Navigating AI: An Evening Workshop
2026-10-20 18:30 - 20:00 (America/Denver) | Dawson School, 10455 Dawson Dr, Lafayette, 80026, United States
Ready to feel confident about your family’s digital life?
Navigating AI: Build Your Playbook — Evening workshop for families
Join AI experts (and fellow parents!) as they help you move from confusion and concern to clarity, confidence, and agency in this workshop for parents and children of all ages.
WHO: Adults & Youth (ages 10+)
WHEN: Tuesday, October 20, 2026 — 6:30-8:00 PM
WHERE: Dawson School Innovation Center | 10455 Dawson Drive | Lafayette, CO 80026
PRICE (per person): $5/10/15 sliding scale — pay what works for your family’s budget
$5 Youth Tickets (ages 10-18)
Scholarships available. Free childcare for children ages 6-11.

REGISTER HERE

Together, we’ll explore:

What AI can and can’t do.
How AI is showing up in schools and daily life.
What healthy, practical guidance looks like for people at different ages and stages.

Presenters:

Bobby Hodgkinson: Associate Teaching Professor, Smead Aerospace Engineering Sciences at CU Boulder and father of BVSD 7th and 5th graders.
Michael Whitaker (“Whit”): SVP of Strategy and Organizational Innovation at ICF, author of Family Throughlines, and father of BVSD 9th and 6th graders.

Leave informed, empowered, and equipped with practical strategies and shared language to navigate this rapidly changing world.

Register today

Adolescent RISE, with Nicholas Thompson
2026-10-22 18:30 - 20:00 | Erie Community Library, 400 Powers St, Erie, CO, 80516, United States
*Registration is through Erie Community Library:
Register here.

Adolescent RISE is a presentation that takes a fun and informative look at the developmental period of adolescence (ages 10 – 25). It includes debunking myths about adolescence, understanding the four qualities of adolescence (risk taking, identity formation, social reorientation, and emotional intensity), and learning about the tweenage brain. With this foundation established, ways to better support our kids will be discussed.
DETAILS

WHEN: October 22, 2026, from 6:30-8:00pm
WHO: Adults/Parents/Caregivers
WHERE: Erie Community Library, 400 Powers Street, Erie, CO 80516

PRICE: This is a no-cost program in partnership with Erie Community Library
Space is limited to 50 participants.

Secure your space today.

About: Nicholas Thompson, LCSW
I am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, having earned a Bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a Master’s degree in Social Work from the University of North Dakota. I have been working with youth and their families for over 12 years in a variety of settings including middle and high schools, private practice, residential treatment facilities, and detention centers. In addition, I have worked abroad with youth in Brazil and Costa Rica. I have a private practice in Boulder, Colorado and I enjoy facilitating trainings and giving presentations to staff of school districts, middle and high school students, and parents.

What You're Missing in Conversations with Your Teen, with Susan Caso
2026-11-03 18:30 - 20:00 | Dawson School, 10455 Dawson Dr, Lafayette, 80026, United States
Register
The biggest obstacle to communicating with your teen may not be the conversation itself—it may be what happens before the conversation even begins. Join author, therapist, and parent, Susan Caso, for practical insights that help parents foster deeper connection and more meaningful communication.
DETAILS

WHEN: November 3, 2026, from 6:30-8:00pm
WHO: Adults/Parents/Caregivers
WHERE: Dawson School Innovation Center, 10455 Dawson Drive, Lafayette, CO 80026
PRICE (per person): $5/10/15 sliding scale — pay what works for your family’s budget

Scholarships are available. Free childcare is available for children ages 6-11.
Email events@parentengagementnetwork.org for more details.
*A three-part book group — November 10, 17 and December 1 — will follow this talk. Space is limited.
**Register here to secure your space.**

About: Susan Caso, MA, LPC, is a licensed therapist, author, and speaker with over twenty years of experience helping families build strong, emotionally safe connections. She is the author of The Parent-Teen Connection: How to Build Lifelong Family Relationships, endorsed by senior organizational and clinical leaders from UNICEF, Children’s Hospital Colorado, and Crisis Text Line, as well as Dr. Sally Spencer-Thomas, President of United Suicide Survivors International. Susan also serves as a Board Member and Mental Health Advisor for The Liv Project and was the Technical Advisor on the documentary My Sister Liv.
A mother of three who has parented across two generations, Susan has seen firsthand, both professionally and personally, how dramatically the landscape has changed for young people and families. Her work centers on connectedness as one of the strongest protective factors for youth mental health, and she equips parents with practical, research-backed tools to strengthen relationships and safeguard their children’s emotional wellbeing in today’s complex world. Passionate about eliminating mental health stigma, Susan champions families to create the emotional safety that allows relationships and children to thrive.

