BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Social Current - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-WR-CALNAME:Social Current X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://www.social-current.org X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Social Current REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20240310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20241103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20250309T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20251102T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20260308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20261101T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250916T130000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250916T143000 DTSTAMP:20260414T090744 CREATED:20250822T194143Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250825T151108Z UID:10000518-1758027600-1758033000@www.social-current.org SUMMARY:September Grassroots Convening DESCRIPTION:Register \n \n Human and social services professionals are invited to join Social Current’s monthly Grassroots Advocacy Network Convening. We will lead an interactive session to assist nonprofits in developing effective values-based messages that connect across ideological divides and resonate with diverse viewpoints. Through an interactive session\, participants will collaboratively develop language that captures attention\, builds bridges\, and motivates action. \nJoin the grassroots advocacy network online. \nSocial Current’s grassroots advocacy network is a rapid-response team for urgent policy and legislative issues that offers opportunities to exchange ideas\, share solutions\, and build lasting connections across the sector. By joining\, you’ll receive alerts\, advocacy opportunities\, and access to workshops and training to sharpen your strategies and tools. \nTakeaways\n\nOpportunities to work alongside likeminded advocates to develop a messaging framework that resonates across diverse audiences\nTechniques for values-based communication\nPractice in refining messages for stakeholders representing unique populations\n\nWho Should Attend\n\nMembers of the Social Current Grassroots Advocacy Network: Join online\nExecutive Directors and Senior Management: Leaders responsible for setting organizational strategy and engaging with policymakers and stakeholders\nAdvocacy and Policy Directors: Individuals who develop and implement advocacy strategies and engage in policy analysis and outreach\nCommunications and Public Relations Managers: Professionals focused on crafting and disseminating the organization’s message to the public and media\nProgram Managers and Coordinators: Staff who oversee program implementation and need to align program goals with advocacy efforts\n\n \n\n \n\n \n \n \n\n\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n Blair Abelle-Kiser\, PhD\n \n Senior Director of Government Affairs\nSocial Current \n \n Biography\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Blair Abelle-Kiser\, PhD\n Senior Director of Government Affairs\nSocial Current \n \n Blair Kiser\, Ph.D.\, joined Social Current in 2022 after working in health policy on Capitol Hill\, the non-profit sector\, and as a biomedical researcher. Most recently\, Blair served as Director of Government Relations & Advocacy for NephCure Kidney International. \nDuring their time in public service\, they served as a Professional Staff Member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis. They led a corporate investigation regarding insider trading and financial improprieties\, conflicts of interest associated with Operation Warp Speed’s leadership\, and scientific information politicization. Prior to joining the Select Subcommittee\, they worked for Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH)\, where they served as a Health Policy Fellow. In Senator Brown’s office\, they led a range of legislative and oversight efforts involving public health and healthcare. During the COVID-19 pandemic\, they worked with several community hospice advocacy organizations and a Republican office to help craft the bipartisan COVID-19 Hospice Respite Care Relief Act of 2020. \nPrior to public service\, Blair spent several years as a medical research scientist on several industry and NIH-funded projects. Their work focused on developing research projects and clinical trials to improve the lives of African Americans with Sickle Cell Disease. They earned a doctorate in Biomedical Science from Morehouse School of Medicine in 2017 and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Kentucky in 2011. URL:https://www.social-current.org/event/september-grassroots-convening/ CATEGORIES:Policy ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.social-current.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Policy-Advocacy_4.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250922T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250922T150000 DTSTAMP:20260414T090745 CREATED:20250828T172319Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250902T151904Z UID:10000528-1758549600-1758553200@www.social-current.org SUMMARY:Kinship Care in Transition: Navigating through Changes and Centering Families  DESCRIPTION:Register \n \n Kinship care continues to be a vital part of the child and family well-being system\, offering children safety\, stability\, and the comfort of familiar relationships. As federal policies evolve to better support kinship families\, agencies and organizations must adapt to shifting standards while maintaining their commitment to equity\, family voice\, and culturally responsive care. This webinar is designed to help participants understand recent federal rule changes impacting kinship care and relevant updates to COA Accreditation standards and how to translate those changes into meaningful\, family-centered practice.  \nThis interactive webinar will also provide practical tools and strategies for engaging and valuing kinship caregivers as true partners in the system. Whether you’re a frontline worker\, administrator\, or advocate\, you’ll leave with takeaways to strengthen kinship placements and elevate the voices of those caring for their own.  \nThe session will clarify what’s changing\, what remains consistent\, and how organizations can remain compliant while also honoring the lived experience of kinship families. Participants will have a clearer understanding of recent federal rule changes\, practical steps for organizational alignment\, and approaches to supporting and empowering kinship families across diverse communities.  \n  \nTakeaways\n\nParticipants will gain an understanding of federal rule changes to kinship care and the impacts.