Our Whole Lives (OWL) Teacher Training

3 Separate Sessions Are Being Offered - Elementary Level, Combined Training for Grades 7-9 & 10-12, and Young Adult/Adult Level

Our Whole Lives (OWL) is an excellent, comprehensive sexuality education program that offers our young people the opportunity to explore their values, gain accurate information about topics that are often not easily accessible.  The overall goal of the Our Whole Lives program is to help participants gain the knowledge, values, and skills they need to lead sexually healthy, responsible lives.  We are proud that our congregations recognize that in order for young people to grow into spiritually whole, mature individuals we need to address the topic of sexuality.  The materials on Sexuality and Our Faith connects our religious beliefs with sexuality, spirituality, and issues on justice.

There are three separate OWL Teacher trainings being offered on the same weekend.  Each Our Whole Lives teacher training session will cover the respectable curriculum for the level being taught.  The goals of these workshops are to prepare the participants to implement either curriculum as well as the Sexuality and Our Faith component.  Through a varied program including practice and participation activities, the trainers will cover implementation techniques, information about adolescents, curricula details, and technical information.

Our Whole Lives leaders will have a commitment to values-based, comprehensive sexuality education, having willingness to affirm the Our Whole Lives program goals, values, and philosophy, have a demonstrated ability to appreciate and work with people of diverse races, cultures, ages, abilities, and sexual and gender orientations and have the ability to provide a safe, engaging learning environment.

This training is an opportunity not only to learn about the program and how to lead it, but also to see how comfortable you are as an Our Whole Lives leader.  At the end of the weekend, you and we, the trainers, may determine that teaching Our Whole Lives is not the best fit for you at this time.  And that is fine.  The most important thing is that each of us be open and honest about our comfort and abilities in facilitating sexuality education in the best possible way with our young people.

About The Trainers for the Elementary Level

Lara Campbell is the DRE at Community Unitarian Church at White Plains, NY.  She is a fifth generation UU with an extensive UU leadership background, including having served as a RE program assistant, middle and high school youth advisor, chaplain for district and continental YRUU conferences, and participating in Young Adult programming.  She is also a continental trainer of teachers for both the Our Whole Lives 7-9/10-12 and the K-1/4-6 programs and one of the developers of the YRUU Chaplain Training Program.  Lara has a MA in Marriage and Family Therapy and a BA in Family Social Science.

Sandra Greenfield is a faith-based sexuality educator with over 12 years' experience with Our Whole Lives and its predecessor About Your Sexuality (AYS).  She recently retired as a UU religious educator.  Sandra completed her Master's in Human Sexuality Education from Widener University and is now a doctoral candidate expecting to graduate in May 2014.  She has two young adult children, both graduates of the OWL program, and one cat, who provides moral support for her thesis work.

About The Trainers for the Combined Training for Grades 7-9 & 10-12

JR/SR Training Begins at 1pm on Friday, August 9th!

JR/SR Training is FULL - Contact the JPD Office (office@jpduua.org) to be placed on the waiting list!

Judy Rayner has facilitated youth (7-9 and 10-12) and young adult sexuality education classes for over 18 years at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville.  She is also a trained and experienced youth advisor.  She received training earlier when she obtained her MSW and has done work in clinics and with unwed mothers.  She has been co-leading adolescent Our Whole Lives trainings for 8 years.

Dennis Wellnitz has facilitated About Your Sexuality and Our Whole Lives comprehensive sexuality education classes for over 18 years at the Unitarian Universalist Church of Rockville.  In 2003, he was trained by the Unitarian Universalist Association as a trainer of facilitators for the adolescent (Grades 7-9 and Grades 10-12) components of the Our Whole Lives and Sexuality and Our Faith curricula, and has been co-leading adolescent Our Whole Lives trainings since then.  He is also a trained and experienced Youth Advisor.

About The Trainers for the Young Adult/Adult Level

Kirsten deFur is a lifelong Unitarian Universalist from Brooklyn, NY and a member of the First Unitarian Congregational Society of Brooklyn.  She is a trainer for the Adult/Young Adult Our Whole Lives curricula, and has taught all of the OWL levels at several UU congregations. Kirsten received her Master of Public Health in Sexuality & Health from Columbia University. She has extensive experience in facilitating workshops and trainings, developing curricula and lesson plans, and implementing sexuality and health education programs.  In her free time, Kirsten plays volleyball, goes bike riding, and tries out new recipes. Check out her blog www.fearlesssexualityeducator.com and follow her on twitter @FearlessSexEd.

Registration and Cost

Registration is LIMITED to 20 participants, on a first-come, first-served basis, for EACH training level.  Registrants are only permitted to attend 1 of the 3 training sessions being offered.  Deadline to register is August 2, 2013. Please be aware that attendance is required at all parts of either training session for certification!

The cost is $250.00 per person.  The fee includes registration, materials, breakfast/lunch/dinner and snacks on Saturday, breakfast/lunch/snacks on Sunday, leaders' fees, and administrative costs.  Lodging is not included in the registration fee.  If you require lodging, please contact one of the following local hotels:

• Springhill Suites Columbia - (410) 290-7896
• Courtyard Columbia - (410) 290-0002

Limited home hospitality will be available on a first come, first served basis.

**Registration fees are refundable minus a $30.00 administrative charge after all incurred expenses for the training are paid for.

Participants should bring their copies of the Our Whole Lives curriculum and Sexuality and Our Faith with them.  Please look the materials over and become familiar with them before you arrive.  (These materials can be borrowed from the JPD Lending Library)