2026 Conference: Mission Possible
Your Inside Look at the 2026 CAAP Conference
In this episode of Thinking CAAP, Beck Moore welcomes CAAP Chief Operating Officer Erika Carpin and Director of Strategic Initiatives Mel Luckenbaugh for a behind-the-scenes look at the 2026 CAAP Conference, Mission: Possible, taking place October 26–29 at the Eden Resort & Suites in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
Beck, Erika, and Mel share how this year's conference came together, why the theme feels especially meaningful for Community Action, and how feedback from member agencies helped shape the agenda. From fiscal and weatherization training to organizational culture, leadership, AI, burnout, and economic mobility, the conversation highlights the practical learning opportunities designed to help attendees navigate change and bring new ideas back to their organizations.
They also explore the experiences that make the conference memorable, including networking, CAAPy Hour, the CAAPtivating Excellence Awards, therapy dogs, professional headshots, and a few surprises you’ll discover throughout the conference.
Throughout the conversation, one message comes through clearly: Community Action professionals are carrying a lot, and this conference is an opportunity to feel appreciated, reconnect with colleagues, and remember why the work matters. Whether you're looking for new strategies, meaningful connections, or renewed energy, Mission: Possible is designed to help you return to your organization ready for what comes next.
For more from Erika Carpin:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erika-carpin-9b4b1394/
For more from Mel Luckenbaugh:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mel-luckenbaugh-7a81b1a3/
Image Description: Promotional graphic for the Thinking CAAP podcast announcing the 2026 CAAP Conference. Against a bright yellow background with blue and magenta accents, the graphic features host Beck Moore on the left and guests Erika Carpin and Mel Luckenbaugh on the right. A large headline reads, “It’s Time for the 2026 CAAP Conference!” The Thinking CAAP podcast logo appears in the upper-left corner, with colorful speech bubbles identifying the guests and playful hand-drawn stars and accents throughout.
Thinking CAAP Episode 48 Talking Points
[00:00:02] Opening Reflection: Why the Conference Matters
The episode opens with a reflection on the change, exhaustion, and challenges Community Action professionals are experiencing.
The CAAP Conference is described as a place where attendees can feel connected, energized, appreciated, and part of a larger family.
[00:00:20] Welcome to Thinking CAAP
Beck introduces CAAP Chief Operating Officer Erika Carpin and Director of Strategic Initiatives Mel Luckenbaugh.
He explains that this episode is a different kind of conversation, offering a behind-the-scenes preview of the 2026 CAAP Conference.
The team shares its excitement about returning to the Eden Resort & Suites in Lancaster.
[00:01:44] The Mission: Possible Theme
Beck asks where the theme Mission: Possible came from and why it felt right for 2026.
Erika and Mel joke about the Mission: Impossible theme song and the possibilities for conference swag.
The team explains that mission is central to Community Action and the organizations CAAP works alongside.
[00:02:29] Planning With Purpose
Beck reflects on how conference planning begins long before the event itself.
He asks what the planning team wants attendees to learn, experience, and feel when they leave.
The discussion highlights the importance of creating an intentional experience beyond traditional professional development.
[00:03:58] Helping Attendees Feel Energized and Appreciated
Erika explains that Community Action professionals do challenging work and don't always receive the recognition they deserve.
She wants the conference to be a place where attendees feel celebrated, connected, and important.
Mel emphasizes that participants should leave with practical ideas they can begin implementing immediately.
[00:05:08] Creating Hope and Renewed Purpose
Beck reflects on feedback from previous CAAP events, where attendees often describe feeling hopeful and appreciated.
The team discusses the small details that shape the attendee experience, including food, hospitality, and opportunities to connect.
They share some lighthearted stories about conference snacks and the importance of making people feel welcome.
[00:06:26] Reconnecting With the Community Action Network
Erika explains that CAAP staff also return from events feeling energized and inspired.
Beck notes that the largely remote CAAP team doesn't often get to see members in person.
Conference gatherings create an opportunity to reconnect with the people and mission at the center of the work.
[00:07:15] How Member Feedback Shapes the Conference
Beck asks what CAAP has heard from agencies over the past year that influenced the conference agenda.
Erika identifies ongoing change, exhaustion, daily challenges, and the need for long-term planning.
Mel discusses growing interest in technology, AI, and new approaches to organizational improvement.
[00:08:55] Learning From Experts and Peers
Mel explains that organizations need to remain flexible as long-term planning becomes more complicated.
The team recognizes that attendees want to hear from experts and fellow Community Action professionals about approaches that are working.
Many member agencies submitted breakout session proposals, creating opportunities to share practical lessons across the network.
[00:09:35] Who Should Attend the CAAP Conference?
Beck emphasizes that the conference welcomes Community Action Agencies and other professionals working in human services and mission-aligned fields.
Attendees range from frontline employees and program staff to board members and executive leaders.
The agenda is designed to offer relevant learning opportunities across different roles and experience levels.
[00:10:33] Pre-Conference: Weatherization and Fiscal Training
Mel highlights the Weatherization Boot Camp taking place on Monday, October 26, with a hybrid attendance option.
Erika introduces the two-day Fiscal Boot Camp, featuring RKL and Community Action professionals.
The pre-conference sessions offer more focused training before the main conference begins.
