Take Your Advocacy and Leadership to the Next Level!
Empower Missouri offers a wide range of programming designed for volunteers and community members, organizations and other professionals who have an interest in national, regional and local advocacy. We customize the following training opportunities to help your group meet their learning goals, giving you the opportunity to develop your skills. Our mission is to expand the field of advocates working to address policy issues relating to poverty and explore best practices for increased positive social impact.
Our trainings are led by expert staff members with significant experience in anti-poverty policy advocacy. Our trainings are currently available via Zoom to groups across Missouri. We look forward to returning to in-person learning as public health conditions improve.
Advocacy 101:
Ideal for organizations or groups who are just starting to enter advocacy and want to be more effective in advocating for issues they care about. Participants will receive an overview of the legislative process in Missouri and tips on how to make the most impact in advocacy. This training is typically offered over a one-hour period, but can be shortened or lengthened to meet group objectives. .
Ethics in Organizing:
Geared specifically to social workers and those who work with them, all advocates will benefit from this training. We will help participants understand how to practice advocacy and organizing within the framework of the NASW Code of Ethics. Participants will specifically learn how to center the experiences of those who are most impacted by the issue and explore ethical dilemmas that may happen during the course of a campaign.
Messaging Training:
This training is for groups who are interested in learning how to tell their story and hone in on unifying messaging. It is a two hour or longer course depending on the group size and availability. Trainings are fully customized to the group. Please note, skills learned are applicable to general messaging strategy, not specific to one campaign. If your organization wants to partner with Empower Missouri to develop campaign specific messaging, please contact the Policy and Advocacy Director.
Empower offers these trainings for a small fee (on a sliding scale) for most nonprofit organizations, but we also offer low- or no-cost classes to BIPOC- led non-profits, volunteer community groups, and student groups. The programs are also provided at no additional charge for our organizational partners. For more information, please contact Empower’s Advocacy Director, Sarah Owsley, at [email protected].
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