The Institute will prepare leaders to advocate for the social concerns of the Catholic Church. Brian Corbin, Executive Vice-President of Membership Services at Catholic Charities USA, will present the keynote address. Breakout sessions will feature the latest on the social concerns of the Church, including poverty, immigration and protecting the vulnerable.

Details to the schedule will be added as they become available.

We have an arrangement for $99 rooms at the Holiday Inn Express (165 Adventureland Dr. NW, Altoona, IA) on the evening of Jan. 15 for the “Institute for Social Action.” Call (515) 967-1855. There are a few rooms available for this rate on Jan. 14 as well.

Sunday, Jan. 15, 2017

1 p.m. Registration opens

2 p.m. Welcome and Prayer

2:15 p.m. Keynote – "From the Lens of Faith…Being Advocates for the Common Good," Brian Corbin, Executive Vice-President, Catholic Charities USA

3:15 p.m. Break

3:30 p.m. Breakouts

• A1: Health care in Iowa: mental health funding and Medicaid oversight - Larry Murphy, legislative consultant to the Iowa Catholic Conference and former state senator
• A2: Advocacy for refugees and immigrants - Rachel Kinker, Program Manager, Refugee Resettlement, Catholic Charities of Des Moines
• A3: See, Reflect, Act: Re-Imagining Our Place in Our Common Home - led by Jacqueline Comito and Ann Staudt. Dr. Comito is an anthropologist and director of the Iowa Learning Farms and Water Rocks! programs at Iowa State University. Staudt is a an environmental engineer and collaborates with Comito at Iowa State University. This interactive session will use Catholic imagination to creatively explore our place in the common home, through prayer, song, scripture, discussion, reflection, and hands-on activities, in such a way that we shed new light on each other and on the world around us. Together the group will delve into the science, reflect on Pope Francis’s ecological encyclical Laudato Si', and explore small and large ways to act for the goodness of our common home.
• A4: Social Action in the public arena and in the home - Adam Storey, director of the marriage and family office, Diocese of Des Moines. Adam will explore an integrated vision of the fundamental attitudes and actions that inspire both our public advocacy and our personal relationships.

5 p.m. The Mass for Life with the bishops of Iowa. Bishop Martin Amos of Davenport will be the homilist. (No ticket is necessary to participate in the Mass!)

7 p.m. Soup Supper. Join us after Mass for a simple supper and fellowship with advocates from across the state.

Monday, Jan. 16, 2017

9 a.m. Welcome and Prayer

9:15 a.m. Iowa political update and key issues for the Catholic bishops 

9:30 a.m. Monday keynote – "Human Trafficking" by Mike Ferjak, recently-retired director of the Human Trafficking Enforcement and Prosecution Initiative of the Iowa Department of Justice

10:15 a.m. Break

10:30 a.m. Breakouts

• B1: “Surely It Is Not I, Lord?” A Discussion on Implicit Bias and Race in America - Mark Schmidt, Director of Respect Life/Social Justice for the Archdiocese of Dubuque
• B2: "Opposing Doctor-Prescribed Suicide - Death with True Dignity: A Catholic Approach to End of Life Care" - Maggie DeWitte, Executive Director of Iowans for Life. Colleen Walters, chief mission integration officer of Mercy Health Network will also discuss the bishops' "Supportive Care Iowa" project.
• B3: Global Advocacy Team - a model on how to work with Congress on key international issues - Ken Bresnan, Parish Outreach Liaison, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Des Moines
• B4: The need for a higher minimum wage in Iowa - Peter Fisher, research director of the Iowa Policy Project - Information from United Way's ALICE (Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed) Project - Deann Cook, executive director, United Ways of Iowa

Noon Lunch and dismissal

Rooms are still available at the Holiday Inn Express of Jan. 14 & 15 for the “Institute for Social Action.” Call (515) 967-1855. Room rates range $114-129.

Recommended directions to the church:

From I-80, take Altoona exit 143 and head south on 1st Ave for approximately 2 miles.  You will pass a Hy-Vee store when you cross 8th St SE.  Keep heading south.  Sts. John and Paul Catholic Church will be on the left hand side, or east side, of the road just after you cross 13th St SE.