FREE · 11 COURSES · UP TO 23 CE HOURS · ON-DEMAND

New to problem gambling treatment? You’re in the right place. This orientation brings together the foundational knowledge and clinical skills you’ll need as you begin working with people affected by gambling-related harm. Follow our recommended pathway from foundational concepts to clinical practice—or select the courses most relevant to where you are in your learning.

Welcome to the Orientation!

Hear from OHA Problem Gambling Services Manager, Greta Coe, about the purpose of this training series and how it supports behavioral health professionals in building their knowledge and skills in problem gambling treatment.

Learn on Your Terms

Follow the recommended pathway or focus on the topics you need most. Either way, you can learn at your own pace and return whenever you like.

  • Choose your path. Take all eleven or select the topics most relevant to your work.

  • Learn at your own pace. Watch videos, explore readings and resources, and return whenever you like.

  • Check your learning. Complete short knowledge checks as you work through each course.

  • Earn your CE certificate. Complete the course requirements and a Certificate of Completion will be posted on your Student Dashboard.

Who These Courses Are For

ACORN courses are recommended for:

  • mental health counselors (MHC/LPC), marriage and family therapists (MFT/LMFT), art therapists (AT/LAT), social workers (SW/LSW/LCSW), psychologists, and other mental health providers; and

  • problem gambling treatment providers who are new to the field.

11 courses | 23 CE hours

100% free | Learn on demand

Who Developed These Courses

Senior Instructor Teresa McDowell

Teresa McDowell, EdD, LMFT is professor emerita at Lewis & Clark, where she served as department chair and co-founded the college’s Problem Gambling Services. With over 40 years of experience as a clinician, educator, administrator, and consultant, Teresa focuses on workforce development, equity-based clinical practice, integrated treatment for problem gambling, and clinical supervision. She is a social researcher, program evaluator, and consultant with Partners in Social Research and Senior Instructor for ACORN. Dr. McDowell has authored more than 50 scholarly publications and is lead author of Socioculturally Attuned Family Therapy: Applying Third Order Thinking to Theory and Practice (3rd Ed., 2026).

Senior Instructor Rick Berman

Rick Berman, MA, LPC, CADC III, CGAC II specializes in integrated treatment of co-occurring mental health and addictive disorders. He trained and supervised addictions and mental health counselors for more than 20 years. In recent years his work focused more specifically on problem gambling. He has presented at national problem gambling conferences in Canada and the United States. He is the past coordinator of Lewis & Clark’s Problem Gambling Services and instructed Gambling Counselor Pre-Certification Courses for many years.

What About CE Hours

Certificate of completion will be made available on the Student Dashboard after you complete all required course activities and the course evaluation survey.

ACORN is approved by the Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO), Provider ID: 26-0044, to provide continuing education courses. Additionally, ACORN has been approved by the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 7274. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. ACORN is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

Start Learning Today

Free of charge, courtesy of Oregon Health Authority, Problem Gambling Services

Oregon Health Authority (OHA) logo
International Problem Gambling and Gaming Certification Organization (IPGGC) logo
Mental Health & Addiction Certification Board of Oregon (MHACBO) logo
National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) logo
Oregon Council on Problem Gambling (OCPG) logo