In response to recent events across the country between African-American communities and law enforcement, NationBuilder is hosting a two-day Community Circle focused on the issues of race and violence in America on July 30th and 31st.

This event is free but space is limited to 40 people. Please request your invitation today. (Note that requests for invitations close on Thursday, July 28th at 5pm and confirmations will be sent out the following morning.)

What to expect?

This isn't a panel or a discussion or a brainstorming session. This is an opportunity to go deep with people you wouldn't normally be in a room with and experience a new way to deal with the differences that divide us around race and violence. Instead of one voice winning over another, participants will strive to build an authentic community. A community is best defined as a group of people that regardless of the diversity of their backgrounds have been able to transcend their differences to develop an unusual sense of trust with one another. Authentic communities are able to communicate effectively, openly, and are capable of working together toward common goals. 

This experiential process was described by M. Scott Peck in The Different Drum and has been made available to people and organizations by the Foundation for Community Encouragement (FCE) for 30 years. This community building model has been successfully applied in a wide range of settings including: prisons, corporations such as NutraSweet, communities affected by apartheid in South Africa, government agencies, and the United States Army.

Pat Callair and Michael Schmidt will facilitate this community circle experience. Pat founded the Leadership and Empowerment Institute in 2005 and is a licensed therapist. She has devoted her life to respond to issues related to poverty, social and economic justice.  Michael is a neuropsychologist at Columbia University, is a member of the FCE Board of Directors, and is also affiliated with the Leadership and Empowerment Institute. Both have been facilitating the community building process for over 20 years.

This is a two-day experience, so please be prepared to commit fully to both days. We will start promptly at 9am each morning and end at 5pm each evening. Lunch will be served both days. 

A note about confidentiality:

Please be aware that this process demands and depends on confidentiality. As such, no filming or transcribing will be allowed, including quoting other participants on social media platforms. Phones will be off and inaccessible during the circle.