Training and facilitation skills are key to the success of community organizing and social change work. People with these skills support groups by developing new leaders, transferring knowledge between generations, creating more participation within their groups, educating and engaging constituents, supporting effective meetings and decision making, resolving conflicts and providing skills for successful, creative, and disciplined actions.

Yet, few people who play the role of educator, trainer or facilitator in their work are offered an opportunity to hone their skills among a community of peers.

With this in mind, a network of West Virginia organizers teamed up with Training for Change to create The West Virginia Trainers Project. If you’re a West Virginia organizer who wants to take their training and facilitation skills to the next level, the West Virginia Trainer Project is for you.

The annual West Virginia Training for Trainers is the on-ramp to The West Virginia Trainers Project. Graduates from this training are eligible to participate in other components of The West Virginia Trainers Project. These components include:

• A year-long coaching program in which participants get individualized support to apply new skills and frameworks to their day-to-day organizing work
• Access to an Advanced Training for Trainers in West Virginia to continue growing as a facilitator in a community of peers
• Access to bi-annual Design Labs in which participants get the chance to learn new approaches for a specific facilitation challenge such as, How to Facilitate Group Conflict