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Empowering Under-Served Communities

Empowering people to identify negative cognitions that result from adverse environments;  identify and minimize core issues; face past traumas and hurt; develop positive self-concepts and missions; and establish S.M.A.R.T. prestigious goals.

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Workshops & Trainings

Some of the workshops were approved by the State of Georgia through the Professional Development System for continuing education credit hours

HAVE YOU CHECKED ON THE CHILDREN?

This workshop addresses the complex issue of improving child well-being in Greater Atlanta. We will consider some of the missing key fundamentals in community initiatives, such as residuals of poverty, which must be addressed if we are to move the needle on child well-being. We will examine the ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences that have negative and lasting effects on health and well-being), and discuss the risks and stigmas associated with growing up in poverty. This session helps community initiatives examine and address the correlation between childhood poverty and increased mental health problems well into adulthood.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

  • Participants will be able to list ways to address the multifaceted issue of improving child well-being in Greater Atlanta. This workshop will guide participants as they consider some of the missing fundamentals in community initiatives, such as residuals of poverty, which must be addressed if we are to move the needle on child well-being.
  • Participants will examine ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences that have negative and lasting effects on health and well-being), as they are led in the process of defining and listing some of the risks and stigmas associated with growing up in poverty. They will examine the correlation between mental health problems and growing up in poverty.

 

STRENGTHENING FAMILIES GEORGIA: AN EFFECTIVE APPROACH TO SUPPORTING FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES

Strengthening Families Georgia (SFG) represents a multi-disciplinary partnership of nearly 50 national, state and local, and public and private organizations dedicated to embedding five research-based Protective Factors into services and supports for children and their families.

 

SFG is funded by the Georgia Department of Human Services, Division of Children and Family Services (DHS-DFCS) through the Federal Community-Based Child Abuse Prevention Grant Program. The Georgia Association for the Education of Young Children (GAEYC), state affiliate of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), administers SFG and chairs the SFG Leadership Team and Partnership.

Learn to apply the five protective factors in your everyday work. Explore Strengthening Families Georgia efforts to embed the factors into family serving agencies.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

  • Identify the usefulness of the 5 protective factors by matching which protective factors can help families with the challenges they face.
  • Identify ways to use the Strengthening Families information received in your work setting.
  • Identify ways to use the Strengthening Families information received with families.
  • View examples of Strengthening Families Georgia (SFG) efforts to embed SFG into all family serving agencies and organizations.

 

POSITIVE THINKING PART I: GET OUT OF CONTROL! 

The purpose of this session is to help participants identify and understand systems and how they control our lives. This session will guide participants in developing skills to effectively escape those systems to realize full potential and abilities in life.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

  • Recognize systems (families, religious affiliations, educational facilities, friends, etc.), as they apply to, and how they set mental limitations
  • Identify and describe the systems they belong to and identify personal mental limitations imposed on them by their systems
  • List and recognize techniques for reinforcing new habits of positive thinking - outside of limitations.

 

POSITIVE THINKING PART II: SELF-AWARENESS & COMPASSION

This session is designed to teach participants the importance of self-care and the five focus areas of self-care which include physical, psychological, emotional, spiritual, and professional.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

  • Define the five focus areas of practicing self-care
  • List and describe personal strategies for practicing self-care
  • Begin the process of creating a functional vision

 

POSITIVE THINKING PART III: SETTING S.M.A.R.T. GOALS 

This session is designed to guide participants in identifying S.M.A.R.T. Goals and the required steps to realize them.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:
  • Identify and list positive reasons for setting competitive goals
  • List and describe realistic steps for taking time out for self
  • Define and plan a major goal for professional development or a career path - outside of identified mental limits
 
 
POSITIVE THINKING PART IV: CULMINATING ACTIVITY

Vision/Dream Board Creation

Participants create a Vision/Dream Board in line with identified SMART Goals that will guide them in:

  • Creating a visual for S.M.A.R.T. Goals and dreams
  • Creating clarity for their purpose
  • Getting un-stuck  and focused
  • Daily motivation to complete tasks that feed into goals
  • Taking ACTION!

 

POSITIVE THINKING PART V: HOW TO TAKE THE PROMISED LAND

Participants will have a discussion about understanding that God can and does see the things we do behind closed doors and the skeletons in our closets. We cannot continue to sin against God and think it will go unchecked. We will discuss the fact that once we are obedient, God stands prepared to fulfill His Promises and grant us the desires of our hearts; but we must be walking in and obeying His perfect Will.

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

  • Recall scriptures in reference to the importance of obedience and the consequences of sinning against God and why you find yourself stuck in troubling situations indefinitely.
  • Understand and list out the importance of confessing your sins to God and making marked changes to minimize and eliminate sin.
  • List and describe the steps to ensure you are living a Holy life which includes repentance; confession; consecration; faith and acceptance; discipleship; growing up in Christ; and the work and the life required to be in God’s Will.

 

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TEMPLE UNIVERSITY STRENGTH-BASED FAMILY WORKER (SFW) CREDENTIAL:

(7 COLLEGE CREDIT HOUR COURSE)

Credential for Strengths-based Family Workers (SFW) is a professional training and credentialing program that is comprised of a competency-based curriculum. It is unique in its focus on the development and documentation of knowledge and skill through the portfolio. Workers who complete the program are better able to facilitate a family’s ability to set and reach their own goals. While nationally standardized, the training is tailored to meet the needs of local communities.

The 6 Core Competencies of SFW:

  • Demonstrates professionalism and commitment to ethical practice
  • Recognizes strength in diversity and difference; demonstrate sensitivity in practice
  • Understands and utilizes the power of clear, non-judgmental communication
  • Demonstrates self-care and lifelong learning
  • Applies strengths-based principles to practice with families
  • Applies strengths-based principles to agency and community systems

 

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DON'T WAIT TOO LATE!

Don't Wait Too Late! This session is designed to provide strategies for teachers, parents, and caregivers that support children's development. Monique presented this workshop at GAEYC (Georgia Association for the Education of Young Children) Annual Conference. It received high markings and powerful feedback!

Competency-Based Learning Objectives:

Participants will:

  • Learn strategies to make the most out of early brain development at the optimal time in children’s lives
  • Understand the importance of modeling and engaging in daily interactions with children in order to develop the language and social skills needed to be successful in school settings
  • Learn how to focus on the need for English as a second language parents to communicate in their home language
  • Understand the importance of selecting books and reading aloud to children at an early age to lay a foundation for reading success

 

 

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