[00:11:20] Leadership CAAP and Executive Leadership
Erika shares that Leadership CAAP Fellows will gather for another in-person session during pre-conference.
Tuesday also includes the Executive Leadership and Annual Meeting for Community Action leaders.
These events provide opportunities for leadership development, peer connection, and discussion of priorities across the network.
[00:11:47] Brenda Reynolds and The Organization Workshop
The team introduces Brenda Reynolds' interactive workshop on organizational culture.
Participants will explore the pressures, tensions, and challenges that shape workplace relationships and team dynamics.
Beck compares the workshop's simulation-based approach to other experiential learning opportunities familiar to Community Action Agencies.
[00:13:23] CAAPy Hour and Halloween Fun
Beck introduces Tuesday evening's CAAPy Hour, a Halloween-themed gathering sponsored by Marsh McLennan Agency and Key Risk Insurance.
Erika shares that attendees can participate in costume contests and enjoy a relaxed networking experience.
The team jokes about karaoke, memorable costumes, and the importance of having fun together.
[00:14:24] Twenty-Five Breakout Sessions
Beck asks Erika and Mel which sessions they'd attend if they weren't busy helping run the conference.
Mel highlights Mandy Zalich's humorous leadership session, The Gambler's Tips for Leadership.
Erika expresses interest in Samuel Faulkner's session on burnout, secondary traumatic stress, and sustaining yourself and your team.
[00:15:57] Resilience and Recovery
Mel highlights Julie Jakopic's session on preparing organizations for future challenges.
Beck reflects on Julie's long-standing relationship with Community Action and the experience she brings.
The conversation emphasizes the value of helping organizations become more resilient and prepared for change.
[00:16:36] Bridging Fiscal and Program Work
Beck highlights Brandi Fleming's participation in Fiscal Boot Camp.
Her session focuses on strengthening the relationship between fiscal and program staff.
Beck notes that these departments can become siloed, making better coordination an important opportunity for agencies.
[00:17:25] Feedback, Change Management, and AI
Mel describes additional conference sessions focused on performance feedback and SMART goals.
Rachel Hudzik and Debra Mitchell are among the presenters addressing leadership development and organizational change.
The conference also includes sessions exploring practical uses of AI and technology in mission-driven organizations.
[00:18:19] Economic Mobility and Organizational Readiness
Beck highlights a session with Erin Lukoss and Robin Rohrbaugh of Bucks County Opportunity Council and Community Progress Council.
The session explores what organizations need to consider before implementing or expanding economic self-sufficiency programs.
The discussion connects these strategies to Community Action's broader goal of helping people achieve economic mobility.
[00:19:06] Reduced Workweeks and Employee Retention
Mel identifies Amanda Burns' session on reduced workweeks as a potentially surprising conference topic.
Beck reflects on the ways Community Action Agencies are exploring different approaches to employee well-being and retention.
The conversation challenges assumptions about what workplace flexibility can look like in human services.
[00:20:00] A Different Conference Structure
Mel explains that the team is changing the traditional conference schedule.
Thursday will feature a panel discussion, while the closing plenary is moving to the end of the conference.
The goal is to give attendees time to absorb what they've learned and leave with a clearer sense of how to move forward.
[00:21:31] Why the Hallway Conversations Matter
Beck asks why so much attention goes toward networking, meals, informal conversations, and social activities.
Erika emphasizes the importance of creating connections that continue after attendees return to their organizations.
CAAP intentionally builds opportunities for participants to meet people they may not otherwise encounter.
[00:22:43] Finding Your Lifeline People
Beck reflects on the importance of connecting with colleagues who understand the unique challenges of the work.
He describes the relationships formed at professional conferences that became valuable sources of support throughout his career.
Mel connects those relationships to CAAP's ongoing cohort calls, which help professionals continue learning from one another throughout the year.
[00:24:44] Taking Halloween Costumes Seriously
Beck circles back to the Halloween-themed CAAPy Hour and asks how seriously attendees should approach their costumes.
The team shares its enthusiasm for creative costumes, including memories of past group costumes.
Participants are encouraged to join the fun whether or not they choose to dress up.
[00:26:26] The CAAPtivating Excellence Awards
Beck introduces Wednesday evening's CAAPtivating Excellence Awards and asks why the celebration is such an important part of the conference.
Erika explains that the awards recognize employees nominated by colleagues across Pennsylvania.
The evening includes a cocktail hour, dinner, awards ceremony, and opportunities to celebrate the people doing meaningful work throughout the network.
[00:28:35] Recognizing the People Behind the Mission
Beck recalls an award recipient who had served as an agency van driver for approximately 35 years.
He reflects on how meaningful it is to recognize someone's dedication on a statewide stage.
The team emphasizes that Community Action professionals deserve opportunities to celebrate their contributions and accomplishments.
[00:30:25] The Little Things That Make the Conference Special
Beck asks what additional activities attendees can expect throughout the conference.
Erika and Mel share that therapy dogs will return, along with opportunities for professional headshots and interviews with Hattie McCarter.
These experiences are designed to create moments of connection, enjoyment, and professional support.
[00:31:35] CAAP Bucks and the CAAP Store
The team explains how attendees can earn CAAP Bucks through session participation and other conference activities.
The playful conference currency can be exchanged for merchandise at the CAAP Store.
