| November 2003 workshops |
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Tutor/Mentor Leadership Conference Thursday, November 20 and Friday, November 21, 2003 Thursday, November 20, 2003 Workshops 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Initiating Community-College Partnerships Designed to Help Neighborhood Churches Get Kids to College Inner city churches partner with colleges to help youth imagine a world beyond their neighborhood. Nurturing begins in the local churches, is complemented by campus events, and is followed up in local communities with enhanced programming with an emphasis on education. Youth are catching the vision that college is attainable. This workshop exams a college bridge program, Partners to Promise, which finds the doorway into the urban local neighborhood to be the neighborhood church. A church's constant presence is often the most stable organization in the inner-city where youth can engage with supportive adults who provide a mentoring function. Among the benefits considered is the linking of higher education with neighborhood churches in order to further community-based efforts. Research findings that led to the program being developed will be shared along with program components. Logistics of campus events and follow up community educational programming will be included. This workshop is aimed at middle school and high school counselors, youth mentors, pre-college program personnel, community center leaders/volunteers, and donors who support tutor/mentor programs. Presented by Brenda L. Jackson, Director, Pre-College Programs, Greenville College 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Securing the Future of Educational Programs This session will provide a brief, yet informative, overview for meeting long-term funding needs of educational programs. The workshop will include an information exchange with participants designed to assist in diagnosing current strengths and weaknesses in the individual giving process. The workshop is designed for Executive Directors, Directors of Development, Board Members, Trustees, and organizational leaders responsible for meeting annual funding goals. During the seventy-minute workshop, participants will share success stories of existing development strategies. In addition, participants will explore what gaps may exist in their development process and how these may be improved. Presented by Michael G. Hanlon, Director, Legacy Creators, LL 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Working with Youth in Juvenile Justice System This session will provide information for volunteers and programs who work with youth on probation, or who have a history of at-risk behaviors. Presented by Marcus Spencer, Program Officer, Mentoring Network for Juvenile Court Wards, Circuit Court of Cook County, Juvenile Justice Department 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Using the Internet for Tutor/Mentor Programs This workshop will give you resources that you can take back and utilize in your own youth program. We will cover topics such as educational web sites, GED preparation, college scholarships, emancipation preparation, ESL learning, and financial literacy. All of the resources covered are free sites/programs that anyone can use to serve youth ages 5-19. Each workshop participant will receive a free financial literacy program on CD. Presented by Aimee Sherman, Los Angeles eBus Program Manager, for The Community College Foundation ********************************************************************************* 10:45 am - Noon -- Preparing 7th and 8th Grade Youth for High School Choices This interactive session will provide information for volunteers, parents, program leaders and youth to use in making choices about which public or private high school they will attend. The information presented will be specific to Chicago, but may apply to youth and program leaders in other large metropolitan areas. Presented by Mark Duhon, Executive Director, Highsight, www.highsight.org 10:45 am - Noon -- Youth Empowerment Movement: A Vision of Kids Transforming our Communities Join Gary Goldman, co-author of Empowering Students to Transform Schools, and learn about his visionary approach, truly indicative of the spirit of the new millennium. Goldman seeks to more fully engage our youth, in a grassroots movement, that will shape the future prosperity of this great nation. Many young people express that they are living in a fearful world and find it increasingly difficult to dream of a bright and better future. They feel that adults do not listen to them and are rarely asked how the educational system or other public institutions could better serve or involve them. Our young people are our future and must be included in any vision of how to build that future. A video will be shown of Gary's new Kidz America TV Show, intended to give youth a voice. Presented by Gary Goldman, International Quality Leadership Institute 10:45 am - Noon -- An Innovative eLearning Strategy That Meets the Needs of Youth, Volunteers and Leaders of Tutor/Mentor Programs. This workshop will introduce tutor/mentor program leaders, volunteers and funders to the Smart Schools-Smart Families Project, an innovative, FREE, elearning strategy that designed to motivate America’s media-hooked youth to voluntarily transform at least 15 percent of the documented 4.6 hours of “screen time” spent each day with TV, video gaming, instant-messaging, etc.