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2026 Safety and Loss Control Workshop: Peer Support Training

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First Responders: Become a Peer to Peer Counselor

Register using the links below

This fall the League of Minnesota Cities Insurance Trust (LMCIT) is sponsoring a Department of Public Safety (DPS)-approved Peer Support Training that meets the DPS 30-hour requirement for anyone wanting to become a public safety peer to peer counselor in Minnesota. This training will consist of two consecutive days of in-person training as well as online learning. After completion of in-person and online training, attendees will:

  • Understand their role and responsibilities of a peer support worker and enhance their communication, interaction, decision-making, and support skills.
  • Be able to assess their own level of resilience and understand ways to enhance resiliency, be a model of wellness, and avoid burnout in this role.
  • Have the knowledge, skills, and abilities to help peers move toward recovery.
  • Have basic awareness to recognize signs of mental health challenges and how to provide peer support and access professional care.
  • Learn additional crisis management training, gain knowledge of how to identify and safely manage a crisis situation with a peer.

In addition to the foundational concepts of being a peer support team member, attendees will learn the basics of setting up and maintaining the team, how to conduct defusings at your agency, and options for clinical consultation for your team.

More details about the 30 hours of training

The Peer Support Training will follow a blended learning format to meet the 30 required hours. The in-person portion (16 hours) will be held over two consecutive days. Online content will be provided starting Sept. 21 for Cottage Grove, and Oct. 13 for St. Cloud.

Credits

This training is designed specifically for first responders and public safety staff, including but not limited to: peace officers, firefighters, 911 dispatchers, and EMS. It has been approved by DPS and POST. Please note: Anyone who has taken a POST-approved Peer Support Training prior to Nov. 1, 2020 is grandfathered in as a Peer Support Team Member, regardless of the number of hours taken in the past. This training is approved for 30 POST credits, including Crisis Intervention/Mental Illness Crisis credits. To ensure the content is relevant and valuable for attendees, our team verifies that registrants’ roles align with the event’s focus. Our team may reach out to discuss your role in relation to the content.

Date & Location

Oct. 13-14
Cottage Grove Hero Center
10125 85th St S,
Cottage Grove, MN 55016
8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (check-in opens at 7:30 a.m.)

Register for Cottage Grove Peer Support Training

Nov. 4-5
St. Cloud Police Department
101 11th Ave N,
St Cloud, MN 56303
8 a.m.-4:30 p.m. (check-in opens at 7:30 a.m.)

Register for St. Cloud Peer Support Training

Fee

$100 per person, includes lunch and all materials

Waitlist Information

Because space is limited, we may need to give registration priority to our members. If an event reaches capacity, non‑members will be contacted and placed on a refundable waitlist.

Presenter

Dr. Heather Rose-Carlson

Dr. Heather Rose-Carlson, PsyD, LP, is a licensed clinical psychologist who has been developing wellness programs and providing trauma therapy services to our military and first responders for over 20 years. She currently serves as Clinical Director/Consultant for Peer Support programs and first responder wellness programs throughout Minnesota, Northern Wisconsin, and Iowa. She owns Northland Psychological Services (NPS), which provides first responder-competent evidence-based trauma therapies and annual mental health check-ins. She also owns Reinforcement Consulting, which provides in-person and online training and clinical support for peer support teams nationwide. Dr. Heather is a founder and current board member of the Peer Support Advisory Board that worked in conjunction with DPS to create the Peer-to-Peer Training Standards, and she was a core author of the Peer Support Best Practices. She has personally trained over 300 Peer Team Counselors in MN, including law enforcement, firefighters, and dispatch personnel. She was contracted to develop Peer Support Training for MNFire.

Dr. Heather, alongside her therapy dog, Kenia, volunteers as the clinical director for the Arrowhead Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) Team that serves all Northern Minnesota and Northern Wisconsin first responders. Dr. Heather is also a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical responder at Grand Lake Fire Department.

Your LMC Resource

Ellie Hartmann

Event Coordinator

(651) 281-1274

g2r2o2.2c2m2l2@2n2n2a2m2t2r2a2h2e

Meet Erin

Erin Holznagel, LMC's public safety wellness coordinator, will be attending the peer support workshops. Connect with Erin to learn more about the Peer Support Advisory Board and other wellness initiatives for your agency. 

Cancellation Policy

All cancellation requests must be emailed to [email protected] prior to the release of the online content to receive a refund or avoid an invoice: Sept. 19 for Cottage Grove and Oct. 12 for St. Cloud. After this date, we will be unable to issue refunds. If you cannot attend, we encourage you to send a substitute in your place. We can accept substitutes up to the day of the workshop, including onsite.