Beck jokes about the use of his face on the currency and offers more ideas for future conference swag.
[00:33:53] If You Only Attend One CAAP Event
Beck asks Erika and Mel to explain why someone should choose the CAAP Conference if they can attend only one event this year.
Mel emphasizes practical learning, continuous improvement, and actionable ideas.
She also shares that attending a CAAP Conference helped introduce her to the organization before she joined the team.
[00:35:09] Leaving Refreshed and Reconnected
Erika says attendees should leave feeling rejuvenated, refreshed, and connected to people they can continue learning from.
Beck asks how someone can explain the value of attending to an employer who may be concerned about losing staff time.
The conversation shifts toward the longer-term benefits of investing in professional development.
[00:35:35] Working on the Business
Mel explains that staff often spend so much time working in their organizations that they rarely have time to work on improving them.
A conference offers dedicated space to consider processes, systems, and opportunities for greater efficiency.
Participants can also discover consultants, speakers, and resources that help address needs within their agencies.
[00:36:32] Building a Responsive Conference Agenda
Beck recognizes the work Erika and Mel put into selecting and vetting speakers.
He emphasizes that the agenda reflects the needs, concerns, and challenges CAAP hears from members.
The team discusses the importance of helping attendees leave with practical solutions they can apply.
[00:37:56] Why Attendee Surveys Matter
Mel encourages participants to complete session and conference surveys.
She explains that the team has intentionally kept session surveys short and uses the feedback to evaluate speakers and identify future topics.
Beck encourages attendees to share creative ideas for activities, swag, and improvements to future events.
[00:39:19] Creating Space to Recharge
Erika explains that the conference includes opportunities for attendees to pause and focus on their own well-being.
She connects that experience to the belief that people need to care for themselves to continue caring for others.
The team hopes attendees return to their organizations, families, and communities feeling better equipped for the work ahead.
[00:40:07] Conference Surprises
Beck asks whether there are any final details the team wants to share.
Erika and Mel hint at some additional surprises without revealing everything.
The conversation includes playful speculation about what the team may have planned for Beck.
[00:41:12] Registration, Dates, and Conference Information
Beck reviews the October 26–29 conference dates at the Eden Resort & Suites in Lancaster.
He distinguishes the October 26–27 pre-conference activities from the October 28–29 main conference.
He also shares the registration deadline, hotel room block deadline, and information about efforts to make attendance affordable through sponsorships and scholarships.
[00:42:41] Final Invitation to Mission: Possible
The team encourages listeners to explore the conference agenda and learning opportunities.
Beck thanks Erika, Mel, and the larger CAAP team for their work preparing the event.
He expresses excitement about gathering Community Action professionals for several days of learning, connection, and celebration.
[00:43:21] Podcast Outro
The standard Thinking CAAP outro thanks listeners for joining the episode.
Listeners are encouraged to check the show notes, subscribe, follow, and submit Community Action questions to info@thecaap.org.
Transcript of Episode 48
00:00:00
There's a lot of change happening. People are tired. People are exhausted. People are being challenged daily. This conference as well as like all of our events at CAAP are a place that people can come feel like their own family, feel energized, and feel important.
00:00:20
What's up everybody? Welcome to Thinking CAAP. I'm Beck Moore, CEO of Community Action Association of Pennsylvania and the host of the Thinking CAAP podcast. And with me today are two of some of my favorite folks that I get the opportunity to work with each and every single day. One is a former guest and COO of CAAP. Erika, what's up, Erika?
What's up?
And secondly is our director of strategic initiatives, Mel Luckenbaugh, who is brand new to the Thinking CAAP, but certainly not brand new to CAAP. What's up, Mel? How are you?
I'm wonderful. How are you?
00:00:52
I'm good. So, this is a if this is the first time you're listening to the Thinking CAAP, it's a little bit of a different vibe because and it's gonna sound like a little bit of uh you know a shameless promotion because guess what it is. And so this is the time of year where we are getting hyped, excited, planning, finishing planning for our conference. And so today's episode is really about the CAAP Conference 2026 coming at you the last week of October at the Eden Resort & Suites in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. again. And so we're going to talk a little bit about the conference, hopefully get people a little excited. If you haven't been to our conference before, hopefully inspire you to sign up. Just saying, you know, again, shameless plug here. Um, or just get a little bit to know about kind of what we're doing, why we're doing it, and understand more about the way we function. So with that, I'm going to start with just kind of an obvious question is this year's theme is Mission: Possible.
And so, whoever wants to take this question, where did the theme come from and why did it feel right for 2026?
00:01:56
I mean, the theme came from our desire to sing the Mission Impossible theme song at all opportunities. Of course.
Well, and for some cool swag ideas, right? I mean, let's
I mean, of course. No, but in reality, mission mission is the heart of everything we do. And we know that our agencies are all mission driven. We work with other mission-aligned organizations. So centering mission became important to us
and so we may or may not also hear the Mission: Impossible theme song at some point
or you might just hear me running down the hall singing it. That's also a possibility.
00:02:29
Fair enough. Well, I really love the theme. I love the visual of it and I think, you know, we're constantly trying to remind people about how immensely capable and amazing that they are. And so for me, it definitely aligns from from that perspective as well. and hopefully you know creates a little a little fun for us to play on.