* into eLearning-and-earning time. Presented by P. Kenneth Komoski, http://www.elearningspace.org This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 10:45 am - Noon -- Fundraising Fundamentals Learn the "must-know" strategies and tools for developing a successful fund raising process. We'll discuss where money comes from, how to locate it, and the different processes that you can use to get it. Presented by Cindy Yang, , Development Director, Associated Colleges of Illinois, Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ********************************************************************************* 1:30pm-2:45pm -- Strategies for Teaching Reading to Elementary School Youth This interactive session will provide information that program leaders can use to train volunteers to be more effective tutors of specific subjects. The workshop will show a phonetic-based approach in teaching decoding and encoding skills through the use of phonetic patterns. It will also show ways to improve comprehension skills, drawing from techniques used in the Wicker Park Learning Center. These include a) identifying the main idea in stories; b) identifying details about predicting outcomes; c) use of tell-backs to enhance comprehension skills. Presented by Kathy Anderson, founder, Wicker Park Learning Center 1:30pm-2:45pm -- A Framework for Strategic Planning Many organizations which wish to enter into a strategic planning process do not spend enough time planning for the planning process. This workshop will present the key elements of strategic planning and what an organization must consider before it formally enters into the planning process. Special emphasis will be placed on Board participation. Presented by Bill Conrad, Institute for Voluntary Organizations 1:30pm-2:45pm -- Mentoring in Australia Mentoring takes many shapes and forms, and happens in many countries. Through distance learning programs in all countries can connect and learn from each other. The presenter leads a mentoring program in Australia and will use this workshop to talk about some of the various type of programs that are in place, as well as support that exists. Presented by Lisa McCoy, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 1:30pm-2:45pm -- Meeting Productivity - Possibility or Oxymoron Imagine spending one to three hours in a meeting! How many times in a week (or day) do you do that? How could we do meeting better? What could we do to change the perception meetings are a place where "minutes are kept and hours are wasted"? Is this an immutable truth or can we really fix this problem? If you'd like contribute your ideas to such a discussion, if you'd like to hear what others are doing, or if you would like to see what techniques and technologies are available to help change this perception, put this workshop on your itinerary for this Tutor/Mentor Leadership Conference. Meetings are the primary way that we exchange information that we use to make decisions. We do this at work, at play, in social situations and at home. So why do most of us dread the thought of meetings? Why don’t look forward to participating in them? This session will examine the situations that we encounter and will provide us with some strategies to help us recognize and improve our own styles of participation. The session will also include hands-on use of some of the technologies that can help make meetings productive and fun. Points of discussion will include: Promoting or inhibiting the free flow of ideas. Preventing the filtering of ideas by position, gender or race. Considering ideas on their merit instead of their source. Reducing the pressure to conform or be guided by boss bias. Leveling the playing field for introverts and extroverts and for management and staff. The workshop will also reveal techniques and technologies that can help surface the unspeakable, the unexpected, and the unimaginable - that enable the sharing of knowledge, that encourage candor and that can create an environment that encourages mature group behavior. Behavior that supports convergent thinking and alignment of groups' and individuals' goals - that it's ok to agree. Behavior that encourages divergent thinking - that it's ok to disagree. Behavior that lets to participants feel it's ok to ask for clarification without being ridiculed - asking the "dumb question". This workshop will give you and fast and efficient way to share your meeting experiences with other participants and to learn new techniques that you can begin to use immediately. Presented by Paul Collins, http://jordan-webb.net ********************************************************************************* 3:00pm until 4:15pm -- Volunteer Recruitment Strategies In this interactive workshop, participants will learn how to identify potential volunteers and how to develop eligibility criteria and recruitment methods. This workshop is intended for program and marketing staff and leadership. It is a hands-on workshop that draws on the collective wisdom of the participants and the guidance of the presenter to provide each participant with tools they can implement when they return to their programs. Presented by Deborah Baker, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Metropolitan Chicago http://www.bbbschgo.org 3:05 pm till 4:30pm-- Engaging School Faculty and Staff in Partnership Programs Young people spend the bulk of their time in school and yet schools are ill suited to address all of the needs of these children, their families and the community. In this climate of "accountability", there is seldom time, space or resources for schools to provide their students with all the tools they to succeed. Non-profit and educational organizations bring a variety or supports and resources for these youth. These organizations frequently need to establish some kind of partnership with the schools to best serve their young people. And yet, with school staff that is overburdened and schools that