OWL Facilitator Training
Sunday, May 21 – 2:00 pm ET to 9:00pm ET
Monday, May 22 – 8:30 am ET to 9:30 pm ET
Tuesday, May 23 – 8:30 am ET to 2:00 pm ET
Registration for OWL Facilitator Training is closed.
Thank you to all who have registered to attend. We look forward to welcoming you to Our Whole Lives sexuality education training.
OWL facilitator training provides theoretical and hands-on training to facilitate Our Whole Lives program for children, youth, or adults. We welcome those from outside the Unitarian Universalist tradition who would like to run OWL programs in schools, camps or other settings – this training is a requirement for using OWL curricula and materials.
All materials are available at the Unitarian Universalist Association bookstore.
For more facilitator resources, please refer to the Unitarian Unitarian Associations OWL section.
Elementary Training:
Rev. Chris Wulff:
Rev. Christopher Wulff has been leading peer sexuality education programs since 1999, including every level of Our Whole Lives. He has previously served as Minister of Westside UU Congregation in West Seattle, and worked for the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Pacific Western Region. A cradle UU who grew up at First Unitarian Congregation in Toronto, Rev. Christopher lives in Vancouver with his wife Ariel Hunt-Brondwin (who used to work for the CUC), their two kiddos Rowan and Benjamin, and new puppy Hershey.
Monica Bennett:
Monica has been an active trainer of all of the Our Whole Lives curricula since 1999.
She has a rich and diverse background in sexuality education, reproductive rights, HIV/AIDS, sexual & gender justice; health promotion; tobacco control; equity, diversity & inclusion; and organizational development in the not-for profit sector & within UU circles.
She became a Unitarian Universalist in 1997 and has had roles both big and small in the life of her home congregation – the First Unitarian Church of Hamilton, Ontario – since then.
She is married, has two adult children and one cat – who has become the mayor of their street.
Youth Training:
Liz Roper:
Liz Roper grew up Unitarian in the UK and has served as a director of religious education in Europe, US, and Canada. Her interest in sexuality education was inherited from her mother who taught sex education in schools in the UK. She was lucky enough to be trained as an adult OWL facilitator and then trainer of all levels, while she was serving First Unitarian in Ottawa. She now works and resides in a boarding school in Toronto, in her “spare time” she is completing a Master’s of Education, supporting various UU groups remotely, creating stained glass art pieces, and walking Derby her dog.
Rev. Samaya Oakley:
Rev. Samaya Oakley (she/hers) currently serves as a minister for South Fraser Unitarians on the lands of the Semiahmoo First Nations people, otherwise known as Surrey, BC. Prior to becoming a minister, she was the Youth Program Coordinator for 15 years where Our Whole Lives became part of her portfolio. During that time, the OWL offerings in the congregation went from just one level (Junior High) to all four levels in the elementary and youth programs for Our Whole Lives. Samaya’s love of sexuality education is reinforced each time she facilitates a training or a program. She loves how at each level of the curriculum; participants are given the tools to clarify their own values and apply them to their own lived experiences so that each person can grow into the fullness of who they are.
Adult Training:
Melanie Davis:
Dr. Melanie Davis, CSC, CSE is the Unitarian Universalist Association’s Our Whole Lives Program Manager and is a trainer for all levels of Our Whole Lives/Sexuality and Our Faith. She wrote Our Whole Lives Sexuality Education for Older Adults and the UU version of Sexuality and Our Faith: A Companion to Our Whole Lives for Grades 7-9, 2nd ed. She has a doctorate in Human Sexuality Education and is an AASECT-certified sexuality educator and counselor in private practice. She speaks in UU pulpits in the US and Canada on issues including life change, trauma response, grief, sexuality, and spiritual growth.
Rev. Amy Johnson:
Rev. Amy Johnson (she/her), MSW, CSE, LICSW serves as Minister for Sexuality Education and Justice in the national setting of the United Church of Christ. She is a trainer for all levels of Our Whole Lives/Sexuality and Our Faith nationwide. Internationally, Amy has been a partner in interfaith efforts to bring faith-based sexuality education to both Christian and Muslim communities. Amy is passionate about helping faith communities integrate conversations about healthy sexuality as a part of being and becoming healthier places to belong. She co-authored Our Whole Lives Sexuality Education for Grades 4-6, 2nd ed. and The Parent Guide to Our Whole Lives Grades K-1 and Grades 4-6, 2nd ed.