Tag Archives: Voices

PCC Board Meeting 1/12/10

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The board meeting, conducted via telephone conference, focused on the activities of participants in expanding the use of strengths-based approaches in the education of children and increasing the practice of Appreciative Inquiry.

Two members (Sue James and Robin Stratton-Berkessel) described in glowing terms their experience of the Appreciative Inquiry Conference that was held in Nepal in November of 2009.  High points related to location, cultural diversity of attendees and applications of AI in the community, healthcare and spiritual arenas.

For more about the conference in Nepal, please see:

The group then brainstormed recommendations to make the website more dynamic including brief interviews of board members, stories of interest highlighting education in emergent areas, and stories reflecting the power of children and links to interesting articles.

An overview of Voices of Learning in Canton, Ohio. in which 6 schools participated, was presented and overall was a success.

The meeting ended with plans to complete the Leap of Learning Manual and enroll interested teachers, school administrators in the training before publication as well as regional offices of education and education boards.

More detailed information about the meetng (PDF download)

Voices of Learners October 12-16, 2009

The week of October 12 is going to be different this year.  For an entire week, the eyes of Stark County citizens will turn to schools and youth.

The spotlight will shine on students and teachers, youth organizations and schools that are flourishing, that use their strengths to accomplish great things, and to make a difference in their communities.

PCC is co-sponsoring with the Stark County Educational Service Center an event that is not like anything Stark County has seen before.  Students, teachers, community leaders, parents, and visitors from near and far will convene conversations about excellence.

  • October 12 and 16 will be devoted to field site visits around Stark County and northeast Ohio
  • October 13 is the celebration kick-off at the new and beautiful GlenOak High School in Plain Local Schools
  • October 14 will be at the Timken Senior High School Campus, where students’ graduation rates and achievement are leaping upward
  • October 15 will be at Stark State College, a day to congratulate local schools of higher education for their many contributions to our community and our young people

Sound intriguing? We hope so!

If you’re from Stark County, we need you, your students and staff to help finalize our plans, nominate your outstanding programs, and to come join us as we explore teaching and learning in hands on, intergenerational groups.  It will be fun, join us – you’ll be glad you did!

And to those of you elsewhere in the world, please “Watch This Space”.

We’ll be posting some updates to share our journey with you between now and October – and we know we’ll have lots of news to share with you after the event!

Voices Of Learners Registration Form

Please email Joyce Lemke or call her on 330-705-0793 if you you have any questions or would like further information.

Stories – Yours and Ours

“How can we partner and support education and youth communities with Appreciative Inquiry and other Strength based practices?”

The Positive Change Core story is the coming together of a group of stories, people and conversations. We invite you to enjoy some of them below.

Our Story:

Founder, Dr Marjorie Schiller: It started with a big bang, literally. In NY on September 11, 2001, Dr. Marge Schiller met 3 year old Rachel in NY “I learned that my images of hope are the voices of children“. The experience shifted her from working with executives, corporations and government agencies to children and education communities. “I can think of no more important work…” The story continues to evolve – You can read more of Marjorie’s story here.

We invite you to join us, make stories with us, and/or contribute stories of your own, too!

Thank you for being part of PCC!