Workshop Focusing on Impacts of Culture to be Held in Bellevue, WA on March 5, 2010

A workshop titled "What Makes Us Feel 'At Home'?" will be presented by Roni Stein, Ed.D, PCI Certified Parent Coach®, on Friday, March 5th from 8:30 am until 4:00 pm in Bellevue, WA. The workshop explores key ribbons of culture that run through our daily lives and is a valuable learning experience for anyone who wants to gain greater awareness of the impacts of culture, especially teachers, parent educators, counselors, social workers, doctors, nurses, parents who have adopted internationally, and couples who come from different cultures. The fee for this workshop is $95 and includes breakfast and lunch. To register or for more information please call The Parent Coaching Institute at (425) 401-1519.

Roni Stein, Ed.D
PCI Certified Parent Coach®

Bellevue, WA—(February 9, 2010) The Parent Coaching Institute (PCI) proudly hosts a workshop titled "What Makes Us Feel 'At Home'?" presented by Roni Stein, Ed.D, PCI Certified Parent Coach®, on Friday, March 5th from 8:30 am until 4:00 pm at the Bellefield Office Park Conference Center in Bellevue, WA. The fee for this day-long workshop is $95 and includes breakfast and lunch. This workshop, open to the public, explores key ribbons of culture that run through our daily lives. The conversation will focus on how these unique dimensions of culture impact us, our clients, our families, and the communities we live in. Knowing about these underlying key dimensions of culture can enhance the work of family support professionals such as teachers, parent educators, counselors, social workers, doctors, and nurses, as well as provide awareness to parents who have adopted children internationally and to couples who come from different cultures. Certain kinds of relationships and environments along with ways of approaching change and decision-making are all impacted by one's cultural background. The classic work of Geert Hofstede will be used to shed light on the many unexpected culturally-based issues that inevitably come up in our lives. There will be lots of potential for "aha" moments. For more information or to reserve your place, please contact The Parent Coaching Institute at (425) 401-1519.

The recent disaster in Haiti and the frequent news headlines about international adoptions highlight the need for understanding cultural differences and the effects of relocating a child from their established culture to a new culture during the process of adoption. Margann Duke, MS, PCI Certified Parent Coach® and mother of internationally adopted children, states, "When parents have a cultural understanding, the attachment process is enhanced, and behavioral challenges can be reframed. There's a gift of cultural richness when you're raising children from other cultures. When we have this cultural understanding, we can provide a unique source of empathy and support to help parents integrate children from other cultures into their families." Attendees of the workshop "What Makes Us Feel 'At Home'?" will be better prepared to respect cultural differences and address the cultural issues that arise when raising an internationally adopted child.

The workshop "What Makes Us Feel 'At Home'?" has been a valuable educational experience for those who have already attended. "Roni's Dimensions of Culture class was incredibly engaging and helped me to appreciate the impact culture has on family roles and responsibilities. The tools I learned were very useful when I coached a mother from India. I was able to be more sensitive and understanding about her family dynamics. Living in a diverse community, the class has helped me relate better to parents of my children's friends, too," said Mary Wills Funari, MBA, PCI Certified Parent Coach®, Powerful Parent Advocates, LLC.