\nAttendees will gain clarity on updates to COA Accreditation standards and compliance expectations for agencies working with kinship families.\nParticipants will learn practical strategies organizations can use to adapt to the new regulations while remaining family-centered and culturally responsive.\nAttendees will identify actionable ways to engage\, support\, and value kinship caregivers as key partners in the care system.\n\nWho Should Attend\n\nCommunity-based organization staff\nCourt-appointed advocates and GALs\nFoster care and kinship care trainers\nKinship navigators and family support workers\nChild welfare agency staff and supervisors\n\n \n\n \n\n \n \n \n\n\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n Romero Davis\n \n Senior Director of Child & Family Well-Being \n \n Biography\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Romero Davis\n Senior Director of Child & Family Well-Being \n \n Romero Davis is the senior director of child and family well-being at Social Current. A mentor for professional development and community justice champion\, Davis has worked nationally with agencies in areas such as poly-victimization; trauma in families; equity\, diversity\, and inclusion; juvenile justice; and domestic violence. He is a member of the technical assistance team for Child Safety Forward. \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n Jordan Reinwald\, LCSW\n \n Practice Excellence Standards Specialist \n \n Biography\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Jordan Reinwald\, LCSW\n Practice Excellence Standards Specialist \n \n Jordan Reinwald\, LCSW is a Practice Excellence Standards Specialist with Social Current providing research\, development\, and ongoing technical assistance and maintenance of the COA Accreditation Standards. Jordan brings a mix of direct practice and policy development experience in child welfare to her work in standards research.  Jordan has worked as a foster care social worker in Alabama and as a Clinical Specialist in the Massachusetts Office of the Child Advocate\, where she conducted reviews of critical incidents and recommended practice and policy changes to improve outcomes for children in foster care. She is passionate about promoting best practices in child welfare and human services to enhance the well-being of children and families. Jordan resides in West Hartford\, CT. URL:https://www.social-current.org/event/kinship-care-in-transition-navigating-through-changes-and-centering-families/ CATEGORIES:Child and Family Well-Being,Policy ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.social-current.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/02/Safety-Resilience_1.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20250923T140000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20250923T150000 DTSTAMP:20260414T090745 CREATED:20250822T194458Z LAST-MODIFIED:20250825T150822Z UID:10000525-1758636000-1758639600@www.social-current.org SUMMARY:Fostering a Culture of Advocacy: Building Policy Competence Across Your Organization  DESCRIPTION:Register \n \n Sustainable\, transformative advocacy requires policy engagement to be woven into the culture of an organization—not just housed in one department. This webinar will explore how to build advocacy knowledge and readiness at all levels of your organization\, from front–line staff to executive leadership. Through practical examples and implementation tips\, we’ll help you transform policy fluency from a siloed skill into a shared value.  \nTakeaways\n\nWhat policy competence looks like at all organizational levels\nStrategies for embedding advocacy into daily operations\nModels of organization-wide training and internal communication\nLeadership’s role in advocacy culture\nHow to distribute advocacy capacity and readiness\n\nWho Should Attend\n\nMembers of the Social Current Grassroots Advocacy Network: Join online\nExecutive Directors and Senior Management: Leaders responsible for setting organizational strategy and engaging with policymakers and stakeholders\nAdvocacy and Policy Directors: Individuals who develop and implement advocacy strategies and engage in policy analysis and outreach\nCommunications and Public Relations Managers: Professionals focused on crafting and disseminating the organization’s message to the public and media\nProgram Managers and Coordinators: Staff who oversee program implementation and need to align program goals with advocacy efforts\n\n \n\n \n\n \n \n \n\n\n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n Blair Abelle-Kiser\, PhD\n \n Senior Director of Government Affairs\nSocial Current \n \n Biography\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n Blair Abelle-Kiser\, PhD\n Senior Director of Government Affairs\nSocial Current \n \n Blair Kiser\, Ph.D.\, joined Social Current in 2022 after working in health policy on Capitol Hill\, the non-profit sector\, and as a biomedical researcher. Most recently\, Blair served as Director of Government Relations & Advocacy for NephCure Kidney International. \nDuring their time in public service\, they served as a Professional Staff Member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis. They led a corporate investigation regarding insider trading and financial improprieties\, conflicts of interest associated with Operation Warp Speed’s leadership\, and scientific information politicization. Prior to joining the Select Subcommittee\, they worked for Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH)\, where they served as a Health Policy Fellow. In Senator Brown’s office\, they led a range of legislative and oversight efforts involving public health and healthcare. During the COVID-19 pandemic\, they worked with several community hospice advocacy organizations and a Republican office to help craft the bipartisan COVID-19 Hospice Respite Care Relief Act of 2020. \nPrior to public service\, Blair spent several years as a medical research scientist on several industry and NIH-funded projects. Their work focused on developing research projects and clinical trials to improve the lives of African Americans with Sickle Cell Disease. They earned a doctorate in Biomedical Science from Morehouse School of Medicine in 2017 and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Kentucky in 2011. URL:https://www.social-current.org/event/fostering-a-culture-of-advocacy-building-policy-competence-across-your-organization/ CATEGORIES:Policy ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://www.social-current.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/Policy-Advocacy_4.png END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR