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Dr. Patricia Francis, O.P. leads a
Center workshop
The professional staff at the Center offer nearly 100
different workshops which can be tailored to fit most speaking or
conference needs. The dates, times, number of sessions, and other
details of each presentation are determined by the hosting organization
and the speaker. Click on a link below to read the full
descriptions of the workshops within each category. Presenting
staff are listed with each workshop description. See Meet our
Staff for full biographies.
Workshop & Seminar Topics:
ADD/ADHD
Parenting Children with ADHD (6-12
years): Practical tips for
managing difficult behavior while protecting your child’s self-esteem. (Burge)
Understanding the Assessment and
Treatment of ADHD:
A general overview of the assessment process and treatment
options. (Burge)
Aging
Aging And Loss:
Explores the major life losses in the context of progressive
aging. Our advanced years have
rapid and significant relational, material and functional losses that make
adjustment most difficult.
These dramatic changes are important to understand in order to
appreciate what our parents are going through and what we also as adult
children will be faced with in the not so distant future.
(Alcorn
III)
Taking On the Middle Years Successfully: In mid-life
we begin to confront our limitations in new ways. We become more
comfortable with personal weaknesses. At the same time we long for
depth in our relationships and greater meaning in our work situations.
This workshop explores some of the polarities of mid-life.
Participants can hope to distinguish normative elements of the mid-life
passage from more serious difficulties. (Curphey)
See also,
Life Passages
Back to Top
Assertiveness Training
Assertiveness Training:
This workshop deals with issues of anger management and conflict
resolution.
(Natter)
See also,
Conflict
Birth Order
Birth Order, Unique Goals And Our Families: Children
take different paths in their quest to find a place and acceptance.
This workshop makes use of Adlerian principles and Biblical characters
as a framework for discussion in considering the best parental responses
to the unique goals (both healthy and not so healthy), which our
children employ. (Curphey)
See also,
Family Constellations
Blended Families
Blended Families and the Effect on
Children:
Looks at the common challenges of remarried families.
(Natter)
Back to Top
Body
Image
My Food, My Body:
An examination of the place food has in our lives and a look at
the family and social messages that influence eating.
This workshop will also explore body image and the messages we
decide to keep and to ignore in order to feel free and whole. (Gresko)
Career
Thinking of a Career Change? This workshop will help
participants assess their strengths and weaknesses to gauge what
direction a career change could take.
The information that comes from this workshop is also valuable in
preparing to develop a powerful resume. (Berkemeyer)
Moving Out of Career Doldrums. Designed to help
participants inject more intentionality into the management of their
career while learning how to take proactive, practical steps to make
effective future career decisions.
(Berkemeyer)
Back to Top
Communication
Improving Couple Communication:
Includes such topics as tuning in to yourself and your partner,
understanding styles of talking, and essentials of relationships. (Natter ,
Francis)
Listening Skills and Couple Forgiveness. The focal point of this workshop is on helping married
couples focus on two critical skills vital to a supportive marriage
relationship: listening and forgiving. These two skills are
the foundation upon which couples can build a secure and stable loving
relationship. (Berkemeyer)
Talking Together:
Focuses on the processes of flexible and effective interpersonal
communication skills within a marriage relationship.
(Alcorn
III,
Francis,
Natter)
Core Communication:
A workshop that
benefits individuals who desire to increase their overall communication
effectiveness. (Alcorn
III, Berkemeyer)
Back to Top
Community
Building
& Teamwork
Team
Building
for Parish /Congregation
Staff.
Have you wanted to spend some quality time with your parish
ministry team away from the day-to-day pressure of congregational
business? Let us design a half-day or full-day team building
retreat or realignment workshop to fit your specific needs.
(Berkemeyer)
Community
Building:
Addresses ways of forming and keeping the connections that enrich life.
(Gresko)
Team
Building:
Uses assessment tools to evaluate both individual personalities and
contextual patterns in a group. (Alcorn III, Natter)
Working Together:
Designed to enhance teamwork in a business setting.
