Online Parenting Classes & Family Therapy in Salina, KS
Families in central Kansas who find their way to New Connections Mental Health often describe the same quiet turning point: they realized the effort they were putting in was not the problem. The tools were. Parenting classes in Salina, Kansas offer a different kind of foundation, one built on understanding rather than on managing, and the results tend to outlast anything technique-based.
Sitting where I-70 and I-135 meet, Salina has always been a crossroads. Families spread across neighborhoods near Kansas Wesleyan University, along the Smoky Hill River corridor, and out toward the county lines in McPherson and Dickinson share a pace of life shaped by trade, community, and movement. New Connections serves Salina families through fully virtual sessions and in-person appointments in Hays, making consistent support accessible whether a family is close to downtown or an hour out on the plains.
The particular dynamic of a city large enough to feel anonymous and small enough that everyone eventually runs into everyone else shapes how parenting challenges feel here. Working on family dynamics can feel somewhat visible in that context. What most families discover is that the work through New Connections is private, practical, and built entirely around the rhythms of real life in central Kansas.
Explore our Online Child Parent Relationship Training
The Child-Parent Relationship Training is a 10-week guided program to help you turn daily meltdowns into moments of connection through play, co-regulation, and relationship-based tools, without yelling, power struggles, or feeling like you’re failing as a parent.
How it works
The CPRTprogram is a
framework built around connection, not correction
The CPRT model is backed by decades of research and recognized as an evidence-based treatment. What matters more than the credentials is how it actually feels to parents in practice: manageable, specific, and genuinely effective. Each week introduces a single skill rather than an entire philosophy overhaul.
Explore the right type of coaching for your family
Families in Salina and the surrounding Saline County area can connect by phone to speak with the team and find out which option makes the most sense for their schedule and goals. The conversation is focused and unhurried, with no paperwork required before getting a clear picture of what is available.
Skills that stay with families long after the program ends
Each week's new skill gets practiced in a short play session at home. Over time those sessions create a new kind of rhythm between parent and child, one where the child feels genuinely understood and the parent feels effective rather than exhausted.
Explore our services and specializations
for the families who have already tried the scripts and the strategies and found that something still feels off. The program does not start with new rules. It starts with a new way of paying attention to what a child is actually communicating.
The changes families notice tend to be subtle at first. A child who used to escalate at minor frustrations starts pausing. A parent who used to react starts noticing the moment before the reaction usually arrives. Those small shifts stack into a fundamentally different daily experience at home.
As an online parenting course, CPRT is accessible to Salina families without requiring anyone to rearrange a workday or coordinate around traffic. Sessions come to the parent, which turns out to matter more than most families expect going in.
For teenagers in Salina, the pressure of high school, social belonging, and family tension can compound in ways that are hard to untangle from the outside. A teen who seems fine at school and miserable at home is carrying something specific, and that something deserves a space of its own.
Teen therapy at New Connections is built around the young person, not a protocol. Adolescents who come to sessions regularly begin to develop a clearer internal compass. They understand their own reactions better and can communicate them in ways that reduce the friction at home rather than adding to it.
Virtual sessions mean a teenager in Salina can access consistent support without it becoming a whole family production. The logistics stay simple so the work can stay real and the teen stays willing to show up.
In a city the size of Salina, family dynamics can feel high-stakes in their own way. Extended family is nearby, the community is watching, and addressing what is wrong as a unit can feel like a semi-public act. Family therapy at New Connections is confidential, structured, and built around the goal of genuine change rather than surface-level peace.
The most common thing families say after several months of family therapy is that they understand each other better than they ever did before. Not that everything is perfect, but that there is a new way of hearing one another when things get hard, and that new way changes the outcome.
Virtual sessions make it possible for the whole family to participate together from home, removing the scheduling friction that so often prevents consistent attendance when life is already at capacity.
We serve clients in Salina and nearby areas
New Connections Mental Health reaches families throughout Saline County and the broader central Kansas region. Virtual parenting classes and online parenting courses are available across the state, with in-person sessions held at the Hays office at 2810 Plaza Avenue. Families in Abilene, McPherson, Concordia, Minneapolis, and Ellsworth are all within the practice's service reach. The map below shows the Hays location for those planning to visit in person.
Testimonials
“I’m very grateful for your wisdom! You are so gifted at your profession!”
“Thank you so much for helping me with my child. You have no idea how much we appreciate it and how much you mean to the both of us!”
“I hope you know how much you mean to us. You are incredibly talented and came into our lives at the exact right time. Thank you for supporting and loving us. Your work has made a world of difference in our trajectory and healing. We love you very very much!”
Hi, I'm Michelle Holdeman, founder of New Connections Mental Health group practice
I started New Connections Mental Health because I knew from my own experience that parenting without the right support is one of the hardest things a person can do. As a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Registered Play Therapist with training in CPRT and EMDR, I have worked alongside families across Kansas in schools, hospitals, and community mental health settings since 2006. The clinicians on this team share my belief that families do not need fixing. They need understanding. Behavior is communication, and connection is the foundation of healing.
Frequently asked questions
How is CPRT different from any other parenting curriculum?
- Don’t worry you’re not expected to revamp your whole routine. With CPRT, you’ll gradually learn one skill per week and try it out during playtime with your child. This slower pace helps you actually retain what you learn.
- You’ll also discover how powerful play can be for connection. Kids communicate through toys, and CPRT taps into that natural language.
- Unlike many programs, CPRT is backed by research and officially recognized by SAMHSA as evidence-based.
What is expected from the parent:
What makes CPRT stand out? Simplicity, connection, and evidence. You won’t be overwhelmed with information; you'll gain one skill per week and try it out in playful, 30-minute home sessions. CPRT focuses on play because it’s the most natural language of children. Plus, it’s more than just a curriculum, it's officially recognized by SAMHSA as an evidence-based method.
Will my insurance cover the cost of CPRT?
For group classes, we don’t bill insurance directly. But if you’re doing CPRT individually, we can give you a superbill that you can send to your insurance. There's a chance they’ll cover part of it!