are under resourced, partnering with outside organizations seems like "more work" and frequently these partnerships run into brick walls. This workshop will help participants develop strategies on how to break through these barriers to develop effective partnerships with individuals for benefit of the students, their families and the larger community. This workshop will serve teachers, program developers, coordinators and anyone else seeking to establish or maintain programs in a school. While the workshop will speak specifically about school and educational partnerships, lessons learned can be applied to other partnership projects. Why go through the trouble? Because school teachers and staff are the key. They can make or break a program. In a study conducted by the Children's Aid Society in New York City, it was found that as a result of involving school faculty and staff in programming: - Teachers view their students more holistically - Collaboration between school and agency staff reflected a sense of common purpose and cohesion. - Programs were designed support and enhance educational opportunities by addressing the full developmental needs of young people This workshop will provide a framework for identifying and engaging school faculty and staff in partnership programs. Presenters will review this framework as well demonstrate the benefits and challenges involved in building partnership programs. Participants will learn how to use an asset- based approach in program design and will participate in situational analysis game whereby they "implement" programs in a variety of settings. Participants will be given tools that they can take back to their own school/organization and begin to use immediately! Presenters will share success stories as well as respond to particular concerns and challenges. Please join us and help make our schools a great place for everyone to develop to their full potential! Presented by Emmy Bright, , School Partnership Program Manager, Office of Community Arts Partnerships, Columbia College of Chicago and Latesha Dickerson, Middle School teacher of Math & Science for ACT Charter School. http://www.colum.edu/ocap E-mail Emmy at: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 3:05 pm till 4:30pm-- Teaching with Chicago’s Amazing Architecture Through hands-on activities, learn to use Chicago’s amazing architecture and built environment as a fun, effective tool for teaching across the elementary curriculum. This workshop is designed for tutors/mentors of students in grades K-8. Participants will take away ideas for using architecture to teach math, science, language arts, and social sciences. Particular attention will be paid to supporting the Chicago Reading Initiative. Presented by Jean Linsner and Jen Masengarb, educators with the Chicago Architecture Foundation and co-authors for CAF’s resource book for teachers, Schoolyards to Skylines Chicago Architecture Foundation. Website: www.architecture.org E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ********************************************************************************* Friday, November 21, 20003 Workshops 9:15 am until Noon -- Planning and Conducting Useful Program Evaluation NOTE: This is a 3- hour workshop, starting at 9:15 and ending at Noon. This half-day workshop is specifically designed for program staff and program support organizations that need to plan and conduct program evaluation. The Workshop provides personal attention for your program evaluation needs, and time is spent on individual questions and answers. Using hands-on activities, participants will complete step-by-step exercises and leave with an evaluation plan tailored to their specific needs. Information and handouts will cover evaluation issues from simple to comprehensive programs and initiatives. Topics will include formative, process and outcome evaluation issues such as deciding what to evaluate, selecting measures and measurement tools, implementing evaluation procedures, and preparing and interpreting results. New and seasoned programs are welcome. No prior evaluation experience is required. Participants are highly encouraged to bring real questions and projects to the workshop. For examples of workshop materials and comments from prior workshop participants, please visit http://www.tutormentorexchange.net/Resources/Eval/Evaluation.htm Presented by Dr. Steve, Roussos, http://www.akouo.org 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- The Tutor's Handbook for Tutoring Seasoned tutors have worked together to compile their repertoire of best practices in this handbook that will be demonstrated and shared in this session. These strategies may be used with students in kindergarten through high school. Here's what you've been looking for---what works from record keeping to strategies in reading and math! Presented by Jan Fitzsimmons, the program administrator for the North Central College Junior/Senior Scholars Program Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it Team leaders assisting in the presentation will be Danielle Bank, Rachel Harden, Lara Levine, Erin Sackett and Becky Hoffman. 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Starting Your Own Tutor/Mentor Organization This workshop will cover ideas and suggestions for starting your own tutor/mentor program based on how I started Wicker Park Learning Center. The areas discussed will include the following: 1) Deciding on which neighborhood you want your program to be located in and existing programs already in the neighborhood. 2) Population you want to serve (i.e. age range). 