(Natter)
Back to Top
Conflict
Dealing with Conflict:
A workshop designed for increasing communication skills and
learning healthy ways to work through confrontation.
(Alcorn
III,
Natter,
Francis, Gresko)
Back to Top
Creative Spiritual Growth
Journal Writing For Life And Growth:
Explores possibilities for growth by way of journal writing. The workshop will include writing excerpts and a variety of
writing exercises.
(Gresko,
Francis)
Creative Spiritual Journey:
A deepening of one’s personal spiritual journey through the exploration
of a specific issue (to be determined) using various creative pursuits
such as art making, journal writing, meditation, Scripture, etc.
Workshop
format combines lecture, discussion and/or hands-on exercises in
art-making and writing (no experience necessary).
(Francis)
Back to Top
Depression
Depression Diagnosis And Treatment:
Deals with different types and severity of depression and
discusses different strategies for overcoming and coping with
depression. (Natter)
Difficult People
How to Deal with Difficult People:
Strategies for reducing stress
caused by the unreasonable behaviors of difficult people around us.
(Alcorn
III)
Effective Helping
The Effective Helper:
Introduces participants to the basic skills of assisting one another in
time of need, using the Book of Job as a background.
(Alcorn
III )
Back to Top
Exploring Self
Discovering Your Inner Compass:
This workshop will help you uncover your innermost values.
When these values have been identified, you can create an
empowering life statement that becomes your inner compass as you seek to
live an authentic life. (Burge)
Understanding Ourselves:
Uses the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator and the
Performax Assessment to help participants understand their temperament
and contributions within a family or group. (Natter)
Understanding My Lifestyle:
Focuses on understanding and dealing with the different life patterns
and strategies that one may be unconsciously following. (Natter)
Introduction to the
Enneagram:
Often our greatest strength becomes our greatest weakness. We rely too
heavily upon one means of making our way through the world. This
workshop introduces the nine personality types of the Enneagram (The
Perfectionist, The Giver, The Performer, The Tragic Romantic, The Observer,
The Devil’s Advocate, The Epicure, The Boss, and The Mediator). The Enneagram
is a popular personality schema which helps us confront the patterns of
entrenchment that can block personal freedom. (Curphey)
Back to Top
Family
Family Generational Patterns:
This workshop looks at the hidden forces that creep into ongoing
life resulting from family of origin and similar issues.
(Natter,
Francis, Burge)
Family Constellations:
Focuses on birth order and positions in the family. (Natter,
Francis)
The Effects of Teenagers on a Family:
A workshop that looks at the impact that teens have on individual and
marital stability within the family. (Natter)
When Husbands Travel: This
workshop looks at the feelings that accompany semi-single parenting.
Topics addressed include guiding children through the times when dad is
gone, keeping connected while he is on the road, negotiating transitions
when he leaves and then rejoins your routine, resourceful community
building and learning to tend to yourself under pressure. (Gresko, Cochran)
Understanding Families:
Family dynamics seen from the lives of Biblical characters
Joseph
and
David
(two-part series).
(Natter).
See also,
Birth Order
Back to Top
Grief
Bereavement Workshop:
Focus is on the work of overcoming the disorientation that
follows the loss of a loved one and the painful steps of becoming
involved once again in human relationships. (Francis)
Healing Methods
Alternative Medicine:
Chronicles healing options that can compliment, enhance or in
some cases replace, mainstream healing.
The workshop will look at a variety of scenarios in which
alternative healing methods might be helpful.
(Gresko)
The Gospels and Mental Health: Working
with the Texts:
A series of experiential exercises with gospel texts for enhancing
personal wholeness. (Gresko)
Relaxation Techniques:
Behavioral techniques designed to reduce anxiety and depression as well
as aid participants in coping with pain.
