thursday afternoon breakouts

Thursday, 1:15 to 2:30 p.m. Choose One

Ohio A: DeAndra Harrison presents: “The 23 Discoveries of Me”

Do you truly know what type of leader you are or who you can become? Have you really tapped into your authentic self and the possibilities of where leadership can take you? During this workshop, we will dive into your “Jordan year” to tap into new ways that you can discover your qualities of a leader and provide resources to enhance the way you guide others in both your personal and professional life.

Participants will define leadership styles and assess themselves with a SWOT analysis. They will demonstrate common approaches to effective leadership styles while discovering ways to enhance their current style.

DeAndra Harrison serves as the founding director of two non-profit organizations that specialize in enrichment services for youth: Actions that Matter for Youth and Her Crowned Mindset. Additionally, she operates a brand management consulting firm His & Her Mindset, LLC. As a Columbus native, DeAndra utilized her natural leadership skills, high school lessons and college education to become one of the youngest successful publicists at DKC News, a renowned public relations agency in New York City.

Returning to Columbus, DeAndra fueled her passion for education and learned the fundamentals of childcare from a teacher perspective and business owner. She climbed the ladder to curriculum specialist, site coordinator and regional director of three cities and 12 locations. DeAndra is a proud alumnae of Clark Atlanta University where she earned her bachelor’s degree in mass media arts. She is currently working on her master’s degree in education with emphasis on learning experience design and educational technology.

Ohio B: Kathryn Clausen & Emily Nolan present: “Know the Tools: How to Be Intentional with Your Messaging”

This workshop will provide a general overview of communications strategies including identifying key audiences and determining the appropriate outlets to target communications to those audiences. While learning strategies for message development, participants will also discuss branding, data-driven storytelling and more.

Kathryn Clausen is the Communications Director at the Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies. She has more than 20 years experience in the non-profit sector with more than 15 years in the community action network. In her current role, she manages the association’s communications and public relations efforts as well as supporting the communication efforts of member CAAs in Ohio. Kathryn earned her master’s degree in mass communication and journalism from Kent State University.

Emily Nolan has been OACAA’s communications and development specialist since 2021 and has more than four years of professional writing and editing experience. In her current role, she works closely with the Communications and Development Directors to generate content and assist in grant-writing efforts. Emily earned her bachelor’s degree in English and journalism from Wittenberg University where she graduated summa cum laude. She has conducted research in the writing center field and has published three articles on a three-year quantitative research project.