Our Children, Our Future Interfaith Leadership Series 

(Please read carefully before applying!)

Purpose

We are looking for leaders from all faiths who will participate in a 6-month leadership training course – learning together the skills of community organizing, leadership, and advocacy.  We are looking for people of all ages, faiths, and walks of life--who want to make a change in our community and seek more skills to help them achieve that change.  Our co-sponsors include: Our Children, Our Future Campaign, WV Council of Churches, Islamic Association of West Virginia, St. John’s Episcopal Church, Temple Israel, Partnership of African-American Churches, Kanawha Pastoral Counseling Center, Café a la Fikr, Healthy Kids and Families Coalition, Healthy Bodies, Healthy Spirits, Tuesday Morning Group, Bridges of Grace, United Church of Christ, HOPE Community Development Corporation, Kanawha Valley Village People, NAACP Charleston Chapter, Good Living Assisted Living.

Overarching goals

1.Develop the leadership skills of at least 20 West Virginians

2.Develop real relationships among West Virginians of different faiths

3.Making some real change on issues that matter to our communities

Requirements for Participants

Participants must... apply in the box to the right by March 28th (deadline extended)!

...commit to attend at least 5 of the 6 trainings below!

...come with some issue you care about or project you want to start; these trainings are for leaders who want to improve their communities!

...agree to a waiver to be video-recorded (we want to make these trainings available on-line for future participants)!

...be 16 years of age or older; we are looking for leaders of all ages who are ready to make real change!

Location

Trainings hosted at:

Islamic Association of West Virginia

1 Valley Drive in South Charleston

Session Topics and Dates (Please put all dates in your calendar!)

I.Introduction to Organizing and Interfaith Leadership – The Basics of Leadership, Ground Rules, and Understanding Our Own Religious and Ethnic Identity  Tuesday, April 19^th

II.Relational Meetings and Building Your Team (Working with Young People and New People) Tuesday, May 17^th

III.Mission, Strategy, and Timeline--Determining What You Want and Fighting for It  Tuesday, July 19^th

IV.Organizing in the Real World: Effective Meetings and How to Deal with Difficult People & Situations  Tuesday, August 16^th

V.Fundraising, Grant-Writing, and Making Asks  Tuesday, September 20^th

VI.Sustainability, and How to Build Long-Term Power (Policy, Government, Etc.)  Tuesday, October 25^th

Cost

Cost for the training is $75 for adults, $50 for students.  Please bring a check with you to the first training, payable to WVHKFC, or pay on-line at wvhealthykids.org/donate.  The WV Healthy Kids and Families Coalition is the proud fiscal sponsor of this event.  (A limited number of scholarships are available for those who may not be able to afford the training.  Proceed with the application to the right if you would like to apply for a scholarship; there's an extra question in that case.)

* This training is open to people of any faith, or no faith.  If you are interested in a similar training, but compacted into a 2-day span instead of over 6 months, check out this link.

For more information, contact Stephen Smith at stephen@ourfuturewv.org.