July Training Opportunity for Our Whole Lives Programs
Several churches in the KO Conference have, or currently offer, Our Whole Lives (OWL) sexuality education programs at one or more age levels: K/1, 4th-6th, 7th-12th, or all adult levels. Some churches would like to start, expand, or resume an OWL program but do not have trained facilitators to lead these programs for children, youth, or adults. Since the COVID shutdown in 2020, training opportunities have been rare in our conference, so a training this July in Manhattan, Kansas, is a welcome opportunity.
From July 18 to 20, the Unitarian Universalist Church in Manhattan is offering training for the secondary level of OWL, which includes grades 7 through 12. This training will also be a first-time opportunity to review and utilize the second edition of the 10th-12th curriculum, which was previously outdated and is now updated with relevant information for older teens. Churches that have been using the old curriculum will want to be trained in these updates.
The training begins on Friday, July 18, at 1 p.m. and concludes on Sunday at 3:30 p.m. The UU registration website includes valuable information about costs, the possibility of home-stay accommodations, and thoughts on why trainings like these are so important.
This year, the Our Whole Lives program is celebrating its 25th anniversary. A collaboration between the United Church of Christ and the Unitarian Universalist Association, the OWL program has provided accurate, holistic, comprehensive, respectful, and spiritually enhanced sexuality education to thousands of children, youth, and adults nationwide. It is considered by many evaluators to be the best ethics-based sexuality education program available.
In this time of widespread assault on sexuality education in general and on LGBTQ+ education, safety, and justice, faith communities are needed more than ever to educate and support everyone interested in sexuality education for themselves and their children as offered within a faith-based setting.
For specific details about the training in Manhattan or to register for this training, please visit the following contact sites:
To contact Manhattan’s UU Pastor Isabel Call for more information on her church’s training, you can reach her at (785) 748-2533 (call or text) or visit https://uufm.net/.
Here’s the webpage for registrations: https://uufm.net/owl2025/
If you would like more information about the Our Whole Lives program in general, please contact longstanding OWL trainer Judith Galas,judithcgalas@gmail.com for more information. She has suggestions on how to start or restart an OWL program, how to partner with other small churches within the UU and UCC communities to offer programming, and can answer questions about the curriculum.