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Principles of Community Organizing

principles of community organizing

Principles of Community Organizing

POCO sessions are full for 2020. We are no longer taking applications.

WORC’s Principles of Community Organizing training develops the skills of leaders and staff to build powerful organizations and launch winning issue campaigns. The hands-on workshop covers the basics of leadership, fundraising, organizational development, and community organizing.

Based on ongoing pandemic conditions and restricted regional travel, the face-to-face POCO training previously scheduled in Billings for July 22-25 has been canceled.  

In its place, we will offer an online training series that includes as many of the POCO sessions that can be reasonably translated into an online environment. The online training series will include a mix of weekday evening and Saturday morning sessions over the course of a couple of months beginning on Saturday, Aug. 1.

As with our face-to-face training, the sessions will be interactive and build on one another and the training is strengthened with everyone’s full participation. Participants are strongly encouraged to attend the entire training series.

Online Training Series – Principles of Community Organizing

The training will be conducted via Zoom and, as with our in-person training, it will be participatory and interactive. Space is limited and the training is capped at 35 participants.

Once your application has been approved, we will email you a registration form. A training packet will be circulated prior to the training.  You can expect some take-home assignments to complete between sessions, so please plan accordingly. 

“Just a few days after returning from the workshop, I had the opportunity to do my first large-donor ask. The result was a $750 donation to Dakota Rural Action.

Because of my experience at this workshop, I feel I will be able to continue my fundraising work for DRA with this same level of comfort and confidence.”

   – Wyatt Urlacher, member

Training Schedule and Content

Saturday Sessions will be held from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm* 

Wednesday sessions will be held from 6:30 pm – 8:00 pm*

*all times mountain

Session 1: Saturday, August 1

  • Introductions, Training Overview
  • Why Organize, Power & Conflict
  • Characteristics of Community Organizations

Session 2: Wednesday, August 5

  • Self Interest & one-one-one relational meetings

Session 3: Wednesday, August 19 

  • Leadership Development

Session 4:  Wednesday, September 2

  • Identifying & Picking an Issue, Part 1   

Session 5: Saturday, September 12

  • Identifying & Picking an Issue, Part 2
  • Developing an Issue Campaign

Session 6: Wednesday, September 16

  • Membership Systems & Recruitment

Session 7: Saturday, September 26

  • Grassroots Fundraising & Organizing (Sisters in the Struggle)
  • Training Evaluation & Closure 

Tuition

Tuition fees are reduced as we will not be offering the full curriculum. Fees for the full series are:

$40 for members

$200 for non-members

Please contact the staff director of your WORC member group to make sure you have the director’s support to apply and that you qualify for the reduced tuition.

Once you have received the staff director’s approval to apply, complete the application and submit it, along with a brief explanation of why you want to participate.

Apply today!