Prior to 1989

For many years, there wasn’t a place for caregivers and professionals to collaborate on the topic of attachment. ATTACh founder Terry M. Levy, Ph.D., D.A.P.A., B.C.F.E. and therapists in Evergreen, CO, knew that true advancement could only happen if collaboration occurred between both groups. These conversations resulted in the formative phase of what would become ATTACh.

March 1989

The first professional conference on attachment convened in Miami to discuss attachment and bonding. During the conference, a group of teachers, psychologists, pediatricians and others gathered to discuss the creation of a formal group dedicated to treating attachment. This meeting also marked the group’s first fundraiser where attendees literally “passed around the hat” to begin funding the organization that would later become the Association for Treatment and Training in the Attachment of Children (ATTACh).

September 1990

Following the enthusiastic response to these groundbreaking meetings, 50 founding members comprised of American and Canadian mental health professionals, educators and parents of children with attachment disorders officially formed the Association for Treatment and Training in the Attachment of Children (ATTACh).

2004

ATTACh has a membership of nearly 600 members, and an established international, nonprofit organization with the resources and ability to support the education and training needs of professionals, parents and caregivers to help vulnerable children heal.

Today

The organization is currently known as the Association for Training on Trauma and Attachment in Children (ATTACh). It is governed by a Board of Directors, offers a clinical registration and referral process and a robust information library that helps caregivers build a knowledge base and practical skills they need to help children heal. The organization holds an annual international training and workshop conference each fall and hosts attendees from the U.S and countries from around the globe. ATTACh hosted its 2020 conference virtually as a result of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic.

Photos of ATTACh History