(Alcorn
III,
Natter, Francis)
The Mind, Body, and Spirit Connection:
A one-day workshop exploring the adoption of a holistic lifestyle as a
means of maintaining emotional, physical and spiritual health. (Francis)
Back to Top
Job
Hunting
The Challenge of Job Loss; the ABC’s
of finding another job:
This workshop will cover the
fundamentals of job search including assessing
strengths/skills/interests, writing a killer resume, effective
networking and interviewing skills.
There will be time for personal skill building, questions and
discussion. (Berkemeyer)
Networking 101, It’s
Art
and Practices.
With a tight job market the single most effective tool to
uncover new opportunity is networking, and yet, it is often the most
misunderstood and poorly executed part of the job search process.
Participants will earn how to change their mindset about networking and
execute the process effectively in order to build helpful contacts for
future success. (Berkemeyer)
Resume Writing for the New
Millennium.
A comprehensive discussion of the basic
elements needed to produce a professional resume including content,
positioning, transferable skills, and visual layout. Resumes will be
reviewed and time will be given to developing effective profile
statements, accomplishments, and other resume components.
(Berkemeyer)
Back to Top
Joy
Joy
for Women! This presentation focuses on helping women build joy,
strength and connection. In addition, we will learn how to restore
balance in the rhythms of life, so that we can truly thrive! A joyful
life requires joy, peaceful quiet and synchronization with others. We
will learn how to seek joy within the context of our busy, sometimes chaotic
lives. In addition to instruction, we will practice our “joybuilding”
skills with one another. This presentation can be 1 to 2 hours, or can
be expanded to a half-day or full day retreat for women.
(Keating)
Joy-building 101:
Learn to build joy and connection within yourself and with others.
Discover how to restore balance in the rhythms of life so that you can truly
thrive! Experience how to increase your sense of belonging, your ability
to give and receive love, and your experience of inner peace. This
presentation can be adapted to fit different time frames, from 1 to 3 hours,
depending on the needs of the group.
(Keating)
See also,
Building Joy and Connection for Parents,
Reducing
Stress with Optimism and Joy
Life
Passages
This Is Not Your Mother Or Father’s Retirement:
As
the baby boomer generation matures and transitions from employment to
retirement, many are discovering that the traditional notion of
“retirement” does not fit their experience. The focus of this
presentation is on planning the transition into retirement with
deliberation and intention. For couples, the emphasis will be on
developing a united vision and plan for their retirement.
The workshop will benefit those who are already retired as well
as those who will be making the transition in the near future and want
to be prepared for what lies ahead. Come and enjoy a presentation that
will help you be more planful and intentional about this important phase
of life.
(Berkemeyer)
The Psalms Through The Passages Of Life:
Explores themes of providence, suffering and restoration found in
the Psalms in relation to unexpected life events that may move an
individual from a secure place orientation to a painful period of
disorientation, then back to a valued reorientation.
(Alcorn
III)
Couples In Transition: from
career to the empty nest and beyond
The transitions in the cycle of marriage can be difficult without
thoughtful anticipation and planning.
This 2-session workshop will assist executives and their spouses
in planning with intention, the transition from full-time work to the
empty nest and a life together with entirely new challenges and
opportunities.
(Berkemeyer)
See also, Aging
Back to Top
Marriage
The First Thousand Days:
Discussion and practical exercises for couples in the crucial
first three years of marriage on such topics as preserving intimacy,
preparing for changes over the years, appreciating one another’s
uniqueness and working through major disagreements.
(Alcorn
III,
Francis, Berkemeyer)
Marriage at the Movies:
Married couples will explore together how to take back their
marriage and create a more loving relationship by looking at three
critical aspects of loving:
intimacy, passion, and commitment, as presented in clips from three
contemporary films.
There will be time for private one-on-one couple sharing as well
as large group feedback.
(Berkemeyer)
Intimacy: An Elusive Goal in Marriage:
Discussion and teaching of skills for developing and maintaining
intimacy in the marriage relationship. (Alcorn
III)
Early Marriage: re-creating
your vision.
