“Breathe, trust, and hold the space open for the U N I M A G I N A B L E to flow into your experience.” Happiness Project.
What in your life…
- is flourishing and in full bloom?
- needs tending or extra care?
- needs to be weeded or cut back to make room and space for what’s needed.
Do you…
- crave a chance to explore big ideas in a safe space with like-minded colleagues?
- want to “reconnect what you do with who you are?”
- hope to return to your work with renewed energy?
The “Taking Care of Self” Retreat offers a quiet, supportive space for such exploration. Surrounded by the abundant of summer, this retreat offers a place of self care in community in the midst of our hectic world. It’s an opportunity to explore your own sense of identity, purpose, and calling; to reweave the deep connection between your “soul and role”; and to renew your capacity to live and work from a place of wholeness and authenticity. Grounded in the truths of your own stories and questions, and guided by the Circles of Trust® model and the bestselling books A Hidden Wholeness and The Courage to Teach by Parker J. Palmer, this retreat invites you slow down, partake in healthy food, rest and gentle movement while you reflect on your own beginnings and endings.
Some additional details:
We’ll begin with dinner Sunday evening, June 26 and end shortly after lunch on Tuesday, June 28. We will gather in community at Prairie Oaks Institute, at the edge of Belle Plaine, Minnesota, just southwest of the Twin Cities. The retreat will be led by Laura Kinkead, a leadership development consultant and Courage and Renewal® facilitator-in-preparation Patti Hoffman, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Minnesota State University, Mankato.
We are able to make this life-giving opportunity available for a cost of only $255* because of support from the Center for Excellence and Innovation at Minnesota State University, Mankato. The registration fee includes lodging, meals, materials, and program. A lesser rate of $175 is available for commuters or those wishing to camp onsite or make their own lodging reservations. Accommodations at Prairie Oaks are double occupancy. (*Limited financial support may be requested from CETL for MSU faculty and staff.)
Please let us know well in advance if you have any dietary restrictions. You’ll receive further details about what to bring, how to prepare, and so on, from the facilitators in early June.
Space is limited to 15 participants, so please register early (by June 8th at the latest) or at https://juneteachpoi.eventbrite.com.
Facilitators:
Laura Kinkead, MBA is a leadership development consultant. Her work includes executive coaching, leadership and team development, and organizational and individual renewal. She works with teams and individuals to build leadership capacity and the ability to deal with change, conflict and ambiguity. Laura also facilitates Courage to Lead retreat series for teachers, health professionals, leaders and other service professionals. She has facilitated The Courage to Imagine retreat series for medical fellows through the Archibald Bush Foundation and she has been a member of the community faculty at the Center for Spirituality and Healing at the University of Minnesota where she led a renewal retreat series for health professionals. Laura studied Adaptive Leadership at Harvard University and teaches a graduate program in leadership at Concordia University. She has an MBA from the University of St. Thomas and is a partner in the leadership development firm, The Collabrium.
Patricia Hoffman and her husband Allen live in rural Courtland, Minnesota along the banks of the Minnesota River where they raised four children. She currently works as Director of professional development for faculty and staff at Minnesota State University, Mankato. She has been an educator of English learners, students with special needs, and foreign language learners in the K-12 setting and abroad as well as taught in teacher education at the University. She is grateful to her family and students for preparing her for the joy of becoming a life-long learner.
What are the benefits of Courage to Teach?
CTT helps each educator strengthen his or her sense of identity and integrity. Men and women, individuals of all backgrounds and belief systems, experienced educators and novices—each has a unique experience based on the questions she or he brings. Across the nation, educators report common powerful benefits:
- a renewed passion for teaching
- strengthened relationships with colleagues
- increased commitment to vocation
- more time spent reflecting on professional practice
- improved relationships with students
- revitalized capacity as leaders for educational change.
For more information about Parker J. Palmer and the Courage to Teach, as well as the Circles of Trust approach, please visit the website for the Center for Courage and Renewal atwww.couragerenewal.org.
We look forward to having you with us!
“Good teaching cannot be reduced to technique; good teaching comes from the identity and integrity of the teacher….”
~ Parker J. Palmer, The Courage to Teach: Exploring the Inner Landscapes of a Teacher’s Life
WHEN
Sunday, June 26, 2016 at 6:00 PM – Tuesday, June 28, 2016 at 2:00 PM (CDT) – Add to Calendar
WHERE
Prairie Oaks Institute: Harvest House – 1200 West South Street, Belle Plaine, MN 56011 – View Map
is a teacher, writer and resiliency coach. Michele has spent her entire career integrating the life of the mind with the wisdom of the body. Navigating her cancer diagnosis gave her new skills which allowed her to feel empowered and joyful as she adapted to the changing landscape. It is these skills, and this dance, she enjoys sharing with students of all ages and backgrounds.
is Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. She holds sacred all things wild and is especially interested in conservation. Reconnecting with the natural world and cultivating these connections in the “next stage” of life is vital to transitions. Lessons from the natural world enrich our understanding of transitions / change. To live deeply within the natural world is to savor the breath within each of us that cycles among all living beings, rocks and clouds.
