Beth Caldwell, MS

Beth served as the director of the National Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) for 15 years, retiring as the director in October 2019. She now serves as a BBI lead expert consultant. The Building Bridges Initiative is an initiative dedicated to supporting residential practices that improve long-term positive outcomes for youth and families, post-residential discharge. She also served as a founding faculty member for the evidence based Six Core Strategies©, initially funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Beth has provided training, consultation, on-site and virtual technical assistance, and reviews for staff and programs in all 50 States and several countries on the Six Core Strategies© and a range of BBI best practices. These practices have focused on preventing the need for restraints, seclusions, and other coercive practices, and promoting permanency, family-driven, youth-guided, and trauma-informed care, cultural and linguistic competence, strength/resiliency-based, and individualized care. She is the editor of two books on residential best practices and has authored or co-authored numerous articles and documents to support the field.