So as we started planning the conference which you know for our listeners starts really literally even before we finish the prior year's conference I feel like and so we're already talking about ideas for next year as we're planning for the current year but with that in mind right as we've started planning the conference rewind almost a year ago at this point which I can't even believe it's almost conference time what were some of the things because you all are really right like in the planning conversations without me, I'm, you know, trying to get out of the way to make the things happen even though I know that I come up with crazy ideas from time to time and I'm like, "Hey, Erika, what do you think about this idea? And by the way, we're only a month out, but do you think we can do this?
00:03:31
We're doing it.
A month out? That's a ton of time for Beck. Come on.
We'll see if we get to like the week before I I'm trying to be better to be fair." Like, I'm just gonna say that. But what were some of the things that you all were talking about in the planning conversations about what did you want people to feel when they walked away and what did you want them to learn but again not just learn but but feel as well because that's a lot of the intentionality of what we talk about when we're talking about the planning process.
Yeah, for me I mean I feel like with all CAAP events we want people to leave feeling super energized and um important. The work that the staff members are doing is hard. It's challenging and so I think all of our events are really a place that they can be celebrated. Um I feel like and Mel and I kind of talked about this with Marie Conley. Shout out to Marie who's our keynote. Actually, we talked about this yesterday, but um how adults and staff members don't often feel um important or recognized. And so I think this conference as long as well as like all of our events at CAAP um are a place that people can come feel like they're around family, feel energized um and feel important.
00:04:43
And we also know that purpose, understanding our own purpose increases our own happiness within life. And everybody is dedicated here. They're they're purposeful in their work. So, we want them to leave happy and ready to attack things because when you attend a CAAP event, you're leaving with actual things to do. It isn't somewhere you just sit and listen. You're going to leave with I'm going to go implement this tomorrow.
Yeah. One of the things that we hear fairly often, whether it's our fall conference or our spring summit, is that people leave that event feeling hopeful, reminded of the work, feeling appreciated. Like, those are some of the phrases that we we often hear. And it's so much a part of I know what what we talk about on the regular as a membership based organization, but specifically right at the conference like what are some of the nicities? What are some of the favorite things that we've seen at other conferences that we want to make sure to bring? What are the things we want to make sure to absolutely avoid? Right? Like all of those things are a part of what our our planning um incorporates
like hard-boiled eggs for a snack,
right? No hardboiled eggs for a snack or if it is
00:05:51
Please tell me that didn't happen sometime. Did that happen?
Uh, not at our Well, I can't speak for the greater we once upon a time before Beck came to Cap. But at some point, I'm I'm sure which like, okay, to be fair, a hard-boiled egg could be a part of a snack. Like, if you're on keto, protein, whatever. But like, I don't know about you all, but I need something else other than just a hard-boiled egg as a snack. Like, I mean, some of those soft pretzel bites,
you know, something, some hummus, some cookies. Yes. And we do feed each other or feed feed our our participants at our conference really really well. Not for nothing. We'll just make sure to say that.
00:06:26
I also feel like as CAAP staff, we have a new revitalization after these events. So we come back feeling so much so much more energy, um, new perspective, new ideas, and that's really cool, too.
Yeah. I mean, our members are why we do the things that we do. And we all work, I think, as our listeners know, we all work 100% almost completely remote. We don't get to see each other very often. We don't get to see our members very often in person. We see each other a lot in these little plastic boxes. But the conference is the time that we get to hang out, right? We get to be reminded of why we do the work that we do. And so many of us have, you know, within our team have close personal connections to the work of Community Action. And so it's our grounding kind of reminder also in a lot of ways. So both of you have different sort of responsibilities within CAAP. Both of you have different connection points with our member organizations and all of the people that we support on a regular basis and you're close in kind of I think different ways like Mel, you're doing a lot of more of the kind of hands-on consulting work oftentimes with our agencies directly.
Erika, you're sort of you know more of I think the the uh systems component of how we support all of our folks but still engage with a lot of our leadership and our cohort calls. Right. But when we think about all of the things that we've heard from people over the course of the last year, what have we heard that sort of has really influenced right what we're building for this year's conference?
00:07:59
Anything in particular that that comes to mind that has been kind of one of those things?
For me, I feel like we were hearing um there's a lot of change happening. People are tired. People are exhausted. people are being being challenged daily. Um, and so having to navigate long-term planning, but also day-to-day structure and what that looks like. Um, we also heard, at least from what I've seen in the surveys and feedback, is like an interest in technology, in AI. They want to learn more. where they want to um progress and make changes. Um but just trying to figure out the best way to do that for a long-term strategy, especially because the oops
especially because the five-year strategy, 10-year strategies, that's not realistic anymore.
00:08:55
You know, in this post-COVID world, we've got to be ready to pivot constantly. Um I think we also heard a lot that people want to hear from both experts and from what has worked from their peers. So, we intentionally had and amazingly had a ton of agencies submit proposals for breakout sessions that are honestly fabulous. And it's them sharing the work that they're doing within their own Community Action agency that other social services and other community action agencies can can case as I like to steal say copy and steal everything case.
00:09:31
Right. Well, there's no there's no no new ideas. There's just improvement of the old ideas. Right.
