PEERS®

Social Skills Groups & Boot Camps

The Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS®) is a social skills training intervention developed at UCLA by Elizabeth Laugeson to support individuals diagnosed with autism or other social disorders who have difficulty with peer interactions and relationships.

PEERS® has a strong evidence base for use with adolescents and young adults with Autism but is also appropriate for preschoolers, adolescents and young adults with ADHD, anxiety, depression and other socioemotional challenges. Research has demonstrated that gains made over the course of the program are maintained 3-5 years later. For links to published findings of the efficacy of the program go to PEERS research.

PEERS differs from other social skills programs because it:

is evidence-based
includes parents throughout treatment
is structured like a class, not a therapy group
breaks down social skills into understandable steps
teaches ecologically valid social skills based on behavior of socially successful individuals
generalizes social skills to “real life” settings and includes skills that transfer to the workplace

Dating Bootcamp December 2023 (Winter Break)

Age: >17 years old

Dates: Dec 16 and 17 9am to 1pm

Topics Include:

flirting with potential partners
letting someone know you like them
choosing appropriate people to date
Starting, maintaining conversations
asking someone on a date
handling rejection
turning someone down
planning and going on a date
dating do's and don'ts
handling pressure from partners
relationship boundaries
physical contact
conflict resolution

Attendees are presented with targeted skills through didactic instruction, role-play demonstration, and have time to practice skills through exercises.

Pricing: $975 a bootcamp, $850 early registration discount

Price includes boot camp and orientation/mental health screening appointment.

Enrollment Process-

Complete the application
Upon receiving your application, a staff member will call to schedule a free 30-minute telephone intake.
After the phone intake, both the teen client and parent/caregiver coach must attend a PEERS® orientation appointment with our clinician for a mental health screening and to determine if enrollment in the program is appropriate.
Prior to orientation appointment you will be provided an intake packet to be completed. Intake packet must be completed 1 week prior to orientation appointment.

Application

Full 10-week Program

Fall 2023- FULL- Sept 5 to Nov 15 (with the week of halloween off)

Spring 2024- Jan23 to March 27

Time:

Tuesdays from 6:30 pm to 8pm.

Ages:

11-17 years

Weekly Groups:

10-weekly groups

90 min Teen group
90 min Parent group

PEERS® for Teens is a 10-week, evidence-based social skills intervention for motivated teens in middle and high school interested in learning ways to make and keep friends.

The Teens program is open to clients ages 11-18 who have difficulty initiating and maintaining friendships. Teens learn social skills through didactic instruction, live demonstrations by trained coaches, and extensive practice via group play activities such as sports, board games, etc., while receiving real-time, individualized coaching from clinical staff. Regular attendance is imperative to program success.

Parents attend weekly group sessions, held simultaneously with the client group, where they learn how to assist their teen by providing feedback and coaching for weekly socialization homework assignments. Weekly attendance for parents/caregivers is a program requirement.

Topics include:

Use appropriate conversational skills
Use humor appropriately
Use electronic communication
Enter & exit conversations
Be a good host during get-togethers

How to be a good sport
Handle arguments and disagreements
Change a bad reputation
Handle rumors and gossip
Handle rejection, teasing and bullying

Pricing:

Price includes boot camp and orientation/mental health screening appointment.

Total price for program- $1,850 ($185/session- parent and child group)

Enrollment Process-

Complete the application
Upon receiving your application, a staff member will call to schedule a free 30-minute telephone intake.
After the phone intake, both the teen client and parent/caregiver coach must attend a PEERS® orientation appointment with our clinician for a mental health screening and to determine if enrollment in the program is appropriate.
Prior to orientation appointment you will be provided an intake packet to be completed. Intake packet must be completed 1 week prior to orientation appointment.

Application

Meet the Team:

Group Leader

Jillianne Grayson, MD

Dr. Jillianne Grayson was born and raised in Miami, Florida. She completed her undergraduate training in biology at Johns Hopkins University. She obtained her medical degree from Florida State University College of Medicine. She completed an intern year in internal medicine at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital and subsequently completed two years of neurology residency before deciding to follow her passion and switch specialties to psychiatry. Dr. Grayson completed her adult psychiatry training at The Johns Hopkins Hospital and her fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at Children’s National Medical Center.

She is a certified yoga instructor and has a special interest in mindfulness. With a personal belief in making every day count, she makes time for her passions of painting, yoga, traveling, and spending time with her husband and son.

https://www.graysonpsychiatry.com/

Group Leader

Amy Dombrosky, LCMHC, NCC

Amy was raised in Virginia and has resided in the Charlotte area for over 10 years. Amy has two young children and enjoys being outdoors. She enjoys being active whether that be hiking, gardening, or playing tennis. On the weekends you might find Amy and her family playing in Freedom Park, riding e-scooters, or using the Lynx to explore the Charlotte area.

Amy holds a MA from Marymount University in Community Counseling. Amy is a Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor in North Carolina as well as a Nationally Certified Counselor. Amy is licensed to provide Telehealth in South Carolina and Florida. Amy completed EMDR training in 2012 and the Program for the Education and Enrichment of Relational Skills (PEERS®) Certification in 2022. https://dombroskycounseling.com/

Office Manager

Dannielle Gozelski

Born in a small town just outside of Portland, Maine, Dannielle’s love for working with children began when she accepted a position at a local childcare center. After a few years in that field, in the summer of 2005, a career opportunity for her husband brought the couple to North Carolina. Once arriving here, Dannielle made a career move into office administration. She served in this role for multiple Lake Norman area establishments from 2006-2015. At this point, and with the ambitions of soon having a child of her own, Dannielle again switched paths and became a full-time nanny, she held this position until becoming a mom herself at the end of 2016. After 4 years of being a full-time mom, Dannielle jumped back into the childcare industry when she began working as a preschool teacher at a Montessori school in Mooresville. With her daughter moving on to kindergarten this year, Dannielle felt it was time to move back into the administrative world. Her background in office management and her love for children merged when she got the amazing opportunity to work with Dr. Grayson.