Advocacy Amplified: Rapid Response & Readiness in a Shifting Policy Landscape
2025-10-19 13:00 - 16:00 (America/Chicago) | Hilton Chicago, 720 S Michigan Ave., Chicago, 60605, United States
Register for this pre-conference session by registering for SPARK 2025.
As federal priorities shift, nonprofit leaders must be prepared to respond swiftly and strategically. This condensed version of Social Current’s Advocacy Amplified training equips participants with the essential tools to navigate today’s policy environment, which includes increasing threats to equity; equity, diversity, and inclusion programs; and core social services funding.
Participants will gain practical skills in policy analysis, narrative framing, and grassroots mobilization. With a focus on low-cost, high-impact strategies, this session is designed for organizations operating with limited capacity but high stakes. Whether you’re preparing for the annual Advocacy Amplified full summer training and Hill Day or need an urgent tune-up on federal advocacy, this pre-conference experience offers the insight and readiness you need now.
Takeaways

How to transform expertise, lived experience, and passions into impactful advocacy
Fundamental advocacy skills and advanced advocacy strategies needed for successful campaigns
Relationships with engaged and informed advocates from around the country

Who Should Participate
Any staff from community-based organizations. No prior experience or skills are required.

Presenter

Blair Abelle-Kiser

Senior Director of Government Affairs
Social Current

Biography

Blair Abelle-Kiser
Senior Director of Government Affairs
Social Current

Blair Kiser, Ph.D., joined Social Current in 2022 after working in health policy on Capitol Hill, the nonprofit sector, and as a biomedical researcher. Most recently, Blair served as director of government relations & advocacy for NephCure Kidney International.
During her time in public service, she served as a professional staff member of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis. She 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, she worked for Senator Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), where she served as a health policy fellow. In Senator Brown’s office, she led a range of legislative and oversight efforts involving public health and health care. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she 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.
Prior to public service, Blair spent several years as a medical research scientist on several industry and NIH-funded projects. Her work focused on developing research projects and clinical trials to improve the lives of African Americans with Sickle Cell Disease. She earned a doctorate in Biomedical Science from Morehouse School of Medicine in 2017 and a bachelor’s in biology from the University of Kentucky in 2011.

Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT)
2025-12-01 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-02-09 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-04-06 10:00 - 13:00, 2026-10-05 09:00 - 12:00, 2026-12-01 10:00 - 13:00 (America/New_York)
Register

The Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT) is designed to prepare new and incoming organizations to get the most out of their COA Accreditation experience. Topics discussed in this training include:

An in-depth overview of the COA Accreditation process, including key milestones
An overview of accreditation standards and the relationship between standards, evidence, and the rating indicators
How ratings are assigned by the volunteer review team and insight on the accreditation decision-making process
Tips on how to get organized and manage the work
How to prepare for the site visit

COA Accreditation is offered as a service of Social Current. Learn more about COA Accreditation and how to get started online.
Takeaways

An in-depth overview of the COA Accreditation process, including key milestones
An overview of accreditation standards and the relationship between standards, evidence, and the rating indicators
How ratings are assigned by the volunteer review team and insight on the accreditation decision-making process
Tips on how to get organized and manage the work
How to prepare for the site visit

Who Should Participate

Organization primary contacts
Senior leaders at organizations seeking COA Accreditation
Other staff involved in an organization’s accreditation process

Darrell Woodliff

Director of Volunteer Engagement
Social Current

Additional COA Accreditation Trainings

Jun

17

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm EDT

Aggregating Data for PQI: Analyzing Results to Improve Programs

Oct

5

9:00 am – 12:00 pm EDT

Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT)

Oct

5

1:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT

Performance and Quality Improvement (PQI)

Dec

1

10:00 am – 1:00 pm EST

Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT)

Dec

1

1:30 pm – 4:30 pm EST

Performance and Quality Improvement (PQI)

View Calendar

Performance and Quality Improvement (PQI)
2025-12-01 13:30 - 16:30, 2026-02-09 13:30 - 16:30, 2026-04-06 13:30 - 16:30, 2026-10-05 13:00 - 16:00, 2026-12-01 13:30 - 16:30 (America/New_York)
Register

This performance and quality improvement (PQI) training is designed to help organizations pursuing COA Accreditation develop a comprehensive approach to a quality improvement process that will advance an efficient and effective service delivery system and enhance organizational capacity to deliver quality services. This training covers logic models and outcome statements, as well as demonstrating how quality improvement is a catalyst for successful achievement of strategic goals and program outcomes.
COA Accreditation is offered as a service of Social Current. Learn more about COA Accreditation and how to get started online.
Takeaways

What it means to be outcomes focused
How to develop strong outcome statements
How to use logic models to outline program goals and client outcomes
Main components of a PQI process

Who Should Participate

Staff at organizations pursuing first-time accreditation and new primary contacts
PQI directors, coordinators, and staff with PQI responsibilities
Those needing assistance to create a PQI program
Other staff involved in an organization’s accreditation process

Darrell Woodliff

Director of Volunteer Engagement
Social Current

Additional COA Accreditation Trainings

Jun

17

1:30 pm – 3:00 pm EDT

Aggregating Data for PQI: Analyzing Results to Improve Programs

Oct

5

9:00 am – 12:00 pm EDT

Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT)

Oct

5

1:00 pm – 4:00 pm EDT

Performance and Quality Improvement (PQI)

Dec

1

10:00 am – 1:00 pm EST

Intensive Accreditation Training (IAT)

Dec

1

1:30 pm – 4:30 pm EST

Performance and Quality Improvement (PQI)

View Calendar

Aggregating Data for PQI: Analyzing Results to Improve Programs
2026-06-17 13:30 - 15:00 (America/New_York)
Register

This training will focus on how to collect, organize, and use aggregate data to better understand program performance and support performance and quality improvement (PQI). Participants will learn practical approaches for combining data across administration, programs, and services to identify trends, measure progress toward outcomes, and inform decision making.
This training is designed for organizations that are building or strengthening their PQI systems. Staff who are new to developing outcomes and outputs should first attend the virtual training, Outcomes and Outputs: Building Meaningful Measures for PQI, June 17 from 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. ET, to gain foundational knowledge on effective data collection and analysis. These two trainings build on the introductory PQI training that is offered quarterly.
Takeaways

Benefits of aggregating data
Understand the process and practice through group exercises
What aggregate data is and why it is important for PQI
Identify common methods for collecting and organizing data across programs, services, or reporting periods
How to analyze aggregate data to identify trends, patterns, and areas for improvement
Use aggregated outcomes and outputs to demonstrate program effectiveness and support accreditation requirements

Who Should Participate

Staff at organizations pursuing first-time accreditation and new primary contacts
PQI directors, coordinators, and staff responsible for collecting and analyzing program data
Staff responsible for aggregating data across programs, services, or locations
Those needing guidance on organizing, summarizing, and interpreting aggregated data for PQI and reporting purposes

Phyllis Richards

Director of Practice Excellence
Social Current
