CPHD
Neighborhood College
2010 Neighborhood College, Coming soon. Applications available online. (scroll to the end of the page)
You will learn:
- Overview of Arlington County Government Structure
- Listening with a Purpose
- Answering Questions
- Conflict Resolution and Negotiations
- Consensus Building
- Organizing for Action
Inside Your Local Government – Students will be briefed on Arlington County 's government structure with presentations on the following:
County Board Office;
County Manager 's Office; and
Advisory Groups and Commissions
Each session includes an opportunity for group interaction. Participants will be asked to apply information learned in group exercises to illustrate and demonstrate usefulness of the tools discussed.
Listening with a Purpose - Participants will learn about the art of active listening as a means of improving mutual understanding. Participants will have an opportunity to learn about the structure of an argument and to be mindful of logical fallacies.
Answering Questions -The session will introduce participants to skills that will give them the opportunity to learn how to answer questions in a succinct,clear, and focused manner so as to stay on strategic messages.The session will include a panel of county staff who will have the opportunity to address questions from participants followed by an analysis of their responses.
Conflict Resolution and Negotiations - Participants will gain some insight into their own conflict styles while learning how to identify the root causes of conflicts. This session will also teach students the principles of Interest-based or “Win-Win” negotiation. The participants will analyze case studies and offer their suggestions for resolution. Participants will give an update on project status to date and indicate any conflicts that had to be addressed.
Consensus Building - Consensus is a preferred tool of community input in Arlington County because it ensures that everyone has a shared voice in the outcome. A conflict or issues assessment is often an effective tool before beginning a consensus process, so students will conduct a conflict assessment and report out their findings. A framework for consensus building will be taught. Participants also will share their project results and describe the consensus approach that was used.
Organizing for Action – Neighborhood College work groups will have received responses and then "organize for action." During this session, participants will utilize skills learned in powerful questions, conflict resolution and negotiation and consensus building to decide on next steps and to close out the project. Participants will have the opportunity to apply the techniques learned in Sessions 2 - 4.
To have an application mailed to you, call 703-228-3819 or 703-228-3830. Applications can be mailed or delivered to: Arlington County DCPDH, Arlington Neighborhood College, 2100 Clarendon Boulevard, Suite 700, Arlington, VA 22201.
To download a copy of the application, click Neighborhood College 2010 Application.
Call now space is limited.
