Come Join Us!

Welcome to the Program Sharing 2005 Home Page.

We invite you to join us at the 31st Annual Program Sharing Conference on Alcohol, Tobacco, Other Drug Abuse and Violence Prevention on October 6-7, 2005. This event will take place at the St. Cloud Civic Center, St. Cloud, Minnesota.

This conference is designed to showcase effective prevention programs based on research and practice. It is an excellent opportunity for prevention practitioners to learn from and share with one another and, as a result, be able to increase the effectiveness of their own programs.

If you're wondering why you should attend this year's Program Sharing Conference, have we got reasons for you! More than 400 people gathered at the St. Cloud Civic Center last October 7 and 8 to participate in the 30th Annual Program Sharing Conference.

Kevin Spading, Project Director of the Minnesota Prevention Resource Center welcomed the audience and introduced the kickoff keynote speaker, Mark Rios.

Mark's presentation was filled with humor and pathos. Mark is an American- a Mexican American. With his family, Mark came to Minnesota from Texas and began the journey of the sacrificial migrant family lifestyle. He shared with the audience his story of how he overcame the many challenges of discrimination and constantly taking-up roots that came along the miles of his journey.

The luncheon speaker, Tom Keating, 2004 Minnesota Teacher of the Year, shared with high-energy and motivation his stories from the trenches and his thirty-plus years in prevention with the audience. Tom states that his job "... is not a science, it's an art." Because he believes adult nurturing is essential to young people's success, he also gives his audience an assignment. "Here's your homework. Say hello to a kid tonight."

Vivian M. Walker of Ruby K. Payne's aha! Process, Inc. was the second day's keynote speaker. The audience listened intently as Ms. Walker spoke on a framework for understanding poverty, and shared how individuals in poverty think and act differently than those people in the middle and upper economic classes. Her session offered proven tools to improve the quality of interactions with youth from other economic backgrounds.

The 60 breakout sessions were well attended and the evaluations were overwhelmingly positive. Comments and evaluations from participants will serve as the basis for selecting the sessions for the October 6-7, 2005 conference. Join us. You can register online at www.emprc.org/ps or print the form and mail it to us.

Because of the wide range of topics and sessions offered, this conference is useful for anyone interested in prevention Ð from those starting out to those with many years of experience.

Watch this website for details of the upcoming conference, including information about keynote speakers. This website will be updated frequently. Visit often to learn more about scheduled speakers and other aspects of the conference.

Sponsored by MAPCC (Minnesota ATOD Prevention Coordinating Council) a collaborative of the Minnesota Departments of Education, Health, Human Services, Public Safety and the Minnesota Prevention Resource Center.