Adult education and instruction are long time passions for Spectrum’s leaders and we’re concerned to fill the gap between research and practice in our field, to best support those we care about, and the teams who support them.
We have conducted workshops and classes for mixed groups, groups of self advocates, staff teams and agencies, families, students and others in places ranging from church basement day care centres to ballrooms, from northern B.C. to Nashville, from Vancouver Island to upper New York State. We teach and facilitate groups learning about the empowerment of citizens with intellectual disabilities, interdependence, leadership, communication, instructional strategies and planning for individuals, teams and organizations.
We also regularly host great trainers who bring to Vancouver a wealth of global experience and knowledge. Dr David Pitonyak spends a week with us each year, Dr Michael Kendrick is a frequent visitor and we have hosted his Optimal Individual Service Design course in Vancouver. Other workshops we’ve hosted or co-hosted have been with Jayne Barrett from Australia, Mary Kealy from Ireland, Pat Fratengelo from upstate New York, author, master facilitator and Canadian researcher John Lord, author and business leader Michael Walsh of Kaizen Consulting. In the last year it’s been our great pleasure to work closely with David Wetherow of Community Works and the Family Support Institute on a project focusing on optimal planning for families through David’s Star Raft model, as well as with a group of self advocate leaders in a project building their leadership and capacity through networks. We have also developed a reciprocal relationship with Inclusion Press and hope to do more with them in the future. We are grateful for their permission and support around teaching PATH, a planning method developed by them in Ontario. To find out more about upcoming events check out our blog / e-newsletter www.101friends.ca or our eventbrite site http://spectrumlearning.eventbrite.com/
Spectrum trainers are currently available to conduct the following workshops:
- An Introduction to Building Personal Support Networks
- Personal Support Networks: tools to expand and deepen your network
- Self Advocate Workshop on Personal Support Networks
- The Changing Roles of Community Support Workers
- Positive Behavioural Support in Community Context
- “Climb Every Mountain” – Dreams, Contribution and Self Advocacy
- * Vulnerabilities and Safeguards: an interdependence approach
- Creating User Friendly Materials With Self Advocate Partners
- How to Close a Day Program
- Social Media: Ensuring Inclusion in a New Online Community
- PATH – one of our favourite person-centred planning processes
* currently in development
We also facilitate groups who want to gather, debrief, problem-solve or plan for various reasons. Feel free to inquire.
Workshops are currently facilitated by Shelley Nessman, Aaron Johannes and Susan Stanfield and all of our work, from planning to presentations is, whenever possible, co-facilitated by a self advocate Spectrum associate, a local self self advocate in the community we are working in, or a parent or other family member. Bios, planning material and photos are available. For more information, contact aaron@spectrumsociety.org
A new video from our Community Mapping Series, the recipient of a B.C. Ideas Award
For more information about our community mapping project, check this list of blog updates.
You can download a printable Spectrum Consulting Brochure here!