Practices: Groups & Individuals

Prajna Consulting offers workshops for small or large groups in areas of curriculum development, Human Development, Community Involvement & Service Learning, as well as family coaching in areas involving adolescent issues & family dynamics. To learn more about the work described below, click on the provided links.

Family Coaching

In our family coaching relationships, Charis Denison works directly with adolescents and their families. Typically, coaching sessions take place in our clients’ homes and can involve the entire family or the parents or youths alone.

We do not work as therapists in this role. Quite the contrary. We not only listen and ask questions but also have opinions we are willing to share. Our approach is unique in that we compare our client families’ experiences with what we see happening among other teens and families nationally. We offer guidance, encouragement, and practical suggestions to families who are talking about and moving through issues we often deal with in our work in classrooms and adolescent workshops. We know families are the real experts on what is happening to them. We simply add effective support and perspective that is so often needed during the transitional teenage years.

The following list includes several common focus areas we work on with families. We are also available to address other topics that may be specific to a particular family’s interests or needs.

• Communication
• Setting Boundaries
• Creating Shared Values
• Sex & Sexuality
• Drugs & Alcohol

“Not Your Average Slumber Party”

Prajna created these private evening programs to empower young girls to defy and challenge the national statistics they face regarding their health and safety related to a variety of issues, including binge drinking, unwanted sex, and teen pregnancy. Our slumber parties inform and educate teen girls between the ages of 15 and 19 while creating a forum in which they can ask questions regarding a variety of challenging issues. Most importantly, they provide space for girls to realize the importance of emotional literacy and to practice asserting themselves around issues they face every day but are rarely talked about. The issues we address include sex education, safe sex guidelines, drugs & alcohol, how to define and communicate personal values, how to educate others about how you want to be treated, and how to defend yourself, if necessary.

Each slumber party workshop is designed specifically to the needs and desires of the participants through a brief consultation. The actual “Slumber Party” involves three to twenty girls and takes place at one of the girls’ homes for 2-3 hours in the evening or on a weekend. Follow up visits are optional. (Learn more about our Slumber Parties.)

Retreats for Faculty, Students, Staff, and Boards

Prajna is available to design, coordinate, facilitate, lead, or participate in faculty or student retreats for school communities, as well as staff or board retreats for businesses and non-profits. We work with each client to identify retreat objectives and to develop an agenda to meet those aims.

Our work on faculty retreats typically focuses on a portion of the agenda related to our expertise in human development, ethics, social justice, or community service learning. Prajna often works with schools to design student retreats aimed at specific goals for a particular class or group within the school community. We are also able, as needed, to fill specific roles within a larger retreat related to a variety of issues, including class cohesion, gender empowerment, conflict resolution, and healthy communication.

Prajna’s work on organizational retreats for businesses and non-profits builds on our knowledge and experience creating or re-evaluating mission statements, developing short- or long-term strategic plans, and strengthening staff dynamics through team building and conflict resolution. We team with our clients to construct organizational cultures that promote working together to achieve a common purpose.

We also partner with businesses to identify ways they might connect with and contribute to their surrounding or greater communities. Prajna matches each client company with an appropriate community-based organization or cause that reflects the company mission or its employees’ values. Through our extensive non-profit connections, we are able facilitate the process of setting up this relationship, involving a range of activities from direct financial support to paid release time for staff to volunteer. Corporate philanthropy retreats, such as this, provide opportunities both to launch new programs or to evaluate existing relationships.

Personal Safety — Assertiveness & Self Defense Training

Prajna offers workshops around the issues of personal safety to both girls and boys grades seven through twelve. The specific content covered is tailored to the developmental needs of the group involved. Our approach stems from the frustration that much of the training offered to this age group engenders fear rather than power. For example, many programs begin with the assumption that someone will be attacked rather than teaching students how to assess their environment and how to trust their instincts and knowledge. Our goal is to help young people learn to feel safe and confident in the world outside the classroom and how to assert themselves as they navigate that world. (Learn more about Self-Defense & Assertiveness Training.)

Mentoring and Coaching Services for Faculty and Administrators

Prajna provides one-on-one mentoring and coaching for faculty members and administrators in the areas of Human Development, Health Education, Student Life, and Community Involvement. Typically, these relationships take place over the course of a semester (or other predetermined time period) and include on-campus observation, phone consultation, and written program and personal recommendations.