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Join us in Charleston this year!

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Registration is open now for Annual Training 2023. Join us in Charleston, SC, September 21-22. This annual event is your chance to hear from speakers from all over the state about a variety of topics that can help you better serve your clients, while also connecting you to other professionals from around the state. Register today for your all-access pass to 2 days packed with 20 breakout sessions, 2 keynotes, and so much to learn. Don't miss this opportunity!

Explore The Power of Connection at SC Thrive’s Annual Training 2023! Service Providers, Partner Agencies, and Clients share a vital connection that keeps the social care sector thriving. At this annual event, we’ll delve into all the ways connections can address gaps in services, enhance communication, improve outcomes, and much more. Join speakers and guests from across the state to learn about a variety of topics that can help you holistically serve your community and improve the quality of life for South Carolinians. 

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Ready to register for Annual Training 2023? Join us in Charleston, SC, from September 21-22, 2023!

Our Agenda

Thursday
  • 8:00 AM | Registration
    9:30 AM | Opening Keynote
    11:15 AM | Breakout Session 1
    12:30 PM | Lunch
    1:30 PM | Breakout Session 2
    3:00 PM | Breakout Session 3
    4:30 PM | Networking Reception

Friday
  • 7:30 AM | Breakfast
    9:00 AM | Breakout Session 4
    10:30 AM | Breakout Session 5
    12:00 PM | Lunch, Closing Keynote & Awards

Lodging

Book your room soon to take advantage of special rates!

Embassy Suites by Hilton Charleston 5505 International Boulevard North Charleston, SC 29418

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Our Keynotes

Dr. Caroline Leaf

Dr. Caroline Leaf

Communication Pathologist, Cognitive Neuroscientist & Author of Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess & other books.

Anthony Dicks, Jr. Headshot

Anthony A. Dicks, Jr.

Senior Leadership Consultant of 180 Management Group

Our Sessions

Cleaning Up Your Mental Mess | Dr. Caroline Leaf

Dr. Caroline Leaf

Toxic thoughts, depression, and anxiety- our mental mess- are frequently aggravated by a chaotic world and sustained by an inability to manage our runaway thoughts. But we shouldn't settle into this mental mess as if it's just our new normal. Hope and help are available to us, and the road to healthier thoughts and peak happiness may be shorter than you think.  

You will learn the following in this session: 

  • How the five steps can help reduce anxiety and depression by up to 81%, according to clinical studies.  
  • How science can help us transition from being aware of toxic thoughts to catching and managing them in their early stages.  
  • How to capitalize on directed neuroplasticity using the Neurocycle. 
  • To apply mind-management to unwire toxic habits and trauma.  
  • How to leverage the lessons in the book for their daily lifestyle, including connection, brain-building, sleep, diet, exercise, people-pleasing, toxic perfectionism, overthinking, toxic emails and texts.
  • Why mindfulness is not enough and how strategic mind-management through the five steps can take a reader beyond mindfulness. 
Creating Heroic Leaders Amid Organizational Hardship | Anthony A. Dicks, Jr.

Anthony Dicks, Jr. Headshot

Challenging times call for champion leaders. Unfortunately, we have a tendency to talk more about our villains and vices than our victories. In this session I posit a simple question: Could organizational, cultural, or personal hardship be making a heroic leader out of you? Your challenges could be making you the champion your organization needs to accomplish its mission.    

Here’s what you’ll learn:   

  • Why your organization needs heroic leaders  
  • The 7 Virtues of heroic leaders  
  • A 6-Part Heroic Leadership Development Framework that will help your organization create a pipeline of heroic leaders   
  • How to overcome the #1 enemy of heroic leaders  
  • How to leverage organizational hardship to create heroic leaders 
How to Amplify Your Marketing Message | Anthony A. Dicks, Jr.

