Executive Summary

Sample Annotated Agenda and Facilitator Guide to Generate Ideas for an American or Community Spirit

 

Divided Communities Project: November 16, 2018, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, Drafted by Susan Carpenter

Desired Meeting Outcomes:

  • Understand the purpose of the American Spirit Initiative.
  • Discuss and recommend the best American spirit aspirations.
  • Consider next steps for the American Spirit Initiative and comparable local initiatives

Guide for Table Facilitators 

9:15 – 10:30 a.m. Offering Ideas in Small Groups for the American Spirit and Assessing Them

Purpose: Capture, review, refine ideas for the American Spirit. Identify top four ideas from your group.

Activity:

 

1. Identify Ideas

Ask each person at your table to write suggestions for a possible American Spirit aspiration/idea, on 8 ½ x 5 1/2 sheets of paper (one sheet for each suggestion). Prompting question could be: “What are some ideas for an American Spirit that you think could bring the country together, despite people’s differences?”

  • Consider the following:
  • Breadth of support across the political/idea spectrum
  • Depth of commitment to the aspiration
  • Assistance in motivating Americans to work across societal divisions
  • Authentic and natural feel
  • Especially, perhaps quintessentially, American
  • Ease of understanding and communication
  • (5-8 min)

 

2. Share Ideas with the Group

  • Facilitator asks each person to share one of their ideas and describe in a few sentences why they chose it.
  • Post each idea on the flip chart as it is described.
  • Go around the table a second time posting one additional idea from each person, continue in round-robin fashion until all ideas are captured on the flip chart.
  • (15 min)

 

3.Discuss Ideas with the Group

  • Ask your group to review all posted ideas. Ask group members:
  • What observations do you have?
  • Would you like more information or clarification on any idea?
  • Cluster suggestions where appropriate.
  • (15 min) 

 

4. Vote for Top Four

  • Ask group members to review all the ideas on their newsprint and then individually select their top four ideas.
  • Give each member four 1” post-its and ask them to place one on each of their four top ideas.
  • Select the top four ideas based on results of individual voting.
  • (10 min)

 

5. Refine and Elaborate on the Top Four

  • Choose one of the four selected ideas and generate two sentences that clarifies or refines the idea and offer why you think it qualifies as an American Spirit idea.
  • Move on to the next element until all four have been discussed.
  • Provide a story that further illustrates each idea, if you have time.
  • (30min)

 

10:30 – 10:45 a.m. Break

10:45 -11:30 a.m. Share Results With Whole Group

11:30 – 12:00 Continue to Refine Thinking in Small Groups

Purpose: Refine American Spirit ideas based on whole group discussion

Activity:

  • Based on what you heard from the other tables how would you like to refine, modify or change your suggested aspirational ideas?
  • Add more detail to support each idea. Provide a story, if possible – could link to founding of the country or 21st Century America
  • (30 min) 

 

12:00 Noon   Buffet Lunch

12:30 -1:00 p.m. Small Group Input on American Spirit Content

Purpose:   Post final ideas and vote for top ideas among all suggestions.

Activity:

  • Text final small group suggestions for inclusion and prioritizing to be posted on screen for whole group reaction (10 min)
  • (Remaining time will be for whole group reaction and prioritizing – 20 min)
  •  

1:00 – 2:00 p.m. Guidance on Next Steps: Recommendations for ways to use American Spirit in Communities Small groups generate:

Purpose: Explore how the American Spirit ideas and process might be used in communities and by other groups beyond.

Activity:

  • Capture on newsprint suggestions for:
  • How to continue to refine the list of aspirational ideas (15 min)
  • Specific suggestions for how the American Spirit could be used in communities and by other groups beyond (20 min)
  • List groups that might be interested in using the American Spirit idea (10 min)
  • Offer general advice   (10 min)

 

2:00 – 2:45 p.m. Small Groups Share Ideas with Whole Group

2:45 – 3:00 p.m. Individuals Fill Out a Form on and Discuss How the Process Can Be Improved to Use in Future Initiatives

3:00 – 3:15 p.m. Final Comments and Wrap-up