ISGO™ Certified Facilitator/Moderator Training Course #5 - Feb 5, 19, Mar 4, 2020 (8-10 pm EST)

ISGO™ Facilitator / Moderator Training Program and Policies
(Attendance at all three scheduled sessions is mandatory for certification!)

ISGO Facilitator (ICF) Role Description:

• Conducts online peer group meetings where experiencers of near-death and/or other extraordinary experiences, and those interested in these topics, can learn, share, and grow.

• Facilitators may provide (a) general sessions, (b) theme or topic sessions, (c) courses with syllabus and class schedule, and/or (d) single-event presentation-style webinars with Q&A.

• Facilitators shall become familiar with the Moderator’s role for live-session activities in the event the Moderator’s online access is interrupted or becomes temporarily unavailable.

Facilitator Requirements:

• Have integrated personal experiences (NDEs, STEs, etc.) or helping others to integrate their experiences

• Hold a level of expertise related to the focus of the theme or topic of their group

• Have some level of experience facilitating groups where participants are given the opportunity to share deeply

ISGO Moderator (ICM) Role Description:

• Has primary responsibility for defining and entering a scheduled event on the ISGO catalog and for initiating the online session with preliminary setup including supporting early participant arrivals.

• Will respond to participant questions concerning access and use of system features.

• Will monitor participant communications and help guide Facilitator responses and/or awareness to participant requests for interaction (raised hands, outstanding chat msgs, etc.)

• Moderators shall become familiar with the Facilitator’s role to guide discussion in the event the Facilitator’s access is interrupted or becomes temporarily unavailable.

Moderator Requirements:

• Have basic familiarity with the topics related to personal experiences (NDEs, STEs, etc.) and be open to the diverse viewpoints that can be shared regarding these experiences

• Be familiar with using online services and comfortable with learning new applications for customer service features such as online registrations of users, catalog entries for adding/revising events, starting web events and where to look for related information (online documentation, help desks, etc.).

• Be willing to grow with the position to have more technical related tasks in support, and to create procedures and documentation, of background applications and/or website design features & updates.

Steps to becoming & retaining Certified ISGO Facilitator/Moderator status:

1. Must have an active Supporting (or higher level) IANDS membership by the end of internship requirements... (join here) or (renew here) – membership is not required initially to register now & initiate taking this course.

2. Attend three 2-hour online training sessions - see schedule below.

3. Complete internship by participating in 3 - 6 general (open to the public), including facilitating / moderating 1 - 3 sessions with a mentor.

4. Completion of a self-assessment and discussion of overall evaluation with an ISGO mentor

5. Attend the ISGO Facilitator/Moderator monthly sharing meetings (minimum of 3 per year to retain certified status),

TRAINING OUTLINE

Training Session #1 (2-hours) - Wed, Feb 5, 5:00 pm PDT (8:00 pm EDT) = Thu, Feb 6, noon in Sydney, AU.

• Introductions and welcome

• ISGO 101

- ISGO vision

- ISGO offerings (i.e. general ISGOs, theme & topics sessions, courses, webinars)

- ISGO guidelines & ethics

• Review steps to becoming a Facilitator and/or Moderator

• Zoom groups 101 (how to use zoom, on-screen presentation)

• Q&A

Training Session #2 (2-hours) - Wed, Feb 19, 5:00 pm PDT (8:00 pm EDT) = Thu, Feb 20, noon in Sydney, AU.

• Developing & discussing Facilitator proposals

• What to expect in an ISGO

• Troubleshooting & problem scenarios (Facilitator & Moderator perspectives)

• Establishing boundaries & know when/where to refer or how to get help

• Conflicts of interest (with examples)

• Q&A

[Optional Training Session #2A – optional Moderator session for advanced background technical functions overview.]

[Optional Training Session #2B — follow-up if needed from 2A - date & time scheduled by consensus.]

Training Session #3 (2-hours) - Wed, Mar 4, 5:00 pm PDT (8:00 pm EDT) = Thu, Mar 5, noon am in Sydney, AU.

• Group sharing experience (objective: practice talking stick approach and further develop familiarity with zoom platform in the ISGO context)

• Q&A

Internship/Practicum:

• Lead General ISGO sessions, with observation with a self-assessment plus written feedback from participants. Each General session is 90 mins.

Facilitators must demonstrate:

• The ability to create a safe and supportive place for everyone in an ISGO. Participants should feel comfortable to share if they want to share, comfortable to ask questions, and comfortable to just listen to others.

• A level of unconditional positive regard for participants, as well as competency in moving a group from start to completion.

• A sound understanding of the ISGO Guidelines and ability to refer participants back appropriately, when needed.

• Creation of a referral system directly related to their ISGO, especially when higher risk elements emerge (e.g. PTSD, suicidal ideation)

• Completion of a self-assessment and discussion of overall evaluation with ISGO Assessor

Certification:

Upon successful completion of the above, participants will be given an ISGO Facilitator (or Moderator) Certificate of Achievement, have their bio on the ISGO website, and be able to commence ISGO events programming and conduct.

Investment:

US$150 to register for this training program (active IANDS Membership at the Supporting or higher level is required prior to formal certification)

Access to ISGO Facilitator Resources:

• ISGO Facilitator Monthly Meetings (called ISGO Rhumba sessions)

• Private FB group for discussion with peers

• ISGO™ Manual (and IANDS Everything Book)

• IANDS Monthly Group Leaders meeting on zoom

• ISGO Facilitator / Moderator Mentor for consultation

Click here to meet your ISGO™ Facilitator / Moderator Training Program Co-Leaders – Nicole Gruel & Chuck Swedrock

After successful registration you will:

• Receive an acknowledgement email and a link to the first assignment that is to watch a 44-minute introduction video featuring Dr. Rebecca Valla, a licensed practicing psychiatrist and member of IANDS Board of Directors. Dr. Valla’s portion of the video will cover various facets of dealing with challenging behaviors within a group sharing environment (in many ways the same issues can arise whether dealing with an in-person or an online group).

• Receive your copy of the IANDS/ISGO proprietary manual to skim for awareness of topics and material that will be covered more in-depth within this training program.

• Receive an email at least 24 hours before the first session begins. That email will contain a private link and unique password for you to access the online portion of this ISGO™ training program.