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Learning Opportunities

Our Foundational Classes

At the Chapman Foundation for Caring Communities, we believe that leadership is not just learned—it is experienced. Our foundational classes are designed to immerse participants in an engaging, hands-on learning journey that goes beyond theory to real-world application. Grounded in evidence-based practices, our classes equip individuals with practical skills that improve families, workplaces, and communities.

Led by highly skilled facilitators, each class is an interactive experience that challenges participants to reflect, practice, and grow in ways that have an immediate and lasting impact. Through experiential learning, we empower individuals to become more effective leaders, creating positive change in their families, workplaces, and communities.

Our approach centers on three foundational classes:

  • Our Community Listens teaches communication skills that build trust and deepen relationships.
  • Our Community Serves cultivates emotional intelligence and a culture of service.
  • Our Community Transforms equips leaders with strategies to transform their workplace culture.

Each class builds on the last, guiding participants from personal growth to organizational impact. Leaders emerge with tools to make people feel seen, valued, and heard—at home, at work, and in their communities.

Watch this video for an overview of our three foundational classes. For learning outcomes, class duration, and more, download the Foundational Class One-Pager below.

Our Community Listens is the first foundational class, designed to help participants learn to listen effectively, express themselves clearly, and build better relationships. These skills are essential for success in both personal and professional contexts. Our Community Listens provides opportunities for self-reflection, personal practice, and tangible takeaways to bring back to your organization to better team member interpersonal communication.

Participants will receive a customized eight-part DISC profile and valuable insight from trained facilitators in a small class environment.

Our Community Serves is the second foundational class, focused on shifting mindsets from me-centric to we-centric. By emphasizing emotional intelligence and fostering a culture of service, this class helps participants develop self-awareness and the skills to create an environment where collaboration, trust, and shared purpose thrive. It lays the foundation for building a culture of accountability and inspires collective success, encouraging people to work together—not just for results but for each other.

Prerequisite: Must be an Our Community Listens alumnus.

Our Community Transforms is the third foundational class, designed to help organizational leaders develop strategies for transforming their workplace culture. This class provides leaders with the tools and insights needed to drive meaningful change within their organizations. Participants will explore the Six Strategies of Caring Workplaces and walk away with a strategy to create an organization where team members and the workplace flourish.

Prerequisite: Must be an Our Community Listens alumnus and leader with direct reports or influence over workplace policies.

Learning Supports

In addition to our three foundational classes, we offer a variety of continuous learning supports.

  • Learning Sessions – These sessions are designed for teams and organizations looking to grow in specific skills and deepen their understanding of key concepts taught within our foundational classes. Some sessions are open to all, while others may require completion of a foundational class. Whether reinforcing existing knowledge or introducing new ideas, these sessions drive confidence, practical application, and meaningful growth.
  • Other Learning Supports include: Audiocast, CFCC Leads! App, Monthly Newsletter, On-Demand Sessions, and Monthly Alumni Roundtables. To learn more, visit our Resources Page.

We offer our training to make a difference, not a profit. As such, we do not ever want money to be a barrier to learning. The suggested investment is only $297 per participant, but we invite you to pay what you can towards the cost of this training.

When you register for your class, you will have the opportunity to select the payment that is right for you. Registration for our Foundational Classes is generously subsidized through a gift from the Chapman Foundation for Caring Communities.  

“The Chapman Foundation makes it easy and lowers the barriers to entry for having conversations with your staff about how to be an effective communicator, employee, and community member. Most of our team has taken their classes, and as a result, we are all using the same tools from the same toolbox. This significantly reduces any opportunity for awkwardness or miscommunication because we all share a common foundation and terminology for communicating with one another.”

– Greg LeBlanc
Assistant Town Manager; Town of Snowmass Village, CO

“For me, it has helped me be a more effective listener and communicator at home. After attending this class, I can be a true force for good because it honed in on the fact that communication starts with listening. In such a polarized society, I believe that by using these skills, I can be a much better person when conversing with the communities I serve.”

– Doreen Jokerst
Chief of Police; Overland Park, MO

“I’ve used this Chapman Foundation work, and I know the impact that this work has on schools and the educational world. My experiences have been transformational for the teams that I’ve been a part of. The idea of that broader understanding of themselves, which changes the way they interact, being more sensitive to the people around them, but also the understanding of those they work with and how do we navigate things together and work more cohesively as a team.”

– Jamie Bandstra
Principal/ Director; West Shore ESD, MI

“As a military member, the Chapman Foundation’s classes have helped me become a better listener and leader. When people feel they are truly heard, you can address the root cause. Regarding troop retention, when service members feel genuinely listened to and see themselves as part of our family, they are more likely to stay with us and remain within our ranks.”

– Jody Nitz
Military