Anthony Dicks, Jr. Headshot

There are so many messages competing for the attention of those you serve. The question is not only if your message is clear but how does your message overcome the noise of so many other marketing messages. During this session, I will arm attendees with strategies and tactics to "equalize" their marketing messages for greater clarity and volume, so their messages can overcome the noise and reach more people than expected.

A to V: All about Volunteers | Abby Blakely

Are you thinking about adding volunteers to your workflow? Volunteers CAN build capacity within your organization if you have the capacity to manage them well. This session will provide tools to help you analyze your organizational needs, promote for the volunteer position and build into your volunteers to help keep them coming back for more—retaining a volunteer = not having to do this all over again! Join me in ways to help you identify, recruit, train, and retain volunteers to meet your organization or program needs.

Child Abuse and Neglect and Pathways to Prevention | Dana Powell

 

In 2021 in SC, there were 8,949 founded investigations of child abuse and neglect involving 9,619 cases of neglect and 3,253 cases of abuse. While those numbers alone are startling, the effects of the maltreatment likely won't be seen for years to come. Events like these can lead to negative health and social outcomes in adulthood, and prevention is critical. Children's Trust of SC supports multiple programs and has developed strategic pathways to prevention. This session will paint a picture of child maltreatment and share what we're doing about it.

Cyber Security: Navigating the current Threatscape | Jared A.Lopez

It's not just financial institutions and governments that worry about ransomware, hackers, and malware. Learn practical steps to improve your Cybersecurity posture to protect your data from intrusion and infiltration. Keep your organization safe in the current "Threatscape" beyond just the latest vulnerability.

Disability Today: An Integrated Approach Toward Breaking Barriers and True Inclusion | Kimberly Tissot

This session will explore recent developments in South Carolina that allow for greater opportunities for persons with disabilities, outline some remaining barriers, and provide a roadmap for true disability inclusion in our communities.

Participants will gain a brief history of the Americans with Disabilities Act, its application today, tools for effective coalition building for legislative and regulatory advocacy, and practices to promote accessibility in their workplace and community.

How Money Really Works | Aleece Kardon & Julie Benveniste

Aleece Kardon Headshot Julie Benveniste Headshot

Financial illiteracy is the #1 economic crisis in the world. Over 5 billion people in the world are considered financially illiterate. That references the shocking results of a recent global study. In the study, only 30% of people worldwide are considered financially literate. The study used a simple money quiz to reveal that the vast majority of people from countries worldwide could not correctly answer a few simple questions about money. This class will teach you the answers to those questions—and many more, including walking through the 7 Money Milestones. It's your step-by-step action plan designed to help you chart the course from where you are today to financial security and independence.

Investing in our Future: Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Promotion, Prevention, and Treatment Efforts in South Carolina | Mackenzie Soniak & Amaris Gibson

Extensive research has explored and documented the importance of early experiences and how they shape the growth and development of young children. Promoting children's social-emotional health in these early years is essential to South Carolina's bright future. Infant Early Childhood Mental Health (IECMH) promotes strong emotional health through a continuum of multidisciplinary services and supports essential in healthy development, preventing mental health problems, and treating mental health disorders. SC Infant Mental Health Associate is an interdisciplinary association of professionals working to promote nurturing relationships for infants, young children and their families through resources, policies and practices to foster positive mental health and well-being.

Isn't It Time We Talk: Debunking the Myths of Advance Care Planning | Marisette Hasan

More than one million lives were lost to COVID-19, and many of these deaths unexpectedly happened to the young and old. In many cases of these unexpected deaths, family members did not have an opportunity to discuss with their loved ones what mattered most. This interactive session will focus on the benefits of early advance care planning conversations with our loved ones, patients and clients. We will address the myths about end-of-life conversations and explore options for community support when a loved one becomes seriously ill.

Legal Hot Topics for Nonprofit Organizations | Kelly Jolley

From insurance to fundraising compliance and corporate governance to employment issues, the nonprofit staff makes daily decisions that have a legal impact. Don't let the boring title fool you! This session will use stories and examples to review the areas with the greatest risk for nonprofit organizations. It will offer short checklists to help you and your staff make good decisions for your organization.

