Inspiring & Equipping Communities To End Poverty The mission of Move the Mountain Leadership Center (MTM) is to inspire and equip communities to end poverty. Move the Mountain Leadership Center provides transformational leadership and planning programs to align leaders and their organizations to high impact strategies that can reduce and eventually end poverty. The Circles Campaign™ was initiated by Move the Mountain to provide transformational leaders a structure to engage the community in ending poverty. Join us on Facebook
 

How to Enroll

Circles Process: I want to start a Circle  (3.17 minutes)




Below are the 5 key steps for setting up Circles™, and details regarding the training and technical assistance services provided by MTM. We will work with you to implement these steps, develop specific approaches individual to your organization’s needs, and formulate a contract that reflects those particular elements necessary to a successful implementation of Circles and the end of poverty in your community.

Before you begin, Read Until its Gone and Bridges out of Poverty, then discuss your community’s readiness internally and with Move the Mountain staff. If Circles and your community are a good fit, the next phase is a Year 1 Circles™ start-up Contract:

  • One site visit to set up and train the Guiding Coalition
  • One site visit to train first group of allies
  • Hands-On Training (four day immersion at experienced Circles™ site) for 2 key staff
  • Getting Ahead facilitator kit
  • 25 copies of Until it’s Gone…an introduction to the Circles Campaign
  • Up to 10 coaching calls for Circles staff and key Guiding Coalition members
  • Circles™ Manual
  • Online data collection and reporting system
  • Fundraising templates
  • Up to 6 Fundraising coaching sessions from our national consultant
  • Access to up to 6 hours of grantwriting assistance from our national team
  • Two registrations to the annual Bridges-Circles national conference
  • Inclusion in appropriate regional, state, and national applications for funding
  • Membership to Circles™ Community of Practice and web access to up-to-date Circles™ materials from around the country.
  • Inclusion in media campaigns and use of promotional videos which can be customized for your local community.

MTM Training and Technical Assistance for your Circles Campaign is ongoing and renewed one year at a time at a standard, gradually reduced rate. MTM is a nonprofit and costs reflect actual training and technical assistance expenses. To encourage regional collaboration and keep costs down, there are discounts available to clusters of two or more sites beginning at the same time.

Training and technical assistance costs for year one are $20,500. Second year contracts are $18,000. Third year and ongoing contracts include are currently $13,500 and are decreased each year based on the number of communities enrolled in the Circles Campaign.

Upon agreeing as a community to move forward, the following steps will be critical to your success:

Months 1-3

1. Form Guiding Coalition
The Guiding Coalition is made up of community leaders and a two-person leadership team (The two leaders need to be able to connect with people from all income groups, have strong organizing and delegating skills and be available 30-40 hours a week).

  • Hold organizational orientation
  • Attend a local, established Circles meeting if available, or plan to attend the next Hands on Training (each April and September)*
  • Sign a contract with Move the Mountain
  • Guiding Coalition and any interested community members attend full day Bridges out of Poverty training *
  • Getting Ahead facilitators are trained*
  • Receive and study all materials from Move the Mountain (books, DVDs, contract, assessment materials, etc.)
  • Recruit Circle Leaders in coordination with local poverty-related agencies

*If you are located in California, Idaho, Wyoming, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, or Connecticut a regional training center may be able to provide introductory services.

Month 4

2. Launch Getting Ahead
Twelve Circle Leaders begin series of 15 classes led by two trained facilitators.

  • Collect initial baseline data
  • Establish reliable, regular meeting place and time
  • Utilize MTM training and technical assistance, online supports and phone and in-person coaching.