3) Recruiting students for your program 4) Expanding your program 5) Steps to becoming a non-profit organization and obtaining a 501c-3 tax exempt status Presented by Kathy Anderson, founder, Wicker Park Learning Center 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Mentoring Children of Prisoners This workshop is intended for anyone who works with youth that are affected by incarceration or considered high risk. The workshop will cover the impact of incarceration and how it effects these youth. Participants will come away with a better understanding of incarceration, its impact on the youth and families and how they can help counteract some of the negatives associated with incarceration. Presented by Andrea M. Payne, founder and Executive Director, and Sharon Williams, Assistant Director, of Families of Incarcerated Individuals Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 9:15 am - 10:30 am -- Networking with a Purpose: Developing & Understanding Personal Networks This networking workshop will be different from what you may have previously experienced. This session will help you learn about your own networking style and capabilities and you'll learn about resources around you that are readily available and essential for networking. If you have been exposed to "networking" before, please bring the things that you normally take with you, including your 1-minute "elevator speech". If you are new (or experienced) at this, just come with an open mind and a willingness to be challenged. You will use an interactive process to ferret out things and develop skills that will help you make better use of your own networking time with others. Hopefully, you will also learn how to recognize and share common interests, experiences, needs, relationships and business ideas with others. Finally, you will discover something about networking that good networkers understand intuitively but that 80 to 90 percent of us (including some of the good networkers) might never recognize. Presented by Paul Collins, http://jordan-webb.net ********************************************************************************* 10:45 am till Noon -- A Conversation About Media Collaboration Thom Clark will facilitate a lively conversation exploring the ways and means of launching a cost effective communications campaign to help organizations gain publicity, volunteers and donors for helping youth at risk. The panel will include Daniel Bassill, president of the Tutor/Mentor Connection, Denise Zaccardi of the Community Television Network, publicist Sue Silk*, Chicago Parent Editor Susy Schultz and Tribune city desk editor Mary Dedinsky*. This is an interactive meeting, intended to draw the participation of all who attend this workshop, leading to greater shared efforts to draw frequent visibility to all tutor/mentor programs in any city. Limit 30 people. Presented by Thom Clark, Community Media Workshop * these guests have been invited to participate, but have not yet confirmed 10:45 am till Noon -- Effective Tutoring: A Tool for Training Tutors This workshop is intended for tutors and tutor trainers. it is intended to acquaint people with the Tutoring pamphlet, written by Keith Topping for the International Academy of Education. The pamphlet is an easily accessible, pocket-sized guide to the research-based principles that result in effective tutoring. It was written to meet the needs of many tutors who have the very best of intentions, but may lack the formal training or extended experience that can foster best practices in tutoring. It can also help give long-term tutors some fresh and useful approaches. Presented by Sharon F. Rubin, Project Coordinator of the Beck Literacy Initiative 10:45 am till Noon -- Learning in Out-Of-School Time Out-of-School Time provides a safe caring environment for children and youth and a whole lot more. This session will explore ways that programs are teaching, supporting, and enhancing the education of the children and youth in their programs. Studies show that children enrolled in out-of-school time programs do better in school and are much more likely to graduate and further their education. This session will cover some of the programming and strategies to support academic achievement. Presented by Adam Alonso, Director, Illinois MOST and Gregory G. Graham, Assistant Director, Community Outreach, Chicago MOST, http://www.daycareaction.org 10:45 am till Noon -- Hostile Hallways: How Bullying, Teasing and Sexual Harassment Impact Learning This is a workshop that raises adult awareness of the pervasive problems of sexual harassment and the accompanying bullying and teasing in students' lives. During the workshop you will discuss the rights and responsibilities of adults and students in school concerning sexual harassment. This will open the dialogue on local issues and explore practical intervention strategies and solutions for students, schools and communities. Presented by Mary McNulty, President, and Cheryl Temple, Speakers Bureau Director, The Gender Equity Fund, ********************************************************************************* 1:35 pm till 2:45pm -- Helping lawyers take roles in tutor/mentor programs. The workshop will focus on the Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend A Hand Program of the Chicago Bar Association. The presenter will provide grant guidelines and will provide recommendations for how agencies can use attorneys in various volunteer capacities. While the grants from LAH are only distributed in Cook County, organizations from other cities and parts of the Chicago region will find this a model that could be duplicated in their own communities. Presented by Karina Ayala, Executive Director, Abraham Lincoln Marovitz Lend A Hand Program, Chicago Bar Association. