Brooke Gelasco

Empathetic professional with 9+ years of practical experience. Observant individual with excellent interpersonal and communication skills, experienced in working with clients from diverse cultural and religious backgrounds, building meaningful relationships with clients and families. Offers experienced crisis intervention to individuals while they navigate traumatic experiences. Identifies, assesses, and develops holistic and specific treatment plans.

Active registration and member of CCPA; seeking CAP approval.

• 08/2024, First Aid & CPR/AED Certification
• 05/2023, Trans Wellness Initiative Introduction to Affirming Spaces Training, Presented by: the Community-Based Research Centre.
• 05/2023, Women and Gender Equality Canada's Introduction to Gender-based Analysis Plus, Presented by: Gender-Based Analysis Plus, Government of Alberta.
• 05/2021, Indigenous Canada Certification, University of Alberta
• 05/2021, Brain Story Certification, Alberta Family Wellness Initiative
• 07/2020, Addiction Care and Treatment Certificate, University of British Columbia

• Healthy Relationships Workshop, Prepared and presented this one hour workshop as part of field placement duties while a practicum student at Armoury Resource Center, YESS, along with co-presenter (Danielle Powder).
• Quantitative Research Paper, Gelasco, B., & Beliveau, E. (2014). Effects of Shopping on Grades.

• 09/2019, current, Salvation Army: Women's Van
• 11/2014, Mission Trips: Costa Rica, 2 weeks
• 02/2014, Mission Trips: BC Coastal Regions, 1 week with BC Mission Boat Society.
• 07/2011, Mission Trips: Ukraine, 3 weeks each (July 2011 & 2013)

• Healthy Relationships Workshop, Prepared and presented this one hour workshop as part of field placement duties while a practicum student at Armoury Resource Center, YESS, along with co-presenter (Danielle Powder).
• Quantitative Research Paper, Gelasco, B., & Beliveau, E. (2014). Effects of Shopping on Grades.

• EMDR 2-day Seminar. PESI Feb. 17/18, 2022.
• Bent Arrow Indigenous Training (full day). Feb. 11, 2022.
• ASIST. Centre for Suicide Prevention. Dec. 2,3, 2021
• Motivational Interviewing: The Basics (1 day). AHS. June 6, 2019
• Addiction and Mental Illness: Understanding Concurrent Disorders. AHS. June 4, 2019
• Addiction Counselling Practices (2 days). AHS. May 8/9, 2019
• Addiction and Relapse Prevention Training (1 day). AHS. May 24, 2019
• Tobacco - How to Support Your Client in Making a Change (1day). AHS. April 2, 2019
• Building Better Mental and Emotional Wellbeing. AHS. January 17, 2019
• Harm Reduction Training (1 day). AHS. January 15, 2019
• Non-Violent Crisis Intervention Training (2 day). September 19, 2017.
• ASIST Suicide Intervention Training (2 day). Canadian Mental Health Association. July 11, 2017.
• PSECA - Protection of Sexually Exploited Children Act Workshop. Center to End All Sexual Exploitation (CEASE). January 10, 2017.
• Drugs and Addictions Workshop. Erin Black & Jennifer Tokar of Alberta Health Services. December 16, 2016.
• Aboriginal Awareness Training. Rick Lightning. November, 2016.
• 2 Day Verbal Judo for Contact Professionals. Jeff Bevan. October 20/21, 2016.
• FASD - Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. GOA Programs. March 17, 2016
• Boundaries Training. YESS. March 3, 2016.
• Crisis De-Escalation Workshop (one day), Concordia University of Edmonton

Practicum Internship: Sept. 2022 – Apr. 2023

Mental Health Therapist Intern • The Family Centre (Edm)

At The Family Centre, I provided drop-in counselling, ongoing therapy, couples counselling, and group therapy to a diverse population of people ranging in ages, gender, culture, and socioeconomic status. Presenting problems included anxiety, depression, childhood trauma, sexual assault, self-worth, addictions, and relationship difficulties. There was an emphasis on ethical decision making skills, casenote writing skills, and increasing competence for treatment planning.

Graduate Counselling Theory Practicum 4: Jan.– Apr. 2023

Students will continue their client work begun through an outside agency in Practicum 3. Individual supervision and peer group conferencing will assist students to further develop conceptual and procedural skills and facilitate personal and professional development. Special emphasis will be placed on the intra- and inter-personal experience of the students and their individual functioning as counsellors, as observed within the group setting.

Graduate Counselling Theory Practicum 3: Sept.– Dec. 2022

Students advance from micro skills training and role-plays (Prac1/2), to supervised counselling experience with outside clients in an agency

setting. Individual supervision and peer group conferencing will assist students to develop conceptual and procedural skills and facilitate

personal and professional development. Special emphasis will be placed on the intra- and inter-personal experience of the students and their individual functioning as counsellors, as observed within the group setting.

Graduate Counselling Theory Practicum II: Jan.– Apr. 2021

Students will utilize the basic communication and counselling micro- skills acquired in practicum I to establish an effective helping relationship that facilitates the client’s personal growth and development. The student counsellor will develop further by building confidence in the interpersonal process of therapy through the study and practice of these person-centred relational skills. Students will complete five supervised counselling sessions with two clients over the semester (10 direct-client hrs).

Graduate Counselling Theory Practicum I: Sept.– Dec. 2020

Guide students through goal setting and intervention strategies, in all phases of treatment, from initial counsellee contact to termination. This course critically examines the history of the counselling profession, explores and develops an integrative view of professional identity, its roles, functions, and relationship with other human service providers. Introduces students to various theoretical assumptions around the counselling helping relationship. The relationship between the counsellor and the counsellee is seen as the foundation of therapeutic change. Attention given to basic communication skills needed in establishing effective helping relationships.

