Congratulations to the 19 people—including parents, caregivers, MS Families For Kids staff and board, Help Me Grow staff, and MS Thrive ECDC members—who completed “Serving on Groups that Make Decisions Leadership Training” on Saturday, February 4th, at the Jackson Hilton. We are so proud of you, and it was wonderful to get to know all of you in person! Thank you to Henry Moore, Coreaner Price and Nikki Flippins-Willis for facilitating the training.
The group was very engaged and enthusiastic in individual and group activities. They shared these thoughts about the different training modules at the end of the day:
MAPS (action planning) Identifying Your Individual Skills as a Leader
· “Henry is very energetic. He loves what he does and it shows.”
· “Loved how the introduction was done.”
· The activity was AWESOME!”
· “Henry was an excellent presenter very informative and eager.”
· “I will be using some of the discussion tips in my in my work with families.”
Types of groups: Governance, advisory, leadership, planning, evaluation and practice
· “Nikki was very patient and knowledgeable. She took time to answer questions and make sure there was an understanding.”
· “I appreciate the opportunity to sign up to be a part of an organization.”
· “Nikki was very engaging.”
· “It was interesting learning about different groups and committees on which I can participate”
· “I really gained a lot of information.”
Shared Decision-Making and SMART Goal group activity
· “I enjoyed the SMART activity as well as guided principles.”
· “Loved the group activities to gain a better understanding.”
· “I really enjoyed practicing the group activities.”
Tools used by decision-making groups
· “Coreaner is a great speaker.”
· “I really enjoyed.”
· “Presenter was very relatable! Pace of presentation was great and engaging.”
· “The feedback was very helpful.”
· “Very knowledgeable! She was very informative. Excellent presenter!”
· “This really helped me to look at ways I can better organize groups.”
1-on-1 Cultural Humility Interview Activity
· “I know why I’m here! The facilitators were marvelous. They know their craft well. Thank you for the insight!”
· “The activity was AWESOME!
· I will use some of the discussion tips in my work with families.”
Understanding Data as Information
· “Stages of data! I’ve gained a better understanding.”
· “I love to analyze data especially the How and Why!”
· “Data is a subject that most need to understand as it relates to the perception of who is interpreting the information.”
Sharing Your Family Story
· “Sharing your story can be freeing and needed.”
· “I’m a true believer that testimonies change lives!”
· “I’d love more training on helping families create and share their stories.”
· “This activity helps me understand how families deal with loss, disappointments and trauma.”
· “Wonderful!”
· “This section was very personable”
Listening Awareness Inventory
· “Great training! Impactful and useful information.”
· “I enjoyed this training.”
· “The training was outstanding.”
Families as Allies has trained over two hundred parents, caregivers and partners in “Serving on Groups That Make Decisions” over the past three years. This training prepares participants to work with policymakers to make decisions about our children and the systems that serve children and families. Let us know if you would like to schedule a virtual or in-person training.
