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Programs are presented in varying formats and lengths,
ranging from two-and-a-half-hour workshops, to weekend-long
retreats, to ongoing groups that meet weekly or monthly.
Some of these groups are closed while others are drop-in.
Groups range in size from 6-25 participants. Class Action
facilitators are sensitive and authentic, sharing personal
experiences while creating a welcoming space for participants.
We often work in teams that reflect a diversity of class
backgrounds and experiences. Any of the topics
can be adapted for specific settings and constituencies.
Exploring Class (one or two days)
These one- and two-day trainings provide an opportunity
for intensive dialogue about this taboo topic. It is an
opportunity for personal exploration about one's own class
of origin, the strengths and limitations derived from it,
and the impact of class on our lives and relationships.
We identify different indicators of class, different attitudes
toward money, and definitions of class. We will look at
class from different vantage points including income, wealth,
education, status, power, and culture. Groups range in
size from 20-30 and involve sharing personal experiences
and hearing the experiences of others from similar and
different class backgrounds. This is a chance to identify
ways we are constrained in the class/money realm and think
about next steps.
Exploring Class workshops explore different indicators
of class, including where we live, the schools we attend
and the clothes we wear.
The facilitators are transparent about their goals, and
always supportive of the workshop participants. No matter
what ones class background, the facilitators are careful
to provide support for all perspectives on the issue. The
emphasis is on learning about yourself as it related to
class issues, not on judgment or evaluation of ones background
or current social class.
~Peter Jessop
Class, Race, and Gender (one or two days)
Are you ready to explore how your own experience of gender,
race, and class has contributed to how you live your life
and relate to others? Are you looking for support to get
free of the internalized messages generated by the intersections
of gender, race, and class socialization? Do you want a
safe environment to dialogue with others from different
backgrounds, and to learn how to be allies with each other?
If so, join us for this workshop where we will work together
to understand the intersections of our experiences of privilege
and dis-empowerment. We will break the societal taboo against
talking about money and class, and reflect on how our class
experiences are shaped by race, ethnicity, and gender.
And we will explore the paths to empowerment in our own
lives and as agents in our society.
Class and Race (one or two days)
Are you ready to explore how your own experience of gender,
race, and class has contributed to how you live your life
and relate to others? Are you looking for support to get
free of the internalized messages generated by the intersections
of race and class socialization? Do you want a safe environment
to dialogue with others from different backgrounds, and
to learn how to be allies with each other? Do you want
to learn to be a more effective coalition-builder and do
more effective social justice work?
This is an experiential workshop where we work together to understand the intersections
of our experiences of privilege and disempowerment. We break the societal taboo
about talking about money and class, and reflect on how our class experiences
are shaped by race and ethnicity. And we explore the paths to empowerment in
our own lives and as agents in transforming our society.
This workshop is for people who want to: 1) learn to talk more directly about
issues of class and race; 2) to feel empowered to take action on issues of
classism and racism; and 3) to build more solidarity across class and race
lines.
Class and Fundraising For professional
and volunteer fundraisers (one day)
The standard ways we are taught to raise money may bring
in revenue, but may cost us valuable ground in terms of
advancing our mission, creating enduring stakeholder relationships,
and bringing us fulfillment in our work. Our own feelings
about money and our own class baggage may get in the way
of serving the organizations we care about. This workshop
will allow us to become aware of our attitudes, feelings,
projections, and stereotypes so that we can develop authentic
relationships and reach out with energy and integrity.
Participants in Class and Fundraising workshops used post-its
to explore their feelings toward donors. New photo of "donor"
with post-its
Bridging the Class Divide: Cross-Class Dialogue
Groups (ongoing series)
These ongoing groups provide an opportunity for in-depth
dialogue with folks from different class backgrounds and
situations. They provide the opportunity to learn the way
the world looks from another point of view, challenge assumptions,
stereotypes, become aware of projections, and become liberated
from some of our class baggage. Break the taboo, and break
out of the confines of class.
Donor/Fundraiser Dialogues
These dialogues aim to strengthen the alliance between
major donors and fundraisers for non-profit organizations
in creating a world of justice, equity, and sustainability
for all. Fundraisers and donors will engage in deep dialogue
to speak what is usually left unsaid, to bring out issues
that have not yet been articulated, and to better understand
what donors and fundraisers feel and think in the process
of fundraising and philanthropic decision making. We will
focus on the personal satisfactions as well as he challenges
of being a donor or a fundraiser, and examine the most
rewarding and most difficult giving or fundraising experiences
and explore how class background affects being a donor
or fundraiser.