This two-session workshop will offer couples the chance to hear
new ideas about managing dual careers and revisioning your relationship
while spending time rediscovering each other.
(Berkemeyer)
Marriage Enrichment Seminar:
Designed to enhance a couple’s ability to create a “conscience
relationship" which has the power to produce emotional healing, personal
development and spiritual growth.
The seminar relies on the theory and skills of Imago Relationship
Therapy described by
Harville Hendrix
in his book,
"Getting The Love You Want,"
and based on the text by
Wade Lurquet,
M.S.W.
(6
to 8
part series). (Francis)
Redemptive Intimacy In Marriage:
making love vs. having sex:
the Wall Street Journal dated
April 4, 2003
included an article discussing a
contemporary phenomenon in married life:
the undersexed marriage, or the plight of the dual income, no-sex
couple. Research shows that
16% of married couples failed to have intercourse at least once a month.
The pressures of dual careers and the overscheduled household
have taken its toll. This
presentation not only explores this issue, but also the important,
beautiful result of human lovemaking and how it can reveal the mystery
of God’s love in a unique
way.
(Berkemeyer)
Establishing A Marriage Ministry in your Church.
In a culture of anti-marriage sentiment nothing could serve
couples more than a vital ministry aimed at nurturing, encouraging and
supporting a healthy marriage relationship.
The staff at CDPCC can help you build a core group of couples
dedicated to enhancing and supporting good Christian marriage in your
community. (Berkemeyer)
See also,
Listening Skills & Couple Forgiveness, Communication
Back to Top
Meaning in Suffering
Sick Mind or Sick World?
By applying a Social systems’ approach to mental health which
attributes some personal suffering to pain in the larger world, this
seminar takes a historical look at archetypes of vicarious suffering and
the daily effects of social pain upon us.
Participants will also spend time visioning practical solutions to this
larger pain.
Taken from the book, We’ve had 100 Years of Psychotherapy and The World’s Getting Worse,
written by
James
Hillman
and
Michael
Ventura. (Gresko)
Back to Top
Mediation
Mediation:
This informational seminar focuses on how divorcing couples may follow a
more respectful and cooperative paradigm in the severing of the marital
relationship in order to avoid the hurt and pain that are typical by-products
of the adversarial legal system.
Mediation is especially useful with custody, financial and family
issues. (Natter)
Men’s Issues
Men’s Issues: Challenges that Men face:
Dynamic approach to issues of sexuality, relationships and spirituality. (Natter)
See also,
Anger
Parenting
Bringing Baby Home: A Workshop for First-time Parents.
This workshop prepares new parents for the changes and adjustments that
the transition to parenthood brings. Couples will benefit from the
latest child development research while also learning how to co-parent.
This program encourages sensitive and responsive parenting as a means of
promoting healthier infants and children in their emotional, cognitive
and physical development. (Berkemeyer)
Building Joy
and Connection for Parents:
In this presentation, you will learn how to develop joy and resilience
in your children and how to have more joy within yourself. You
will also learn how to increase your sense of connection with your
children and with others in your life. Ideas for how to read your
child’s emotions, how to avoid control battles and how to help children
recover from distress will also be shared. This presentation can
be given in a 1 or 2 hour format, depending on the needs of the group.
(Keating)
Enhancing your Relationship with Your
Children: Practical ways to make your
relationship with your children more meaningful for both of you are
offered in this workshop through spiritual guidance, parenting
techniques and journaling. (Cochran)
How Not to Hurry Your Child:
Focus is placed on Understanding your child’s developmental
needs. Helping you find a
comfortable pace for your child’s routine and putting the brakes on
over-stimulation will also be explored. (Gresko)
Parenting Children (0-6 Years):
The “Systematic Training in Effective Parenting” (STEP) method is used
to provide practical skills for parents of infants to six year-olds in
the areas of understanding, communication, improving family atmosphere
and
discipline.
(Natter,
Francis, Cochran)
Parenting Children (6-12):
Same as above except with a different age group.
