Training by Simulation Grandparents Raising Grandchildren University of Arizona: Coconino County Extension Beth Tucker

What is it and why do a Simulation? Simulations are a training design to discover consequences about situations or assumptions It’s a tool to put agencies in touch with people who actually use the policies and procedures they have developed.

Description The Grandparents Raising Grandchildren simulation is a six hour workshop for service providers. The Simulation was written by Extension and reviewed by grandparents in Summer and fall of 2004. Simulation models include... Doctors Without Borders, A Refugee Camp Mennonite Central Committee, In Exile Oregon Extension,Navigating the Resource Maze

Simulation Goals Agencies increase their awareness of barriers and gaps in services Agencies learn what other agencies do to serve grandparents & grandchildren Agencies explore system changes Have agencies experience the environment of grandparents raising grandchildren, its challenges and helping situations in order to spark some systems change that could take the form of a.) increased collaborations (which it has done), b.) increased awareness of resource needs c.) understanding for grandparent households and d.) changes to procedures and or policies.

Why Extension hosted a Simulation? Other senior programs have a different mission. Extension provides education, support and advocacy for grandparents raising grandchildren since 2002 Senior Companions, Foster Grandparents and RSVP provide volunteer opportunities and employment. Extension also has a grandparent advisory committee, grandparent mentors and Master support group facilitators

Why Extension? We had insights into grandparent issues We had community advisory board members that represented both audiences We had volunteers committed to change relationships with providers Six critical issues about services: physcial and emotional health,housing, legal,child care/respite,education

Design Workshop materials were written by a team of KKONA staff and materials were reviewed by grandparents Volunteers & grandparents were trained to facilitate workshop processing question Workshop was held Six month follow-up evaluation was conducted

Workshop

Sample Agenda

Resources Simulations take a team to host 1 Faculty, 3 staff, 1 Americorp volunteer and 16 volunteer facilitators No special equipment Large space to accommodate 8 round “family” tables and 12 resource tables Agencies willing to send informed representatives to both pre training & the entire workshop

Participant Roles Participants must shed their role and agree to engage in the experience At the end of the workshop participants had to reassume their agency perspective to get at the changes individuals and agencies could make Although some agencies sent multiple participants they were separated into different families. FOR MORE INFO... A DVD of the workshop is being produced and will accompany the CD for sale on replicating the Simulation workshop

Final Processing Activity

Extension’s Challenges The challenges in hosting a simulation Communicating a simulation as a learning tool Recruiting agency information providers Having adequate personnel and volunteers Recruiting both participants and agency information providers. Made up grandparent families had to gather information sometimes from their own agency

Evaluation 100% attendees completed a phone interview Profile 9.6% were male and 90.3% female 55% of the respondents were agency participants; 42 % were information providers;25% were grandparents Agencies were unaware of other and even their own agency’s procedures and resources Collaborations have increased among grandparent service providers Although some agencies sent multiple participants they were separated into different families.

Schedule Piloting the Simulation FOR MORE INFO... July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec June Developing Materials Outreach & Workshop Evaluation Developing included researching, writing,reviewing with population and rewriting FOR MORE INFO... For the complete guide to replicate this simulation entitled, Grandparents Raising Grandchildren: A Simulation Workshop, CD ROM 89 pp. $25, visit: www.ag.arizona.edu/pubs.

Status The Simulation workshop has been used in other communities and states