Draw from the Deep Well: A Courage to Teach® Oasis for the End of the Year

“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

DO YOU…

• yearn to revive your heart for teaching in the face of the pressures that can make it so hard?
• need to rediscover your passion for the work?
• 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 end the school year with a sense of spring’s resilience?

The “Draw from the Deep Well” Retreat offers a quiet, supportive space for such exploration. Buoyed by the new and re-emerging life that marks a Minnesota spring, it’s a rare “oasis” in a parched and hectic world. It’s an opportunity to explore your own sense of identity, purpose, and calling in the teaching life; 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 book The Courage to Teach by Parker J. Palmer, this retreat invites you to step with intention into a time and place apart and to take a well-deserved respite from the end-of-year craziness.

Some additional details:

We’ll begin with dinner Thursday evening, March 31 and end shortly after lunch on Saturday, April 2. We will gather in the beauty of the spring landscapes at Prairie Oaks Institute, at the edge of Belle Plaine, Minnesota, just southwest of the Twin Cities. The retreat will be led by Chris Johnson, PhD, a Courage and Renewal® facilitator and founder of The Milkweed Group; and Courage and Renewal® facilitator-in-preparation Patti Hoffman (Director of the Center for Education & Learning at Minnesota State University, Mankato).

We are able to make this life-giving opportunity available for a “set your own investment” sliding-scale suggested donation of only $195 - $255, which includes lodging, meals, materials, and program. 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 late March.

Space is limited to 15 participants, so please register early (by March 27 at the latest) at www.POIteachspring2016.eventbrite.com .

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 at www.couragerenewal.org.

We look forward to having you with us!