Our Training Director Has Taken Off!
Posted February 5, 2024, by Mindi Wisman
Dare I say live training is back? After being grounded along with everyone else for the last the two plus years, I was, needless to say, very excited to travel to Alaska this winter. Of course, travel drama is also back, with a severe storm that had me sitting in the airport all day and eventually sent home. But I did finally make it to Alaska two days later to deliver the Foundations of Child and Youth Care training, and what a wonderful experience it was!
Cindy Carraway-Wilson, Youth Catalytics Training Director
We had twenty-eight professionals attend, all working in out-of-school time programs. Beyond the fundamentals, this course also covered ethics, communication skills, brain development, trauma, and developmental practice methods. And it doesn’t get any better than having researchers in attendance, who loved the training, contributing the latest developments in the field in real time. At the end of the two weeks, everyone took the exam for professional certification, and 100% passed for their level. Now, they’ll complete the application to gain full professional certification, and THIS is how we professionalize our field!
A few key moments really resonated with me from my time in Alaska. One attendee, whose American Samoan culture adheres to strict child rearing practices, shared how this training fundamentally changed how she intends to raise her own children with more focus on positive communication and no physical discipline.
‘This training changed how I want to raise my own children.’
Another attendee was so engaged and impressed with the training that she asked to join the Child and Youth Care Certification Board, where she can bring her out-of-school time expertise and perspective to the Board’s competency development process.
From Alaska I flew to Louisville, Kentucky, where I co-trained the Families Thrive course to eighteen YouthBuild and YMCA professionals. This curriculum includes modules on child and adolescent development, social connections, ways to help young people and their caregivers establish concrete supports, cognitive and social-emotional competence, and resilience.
So phew! Just thinking about my itinerary, I know many of you probably feel exhausted. But those who know me, know that I like to keep moving! For me, it’s a great privilege seeing people listen, question, and learn together—it reinforces why I do this work. And of course the irony is not lost on me; that after all this time leaning into a screen and posting emojis, these in-person trainings have at their core our essential need for real human connection and community.
If you’d like to learn more about either of these courses, just drop me a line; I’d love to hear from you!
~ Cindy