Mission Matters | Patrick Jinks

How does your organization measure its performance against its stated mission? Patrick will share research from his Ph.D. studies, illustrating the three levels at which nonprofits measure (or don't measure) their work. From business metrics to program outcome measurement to community-level metrics, Patrick will share examples at each level, help participants examine their mission statements, and more effectively communicate their impact. This workshop will be highly interactive as the group challenges and helps each other with live coaching from Patrick.

Reconnecting Children to Nature through Outdoor Play | Leslie Beckstrom & Misty Pearson

Children are spending less time outdoors immersed in nature. The time children spend outdoors and their relationship with nature helps them understand the world and wonder surrounding them while impacting their overall well-being. As childhood has moved indoors, reconnecting children to the natural world is critical to lessen the negative effects on children's physical, cognitive and emotional development. This presentation will address why it is important to connect children and nature and how to enhance outdoor spaces where children spend time. The research will be summarized, and lessons learned will be shared.

SC Child Care Voucher Program | Christi L. Jeffcoat

This session will provide general information on how families may access financial assistance for childcare. The session will cover the availability of services, specific eligibility criteria, and income guidelines.

Collectively Informing Policy to Improve the Health of Aging South Carolinians | Maya Pack

Maya Pack Headshot

Team members from the SC Institute of Medicine & Public Health (IMPH) will discuss their Long Term Care Taskforce and Leadership Council, which have been working to inform long-term care policy for the disabled and aging populations since 2013. A recent highlight is their collective work to inform policy to improve our state’s ability to effectively recruit, train and retain direct care workers. SC's use of ARPA funds to support this workforce will be explored. Additionally, IMPH will seek your expertise on the issue of social isolation among older adults and what our state can do to combat the negative health impacts of social isolation as they launch a task force to seek solutions to this challenge. 

Post Pandemic Reengagement and Drop-Out: What Works? | Rachelle Hall

Rachelle Hall Headshot

Communities in Schools is the nation’s largest provider of integrated student supports, serving 2,900 schools in 26 states and The District of Columbia. In this session, we will take a deeper look into Communities in Schools of South Carolina and the work they are doing in our state to reengage students post-pandemic, by continuing to surround students with a trusted network of integrated student supports so that ultimately, we can empower students to stay in school and achieve in life!   

Using Telehealth to Improve Maternal and Child Health Outcomes in South Carolina | Dr. Kathryn King & Patty Thompson

The MUSC Center for Telehealth, in a partnership with SC Thrive, is launching a new, innovative program, Listening to Women: Connecting Moms and Babies to Resources, to identify barriers to postpartum success, infant milestones, and overall family health. The program is a technology-enabled solution to home visitation and a comprehensive connector system for families. Collaborative efforts and interventions include a high-tech process of care delivery, increased touchpoints for families, and real-time data analysis to improve cost-effectiveness and child health outcomes.    

Serving Veterans (Panel) | Kailay Washington, Jack Sterling, Dr. Ann Gowdy, Mark Holyfield

This panel of experts from across the state comes together to talk about a variety of programs available to support the veteran community in South Carolina. The panel will focus on specific veteran community groups including women, entrepreneurs, and seniors, in addition to general programs for all. Join us for this dynamic group talking about ways we can serve our state’s veterans. 

Everyone Knows a SC Senior (Panel) | Melanie Chaplin, Beth Fields, Melinda (Mindy) Kelly, Stephanie McGuire

At SC Thrive, we know not everyone is looking for programs supporting senior citizens for themselves, but we all know a senior who may need additional support. For this session, an expert panel shares statewide programs and support services available for seniors, along with information to break down barriers, misconceptions, and stigma as we work to support adults 55 and older in South Carolina.

And more to come!