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 1:35 pm till 2:45pm -- Leveraging Corporate Volunteers. Leaders of Metro Achievement Center in Chicago will share how they attract and retain corporate volunteers by keeping them personally engaged in the mission of the program. The speakers will describe the importance of knowing who your volunteers are and how to accommodate them. With Midtown/Metro's strong base of professional volunteers, the organization knows that they must be sensitive to the busy schedules of the corporate world. Thus, they have a tier of volunteers who commit to the organization in multiple capacities. By taking care of their volunteers and by working closely with their suggestions, Midtown/Metro have devised a working system that helps the organization retain many volunteers year after year. Presented by Sharon Hefferan, Director, Kate Cusack, Volunteer Admissions Director, and Patricia Galante, Assistant Director of the High School Program, Metro Achievement Center for Girls and , http://www.midtown.org 1:35 pm till 2:45pm -- Features of Successful Mentor Programs. This workshop will present recent research on mentoring and discuss practical applications for program planning and improvement. The workshop will encourage participants to contribute their expertise to the process of interpreting the research findings, considering there implications, and thinking about how research and evaluation might be integrated into their own programs. The workshop is designed primarily for program staff, but should also be of interest to volunteers. Participants will learn how successful program outcomes are associated with program practices and structure. Participants will learn empiricallhy-supported best practices for program delivery. Presented by Thomas Keller, Ph.D, (University of Chicago) and David DuBois, Ph.D. (University of Illinois at Chicago), 1:35 pm till 2:45pm-- Working with Hard to Reach Young People Understanding and learning how to reach at-risk young people using faith-based principles. The SAFE Over-Comers Drama Squad, who once participated in violent and criminal behaviors, will present a skit of their experiences and explain how they have overcome their adversities. Presented by Lorraine Bogan and the Over-Commers, The SAFE Program 1:35 pm till 2:45pm-- Straight From the Horses Mouth- What student alumni have to say about their tutor/mentor experiences A panel of young adults now in college will share their stories and how tutoring, mentoring and prep programs helped them achieve. The speakers will share what program elements and types of mentoring relationships had the most effective influence on them, and suggestions for improving programs, from the consumer perspective. Presented by Aaron Phillips, Sheila Woods, Na'Tasha Smith, and April Pettis, young adults who are in college, or have graduated, after several years with various tutor/mentor programs. ********************************************************************************* 3:05 pm till 4:30pm-- Elements of Success in College Readiness This workshop will provide participants with a list of key factors contributing to the success of The Associated Colleges of Illinois' College Readiness Program, from program design to strategies for fund raising success. After 4 years of history helping youth move from 9th grade to high school graduation, ACI has developed a history of success. 99% of College Readiness students graduated high school on time, and 94% have chosen to pursue higher education. This session is appropriate for new programs as well as advanced programs looking to improve on what they do. Participants will walk away with 1) a list of ideas to infuse their own programs with, and 2) strategies to connect and instill ownership in constituents. Presented by Renee Tucker, Associated Colleges of Illinois This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 3:05 pm till 4:30pm-- Tips for Leading Tutor/Mentor Programs This is a workshop for coordinators and volunteers in tutor/mentor programs. Teachers and educators looking to create school based mentor programs will want to attend. Those looking to start a program will also be interested. Rather than focus on theory, this workshop talks about what one former teacher and Teach for America volunteer is learning while organizing and leading a volunteer-based program that connects inner-city 7th to 12th grade teens with workplace volunteers. This will be an interactive session that encourages other program leaders to share their own ideas. It will not only talk about what works, but what is not working and what the challenges are to doing this kind of work. Presented by Jenny Volpe, Coordinator, Cabrini Connections Tutor/Mentor Program This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 3:05 pm till 4:30pm-- Creating/Developing School-Based Mentoring Using High Schools Students/Service Clubs This is a workshop for anyone interested in the mechanics, dynamics, pitfalls and successes in organizing, implementing and operating a successful school-based mentoring program. We will explain how this can be done with very little expense on the part of the BBBS agency and NO COST to the schools. With budgets, as tight as they are, this has a significant appeal for school districts - even those who are skeptical. We will focus on the 'trial and error' aspects that we have encountered and the reluctance of some school districts to readily embrace the concept. Presented by Mary Mahan-Deatherage, Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sauk Valley, and Ed Mulvaney, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Sauk Valley, Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
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