMHC, LADC, is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor and a Licensed Alcohol and Drug Counselor in the state of Vermont. She holds a Master of Science degree in community counseling from the University of Vermont. She has worked as a clinician, supervisor, and administrator in the mental health and substance use fields with adults, youth, and families for 30+ years.
Beth is Howard Center’s Chief Client Services Officer and previously held the position of Director of Home and Community Services, as well as serving in the Children’s Co-Director role in the state designated agency system. She has specialty training in emergency mental health services, co-occurring disorders, trauma integrated practice, managing suicidality and supervision.
Beth is a believer and supporter of community mental health services and provides leadership in developing increased competencies for all staff providing integrated services, trauma informed practice, and suicide care. She is level two trained in EMDR, a certified state of Vermont Attachment, Regulation and Competency (ARC) trainer and has been a clinical supervisor for 25+ years. Beth is an experienced presenter and provides workshops on many topics related to trauma-informed practice and mental health. She has also served an instructor for the UVM Graduate Counseling Program and taught classes on trauma-informed care and counseling children and adolescents. She previously served her disciplines on the Vermont Addictions Professionals Association Board and the UVM Graduate Counseling Program Advisory Board.
Phoenix Books is our conference book seller and will be onsite at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Burlington with our speakers’ most recent books. Some speakers will offer in-person book signings throughout the daylong event. Speaker books are available for purchase through Phoenix Books here.
Thanks to our 2023 Conference Sponsors
More Conference Details:
Accommodations Needed?
If you need support with accommodations, please contact DevelopmentTeam@howardcenter.org; 802-488-6912.
American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation will be offered for both the in-person and livestream options.
Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
We will offer CEUs for attendees for the following professional disciplines. We will post the CEUs available as soon as we receive approval. CEU certificates will be available following the conference by emailing DevelopmentTeam@howardcenter.org
Hotel and Travel
The DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Burlington will accommodate our event in their conference center at 870 Williston Road, South Burlington, VT 05403. The Howard Center room block is sold out but you may contact the hotel for overnight accommodations.
The Burlington International Airport serves the region as the closest airport and is two miles from the conference center.
Substitution Policy
Paid registrants unable to attend the conference may send an alternate. Requests must be made in writing and may be accommodated until May 6.
Cancellation Policy
Paid registrants may cancel for a refund, less a $25 administrative fee until April 8. After April 8, refunds will not be provided, but attendee substitutions will be accommodated.
If the event is cancelled due to circumstances beyond our control, we will post the cancellation on our website at www.howardcenter.org and registrations will be non-refundable.
Health and Safety
We are committed to the health and safety of all conference attendees. We will follow all local and state health and safety guidelines at the time of the conference.
Previous Conferences
Photo above are from the 2018 Opiates: Scientific, Political, and Social Perspectives conference.
2023 Conference
Breaking Barriers: Finding Purpose and Possibilities Together
April 19, 2023
The 6th annual Howard Center Spring Conference, Breaking Barriers: Finding Purpose and Possibilities Together, featured internationally renowned speakers discussing topics such as adverse childhood experiences, awe and transcendence, end-of-life care, gun violence policy, and the power of recognition. Speakers included Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, Dr. Dacher Keltner, Dr. BJ Miller, Dr. Jeffrey Swanson, and Dr. Anna Malaika Tubbs, with Beth Holden serving as host and Dr. Jude Smith Rachele as moderator.
2022 Conference
Vision, Visionaries, and Voices
April 9, 2022
The 5th annual Howard Center Spring Conference, Vision, Visionaries and Voices, was held virtually and featured international speakers discussing topics like COVID-19 and health inequities, gender violence and inequality, self-inquiry, drug policies, and trauma and resilience. The conference was moderated and hosted by esteemed professionals and the speakers included Mary Bassett M.D., M.P.H., Anita Hill, Byron Katie, Ethan Nadelmann and Tara Westover.
2021 Conference
Perspective on Connection, Compassion, and Belonging
March 30, 2021
Howard Center offered various perspectives on connection, compassion, and belonging, including themes of confronting stigma, improving access, continuing advocacy, advancing policy, and giving voice.
Speakers shared their perspectives and stories–inspiring attendees to consider how connection, compassion, and belonging impact overall health and well-being and how we create new pathways to improve care and treatment, influence policy, and improve access to quality care that is inclusive and available for all. Conference speakers included Dr. Laurie Santos, V (formerly Eve Ensler), and Rev. Angel Kyodo Williams.
2019 Conference
Overcoming Adversity: Bold Perspectives on Mental Health and Addiction
June 3, 2019
The conference reflected on current and future trends in mental health and addiction treatment, including themes of confronting stigma, improving access, continuing advocacy, advancing policy, and giving voice. Speakers shared their perspectives and personal stories–inspiring attendees to think boldly about current approaches to treatment and challenging them to create new pathways to overcome adversity, influence policy, and improve access to quality care that is inclusive and available for all.
2018 Conference
Opiates: Scientific, Political, and Social Perspectives
May 22, 2018
Opiate use impacts individuals, families, workplaces, and communities everywhere. Presenters discussed various aspects of the current opiate crisis, including the effects of opioid use on the brain, current research and evidence-based treatment options, obstacles to treatment, and practical solutions for reducing opioid-related deaths. Conference speakers included Drs. John Brooklyn, Sally Satel, Stefan Kertesz, and Carl Hart.
2017 Conference
A Day with Gabor Maté
January 25, 2017
Renowned speaker and author Dr. Gabor Maté addressed a range of topics, from addiction to mind-body wellness. The 2017 conference included a full day of presentations and discussion with the well-known author, including The Hungry Ghost: A Biopsychosocial Perspective on Addiction” and “When The Body Says No: Mind/Body Unity and the Stress-Disease Connection.