Yep. Well, and as a reminder for people who are listening, our conference is really for yes, Community Action agencies, but also other human services, social services providers, folks who work sort of in mission align fields. We have anywhere from board members all the way through to frontline staff and everybody in the middle that comes to comes to this event. And so the learning has to really reflect that as well. And so as we think about kind of the logistics of the ne like that first that whole week of that we're all together. Let's talk about what's actually happening. So sell me on sort of the pre-conference right like what's happening there? Why should somebody come? So the conference is Monday through Thursday last week of October. Again Monday and Tuesday is a little bit different than Wednesday and Thursday.
00:10:20
So, if you can walk everybody through sort of what that looks like, the super sexy parts of the event kind of right, like why should I come on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday and Thursday versus just Wednesday and Thursday?
I mean, the sexiest part of the event is the weatherization precon day. Like, come on, let's go. Um, you get all the weatherization agencies together, it's a it's a ride. It's a fun time.
But that's part of Monday. Um, Erika, do you want to talk about the Fiscal Boot Camp?
Sure. Yeah. So, the weatherization piece is a hybrid event on Monday. Um the fiscal boot camp, we have a two-day um event. So, that'll be Monday and Tuesday. Um that will include folks from RKL's team. Um actually a Community Action agency will be speaking as well. Um and so that will be a few different topics around fiscal for that event. You can register for both events or just Monday or Tuesday. um the Leadership CAAP that kicked off a few weeks ago. Um we're really excited about that class. They will also be meeting during pre-conference. Um so we are excited to host them again for their second in-person meetup. And then the executive leadership meeting, an annual meeting is also on Tuesday. So that is for members and their executive teams to come together. And then we have Brenda Reynolds who is doing an organization workshop on Tuesday. Um Brenda is new to the Community Action world. She has not been a speaker at one of our events before.
00:11:57
She has been on the Thinking CAAP previously.
Yes, she's been on the Thinking CAAP. Um and I'm sure you will see her more and more as we continue to move forward with her. But she is putting on a workshop um around organizational culture. Um, so there will be a um simulation really um where she can she'll walk participants through kind of what it's like um the pressures, the tensions, the challenges within teams um from leadership all the way down to frontline staff. So that's super exciting. That will be mostly the Leadership CAAP fellows, but then some other people can join as well.
00:12:34
So if you want to hang out with some awesome Leadership CAAP fellows, you should sign up for the organizational workshop. Well, and from what Brenda sort of explained to me that that that workshop was really around helping people understand the influences of workplace culture, right? As you sort of alluded to there, Erika, around sort of like the tensions that tend to happen within organizations and how people individually influence the culture of the organization, right? I think that's what that she sort of described to me. And so, it's, you know, Community Action. We love a good simulation. Many of our agencies do poverty simulations. And this is sort of right like a similar kind of simulation experience so that people can understand and then debrief about how to change some of the behaviors that they maybe exhibit or how they can differently influence other structures that might be in place there.
00:13:23
And of course Tuesday night is also CAAPy Hour because we love a good pun.
Yes.
Tell me a little bit about CAAPy Hour. What can people expect? I mean that's one of my favorite parts of the event.
Yeah. So CAAPy Hour is sponsored by Marsh McLennan Agency and Key Risk Insurance. So, thank you to both of them. Um, shout out. And they are hosting a happy hour that will be Halloween themed. Um, we will be giving out a few awards for best dressed costume, funniest costume, a few other awards. So, we hope to see you there.
And in the past, we've done karaoke. I don't know if that's the plan again or not, but we'll just get your singing shoes on. Singing shoes. Is that a thing? I don't know.
00:14:04
That's not a thing, sir. No,
I don't do karaoke.
Make it a thing. We can totally make it a thing.
Enjoy it. So, yeah. Anyway, all right.
I will say one of my favorite karaoke singers is Dave Young, who last year came dressed as Beck, which was fantastic.
Rock on, Dave Young. You are my favorite karaoke artist. So, then there's lots of sessions throughout Wednesday and Thursday. I've not totaled them up, but I'm going to say 27. Maybe
25 breakout sessions.
I was a total guest watching. So close.
00:14:36
So, lots of sessions. If you could each attend maybe three sessions as a participant, not as a CAAP staff member with all the responsibilities that come with helping to organize the conference. Which three are you sneaking into? What are the ones that are getting you excited? Or just do your highlight reel. That's okay, too. Don't show any favoritism. I appreciate that. We've got agencies who are speaking and partners who are speaking. So,
I mean, it's kind of hard to choose. I don't know about you, Erika, there are so many good ones. One of my favorites that I'm excited about though is um Mandy Zalich doing the gamblers tips for leadership. Uh Mandy's such an amazing leader of Westmoreland Community Action and I I would love to see her light-hearted, humorous filled here's how you lead session. I think it'll be a lot of fun.
00:15:24
Yeah, that's definitely going to be a good one. I also agree. U when I was looking at the sessions again, I'm like how am I going to only pick three? Um, but one that came that stuck out to me was uh the one that is with Samuel Faulkner. Um, so he's a new speaker and his is around um the privilege and the pain sustaining yourself and your team through burnout, secondary trauma. Um, and so I just feel like a lot of people are experiencing that right now. And so I'd be interested to sit in on that one and see how to better manage.
