Applications to the 2027 Cohort due by March 15, 2027 • Cohort announced on March 31st, 2027. See additional key dates below. 

In Spring of 2027, Facilitating Power is hosting the second facilitator certification cohort focused on The Spectrum of Community Engagement to Ownership (SCEO). This framework offers a transformative roadmap for shifting community involvement from traditional, institution-centered approaches toward true community ownership of decision-making and solutions. 

 

 

The facilitator certification program prepares practitioners to skillfully facilitate processes that operationalize the Spectrum within community-government partnerships or in any space seeking to strengthen community voice, leadership, and shared governance. Through this cohort experience, participants will explore how the Spectrum can help:

 

• ACKNOWLEDGE & DISRUPT systemic marginalization embedded within current governance structures
• ADVANCE a clear and actionable vision for racial justice, inclusion, and community ownership
• GUIDE developmental processes that increase community capacity while reducing institutional barriers
• ASSESS progress toward authentic, equitable participation and shared governance
• SUPPORT community-driven solutions and nurture more inclusive, resilient, and democratic local systems

 

Cohort members will gain the tools and practices to design and facilitate workshops for the collaborative development of community engagement processes that shift power, strengthen partnerships, and build long-term community leadership.

 

Certification Program Structure

ONE ASYNCHRONOUS ORIENTATION + FOUR ONLINE WORKSHOPS + 2.5 DAY IN-PERSON TRAINING:

 

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0 • ORIENTATION & OVERVIEW

APRIL | ON YOUR OWN TIME | ONLINE

Expectations, goals, cohort structure, and how to get the most from the program.

 

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1 • ONLINE WORKSHOP #1: CONNECTION TO EACH OTHER & THE CONTENT

THURSDAY, APRIL 8 | 10AM-12:30PM PST | ZOOM

Dialogue with other cohort members to identify threads of connection 

 

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2 • CULTIVATING CULTURE SHIFT & PRACTICING PARTICIPATORY METHODS

MAY 10 - 12 | IN-PERSON TRAINING | OAKLAND, CA

A 2.5-day immersive session focused on creative methodology for understanding and practicing the fundamental power shifts needed to transform community involvement and strengthen our local democracies.

 

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3 • ONLINE WORKSHOP #2: DESIGNING & FACILITATING AN INTRO TO THE SCEO

THURSDAY, JUNE 10 | 1:30 - 4:00 PM PST | ZOOM

Guidance and practice for introducing the Spectrum of Community Engagement to Ownership to community groups and/or government partners and aligning on shared purpose for utilizing the framework.

 

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4 • ONLINE WORKSHOP #3: DEEPENING WORK WITH THE SCEO

THURSDAY, JULY 15 | 1:30 - 4:00 PM PST | ZOOM

Facilitation strategies for supporting partners in understanding and moving from marginalization toward community ownership.

 

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5 • ONLINE WORKSHOP #4: FACILITATING ALIGNMENT & CO-DESIGN OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT STRATEGIES

THURSDAY, AUGUST 19 | 1:30 - 4:00 PM PST | ZOOM

Tools for co-developing community-centered strategies that operationalize the Spectrum and for facilitating alignment 

 

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Program Outcomes

 

By the end of the certification, participants will improve their capacity to:

 

- FACILITATE workshops and dialogues that introduce and apply the Spectrum to specific place-based contexts

- SUPPORT partners in assessing their current engagement practices and identifying opportunities for deeper community ownership

- GUIDE community-government teams in co-designing strategies aligned with the Spectrum’s principles

- APPLY racial justice and power-shifting frameworks to real-world engagement challenges

- STRENGTHEN the conditions for long-term community leadership and shared governance

 

Upon successful completion of the program, cohort members will be certified as facilitators of the Spectrum of Community Engagement to Ownership.

 

Most importantly, this certification equips facilitators to become champions of equitable engagement and community-driven decision-making—helping build stronger, more democratic, and more just local ecosystems.

 

Program Pricing*

 

- GENERAL: $1500

- BASEBUILDER: $1200

- GRASSROOTS: $900

 

*PLEASE NOTE: This pricing includes access to curriculum and all workshops, but does not include travel and lodging for the in-person gathering. Cohort members will need to arrange their own transportation and accommodations. Thank you!

