Host a Conversation Guide

On this page is everything you need to host a conversation, start to finish. We have tried to prepare everything so it takes as little time as possible on your part. Hosting should take approximately 1 1/2 to 2 hours total, all in, including scheduling, facilitating the conversation, and completing the post conversation survey.

Below you will find a full overview of hosting a conversation, including:
Overview: What are we doing?
Action Plan: How will we do it?
Conversation Guide: How is this facilitated?
Afterwards: What happens next?
Still need to sign up?
JOIN THE CONVERSATION
3 Easy Steps to Get Started!
1. Sign up here.
2. Choose an adult and some young people, then schedule a time and receive a Zoom link.
3. Show up with our facilitation protocol. It can be read verbatim.
Downloadable Resources
Step-by-Step Hosting Guide (PPT)
This guide provides everything you need to host a conversation: from the big picture goals to the thank you letters.
Facilitation Guide (day of)
This document includes the introductions, norms, and questions. Everything you need, word for word, for facilitating your conversation.
Lesson Plan
This plan is available for teachers to incorporate 100 Days of Conversations into their daily lesson, homeroom, or advisory.
Jump to
OverviewAction PlanFacilitation GuideAfterwards

“We must highlight all the positive, life-transforming rewards that have been the outcome of collective efforts to change our society, especially education, so that it is not a site for the enactment of domination in any form...We need mass-based political movements calling citizens of this nation to uphold democracy and the rights of everyone to be educated, and to work on behalf of ending domination in all its forms…”
bell hooks

Overview

What are we doing?
100 Days of Conversations is a collaborative project organized to catalyze conversations in communities across the country on each of the first 100 days of the new administration - January 20th - April 29th, 2021. These conversations will be analyzed and highlighted for collective dreams and turned into policy advocacy briefs to be shared with state and federal education departments, nonprofit organizations, and educators.

All of this through a 45-90 minute conversation about the future of school.
Process Goals
Transformation through Reflection
Deeply listening, being given the opportunity to reflect, then truly being heard are some of the most powerful levers for transformation of individuals.
Practice Democratic Discussion
Our democracy is under threat. It turns out that saving democracy requires people across the country truly connect with one another, envision their shared future, disagree, deliberate, listen, reflect, and find common ground. 
Grow the Network of Human-Centered Organizations
Through this process we aim to directly connect organizations and individuals interested in rehumanizing school.
Outcome Goals
Listen and Learn
Our primary goal is to Listen Listen Listen. By centering student, family, educator voices in revisioning, and asking everyone involved to listen deeply first, we hope to learn - to deepen understanding of stakeholder experiences, hopes, and dreams.
Grow Awareness
Awareness of our shared values and dreams. And awareness of disjuncture between the shared collective visions and the current practice in the schooling system to catalyze energy for change in direction of vision.
Catalyze Change
Finally, we aim to catalyze change in the actual practice and policy of school. We will analyze the conversations to surface themes relevant to policy and practice, and then craft an agenda based on the vision, perspectives, experiences of stakeholders. 
Who is participating?
Youth
Young people, 14-24 years old.*
Family
Family members, such as parents, guardians, or other adults (25+)
Educators & Community Members
PK-College, including educators and other community members connected to schools (e.g. librarians, tutors, assistants, mental health coordinators, nurses)
Your conversation must include 2-8 people, with preferably 1:1 youth:adult voices.
** Young people’s voices 13 and under are also important, but require a special consent process, please contact us to organize.

What does this look like?

Getting Started
Gather Your People
Gather a group of 2-8 people to participate in this conversation about reimagining school. Ideally, this would include 1 young person for every adult.
Set a Date and Time
Set a date that you will have your conversation. Then, select a date to post your conversation. If desired, you can host more than one conversation.
Schedule a Conversation

Action Plan

Conducting the conversation.
What you'll need:
Step 1: Send an Invitation
Send an invitation to your guests, inviting them to the conversation and guiding them to fill out the media release form.
Invitation Example
Step 2: Consider Consent
Because we are recording, analyzing, and sharing these conversations, everyone will need to sign a consent form at the start of the conversations, including the host.

Young people’s voices are critical to this effort - their voices are often left out of the broader conversation. However, additional consent considerations are required if participants are age 17 or younger.

If you are organizing this as a part of a school or classroom activity, they should be covered under your school’s media release policy. Make sure your school has one and your participants’ parents have signed it. We still recommend you notify parents - we’ve found that the vast majority are excited about the project!

If you have participants who are ages 14-17, they are old enough to assent. Conversations will be analyzed and shared according to our data privacy policy. First names, school name, and state will be associated with the conversation. The audio or video may be shared.

If you have participants age 13 or under, parents should be notified. The conversation will automatically remain private - accessible only to those in the conversation and the research team. Quotes may be shared with a first name and state, but with no other identifying information.
Step 3: Send a Reminder
Ensure everyone remembers to join the conversation.
Reminder Example
Step 4: Before Everyone Arrives
  • Confirm that you have all release forms for participants. Participants cannot be recorded if these release forms are not submitted.
  • Join the provided Zoom link.
  • Open the facilitation guide.
Step 5: When Everyone Arrives
  • Welcome everyone to the conversation.
  • Send the recording consent form below to the chat for everyone to complete, including yourself.
  • Ensure Zoom is set to gallery view (to see everyone) and is recording.
  • Begin the facilitation guide.
Recording Consent Form

Facilitation Guide

Guiding the conversation. Use the following script to help guide your conversation.
Facilitation Guide

Afterwards

Thank you so much for joining the conversation. Your recording will automatically be sent to us! If you did not use our Zoom link to record, please submit your video here.
Send a thank you note
Thank your guests for joining the conversation.
Thank you note example
Get further involved!
Volunteer
Join our team with whatever time you have to advocate for an equitable future of education.
Connect
Know people who can join our team or further our missions? Connect us with them!
Partner
Do you work with youth and families? Partner with us for further collaboration.
Share
Follow our social media accounts and share out our resources!
Explore
Check out our organizations’ resources. podcasts, and writings to support you.
Contribute
Support the work of organizations working to reimagine school.
Thank you.
We can't thank you enough for supporting this effort to reimagine schools. What you're doing is the heart and soul of this endeavor, and will lead to tangible change to impact the lives of young people. We sincerely appreciate you. If you ever have any questions, please reach out to us.
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Organized by Choice Filled Lives, REENVISIONED, and Human Restoration Project.