Gail Garner Swenson, MA

Gail Garner Swenson, MA profile picture

MN ADOPT HELP Program

2446 Univesity Ave. W.
Saint Paul, MN 55114

E: gswenson@mnadopt.org
P: 612-746-5136

Gail earned both her B.A. in English Literature and her M.A. in Teaching English at Bethel University. She has used her training and experience as an educator within the adoption community both as a parent educator and co-leading workshops on adoption-related issues. Gail has continued her education through extensive ongoing training in attachment, trauma and adoption, including her completion in 2018 of the National Adoption Competency Mental Health Training Initiative (NTI) through the Institute for Innovation & Implementation at the University of Maryland, School of Social Work and her completion in 2019 of the Permanency and Adoption Competency Certificate (PACC) program through the Center for Advanced Studies in Child Welfare at the University of Minnesota.

Gail joined the HELP Program in March of 2018 with a long history of advocating for children and childhood. She has a number of direct professional experiences with those touched by adoption and out-of-home placement which contribute to her tapestry of skills, most recently as a long-time employee at Ampersand Families as a Permanency Specialist. From 2000 to 2014 she was a court appointed Guardian ad Litem for Ramsey County and she spent years as a member of the administrative team of Southside Family Nurturing Center, a family-centered program for the prevention of child abuse and neglect.

Her advocacy work has focused on the prevention of child abuse and neglect, seeking family-focused solutions, older youth adoption, and providing education and support to parents around the issues of childhood trauma, grief, and attachment.

Practice Area: None
Region: East Central
Population: Adults
Type of Therapy/Service: Adoption - Adoptive Parent Services, Post-Adoption Resource and Referral, Post-Adoption Education and Support, Resource and Referrals
Specialities: Adoption and Child Welfare History, Adoption Disruptions/Dissolutions, Adoption Transitions, Adult Adoptee Resources, Attachment Issues, Behavior Issues, Education/School Issues/Truancy, Foster Care, Post Adoption Services, Support Groups, Transnational, Transracial, Trauma, Trauma/Complex Trauma

* "Permanency services" includes reunification, guardianship, & kinship care.

** "Permanency" includes reunification, guardianship, & kinship care. "Neurodevelopmental issues" includes ADHD, Autism Spectrum Disorder, &FASD.