Nationally regarded expert trainers, authors, consultants & speakers on Trauma-Informed and Neuro-Affirming practices, BCG is known for translating content anchored in the most current neuroscience and coherence research into actionable practices for all. Known nationally as “Team Bowman,” Rick and Doris Bowman are more than keynote speakers, authors, and trainers — they are deeply trusted guides who equip educators and parents with trauma-informed, neuroscience-backed (nervous system centered) tools and strategies that shift behavior at the nervous system level… because that’s where lasting change begins. With backgrounds as clinical psychologist, PreK–21 special educator, licensed administrators, and certified trauma and resilience practitioners, their keynotes, presentations, and training sessions blend cutting-edge neuroscience with real-world practicality, always delivered with hope, humor, and heart. Educators, parents, and other human-serving professionals (therapists, RBTs, BCBAs, OTs, PTs and more) leave their trainings feeling reconnected to their purpose, empowered with strategies that actually work, and ready to create classrooms and homes rooted in safety, connection, and real behavior change. Through virtual trainings on trauma-informed care and resilience, BCG has experienced the magic of connecting to others from all over the country and the world, hearing their needs, hearing their victories, and learning from one another, and we've seen our colleagues light up from this experience. And as thought leaders and recognized experts on the topic of trauma-informed, neuro-affirming FBAs and behavior support plans, their recently released guidebook and implementation kit - "Your FBA is a Fantasy!" has taken the education world by storm, ranking as the #1 TOP NEW RELEASE in 4 categories on Amazon in the first 30 days:
- Behavior Disorders in Special Education
- Educational Counseling
- Trauma Psychology
- Emotional, Behavioral & Social Disabilities
BCG PROVIDES PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, TRAINING, CONSULTATION, COACHING, AND ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND ADVISEMENT IN — TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE / RESILIENCE & SELF-REGULATION / NERVOUS SYSTEM CENTERED PARENTING / COLLABORATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING®(MGH Think:Kids) APPROACH TRAINING. Your FBA Is a Fantasy
Description: Why traditional behavior assessments fail our most complex students—and how a nervous-system, skills-based approach finally leads to plans that work.
- Audience: SpEd • Admin • School Psych • Mental Health
Outcomes:
- Identify why compliance-based FBAs break down
- Understand what must be assessed for lasting change
- Shift from “function” to capacity, vulnerability, and access
2. Beyond Behavior: What Trauma Changes in the Brain and Body
Description: A practical look at how trauma and chronic stress alter regulation, perception, and learning—and why behavior is the last place change shows up.
- Audience: Gen Ed • SpEd • Admin • Mental Health
Outcomes:
- Reframe behavior through stress physiology
- Understand escalation, shutdown, and skill loss
- Reduce blame while increasing effectiveness
3. Regulation → Connection → Cognition
Description: The neuroscience-backed sequence that determines whether students can access learning, interacting, and self-control—especially under stress.
- Audience: All Audiences
Outcomes:
- Understand why reasoning fails under dysregulation
- Learn how adult state impacts student access
- Apply the sequence to classrooms and behavior plans
4. Not Defiance—Distress
Description: How to recognize survival responses disguised as “noncompliance,” and what educators can do instead of escalating power struggles.
- Audience: Gen Ed • SpEd • Admin
Outcomes:
- Distinguish refusal from overwhelm or threat
- Reduce escalation cycles
- Respond with strategies that preserve dignity and safety
5. The Nervous System Doesn’t Lie
Description: Why adult regulation is not optional—and how staff nervous systems set the tone for classrooms, teams, and entire buildings.
- Audience: Admin • Educators • Mental Health
Outcomes:
- Understand stress contagion in schools
- Learn practical regulation strategies for adults
- Shift from self-control expectations to system support
6. Trauma-Informed FBAs That Actually Tell the Story
Description: What meaningful assessments include—and what’s missing when FBAs describe behavior without explaining why capacity collapses.
- Audience: SpEd • School Psych • Admin
Outcomes:
- Identify essential elements of trauma-informed FBAs
- Assess regulation, context, and skill access
- Create assessments that guide effective planning
7. From Plans on Paper to Change in Practice
Description: How to design trauma-informed Behavior Support Plans that build skills, reduce burnout, and work in real classrooms.
- Audience: SpEd • Gen Ed • Admin
Outcomes:
- Design proactive, skills-driven BSPs
- Match supports to nervous-system capacity
- Avoid common plan-failure pitfalls
8. Belonging Is Biological
Description: The neuroscience of safety, connection, and engagement—and why belonging is not a “nice-to-have,” but a prerequisite for learning.
- Audience: All Audiences
Outcomes:
- Understand how safety impacts cognition and behavior
- Learn daily practices that build belonging
- Increase engagement without lowering expectations
9. When Consequences Make Things Worse
Description: Why traditional discipline often escalates behavior—and what to do when accountability strategies backfire under stress.
- Audience: Gen Ed • Admin • SpEd
Outcomes:
- Recognize when consequences increase threat
- Learn alternatives that reduce escalation
- Align discipline with neuroscience and equity
10. I’m a Teacher, Not a Therapist—and Still Trauma-Informed
Description: Clarifying what trauma-informed teaching is (and isn’t), with practical strategies educators can use without becoming clinicians.
- Audience: Gen Ed • Admin
Outcomes:
- Reduce fear and role confusion
- Learn educator-appropriate trauma-informed practices
I- ncrease confidence and consistency in classrooms
11. The Classroom Is a Nervous System
Description: How routines, transitions, relationships, and adult responses shape regulation—and how small shifts can produce big change.
- Audience: Gen Ed • SpEd
Outcomes:
- Identify stress points in daily classroom flow
- Adjust environment and expectations for regulation
I- ncrease instructional time by reducing escalation
12. Student Voice Changes Everything
Description: Why including student perspective transforms FBAs, BSPs, and classroom practice—and how to do it safely and respectfully.
- Audience: SpEd • Mental Health • Admin
Outcomes:
- Learn trauma-informed student input strategies
- Increase student buy-in and insight
- Improve plan relevance and effectiveness
13. Leadership for Nervous-System Safety
Description: What administrators do—often unintentionally—that either stabilizes or dysregulates staff, and how leadership shapes implementation success.
- Audience: Admin • District Leaders
Outcomes:
- Understand leadership’s role in staff regulation
- Learn language and structures that build coherence
- Support fidelity without compliance policing
14. From Awareness to Action
Description: Why many trauma-informed initiatives stall—and how to turn principles into daily, sustainable practice across systems.
- Audience: Admin • District Teams • Mental Health
Outcomes:
- Identify barriers to real implementation
- Apply trauma-informed principles as decision filters
- Build systems that last beyond one training
Resilience, Self-Regulation & Coherence topics are available to be tailored to all types of organizations - from Businesses and healthcare organizations, to first responder and veteran organizations, to athletic and social organizations, to schools and mental health organizations. BCG trainers are Certified HeartMath Trainers in "The Resilience/Coherence Advantage" as well as "The Resilient Heart: Certified Trauma-Informed HeartMath Practitioners". Collaborative Problem-Solving®(MGH) Approach:
Challenging behavior has traditionally been thought of as willful and goal-oriented, which has led to approaches that focus on motivating better behavior using reward and punishment programs. Bowman Consulting Group is certified out of MGH and promotes an approach based in empathy, understanding, and skill-building, and provides strategies for working with children with chronically challenging behavior that foster positive relationships and prepare them for a productive adulthood. Bowman Consulting Group, LLC provides training, consulting, and coaching in CPS by Certified Trainers who have completed stringent training requirements by Think:Kids, a part of the Department of Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital.