3. Recruit Allies
Identify, recruit and receive commitment from 3 Allies for each Circle Leader (36 total).

  • Conduct outreach to recruit Allies 

Months 5-8

4. Launch Bridges out of Poverty Initiative
Certified Bridges trainer educates Allies and other community volunteers.

  • Allies receive Circles 101 and Bridges out of Poverty training
  • Leaders and Allies meet to share stories, form friendships
  • Leaders and Allies are matched to begin self-sufficiency plan
  • Engage all sectors to support transition of Circle Leaders

5. Form Circles
Weekly and monthly meetings are hosted by your church or other community partner.

  • Graduates of Getting Ahead (Circle Leaders) meet weekly to discuss progress and receive additional supports (meals and childcare provided)
  • Leaders and Allies build a friendship and meet as often as necessary to achieve self-sustainability
  • Leaders, Allies, Guiding Coalition, community members meet monthly to discuss the Big View on systemic change and where it stands
  • Progress is reported to congregations and community partners, leading to increased support

 

Circles™ Campaign Non-Negotiables

  1. The Leader of the lead organization or community coalition is committed to Circles™- there is a community champion.
  2. A community Guiding Coalition representing all sectors of the community is responsible for the Circles™ initiative
  3. Low-income people are on the community Guiding Coalition
  4. Getting Ahead curriculum is used as part of the orientation for Circle Leaders to support individual plan development and identification of systemic issues
  5. Bridges out of Poverty curriculum is used as part of the orientation for  Guiding Coalition members and allies
  6. Circle Leaders are matched with 2-5 allies
  7. Weekly meetings occur with meal, child care, and program
  8. Monthly Big View meetings (4th weekly meeting of the month) occur to address systems change
  9. Trained individuals provide case management support to families and allies
  10. Community organizing is a supported function of the initiative (through paid or volunteer positions)
  11. Community demonstrates fidelity to the model and participates in evaluation of Circles™ initiative following national protocol; data is shared with MTM for national aggregation

 

Our Commitment

Each individual site is part of, and benefits from, a larger network.  It is the role of Move the Mountain to build that network, ensure the fidelity of the sites in it, then create an atmosphere which allows every site in the network to benefit from the best practices that evolve.   In this role at Move the Mountain, we do the following:

1) Build relationships on a national level specifically with organizations that have a local presence, so Circles sites can benefit from funding, volunteer recruitment and community partnerships with these entities.  2010 examples include:  Bridges out of Poverty, United Methodist Church, Goodwill Industries, United Way, and Lutheran Services of America.

2) Develop proposal language, identify national, regional, and local potential funders, aid in budget development and generally use our experience and any resource available to us to support all efforts to raise local, regional and national funds for any and every Circles site.  2010 examples include: Community Services Block Grant, United Way, United Methodist Foundations and Churches, Gates Foundation, Community Foundations, Corporate Foundations.

3) Authorize the right to utilize the trademarked Circles name when approaching elected officials, donors, non-profit partners and others for support.

4) Develop partnerships with national organizations to develop new local tools for Circles.  2010 examples include: National Endowment for Financial Education to customize financial literacy tools for Circles, Shorebank to develop Banking Kits to help the unbanked get “banked”, and United Methodist and aha!Process, Inc. to develop Church Kits to End Poverty.

5) Develop partnerships with national advocacy groups to utilize the stories and data of Circles for public and social policy change.  2010 examples include: CFED and their Assets and Opportunity Scorecard; Spotlight on Poverty to catalogue Circles stories that can be accessed by policy educators and advocates. 

6) Provide video materials such as the 30-second PSA on Circles, 6-minute Circles introductory video, and introductory videos for allies, circle leaders and guiding coalition members.

7) Pursue media coverage on Circles (see our media page; 2010 examples: writing proposals to fund a one-hour documentary on Circles by professional documentarian Laura Dawson.

8) Update Circles manuals and archive best practice tools in the national clearinghouse such as successfully proposals, promotional materials, weekly meeting agendas and tools, and press releases.

9) Provide a national data collection system with local and national analysis that strengthens funding requests, hones implementation of the model, and builds media presence as successful results are reported.

10) Facilitate a national community of practice through a wide range of events including: an annual national conference, monthly national coaching calls, peer-to-peer sessions, regional community of practice conferences, state training centers and regional coordinating centers.  In 2010, we are pursuing funds to develop a national on-line video communication system for distributing best practices and more effective planning across community and state lines without having to travel.

More information on Move the Mountain and the Circles™Campaign can be found at www.movethemountain.org or you can reach us directly at gena@movethemountain.org , or call 1-888-232-9285