FACILITATOR TRAINING PROGRAM

Training of Program Facilitators
Graduate students in psychology, education, social work, and school counseling from our consortium of university partners, as well as experienced youth workers, serve as program facilitators for our project.  It is our belief that hiring successful graduate students to deliver our curriculum reinforces the notion that college is a viable option for urban middle school students.  Unique to this employment and/or practicum placement experience is the opportunity for program facilitators to receive specialized training, supervision, and introductory research experience in the areas of urban education and prevention.  Our goal is to provide a structured training experience that:

(a) Provides employment and/or practicum experiences with adolescents in urban public school settings; 
(b) Provides ongoing support in the development of skills necessary to be an effective group facilitator, utilizing a science-based affective curriculum;
(c) Heightens facilitators’ understanding of the cultural and contextual factors that impact the psychosocial development of urban adolescents and their ability to achieve academically;
(d) Exposes facilitators to the process of designing, implementing and evaluating large scale preventive interventions;
(e) Examines educational policy and its implications for practice and research for urban education and school reform; and
(f) Encourages facilitators’ interest and pursuit of careers in education, psychology social work, counseling and/or other related fields.

Program Benefits
This program allows students from local colleges and universities to come together and interface with state-level and school district stakeholders, as well as university faculty, to address issues relevant to school - community collaboration, and urban education reform.  Second, this program affords students an opportunity to learn about how federally funded initiatives help shape the manner in which school-based prevention programs are developed, implemented, and evaluated at state and local levels. Third, this unique model supports students in fostering important mentoring relationships with faculty members from a diverse group of university partners and engages them in important academic pursuits.  Finally, we hope that this program will stimulate interest on the part of graduate students to pursue promising careers in psychology, education or other related fields.

Core Training Modules & Sample Training Sessions

I. Foundations in Urban Education & Prevention Research

1.   The Problem of the Achievement Gap
2.   Systemic School Reform
3.   Factors that Impact School Achievement
4.   Longstanding Federal Educational Initiatives that Support Disadvantaged and
      Minority Youth
5.  Addressing Issues of School Equity & Access
6.  The Role of Performance-based Assessment in Improving Achievement
     Outcomes
7.  Evaluating School-based Prevention Programs

II. Skill Acquisition – Developing Effective Group Facilitation Skills

1. Adolescent Development
2. Interpersonal Group Dynamics
3. Key Components to Facilitating Groups for Young People
4. Effective Classroom Management
5. Multi-level Modeling:  Role Model versus Mentor

III.  Facilitator Reflections - Processing the Experience

1. Opportunities to share reflections in a safe and supportive environment
2. Opportunities to share successes, challenges, and lessons learned
3. Opportunities to share useful student engagement strategies among peers

Program facilitators are trained extensively in the MAAX curriculum prior to being assigned to a school site.  Ongoing supervision is held weekly for two hours on-site at The Consultation Center.  Instruction in core training modules are led by the Principal Investigator, Dr. Nadia L. Ward, the Coordinator of Evaluation, the Coordinator of School-based Programs, and a Pre-doctoral Associate.  Training is experiential as well as didactic. Facilitators also have the opportunity to work collaboratively with district guidance counselors and/or teachers to support them in their training.  Guest speakers are invited in throughout the year to address topic areas outlined in the aforementioned core training modules.  In addition, all program facilitators are invited to participate in the Urban Education & Prevention Colloquium Series held quarterly at The Consultation Center.