Spring 2025 TMACF & AmeriCorps VISTA Workshop Series – Facing Challenges and Influencing Change with Empathy and Storytelling

Transform Mid-Atlantic is pleased to host a three part skill-based workshop series for its 2024-2025 cohort of TMA Civic Fellows and AmeriCorps VISTA Members during the Spring 2025 semester! The third workshop will focus on “Facing Challenges and Influencing Change with Empathy and Storytelling”. The event will take place on Tuesday, April 8 from 11:00AM – 12:00PM via Zoom. The session’s guest speaker will be J.R. Jamison, co-founder and President of The Facing Project. You can learn more about J.R. by scrolling below. 

About the workshop: Through its many programs and initiatives, The Facing Project seeks to create “a more understanding and empathetic world through stories that inspire action.” During this session, TMA Civic Fellows and AmeriCorps VISTA Members will learn about how stories – and the understanding and empathy they generate – can be used to catalyze community development, influence policy, and positively contribute to the culture of our institutions and entire communities. J.R. will share examples of times when TFP’s work has led to systems change and demonstrate how changemakers can leverage stories to create a better world and future.

Register below to join in this exclusive opportunity for TMA Civic Fellows and AmeriCorps VISTA Members!

Registration Form

About J.R.: 
J.R. Jamison is the award-winning and bestselling author of the memoir Hillbilly Queer, and host of the NPR podcast and radio show The Facing Project (recorded and produced at Indiana Public Radio). He is also a founder of the national Facing Project network, a nonprofit in 20 states and over 100 communities that creates a more understanding and empathetic world through stories that inspire action, where he serves as president of the organization. He has written for The Huffington Post, Pangyrus, Writer’s Digest, and various other print and web publications. His work has been covered by outlets such as The Guardian, Harlem World Magazine, PBS, Runner’s World, and The Statesider, among others. In addition, his memoir received starred reviews from Library Journal and Foreword Reviews Magazine, and was selected as one of the “Top 10 Best Audiobooks of 2023” by Library Journal (which was narrated by J.R.). Currently, he is writing his debut young adult novel. J.R. is a two-time graduate of Ball State University with a B.S. in Cultural Geography and Creative Writing and an M.A.Ed. in Student Affairs Administration. He lives in Muncie, Indiana, with his husband Cory and their loveable and always ready-for-the-camera Boston-Pit mix, J.J. When not writing and recording, J.R. can be found long-distance running, sipping coffee in a deck lounger, catching up on his favorite NPR shows (This American Life, American Routes, and You Bet Your Garden), or binge watching Netflix, Hulu, and Showtime (currently, his favorite shows include Yellowjackets, Stranger Things, and Under the Bridge).