Join your peers June 9-13 in Knoxville, TN for a week of learning and networking! If you are viewing this page from a mobile device, registration links will be at the bottom of the page.
Schedule of Events:
If you are viewing this page from a mobile device, registration links can be found at the bottom of the page.
Class Costs
This cost includes a light breakfast and lunch on the day of training as well as a printed course manual and supplies. Snacks will be included throughout the day. If costs are prohibiting you from attending a training event, complete this form to be considered for a scholarship. The Peer Communities Gathering is a free event, but does require pre-registration by June 1.
Half-day: $35
Half-day with Lunch: $50
One-day: $100
Two-Day: $175
Payment and Cancellations
We do not currently have the ability to collect payment online. Therefore, your Association will be invoiced after the in-person training event. For all Y-USA courses, cancellation can happen through LCDC through June 1. Associations will be charged for any staff who registered but does not attend a training in full.
Hotel Information
If you will be traveling in from out of town, we have reserved a room block at the Courtyard Knoxville Downtown at $159 per night. This hotel is recommended but not required. Training participants are responsible for their own hotel costs. The last day to reserve a room is May 15th.
Interested in becoming a trainer?
All courses marked with an * in the table above have the ability to accommodate trainer candidates. If you are interested in serving as a trainer candidate, or would like to become a trainer in the future, contact Laura Solomon at lsolomon@ymcamidtn.org.
Questions?
For any questions regarding classes, please contact Laura Solomon at lsolomon@ymcamidtn.org. For any questions regarding the Peer Community Gathering, please contact Kate Kennedy at kkennedy@ymcamidtn.org.Questions about Leadership Certification or navigating the Learning & Career Development Center (LCDC) platform? Check out our FAQ page.
Course Descriptions:
Facilitation Skills teaches participants how to enhance their presentation skills in order to create an effective learning environment for all students. Skills for both presenting and facilitating in a classroom setting will be not only discussed, but also practiced. Participants need to come to class prepared to conduct two, 10-minute presentations. The evaluation score on the second presentation will determine if a participant passes the course. This course is the final Faculty/Trainer Resources prerequisite course for all trainer candidates.
Living Our Cause Experience is an interactive session aimed at empowering staff supervisors to lead culture building strategies in their Y and ultimately understand the role they play in creating meaningful experiences for staff, volunteers and members. From this inspiring class, participants will walk away with practical tips on how to influence a cause-driven culture where all people know – and feel – that the Y is a charitable cause that transforms lives and engages leaders at all levels along the way. This course replaces the former Experience Storytelling and Living Our Cause Experience courses.
Keeping Y materials on-brand doesn’t have to be complicated—Canva can help make it easy. Whether you're just getting started or already comfortable with the platform, this interactive session will give you the tools to create polished, brand-compliant designs with confidence. We’ll explore key Canva features, break down Y branding in a way that makes sense, and even workshop real flyers—so bring examples from your center, whether they need a quick fix or a full refresh. By the end, you’ll walk away with practical skills and a better understanding of how to make Y branding work for you.
WHAT IS MENTAL HEALTH COMMUNITY CARE?
Mental health can be supported in community settings, like the Y, in addition to traditional clinical settings. The Y’s Mental Health Community Care Model is a preventive model of care that focuses on community-level support for mental health promotion.
The Y’s Mental Health Community Care Model can help Ys find their role in mental health promotion in order to encourage and increase healthy behaviors, protective factors and resilience. The model focuses on reducing the risk and impact of mental illness, providing early intervention, and supporting the process of healing and recovery.
Mental Health Community Care is NOT about clinical approaches to mental health. It focuses on the Y’s role as a community-based organization in mental health promotion and how to connect and refer individuals to clinical behavioral health supports. The Y’s MHCC training is designed to complement Mental Health First Aid® trainings and focuses on building a culture of Mental Health Community Care versus providing crisis response.
ABOUT THE MENTAL HEALTH COMMUNITY CARE TRAINING
The course is available to Y staff of all levels, as well as community members. The eight-hour training is designed to take place in person over two days. During the training, participants will:
- Learn about and experience Mental Health Community Care.
- Get introduced to the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that make up Mental Health Community Care—and how to apply them.
- Understand how the Y supports mental health.
- Learn about mental health resources and how to activate them in the Y and community.
Join us for an In-Person Peer Communities Gathering and connect with peers throughout the TN Y Movement! Peer Communities are open to all staff and provide a space for participants to discuss emerging practices, troubleshoot common challenges, learn innovative approaches and inspire collaboration. Haven’t joined a peer community yet? Learn more and register here.
The Y is a powerful place for all people to find the support needed to make and sustain healthy behavior changes. Y staff have a unique and special opportunity to guide people in supportive groups on their journey. To do this effectively, staff must be willing, courageous, and skilled enough to resist the urge to prescribe solutions, and instead harness the power of a supportive group helping each other make sustainable changes in lifestyle choices.
This course prepares Y staff to facilitate small group discussions that engage and encourage participants to formulate and share ideas to support others in problem solving and goal attainment. This course also helps staff manage group dynamics using techniques that help the group focus on the topic at hand and function positively and collaboratively.
This course is for Y staff who serve as a small group facilitator or leader of a small group. These small groups could be connected to specific programs related to chronic conditions, or other small groups in the Y, e.g. youth and teen programs, parent programs, older adults programs, volunteer groups, home interviews, camp, etc.
Experience with using Listen First and/or motivational interviewing is recommended, but not required. Prior to attending the Facilitating Change in Small Groups class, participants will need to complete the attached pre-course reading.
To combine philanthropy best practices with timeless fundraising approaches, Y-USA has redesigned its training programs to assist Ys in raising more money and building a culture of philanthropy. The goal of the new Annual Giving Training is to support the development of a year-round, multi-channel annual giving program to help Ys establish a steady and reliable source of income while growing staff fundraising knowledge and engagement. This strategic and tactical training class will give staff a renewed focus on connecting with potential donors to ask for their support, provide strategies that offer donors the opportunity to contribute to a cause they care about, and more!
Course Objectives include:
• To understand the role and importance of annual giving at the YMCA.
• Recognize the key stages of the Donor Cycle.
• Identify the elements of a Case For Support for YMCA Annual Giving and how to tell your Y story.
• Gain knowledge of the roles volunteers and staff play in fundraising in a Y’s Annual Giving program.
• Become informed of the Five Elements of the Annual Giving Fundraising Cycle and their importance.
• To become familiar with Key Metrics that can be used for a YMCA Annual Giving program.
• To become familiar with a YMCA Annual Giving Plan Yearly Calendar