00:15:57
Another really exciting one for me is resilience and recovery. preparing your organization for tomorrow being presented by Julie Jakopic um who I love and adore. I want to be her when I grow up. She's absolutely phenomenal. I got to see her at the NCAP conference last week presenting a a slightly different session and it was it was
awesome. Amazing.
I'm getting to hang out with Julie tomorrow. I'm really excited to spend some time with her and she's a longtime friend of Community Action. or listeners, if you've been around Community Action, you know Julie, particularly if you're from Pennsylvania, right, you've probably interacted with her quite a bit. So, yeah, I'm excited to have her at the conference as well. I do want to back up to the fiscal boot camp because one of the things that I don't want to forget about is that Brandi Fleming, who is also a former podcast guest and uh from one of our agencies, Indiana Community Action. She's doing a part of the fiscal boot camp around really kind of helping to bridge the gap between fiscal and program which I think is such a really important topic that we think about how to how to help people understand because it's not something that naturally kind of happens a lot of times right program and fiscal become really siloed.
So I know that I'm excited to be able to kind of start having some different sessions on that now and in the future. So fiscal boot camp, you know, for folks who are fiscal people, if you're listening, that is something that you can can look forward to. Of course, there'll be other like really exciting things like adaptive budgeting and, you know, compliance and uniform guidance as always, but excited about that programmatic piece.
00:17:25
There's also I just want to highlight a couple other like key topics that are going to be talked about. That's right.
No, absolutely. Yeah, we've got, you know, one of the things that we heard a lot is, or at least that I heard a lot in my cohort calls was wanting to have ability to do more feedback. You know, we think of a lot of the, you know, the annual performance reviews kind of like sad trombone won't. Um, so wanting to have that something about that. And we have Rachel Hudzik coming in to actually help with that. She's going to talk about smart goals, all sorts of stuff. We also have Debra Mitchell coming in. and she's going to be talking about change management. You know, Erika mentioned earlier, everyone's going through all of these changes constantly. So, we have that and we do have guests coming to talk about AI and um you know, the machines that we use and how do we actually integrate it in a positive way. Um so, I think there's going to be something for everyone there.
00:18:19
Well, I know that one of the sessions that I'm excited about also is the self-sufficiency uh session with Erin Lukoss and Robin Rohrbaugh. So, Bucks County Opportunity Council and Community Progress Council to really talk about kind of some of the organizational readiness factors that agencies need to be prepared for when they are thinking about putting in a program like self-sufficiency. Um, really helping people, right, become economically mobile, which every Community Action agency calls that program a little bit, you know, something a little bit different, but a core of what, you know, our our agencies are collectively trying to really implement. Is there something on the agenda this year that you think people might be surprised to see at a Community Action conference without giving away right like all of our trade secrets completely? But
one of mine, one of my favorites that I was going to highlight was um with Amanda Burns from CAP Lancaster around reduced work weeks. Um we have a reduced work week at CAAP. Um
well, at least we tried to.
00:19:19
Some of us are better about it than others to be fair. Um, and so I would be interested to sit in on that one and see how they did it at CAP Lancaster. Um, but I that might be one that's surprising for folks to have.
Yeah, I think that's fair. I mean, a lot of our agencies have implemented different strategies to really help think about how to create uh a uh I I know we're not supposed to really use the phrase work life balance, but how do you put forth better work life balance? How do you think about strategies to retain staff? And that's something that many of our agencies have been able to do. And you know, I think a lot of times when people think about human services, it doesn't seem like something that's realistic or is possible, but can be can be accomplished. Frankly,
I think something else that I want to highlight, just having been at like three different conferences in the past two weeks, we're also switching things up a little bit. Um, like yes, we have an awesome keynote, which I'm sure we'll talk about in a little bit, that's going to kick us off, but rather than doing like the traditional plenary at the beginning of the second day, we've got a panel coming in that's going to be phenomenal. And we're putting our plenary actually at the end of conference so that that way people can absorb all of this learning and then end with an understanding of, okay, here's where we're at and here's where we can go. so that people will leave with this sense of excitement and joy and understanding, you know, how we're going to move forward with our Mission: Possible.
00:20:44
No pressure on me who is the plenary speaker.
No pressure at all.
It's all right. I'll bring the energy.
We'll make sure you get seven Red Bulls before you go up.
Yes. Although these days it's Alani. So Alani, if you're listening and you want to sponsor the podcast, let me know. Grape, orange,
either of those flavors or watermelon's not too bad either. And there's 200 milligrams of caffeine in those in case anybody's curious. I only drank one a day, maybe not every day. To be clear, if my doctor's listening, I'm okay. I promise. All right. So, I want to just I'm going to look at my questions. I want to be thoughtful of a couple things we've already kind of covered. So we've we've talked about this a little bit, but let's talk about, you know, a little bit about kind of the experience that we provide a little bit more. So one thing that we've talked about in the past is that our conference isn't just about training, right? It's about what's happening in the hallways. It's happen. What's happening at dinner? What's happening at happy hour? What's happening at the captivating awards ceremony? Or you're just sitting next to somebody at a table. You're having breakfast with somebody. Why does all that stuff matter for us?