(Natter, Francis, Cochran, Curphey)
Parenting Children with ADHD (6-12
years):
Practical tips for managing difficult behavior while protecting
your child’s self-esteem.
(Burge)
Parenting Teenagers (12-18):
Using the “Systematic Training in Effective Parenting for Teens”
(STEP-TEEN) method, this workshop provides practical skills for
understanding teens and pre-teens, communication, improving family
atmosphere and
discipline. (Natter,
Francis,
Cochran)
Turning Nine: the hidden
developmental leap.
Most children experience a “fall from innocence” at or near age
nine. We will learn how to
help our kids grapple with complexity and recapture their joy as they
move through this step. (Gresko)
Mothering Without Fear:
We will learn to work with fearful messages from
inside ourselves and from society so that we can see our children
clearly, feel confident in all that we offer them as their moms, and
securely guide them into the future.
(Gresko)
Nurturing a Child’s Independence and Self Esteem:
Practical ideas for giving your child the security of a firm foundation
so they can grow into a self respecting and self responsible young
adult.
(Burge)
See
also,
ADD/ADHD, The
Effects of Teenagers on Families,
Blended Families
Back to Top
Prayer
Learning the Art of Centering Prayer: Learn how to move
beyond conversation with Christ to communion. Learn the specific
steps of centering prayer, which will deepen your relationship with God. (Burge)
Spiritual Issues
Human Authenticity on the Spiritual
Path:
How do I stay real, human, in touch with my faults and
weaknesses, while working to progress spiritually?
An examination of the soul as the place in which our humanness
and our spirituality become
one.
(Gresko)
Coming Home:
Discovering Your Unique Spirituality:
Explores four different ways to express your spirituality as it
relates to individual temperament as shown by the Myers-Briggs Type
Indicator. The workshop will
offer specific spiritual exercises for each person to use as they deepen
their relationship with God. (Burge)
Spiritual Mistakes:
Spiritual experiences comprise the most memorable and important moments
in our lives but some can burden and disillusion us.
This workshop highlights a path of gentle discernment. (Gresko)
Spiritual Transformation:
How to support friends who are changing beliefs, changing churches,
changing spiritual paths. A
look at the stages of personal spiritual change.
(Gresko)
Back to Top
Spirituality & Work
Rediscovering Spiritual Foundations for Executives:
In the pressurized world of corporate
America,
senior executives hardly have time for recreation, much less the luxury of
taking stock of their own spiritual journey.
Help provide an opportunity for the executives in your church to
set aside a few hours on an evening or a Saturday morning to pause, reflect,
and listen to their peers as the facilitator leads them through a presentation
and discussion on spirituality and the executive life. (Berkemeyer)
Back to Top
Stress
Why Are You Cast Down, O My Soul. .
.The Cry of the Believer Under Stress: What are the events of
life that bring on stress?
When does stress become distress?
How does our faith help us cope?
These are several of the questions that will be explored by reflecting
on the lives of Job and the Psalmists in the Old Testament -- persons of
God who had difficult things happen to them.
Looking at their coping skills through the filter of contemporary
research can help us in our response to stressful events and promote
clarity in dealing with related problems. (Alcorn
III)
Stressful Events/Stressful People:
A course in the positive use of stress: how to be empowered, rather than
overpowered by it.
(Alcorn III, Natter)
Reducing Stress with Humor, Optimism and
Joy: This presentation focuses on becoming aware of the
signs of stress and fatigue in our lives and how to reduce stress and
increase positive energy. Attention is given to the use of humor
as a positive antidote for stress and to the process of intentionally
building up our joy and resilience. This presentation can be given in a
1 or 2 hour format, depending on the needs of the group.
(Keating)
See also, Joy
Back
to Top
Vulnerability
Receiving Care, Sharing our Pain:
Designed to give new permission for opening up and explores those core
beliefs that make sharing difficult. (Gresko)
Back to Top
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