Raising awareness. Shifting mindsets. Creating community change.

Immersive learning is more than a one-time training. This learning method surrounds the learner with new information in an engaging format that makes them co-investigators on the journey. The learning time may be experiential simulations reflective of someone else’s daily life, ask the learner to examine the lens in which they understand the world, or include role-playing. Reflection time is critical so that the experience can be processed in a way to inform the participant’s next steps. PSG has a diverse group of nationally trained certified facilitators for these modules.

COPE-LEAD Intro PSG

WESH 2 Follows COPE participant

Cost of Poverty Experience

COPE moves participants beyond stereotypes to a more holistic understanding of the drivers and results of poverty.

COPE is a 3-hour experiential in-person event that accommodates up to 120 people. Many organizations and communities across the nation use COPE to work more effectively with low-income families. This is because the experiential nature of this training helps organizations and communities more deeply understand the complexities of poverty, paving the way to address the issues more comprehensively. Participants take on the roles based on real family profiles gifted to this experience.

Interested in COPE?

Virtual COPE

A 90-minute interactive online experience, designed to give your organization a glimpse into the lives of low-income families.

Virtual COPE provides an online experience for individuals and organizations to better understand poverty, learn from people making the journey out of poverty, and become a change-maker in their organization. It is a 90-minute virtual experience on Zoom utilizing both large group and breakout rooms. Participants will make difficult decisions, work together to try and complete their tasks for one simulated week. Includes a debriefing to process experience and explore next steps.

Join our next Virtual COPE

Bridges Out of Poverty Part 1

Learn about the dynamics that cause and maintain poverty from the individual to the systemic level.

Based on Ruby Payne’s Understanding Poverty bestselling book, Bridges covers the “hidden rules” of class (poverty, middle, and wealthy) and helps people from all walks of life to better understand and communicate with people from a diversity of backgrounds.

Bridges Out of Poverty Part 1 is a 90-minute overview currently being offered virtually. We will offer both virtual and in-person options later in 2021.

Learn more about Bridges Out of Poverty events

Bridges Out of Poverty Part 2

Learn how you can help people out of the cycle of poverty in your community.

Part 2 is a 4-hour experience to be taken after Part 1. It will cover mental models of class, registers of language, the eleven critical resources to thrive, and help participants consider changes that might be made within their organizations.

Bridges Out of Poverty part 2 is offered in-person and virtually.

Learn more about Bridges Out of Poverty Part 2 events

Getting Ahead

Getting ahead in a just-getting-by world.

In Getting Ahead, the participants explore poverty through the lens of economic class to better understand how our society and our economy works. Modules focus on personal theory of change, causes of poverty, hidden rules of economic class, importance of language, eleven critical resources to thrive, building resources and social capital, and goal setting. Participants are typically low wealth individuals who desire to become more economically stable. Course is a total of 30 hours that can happen over several weeks or more intensely over a couple of weekends. Courses are sponsored by organizations.

Schedule Getting Ahead for your organization or community

The R Rules

Helping youth explore their current reality and create future stories by simultaneously building resources for both.

The R Rules modules include executive function skills, goal setting, career exploration, school-to-work options, and career pathways. Subject matter experts in the areas of trauma, mindfulness, and emotional health will also share.Participants are typically youth aged 16 to 24 years old who have lived experience in poverty. Course is a total of 15 hours that can happen over several weeks or more intensely over a couple of weekends. Courses are sponsored by organizations.

Schedule The R Rules for your organization or community

Launching Circles

Become a part of a place-based collaboration exploring how to launch Circles in your community.

Once you have established a small group of community champions who have raised their Poverty IQ, then you may consider the long-term commitment of hosting a Circles location in your area (a 30-minute radius is recommended). Our Circles Regional Coach will walk you through every step and Poverty Solutions Group will provide a shared cost funding approach.

Place-based Strategies

Hear directly from residents and volunteers about the successes and challenges of working together in a specific neighborhood.

This session will give an overview of best practices of place-based strategies. Those include: focusing work in specific geographic area like a neighborhood or a connection of neighborhoods, being sure to use language of assets rather than only talking about needs, honoring the history of the location, outside helpers learning to listen before offering to help, encouraging civic engagement, and the power of relational over transactional.

Immersive Learning