By Leanne Sponsel, Ph.D., MCFR President

Hello from Minnesota! This year MCFR is all about conferences and trainings. In May, Dr. David Walsh joined us at the Como Zoo and Conservatory Conference Center  in St. Paul for a presentation and discussion on brain development as an issue in parent educators' work and possible parenting topic. His new book, Smart Parenting, Smarter Kids, had not even been released, but it will surely be a valuable resource.

Throughout the year we have been able to offer several workshops on Ethical Thinking and Practice for Family Professionals. Using the booklet of the same title, we have drawn educators into the examination of ethical principles and resolving ethical dilemmas.

Our fall conference, December 2, 2011, will feature Dr. Wally Goddard. After hearing him speak at the NCFR conference last fall, there were several board members who were so impressed that we decided to invite Dr. Goddard to present so that we could hear more. His topic at the national conference was "Getting Beyond Skills in Family Life Education" and though our conference title hasn't been decided, we are excited to learn more about this perspective on our field. Yes, it'll be winter in Minnesota, but we have heated skyways and it truly is beautiful. Join us.