The Parent-Teen Connection - Parenting Book Group at Dawson
2026-11-10 18:30 - 20:00 | Dawson School, 10455 Dawson Dr, Lafayette, 80026, United States
Register for this Parenting Book Group
The Parent-Teen Connection by Susan Caso
We spend so much time preparing our children for life, but one of the greatest gifts we can give them is a relationship they can always come home to. Join author, therapist, and parent Susan Caso for this three-part discussion series to explore how intentionally cultivating connectedness can strengthen communication, create greater harmony at home, and become a lasting source of resilience through every stage of adolescence.

DATES: November 10th, 17th, and December 1st
TIME: 6:30 – 8:00 PM
LOCATION: Dawson School, Lafayette
FACILITATOR: Susan Caso, Author, Mental Health Advisor for The Liv Project, Strategic & Technical Advisor for My Sister Liv (film), Emotionally Focused Trained Therapist

Session 1 (November 10): Connectedness, Belonging & Effective Communication
What if the key to better communication with your teen isn’t finding the right words, but creating the kind of relationship where they want to talk? Discover how connectedness and belonging lay the foundation for trust, openness, more harmonious interactions at home, and communication that feels meaningful and lasting.
Session 2 (November 17): Looking Inward—The Parent’s Role in Connection
Every parent brings their own experiences, beliefs, and emotional patterns into the relationship with their teen. Through self-reflection and greater self-awareness, you’ll learn how understanding yourself can transform the way you respond to and connect with your child.
Session 3 (December 1): Staying Connected When Life Gets Busy
The greatest threat to parent-teen connection is rarely one big event, it’s the gradual loss of meaningful moments in the midst of busy lives. Explore how technology, outside pressures, and the pace of modern parenting affect family relationships, and learn practical ways to protect connection, so it remains your family’s greatest strength.
Register for this Parenting Book Group
Note: This book group will be in English with no interpretation.

About PEN Parenting Book Groups:
Parenting doesn’t come with a how-to manual, but you don’t have to figure it out alone.
PEN’s Parenting Book Groups are a welcoming space where parents and caregivers come together to discuss research-based parenting books, share experiences, build meaningful connections, and learn from one another with the guidance of an experienced facilitator.
Through thoughtful conversations, you’ll deepen your understanding of yourself and your child(ren), gain practical tools you can use in everyday life, and discover new perspectives alongside others on the parenting journey.
Previous participants describe PEN Parenting Book Groups as a “welcoming, supportive environment where every voice is heard.” Participants leave feeling more confident and better equipped to navigate the joys and challenges of parenting.

Books will be available to borrow at no cost.

Motus Theater Presents: What Love Requires
2026-11-14 18:30 - 20:30 | Lafayette Arts Collective, 201 North Public Road, Lafayette, CO, 80026
Motus Theater & Parent Engagement Network present What Love Requires, a new autobiographical monologue project featuring stories of parents of transgender and nonbinary adults.

In many ways, the job of parents is to support our children to blossom into the unique gift they were meant to bring to the world. However, every parent’s idea of who our children are can be limited by family or societal expectations (You’re supposed to be a doctor like your parents, not a musician!)
For parents of transgender and nonbinary children, supporting our children has particularly high stakes because of the threats our children currently face simply by living their own true gender, and experiencing the joy we all have when we can truly be ourselves.
The performance shares stories of parents supporting their children to not only survive, but thrive. The performance also celebrates the ways parents are liberated from limiting perceptions about gender in the process of truly seeing and learning from their children.
Secure your tickets today!

Monologists include Beth Leyba (she/her), Lynn Kutner (she/her), Cat Lindsey (she/her), and Julie (she/her). Featuring music from acclaimed violinist Anthony Salvo (he/him).
