60 Minutes, On Zoom, Wednesday, April 15: 1 pm PT / 3 pm CT / 4 pm ET
On April 15, Carolyn Jacobs, founder of Ally in Divorce, will host a virtual benefit to support Kids Managing Conflict, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that strengthens and funds peer mediation programs in K–12 schools. Carolyn will sit down with distinguished scholar, educator, and family law practitioner Dr. Michael Saini for a conversation on the importance of fostering civil discourse concepts and skills among youth.
Children and youth are coming of age in a world marked by polarization, rapid judgment, and shrinking spaces for thoughtful disagreement. Teaching civil discourse is no longer just about manners or classroom rules. It is about helping young people learn how to express values, listen with curiosity, disagree without harm, and remain in relationship across differences. This conversation explores how children and youth learn the norms of disagreement through families, schools, peers, institutions, and digital spaces. It examines the tension between speaking up and staying open, and between accountability and dialogue.
About Dr. Saini
Michael Saini, Ph.D., MSW, RSW is a Full Professor and holds the endowed Factor-Inwentash Chair in Law and Social Work at the University of Toronto’s Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work. He is Co-Director of the Combined J.D./M.S.W. Program with the Faculty of Law at the University of Toronto. Dr. Saini has authored over 200 publications, including peer-reviewed articles, books, and government reports, and regularly presents internationally on family law, separation and divorce, child protection, parenting plan decision-making, and children’s rights. He is the Past-President of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), President of Family Mediation Canada, and an Associate Fellow of the International Academy of Family Lawyers.
Registration is $10 per attendee, and Ally in Divorce will donate 100% of the proceeds to Kids Managing Conflict (KMC). Carolyn Jacobs serves on KMC’s Board of Directors.
This program is for:
• Parents
• ADR Professionals
• Educators
• Mental Health Professionals
• Parenting Professionals
• Youth Program Staff
• Anyone hoping to support children in building relational skills
60 Minutes, On Zoom, Wednesday, February 18: 1 pm PT / 3 pm CT / 4 pm ET
On February 18, Carolyn Jacobs, founder of Ally in Divorce, will host a virtual benefit to support Kids Managing Conflict, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that strengthens and funds peer mediation programs in K–12 schools. Carolyn will sit down with PJ Brescia (they/them), an Out100 2025 honoree and the founder of BabyGay™, a media platform and 501(c)(3) nonprofit amplifying queer voices through storytelling, advocacy, and togetherness. PJ hosts The BabyGay™ Podcast, which celebrates coming out stories, humanizes the queer experience, highlights queer history, and offers resources for living authentically. They also serve as President of the LA Queer Coalition, uniting community leaders to uplift and advance LGBTQIA+ rights, and as a Board Member of the NLGJA Los Angeles Chapter, supporting LGBTQIA+ journalists.
This conversation considers how young people navigate sharing about their sexuality and gender and how adults can support them thoughtfully when meaning, safety, and understanding are still taking shape. Drawing on PJ Brescia’s work in listening to and honoring coming-out stories, this conversation will explore the internal and external dynamics young people contend with as they decide whether, when, and how to share. We will consider how support-minded adults can listen and respond in ways that foster safety, agency, and trust.
Registration is $10 per attendee, and Ally in Divorce will donate 100% of the proceeds to Kids Managing Conflict (KMC). Carolyn Jacobs serves on KMC’s Board of Directors.
This program is for:
• Parents
• ADR Professionals
• Educators
• Mental Health Professionals
• Parenting Professionals
• Youth Program Staff
• Anyone hoping to support children in building relational skills
Seeing Conflict Through a Child’s Lens: A Conversation with Dr. Marygrace Berberian
60 Minutes, On Zoom, Wednesday, December 3, 2025
12 pm PT / 2 pm CT / 3 pm ET
Join a conversation that contributes! On Wednesday, December 3, Carolyn Jacobs, founder of Ally in Divorce, will host a virtual benefit to support Kids Managing Conflict, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that strengthens and funds peer mediation programs in K–12 schools. Carolyn will sit down with Dr. Marygrace Berberian, Director of the Graduate Art Therapy Program at New York University, and a board-certified art therapist and clinical social worker with 30 years of experience in community-based mental health for children and families.
This conversation considers how children understand, express, and navigate interpersonal conflict. We’ll aim to offer ideas for parents, educators, and other supporting adults to better recognize and encourage productive conflict communication for children with their peers.
Drawing on Dr. Berberian’s extensive work with families and schools, we will explore children's expressions, obstacles, and opportunities in peer interpersonal conflict. We’ll also discuss what adults might overlook in these situations and how they can best support children in expressing and resolving conflict in ways that engage empathy and build skills for a lifetime of difficult conversations.
Registration is $10 per attendee, and Ally in Divorce will donate 100% of the proceeds to Kids Managing Conflict. Carolyn Jacobs serves on KMC’s Board of Directors.
This program is for:
• Parents
• ADR Professionals
• Educators
• Mental Health Professionals
• Parenting Professionals
• Youth Program Staff
• Anyone hoping to support children in building relational skills
