Learning For Living Institute

Programs: Our vision at the learning for living institute the learning for livinginstitute envisions a world in which young people enjoy being trained in life success skills which empower them to live fulfilling, contributive lives and become caring, responsible citizens who can create a more peaceful and sustainable world. Our 2016-2017 annual report the learning for living institute develops experiential, life success skills programs for college-age young people which help them gain the knowledge and skills they need to achieve success in their lives during and after college. In our programs, each student will receive individual attention, guidance, and practice in life skills in a group setting. Our facilitators will engage, collaborate, and teach students to explore their options and become more competent in their ability to accomplish their life goals. Developing our methods manual throughout this fiscal year, we have worked with a broadly experienced professional editor and writer and a nationally-respected methods developer and evaluator to research and develop the methods manual's scientifically- verified content, and shape this content into easily followed chapters which serve as the text book for our facilitator trainings and life skills programs. We undertake this large a project because detailed wording of "what you specifically say to a college student to engage, encourage, guide and help him or her find their best answer to their personal life issues" rarely exists in life skills education and is essential in order to successfully teach life skills. Expanded our operations and support systems throughout this fiscal year, we have also expanded and up-dated our procedural manuals for the technological, legal, and administrative support of our work, and the care of our physical environment. We have created and expanded an online platform to house our methods manual, internal team communications, life skills program and college research, and a knowledge and information management system which hosts our computer-based reference library to support and improve every aspect of our work. Curriculum content improvements we have integrated the seminal work of positive psychology, motivational interviewing, drama therapy, non-violent communication, virginia satir's systems therapy and other expert content into our methods manual and life skills curriculum to improve all aspects of our program material. In these ways we have put in place the foundational structures essential to create and give innovative, high-quality life skills educational programs.