Undergraduate PSY 486/496 Field Placement I/II:

Youth Empowerment & Support Services(YESS)—Armoury Resource Centre Edmonton Sept. 2015 – Apr. 2016 (160hrs)

Supervisor: Noora Badr

E4C – Youth Housing Program Sept. 2016 – Apr. 2017 (160hrs)

Supervisors: Brittany Danielson and Scott Grayson

CP 5103 Marriage and Family Counselling: This course will serve as an introduction to the theory and practice of marriage and family therapy. Classical and post-modern theoretical models of marriage and family therapy will be examined and provide students the foundation for developing the roots of their own clinical ‘style’. Students will be asked to practice role plays that mimic couple and family work to prepare for future clinical work.

CP 6201 Psychological Testing and Assessment: Students will be exposed to selected psychological instruments, which will also be used to facilitate understanding of concepts such as basic relevant statistics, reliability, validity, and use of norms. Tested covered includes: PAI, BDI-II, PHQ-9, STAI, PCL-C, SASSI-3, MSI-R, IIP.

CP 5111 Ethical and Legal Issues for Counsellors and Educators: The course includes an analysis of professional ethics, training and practice standards, educational requirements, and mental health law. Attention given to contemporary professional and psycho-social issues that affect the training and practice of Christian counsellors and educators. The ethical/legal status and practice of the Christian counsellor and educator will be explored from an integrated theological-psychological perspective.

CP5502 Counselling Theory Practicum II: In Practicum II, students will utilize the basic communication and counselling micro-skills acquired in practicum I to establish an effective helping relationship that facilitates the client’s personal growth and development. The student-counsellor will develop further by building confidence in the interpersonal process of therapy through the study and practice of these person-centred relational skills. Student will counsel two clients for five sessions under supervision. Students will complete 10 counselling hours with clients.

CP 5501 Counselling Theory Practicum I: Practicums I & II are designed to help the counsellor understand the therapeutic process and how change occurs. It will guide the student through goal setting and intervention strategies, in all phases of treatment, from initial counsellee contact to termination. First, it critically examines the history of the counselling profession. Particularly, it will explore and develop an integrative view of professional identity, its roles, functions, and relationship with other human service providers.

CP 5201 Theories of Counselling and Psychotherapy: This course is an introduction to various approaches to theories and practices of psychotherapy and counselling. It also examines the critical role of neuroscience in enhancing positive therapeutic outcomes. Through this course students will develop skills associated with the process of case conceptualization and the analytic appraisal of the presuppositions underlying various theories of psychotherapy.

CP 5102 Human Development: This course is an introduction to human development across the lifespan, from pre-natal development through childhood, adolescence, adulthood, and old age. Course content will focus on physical, social, cognitive, and personality development and its implication for counselling and psychotherapy. In addition, spiritual development will be discussed, with an attempt to integrate it with other aspects of human development.

CP 5202 Psychopathology: An introduction to the current understanding of psychopathology and the mental disorders, as delineated by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders – 5th Edition. An overview of the history of abnormal psychology is provided, in addition to focused study on a variety of disorders with particular attention paid to the most common mental disorders encountered in counselling practice, including the etiology, presenting symptoms, diagnostic criteria, prognosis, and known treatments.

CP 5113 Crisis & Trauma Counselling: The assessment and treatment of clients in crisis and dealing with trauma will be studied using empirical materials and formulations drawn from several theoretical approaches. The time-limited nature of crisis intervention, related legal and ethical issues, and interfacing appropriately with other service providers will be addressed. Students will learn the fundamentals of traumatology, including the basics of victimology, traumatic stress, and neurological correlates of trauma. Special emphasis will be given to adult survivors of various types of abuse, including sexual, physical, emotional, and spiritual abuse.

CP 5116 Counselling Across Cultures: An exploration of basic concepts and skills pertinent to counselling across cultures. Focus will be on (1) developing sensitivity to the impact of culture on the counsellor, the counsellee, and on the counselling relationship, and (2) identifying principles of counselling which are based on Scripture and relevant to all cultures. Course readings will allow each student to choose a focus on the missions counselling context or on multi-cultural counselling in North America. This course will be helpful to students who wish to work with individuals from diverse backgrounds.

CP 5108 Addictions and Codependency: This course will examine the addictive process, specifically as it pertains to alcohol, drug abuse and problem gambling. The unique needs of those impacted by addictions will also be explored along with Adult Children of Dysfunctional Families and the issue of Codependency.

CP 5105 Integration of Psychology and Theology: The course explores and critically examines various theories of the integration of psychology and theology on three levels of discourse-namely, conceptually, clinically, and personally. Various issues such as sin and psychopathology, integrative psychotherapy, theological anthropology, and the like will be considered from both perspectives along with the psychological and spiritual issues counsellors bring to the healing process.

PSY 319 Research Designs and Intermediate Statistical Methods in Psychology: Issues of importance to researchers in the social sciences are covered, including ethics, measurement, sampling, and validity of experimental and non-experimental designs.

PSY 433 Personality Assessment: A broad survey of the major methods, techniques, issues, and problems of personality assessment, and an opportunity to administer and score various intellectual assessment instruments.

PSY 333: Introduction to Group Counselling: This course stimulates thought about ethical and practical issues that are typically encountered by group leaders and participants. Students become familiar with major areas of group work such as task and work groups, guidance and psychoeducational groups, counselling and interpersonal groups, and psychotherapy and personality reconstruction groups. Engage in experiential exercises related to group processes and practices.