00:21:57
For for me, it's about making those connections and networking and feeling like you have a place to go when you do have questions. Um feeling like you have a place to go to bounce ideas, to brainstorm, to find solutions. Um so creating those connections at the conference we try to be really intentional about activities that you can do um you know seating arrangements different the structure of the conference overall. Um, we try to be really intentional about creating those moments so that you can connect with people that you might not typically um so that you have those uh maybe new friendships whenever you go back to your office and you can um talk to them whenever you're in you're in a challenging situation.
00:22:43
And let's be honest, work should be fun. Conference should be fun. We are going to have a good time
as our keynote told us last year, right? Work can be fun. And you know, I think for me it's having worked at a large nationally worked organization previously, right? I think part of the value for me going to those types of conferences pretty often is remembering that I'm also not alone, right? Like finding somebody who's in a similar position at another organization that's maybe all the way across the state. And I think early on in my career in that space, right, like you sort of get this sense of really the power of who you can be collectively. And so even though we're only sitting in a room with maybe 250 of closest new friends and family within Community Action, we represent and I think you get a sense of this over I think it's over 4,000 employees across Community Action just in the state of Pennsylvania alone. And so starting to get to know some of those people, right?
00:23:39
like those are the people that even today I've stayed in communication with that I may not talk to all the time but they were the they were sort of my lifeline people. So identifying who your lifeline people are can I think oftentimes make or break you at different points in your career when you're just struggling and you're like I don't want to complain to somebody right that's sitting next to me in the cube and I just need to talk to somebody who's going to understand and I feel like this this is so unique to what I'm experiencing and you just find that person and they become your your work bestie. Well, that's one of the cool things about our network, too, is what you're doing in one county, someone else is doing in another county and another county. And, you know, like you said before, nothing is brand new. We can we can learn from each other. And we continue that throughout the year with our cohort calls.
Um, so you can make those connections at conference and continue making them on your own, but you can also attend, you know, the HR cohort call or the fiscal cohort call and continue with growing those relationships and resources across the year.
00:24:44
And so, not to back up too much, but I just want to make sure to ask a really important question. How seriously should people really be taking their costumes for Halloween happy hour?
Very seriously. I already have like my whole costume mapped out. I have stuff ordered. So, most of it's in. I am I'm ready to go.
What about you?
I don't.
Sorry.
What about you? Are you Are you prepped and ready? You have your costume. You ready to go?
No, I have no idea. But I will be. Don't worry. I will be ready.
00:25:19
It's fun. Like, come however you want to. I I do love a funny like tongue and cheek costume. It's always good.
Yeah. I mean, if people don't want to dress up, if they're like, "Oh, no. That's not, you know, that's too juvenile for me." All right, that's fine. Take the high road, right? Don't don't dress up. That's cool. You can still hang out with us. You might not be able to sit with me, but you'll still be able to hang out with us.
You might be quietly judged,
right? Or openly judged by me, but that's okay. I still
You won't win a prize. No prize.
Okay, that's a good point. Okay. Yes, good point. But still, come please. Right. Like, we we want people to have a good time. And this is our one of our opportunities just to kind of chill out and enjoy each other. We have some snacks, right? We try to throw a good party. So, it's important. And then
it's fun to let your hair down a little bit. And and it please do not Yeah.
00:26:07
Please do not spend a ton of money on your costumes. Like it's making your I will say I can't wait to see what the PA Nav team does this year if they do another group costume. They went as the Magic Eightball last year and it was absolutely hilarious.
It was so good. really good. So, one of the other really important nights of our conference is Wednesday night and the CAAPtivating Excellence Awards. So can can one of you share a little bit about what that event is and why is it why did we start to include this as a celebration into our our conference and sort of take a pause on the professional development part because we could still have sessions right like right up until the ninth ninth hour of the evening but we choose to include this awards ceremony into our conference really intentionally and deliberately.
00:26:58
Yeah. So the award ceremony is Wednesday evening. Um we will have a cocktail hour and then going to dinner and then the award ceremony will follow dinner. Um this is really a space where we recognize staff members from AC across the state um who have been nominated for different awards. Um and it's really again a space to recognize them to get that um to feel good about themselves and the work they're doing the way they're giving back. Um, we really wanted, like Beck kind of mentioned, to to for the conference to not all be just training and learning. Um, again, a space for you to connect with the network on a more casual basis. Um, and to really recognize who are doing the people who are doing the work and in order to be nominated like people are nominated by their colleagues. So, and we get so many nominations. We have a committee internally at CAAP that reviews everybody and I have not read a nomination that hasn't been worthy. So we do have to like limit the number of awards we give out.
But it's so exciting to see the amazing work and dedication across the whole state. Um and you know part of what we're here for is to celebrate the work being done and we get to celebrate you know these people who may not often get recognized. they can come, they can bring some, you know, a family member. We get dressed up. Um, I may or may not have worn an outfit that was covered in sequins last year. Um, but it's a it's a fun night of celebration of what our members are actually doing.
00:28:35
Yeah. Yeah, I mean I one of my it's one of the my favorite parts of the of the event because there are people that were able to lift up and celebrate that you know never forget there was a a gentleman who was celebrated maybe it was two years ago if I'm not mistaken but he had been a van driver at an agency for like 35 years and had gone above and beyond in so many different ways and to be able to celebrate him on stage in just a way that, you know, yes, an agency could celebrate somebody, but this is on a statewide, you know, way where other people get to hear and clap for him, I think is something that's really kind of right, cool and meaningful that hopefully, you know, people enjoy. But we've got, you know, cocktail hour, we've got the dinner, we've got the awards, we've got a photo booth, right?
