2.6: Awareness & Training Sessions

Awareness and training sessions build community-wide understanding and expand your referral network. Young Caregivers Association® delivers the specialized training content, while your organization helps create the opportunity, connect key stakeholders, and co-host the event.

Depending on your strategic outreach goals, awareness sessions can be delivered through two distinct formats:

• Individual Team or Organization Meetings: Offer a targeted Young Caregiver Training or Awareness Session integrated directly into an agency’s existing mandatory staff meeting, professional development day, or team training.
• Broader Community Network Webinars: Host a virtual Young Caregiver Awareness Webinar and invite multiple organizations, potential referral sources, and prospective Powerhouse® program delivery partners to attend together.

Defining the Target Audience and Purpose

These sessions are designed for professionals, community organizations, health workers, and potential program partners; they are not intended for young caregivers directly.

The primary objective is to equip professionals to:

• Understand who young caregivers are and why they go unrecognized.
• Identify young caregivers within the families they already serve.
• Connect caregiving youth to available Powerhouse® supports.
• Explore formal options for referral or Powerhouse® program delivery partnerships.

Be Intentional About How You Offer the Session

For an individual organization, whenever possible, integrate the session into an existing staff meeting, professional development opportunity, or team training rather than relying only on an optional session.

For broader outreach, consider hosting a virtual webinar that brings organizations from across your community together in one session. Invite organizations from the community partner categories you’ve already identified and use the opportunity to build both awareness and new connections.

Use clear titles such as Young Caregiver Training Session, Young Caregiver Awareness Session, or Young Caregiver Awareness Webinar so participants understand the purpose and value of attending.

Arranging a Session

If you are interested in hosting or co-hosting a session, start with your own organizational leadership. Confirm that you have approval to host, a suitable meeting or webinar slot, and someone able to coordinate invitations and logistics.

Once that is in place, contact Young Caregivers Association® to discuss format, audience, timing, and what the session will cover. YCA can support the training content. Your organization will be required for hosting the space or platform, inviting the participants, and coordinating the associated logistics.