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.
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
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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 kkomoski@epie.org
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:
cyang@acifund.org
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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, l.mccoy@stlukes.org.au
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
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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:
ebright@colum.edu
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:
jlinsner@architecture.org
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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: jcfitzsimmons@noctrl.edu
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: fii1300@aol.com
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
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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,
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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. Kayala@chicagobar.org
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.
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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 renee.tucker@acifund.org
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
jvolpe@cabriniconnections.net
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:
edmulvaney@ywsauk.org