Sierra Student Coalition's Summer Program

SUMMER 2009: BE A FORCE FOR CHANGE

APPLY NOW online at www.ssc.org/sprog <http://www.ssc.org/sprog>
Questions? Call 1(888) JOIN-SSC

Have you been looking for tools & skills to make a positive difference in the world?  If so, SPROG is exactly what you’ve been hoping to find.

SPROG is a week-long youth organizing training program, which will be held in 9 locations this summer and led by the nation's top youth organizers. You’ll develop your organizing and leadership skills, network and bond with fellow young changemakers, engage in fun activities, and enjoy tasty vegetarian cooking.  Not only will you come away changed, you'll have the skills and confidence to be a FORCE for CHANGE!

There may be a dozen other things you could choose to do this summer…so why choose to take a week for SPROG?  Here’s why:

Right now, we’re seeing our future slip away.  How many people do you know who are struggling to pay for college or find a job, thanks to our economic crisis?  How many vulnerable communities will be hit by super-hurricanes, drought, floods, and other extreme weather events as a result of the climate crisis? How many millions will be forced from their homes as sea levels rise?  How many wars will be waged as food, water and other resources grow scarce?  How many communities, landscapes and ecosystems will be forever changed by a changing climate?

But we CAN rebuild our economy and reclaim our future!  Can you imagine communities coming together everywhere, insulating and weatherizing every home, putting solar panels on every roof, and erecting windmills across the countryside?  Can you imagine a world powered by a clean energy economy, where you can turn on the lights, travel where you’d like, and pursue your dreams without harming the planet?

Change only happens when we organize, and organizing is a craft that must be learned like any other.  The big changes we need to make in the world will require bold leadership at every level…and just as it was for every generation before us, young people must act to call that leadership forth.  SPROG is where you can learn the skills you’ll need to act effectively, skills like: 

• Public Narrative: Telling your story in a way that moves others to act;
• Leadership Development & Team Building: Recruiting volunteers, helping them become leaders, and developing a group that works effectively together;
• Strategic Campaign Planning: Setting goals and devising strategy, planning and implementing your plan for real change;
• Communication Skills: How to frame issues and talk about them in a way that speaks to values; use the media to get your message out; and
• Action Skills: Being strategic in applying various tactics like tabling, event planning, grassroots outreach, and more!
  

• June 21-28: Washington (state)
• June 27-July 4: Puerto Rico (must be fluent in Spanish)
• June 28–July 5: New Mexico
• July 5-12: Virginia
• July 9-13: Illinois
• July 19-26: New Hampshire
• July 19-26: Texas
• July 19-26: California (Los Angeles)
• August 16-23: Oregon