Out of the Mountains - Presentations by Gretchen "Banana" Vaughn

Are you tired of overpaid speakers that

don’t seem to connect with your

reality as a

youth-develpment professional?

Who provide a lot of

theory and

“awareness-raising” but little practical

advice?

Gretchen Vaughn facilitates workshops are

described as both “thought-provoking”

and

“down-to-earth.” She uses a

“coach approach” that utilizes the

expertise within

yourself and those of

others in the room by

using just the

right, powerful questions to

reveal the

solutions you need for your particular situation.

Contact

now to schedule a keynote or

training at your conference or

organization.

Presentation Topics by Category:

Transforming Your Organization's Culture
Leadership
Staff Hiring and Supervision
Cultural Competency
Stopping Relational Bullying

Transforming Your Organization's Culture

Take Your Camp from Good to Unbelievable: Lessons from the Corporate World for Camp (5
hour workshop)

The keys to success of top-performing corporations have been adapted specifically for the camp
industry. Learn what is needed in terms of leadership, hiring and supervision, culture, values
and innovation to create a self-perpetuating cycle of remarkable results. Workshop includes a
follow-up coaching session with the presenter for each attendee.

Creating a Camp Culture Where the Truth Can Always Be Heard

Do you find out what really happened at camp, some of it very serious, after the summer is over?
Assess the level of trust in your organization and increase it exponentially. Create a culture of
productive dialogue that allows the best ideas to quickly come to the forefront. Eliminate the
gossip mill and get information to those who need to hear it in real time.

How to Completely Stop Inappropriate Staff Drinking, Drugs, Bullying, Online Behavior and
Other Nonsense

A recent survey of ACA members indicated that the number one staff behavior that camp directors
struggle with is drinking when on or near site. Why continue to deal with this ridiculous
distraction from your mission and drain on your time? In this workshop, learn how you must train
your personnel policies (yes, train not just read aloud) to get your staff to comply when you’re not
looking. You’ll also learn the one amazing, powerful, unbelievably simple catalytic mechanism
that guarantees will you know everything almost as soon as it happens.

Leadership

Socially Intelligent Leadership

If you’re the leader of an organization that’s rife with politics, conflict and drama (that is,
“conflama”), there’s hope. By intentionally shaping the social architecture, you can create a high-
capacity, self-motivated workforce where diverse personalities and departmental ‘silos’ work
together with singular optimism and respect. In this session, you’ll learn the three “one thing you
must know” every leader needs to virtually eliminate “conflama” and create unity. Build on what
you already know about managing organizational culture to reclaim your own inherent visionary
leadership.

Young Professionals: Oh, the Places You'll Go! Discover, Connect and Take Action

What is a camp director to do? Do I stay? Do I play? Will I work in a cube? I know all this stuff,
but I get so much guff: “What do you do the rest of the year?” Let it go in the left and out the right
ear. See strengths, create connections—take actions, too. “Just go right along. You’ll start
happening too …. Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting. So … get on your way!”

Be Burnout Proof! Get Through the Camp Season with Energy to Spare

Are you running on mere adrenaline (and lots of coffee!) by the end of a camp season? Reactive
leadership doesn’t serve staff, campers and families well. Identify your own energy-zapping
behaviors and leave with a strategy to change them.

Staff Hiring and Supervision

Making a Smooth Transition from Co-Worker to Supervisor

How do you be the boss when the people you now supervise are your best friends? Learn what
you need to do to make your leadership seem effortless. Gain strategies for dealing with
changing relationships. Leave with tips and tools to be a true camp professional. Share your
concerns about your new role in a supportive environment.

Quit Getting Snowed: Behavioral Interviewing for Better Hires

Traditional interviews, based on gut instinct, experience and hypothetical questions are good at
testing an applicant's interviewing skills, but often are not a good predictor of on-the-job behavior.
Making the distinction between traditional and behavioral interviewing techniques can be difficult.
This workshop will help you understand the difference. Volunteer for the "hot seat" during the
session and you'll have a chance to hone and be coached on your interviewing technique.

“Troubles Talk”: Why Staff Can’t Help Gossiping and What to
Do About it Anyway

Research shows that we often build closeness and status by sharing negative opinions about
others. Learn how to form a staff culture that provides support and the feeling of belonging to a
group, yet rejects gossip. Take home staff training and supervision techniques to create
appropriate forums for venting troubles while keeping the social atmosphere positive.

Managing Conflict Before It Manages You: Creating a
Cohesive Camp Community

Conflict is inevitable! Learn how to create a caring camp community that solves problems
gracefully. Learn how to teach staff and campers (and even parents!) to fight fair and produce
their own win-win solutions.

Cultural Competency

Cultural Competency: Understanding Total Diversity

Culture is so much more than just ethnicity. Broaden your view of culture and how to better meet
the needs of the populations you serve. Take home evaluation and training tools to reach beyond
tolerance to true inclusiveness.

Cultural Competency: The Key to Recruiting and Retaining Diverse Staff

An ideal camp staff is diverse in background and perspectives. Is the way you recruit and
interview hindering your diversity efforts? A lack of cultural competency also lowers retention
rates for both staff and campers. Bring your recruitment, application and interviewing materials
for a detailed review during the session.

Going Beyond “Diversity is Good”: Cultural Competency Training Activities

Does your diversity training consist of merely “treat everyone equally”? Leave this session with
experiential and yes, even fun (!) training activities that allow participants to open up a safe and
honest dialogue about culture and how to competently meet the needs of the communities they
encounter.

Stopping Relational Bullying

Gossip, Backbiting and Drama: Relational Aggression at Camp or School

Take a fresh look at what you think a bully is, especially in girls. Can you tell the difference
between relationship drama and emotional violence? Awareness is the key to stopping
relational bullying.

Why Bullying Prevention Programs Alone Don't Work and Ten Things to do Instead

It's easy to think of a bully as some mythical monster-child and to hold out false hope that anyone
could ever be "bully-proofed." Bullying isn't a problem that needs to be fixed so much as a
symptom that the social architecture is awry. Elimination of bullying is both simpler and harder
than you might think.