 

Apply to Participate

 

Participation Requirements:

 

- 3+ years of experience facilitating group processes

- 1+ years experience facilitating community involvement in planning or decision-making processes

- Availability/capacity to participate in all four online workshops + in-person training (please save dates in calendar)

- Commitment to community + collective power to affect positive change oriented towards the common good

- Interest in learning and deepening one’s practice as a facilitative leader

Apply Here

- Spaces limited

- Application will be open between Nov 1st - March 15th

- Please block the dates listed above if you plan to apply

- If accepted into the cohort, you will be notified by March 31st.

 

Testimonials from 2026 Cohort

"Through attending the SCEO certificate program I feel I can actually transform my community. The certificate program equipped me with ideas, approaches, and tangible exercises to take on historic challenges facing my community. Through the program I built professional relationships with like minded individuals who can be future thought partners. If you're ready to change the conditions within your community, the SCEO program might be for you." ~Adam Becenti, Black Streak Consulting LLC

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"A facilitation training that goes far beyond facilitation techniques and explores how facilitation can align with the values of community-owned efforts." ~Adrienne Markworth, Leah's Pantry

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"I would describe this cohort as a great opportunity to be in community with a group of thoughtful, fairly progressive individuals who are interested in improving the way we engage with people and, more broadly, making the world a better place. It gave me an opportunity to step away from the day-to-day demands of my work and think more intentionally about the purpose behind what I do, as well as how public engagement processes can be improved for everyone involved, from an individual community member to an entire bureaucracy. ~Avery Harmon, Circlepoint

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"This cohort reminds you that true community engagement practice is a full body experience. You will leave with tools and wisdom that are rare to experience." ~Deandra Lee, San Mateo County

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"The process is rigorous while accessible. It is extremely well thought-through. The facilitators bring enormous expertise, AND it is a true cohort experience, with a thoughtfully selected group of community and institutional leaders." ~Em Piro, Porpita Porpita

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"For anyone interested in collective liberation and building a better future for all people, this cohort and SCEO curriculum is a must. The SCEO curriculum is a fundamental component of the change we seek -- it is both the process and the solution." ~ Jennifer Fasolino, Buy-In Community Planning 

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"It is an opportunity to gain new tools and skills, to exercise new ways of thinking about engagement and community, and to connect with folks across the country and throughout diverse communities who are all deeply committed to creating a more equitable, joyful, and community-led world!" ~Kate Hiester, San Mateo County

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"I would describe this facilitator cohort experience as thoughtfully curated, connected, and resource-abundant. Personally, I felt like I couldn't dive as deep into ALL the SCEO materials shared as I wish, but look forward to continual practice and integration. I also experienced the in-person time as the most impactful and loved being able to practice the tools, but I also did appreciate the way you two held the zoom space." ~Niki Paul, Housing Justice Collective

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"This is a necessary, enlightening, challenging and critically important training that will leave you harvesting abundantly from the seeds planted well into the future (and in various parts of life-- I have even used some of the practices in my personal life with siblings caring for my aging parents)!!" ~Precious Rideout, IMT

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"Its a great opportunity to collaborate with people across the country working in different areas toward a shared goal. The content itself is invaluable, but the connections and conversations, the diverse perspectives, and the space to feel, ask hard questions, and learn collectively helped me to think about my work and myself in a different lens." ~Rachel Dortin, The Shared Space Project

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"I would describe it as an opportunity to rethink what meaningful community engagement actually means. The cohort provided practical tools, but more importantly, it challenged me to examine the relationship between facilitation, participation, and power." ~Roxanne Ezzet, County of Sonoma, Office of Equity

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"Wonderfully connective, important for challenging comfort zones, a space to feel welcomed, embraced, and challenged in safe and meaningful ways, a training that is much more than a training, it is a community." Shelby Schuppe, Oregon Master Gardener Association/Chestnut Health Systems

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"A joyful learning experience with real, useful application in my community work. I see broad applications for the tool as a facilitator of change and learning. I've already used some of the activities to engage staff in developing a deeper understanding of what it means to create a welcoming space (at our local food co-op)." Tonia Burkett, Usawa Consulting/Community Equity Initiative