Being an Ally on Class
This workshop explores a variety of ways that middle class/professional
people can work effectively with poor and working-class
people in creating social change. We will look at
our own self interest in social change, become more aware
of ways in which our culture, language, assumptions, references,
and images of poor and working-class people (and ourselves)
limit and/or strengthen our ability to connect deeply and
respectfully. This group could be useful to social workers,
teachers, therapists, organizers, lawyers, among others.
Exploring Class Privilege
Those of us who grow up middle class or higher receive
many benefits or privileges. Many of us remain unaware
of these privileges that can get in the way of our personal
growth and relationships with others.
Class Issues in the Workplace and the Academy
Social class and caste issues are often left out of the
conversation when we talk about areas of diversity and
difference in our workplaces or campus communities. Yet,
our perception of another person's standing in the class
system of the United States can affect our experiences
with them and lead to miscommunication and resentment.
This workshop will focus on how we are "trained" to
recognize social class status in the United States, what
associations we have been taught to make about people inhabiting
various social classes, and how this kind of misinformation
can lead us to treat folks differently. Tensions between
the different "caste" levels on campus - for
example, faculty and staff often go unrecognized. The invisibility
of students from poor and working-class backgrounds and
the lack of adequate support services set students up to
fail. The implications of this information for faculty,
staff, and students in a higher education setting will
be explored.
Playing with Money
Playing with Money is a series of workshops that allow
us to explore class and money using our creativity, sense
of adventure and fun. We offer a 2 1/2-hour workshop each
month. Participants can come to an entire series or choose
which ones to attend. We ask a $5-$15 donation per session,
and we ask you to pre-register so we can plan.
Examples of previous workshops:
Win Some/Lose Some: Playing The Money Game
The Money Game is a classic simulation game developed
to help people in all financial situations to understand
the feelings and beliefs we have about money in our lives
and in society. Bring enough money (e.g. $10 -$200) in
small denominations to play with. You may return home with
more or less money than you bring with you.
The Elephant in the Middle of the Room: Organizational
Dynamics & Class
We will use scenarios and role plays to help people get
clearer insight into the class dynamics that are always
operating within organizations but are seldom named. Participants
who work on boards, as staff, or volunteer at organizations
they love will have a chance to see how their organizations
might become even stronger by examining underlying class
issues.
Bridging the Class Divide: for Working-Class Straddlers/Cross
Overs/Folks in Limbo
Did you grow up in a working-class family, but now inhabit
a middle-class world? Do you feel you crossed over from
one world to another? Have you experienced the downsides,
as well as the upsides, of class mobility? Are you the
first in your family to go to college? Would you like to
share your experiences of class with others who have similar
experiences? If you feel not quite at home in either the
world you came from or the one you now live in, if you
feel you're constantly translating for others, changing
languages depending on where you are, or seeing things
from multiple class perspectives, this might just be for
you.
Kissing Across the Class Divide: Intimacy and Trust
In this workshop we explore how to build trust in an intimate
relationship when both people come from very different
class backgrounds, where there is lots of ground for misunderstanding
and as well as opportunities for discovery, growth, and
deep love. Singles and couples of all sexual orientations
welcomed.
Fulfilling Our Dreams: Money and Class as Help
or Hindrance
Do you feel trapped in your work, unable to get out from
under your job to pursue your life dreams? Do you need
encouragement to imagine a future that best uses your skills
and talents while benefiting the community? How has your
class and money background enabled or limited you from
living your dreams out? How can you get the support you
need to take steps in that direction? Participants will
use art, writing, and movement to explore these issues.
Kids and Money
What are the lessons you are teaching by the example of
how you live your "money life"? What values do you want
to be passing on? From piggy banks and allowances, toys
and college savings, gifts and inheritance, money is a
part of our relationships with our kids and our parents.
Whether or not you have children, it's worth exploring.
The Elections and Class: Building Bridges Across the
Economic Divide
Join us to take a look at the elections from a class perspective.
Why do some members of the working class support a President
whose base is the "Haves and Have Mores?" Why do some people
from the upper class support candidates who might raise
their taxes? How are elections affected by class interests
and what can we do about it?
When Manners Matter: The Hidden Rules of Class
Which side does a fork go on and when does it matter?
In this workshop we will also look at the body of knowledge
needed for access to class power. We will examine
the kinds of knowledge and culture one needs to be part
of the working class or middle class. What are the subtle
signals that demonstrate "belonging?
What's Your Story: Writing Your Class/Money Autobiography
What's your story when it comes to issues of money and
class? What messages and values did you learn about money?
How did these early messages play out in your life? What
were the critical incidents that you experienced? We will
create a personal timeline and develop an outline of our
class and money journey.
In the small handful of workshops I've attended
so far there is always a good rapport around a group of
people who are choosing to sit down and discuss poverty
and class from wherever we are on the money spectrum. There
is not another forum in which we could get to such focused
discussions so quickly.
~Ruth Trimarchi
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