Volunteers are the backbone of nonprofit organizations. Without volunteers, visions crumble. How do you recruit qualified volunteers? How can a leader strengthen a volunteer to go the distance? How do you inspire your volunteers to serve with passion? Forrest and Beth Mora will share ten key principles to help you form a team that will thrive and create a lasting impact.

This is a “potpourri” of topics and attendees can bring up any subject they wish to discuss. Carol Topp will lead off with her Topp 10 tips for running a homeschool organization. Included are tips on bylaws, boards, avoiding fraud, hiring workers, buying insurance, and conducting fund raisers. A handout of tips for leaders to share with your board back home will be provided.

Presenter, Carol Topp, a homeschooling mother and CPA, has helped over 250 homeschool organizations understand their status with the IRS. She will teach leaders the required filings to keep their homeschool organizations legal but with the least amount of government paperwork and interference. Tips and handouts on required reporting, taxes, and several examples from Carol’s experience will be offered. This is an invaluable session for support group and co-op leaders.

We’ll identify Christian leadership, be specific on how to encourage and support, get a grip on the “basics” and delineate what really counts. Dick will answer questions about the support issue from a bibical perspective. He’ll talk about the problems that have plagued leadership since the beginning and he'll be a frank about the new problems that have sprung out of social media. If God has called you to lead – lead! If God has not called you to lead – don’t. If you want to help the leaders in your group, if you want to define you role in leadership, or if you want to start a Christian support group, join us in this fast-paced summary of Christian homeschool leadership. Your mentor has been led by the Lord for 60 years and has been serving Christian homeschool leaders for 30 of those.

Learn how to meet the needs of your newer families without losing the veterans. What is a mentoring group? Hear how some groups have mobilized their veteran homeschoolers to help pass the baton to the new families. Vicki discusses various types of mentoring programs available, practical ideas for success, and the benefits to your support group. Sample materials will be available.

The handout for this session is available at http://www.oceanetwork.org/2016handouts.pdf

Sometimes we need helping hands when it comes to homeschooling. Support groups can be a lifeblood in times of discouragement, hardships, and day-to-day drama. Without them, homeschooling can seem daunting and overwhelming. This workshop will speak to how to start a vibrant support group, what can be accomplished through a support group, and ways to connect using the digital medium of today.

Look behind the scenes to learn what prepared, inspired, and motivated the great minds of Beethoven, Bach, Mozart, Einstein, Edison, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates and more. They all had something in common—something available to all—something that drives initiative, ignites motivation, revives the imagination, and inspires excellence.

I Corinthians 13:11 says, “When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” As homeschooling parents, how can we prepare our children for adulthood? And how can we prepare our hearts (through prayer and effective communication) to release our kids into a new season? There’s life after graduation– with college, careers, romance, weddings, and next-generation purpose. Let’s aim and launch our arrows, to hit God’s mark.

Many home educators feel tension between themselves and their churches, but do not know what to do. We can all think of many "helpful" suggestions or comments we could offer to our pastors, especially concerning home education. But are those suggestions really helpful? Listen to David Watkins – pastor, state homeschool leader, homeschooling father of eight and grandfather of 15 – share some things not to say to your pastor! See what homeschoolers are really like through the eyes of their pastors.

Have you experienced some trials in leadership lately? You're not alone! Leadership can be messy. Wise leadership requires the strength of a warrior and the heart of a shepherd. The heart of a strong leader requires a love that will get involved in the struggles and messes that will inevitably come up within their organizations. It may be frustrating, even exasperating at times, but successful leading in the body of Christ is not just about accomplishing a vision. It is about growing other leaders and knowing how to respond to challenging situations. Come learn some of the foundational principles of strong leadership - as well as some of the warning signs that will help you avoid division within your ministry and even GROW in the midst of adversity

As parents we try to figure out the "right" way to raise our children. Is there a "right" way? After raising four adult children and being grandmother of 5, plus running a performing arts school with over 22,000 students nationwide, I've discovered some common threads of raising healthy, contributing and well-adjusted children.

But I didn't volunteer for this job… or perhaps you did volunteer but you wish you hadn't! If 20% of the people do 80% of the work, and you are in the 20%, how do you keep from getting over worked and becoming resentful? Hear insights which every volunteer leader needs to apply. Your sanity may depend on it!

YES YOU CAN. Hey, we won't lie to you! It can be intimidating. But the fact of the matter is that you really CAN do it! Homeschooling through high school is the gift that keeps on giving because it affords the one thing that is so fleeting in the teen years: time.

Watch out for these guys! Kevin describes the seven species of termites that are known to eat out the core of our homeschool organizations (or even churches or families). This information is an essential requisite to anybody in leadership.

Voddie Baucham give sound advice from a Biblical perspective that is appropriate for any that find themselves in leadership.

Rainmakers Home School Speech & Debate Clubs, coached by Gregg & Sono Harris, display the potential of delight-directed study and the power of companionship in bold relief. By creating a social environment supportive of the pursuit of excellence, and providing an outlet for each members' work, Rainmakers has become a launching pad for many excellent young speakers and debaters age, 12 to 18. Samples of a few "winning speeches" by Rainmakers club members will be presented.