00:29:24
It's a it's a whole evening of celebration
and the awardees get their photo taken with Beck. What more could you want?
Yes.
On stage on stage,
right? I'm really sorry for I'm really sorry for all of you who have this picture taken. We can take your picture just by yourself if you want. You just let me know. Just silently kind of, you know, whisper in my ear when we're up there and I'll step out of the way.
I don't think people take enough time though to to brag on themselves and cheer themselves on. We do amazing work. The the member our member agencies, they are all doing hard work all the time and they are awesome at it. So, anytime we get to lift up how amazing they are makes me happy. It fills my proverbial cup. Yeah, it's a good time for sure. And agreed.
00:30:01
And we love to see you dressed up, but no pressure on getting dressed up,
right? If if you if you want to come in jeans and a t-shirt, come as you are. No pressure. I like a good suit, so I'm going to be in a suit and I also have to be on stage and, you know, so but
you have to look pretty.
Yes, I do.
Part of your job,
dust off dust off my suits for for conference time. So, let's talk about some of like the little things that while I think We think of them as little things, but they also mean big impact in a lot of in a lot of ways. So, you know, we've got we've got the store and we've got networking and we've got costumes, but what are some of the other little things that are built into while people are there that they're going to experience? Can you share a little bit about some of those?
00:30:50
I mean, we have puppies coming.
Yeah, the therapy dogs will be back. I feel like that's period. That's all we need.
Was a highlight of last year for sure. I love seeing grown people just sitting on the ground play in in their suits and dresses and stuff just playing with puppies. That what more could you want? We also have Hattie McCarter coming back to do uh some interviews and she's going to share her Lead Up magazine with us. Yep. Hattie will be there. Um we'll have headshot back with Karlo who was here or who was at the conference last year. So, he will be doing headshot again on Wednesday. Um, obviously CAAP Bucks will be around. So, get your CAAP Bucks and take them to the store.
00:31:35
Can you explain what CAAP Bucks are? And also, I just want to say for the for the headshot, right? If if you've already registered, you can go on and you can add that as an add-on. If you've already registered, reach out to us at info@thecaap.org. But it's a really simple way that we've tried to be thoughtful about how somebody who might be a new professional, you know, they may not get the opportunity to get a headshot. We did try to offer that in a low-cost way for people to take advantage of. We can talk a little bit about kind of CAAP Bucks in the store and what people can expect. I don't want to because
CAAP Bucks are also often referred to as Beck bucks despite Beck not wanting them called that because they have his face on them.
00:32:13
Was not my design choice to be clear. Just so everybody listening understands. I do think though for the maybe for the the next year since we are already planning for next year we should have like CAAP Buck wrapping paper as something you can pick up in the store. I think that might be fun.
Back space.
No, but CAAP Bucks um are are our our currency within the conference. You can get them from speakers. All of the speakers are given CAAP Bucks to give out um to encourage participation in their sessions. CAAP staff has them. So, if we see someone doing something awesome, you'll get a couple CAAP Bucks. Sometimes they're hidden under seats. Don't just randomly look. Don't hurt yourself. We will tell you if there's some under a seat somewhere. But you can turn them in for um for things at our CAAP Store.
00:32:59
So, clothes, tchotchkes, cap, swag, stuff that connects you back to the Community Action network,
walking dragons,
walking dragons. If you don't know, if you know, and if you don't know, you don't know. You have to come and find out. But all things it's just another way for us to give out more swag, right, and create some engagement. So if you want to know what's going to be featured at our store, check out our store online. You can go to our website, right, and check those out. But a simple way to get a whole bunch of cap swag. All right, so a couple last questions before we wrap up this afternoon. So I want you to each finish this sentence. You ready? You got your answers locked and loaded. All right. So, if you only come to one CAAP event this year, come to the conference because
Mel, you go first.
00:33:55
If you only come to one CAAP event this year, come to the conference because you are going to learn so much that you can take back and actively start changing and improving. You know, I'm a big continuous improvement girly. like little steps constantly make big improvements and you will leave with a lot of action steps and things to do that aren't so cumbersome and scary but things you can actually do. That's why I would attend
and because you have to. But also
well I mean there's that too.
But also in fairness but but for the record Mel came to the conference before she had to come to the conference.
00:34:29
Yep. I that's actually how I met Community Action of Pennsylvania was attending a conference and getting feedback on what what everyone thought about the Commonwealth while I worked at the Commonwealth. That was fun. It was a good time. I'll never forget Wendy Wendy Malis talking to me. Awesome. Chef's kiss. I was like, I must work with this organization
doing Yeah. So Mel was doing continuous improvement work for DCED previously before I stole her over to the CAAP side. And Erika, what about you? If you could only come to one CAAP event this week or this year, not this week. Good God. This this year, come to the conference because dot dot dot.
00:35:09
Um, I would come to the conference because you will leave uh hopefully feeling rejuvenated, refreshed, and with new connections that you can talk to after the fact. And so for the person who's listening thinking right like I'd love to go but I don't know if my agency can spare me for two days. What's the argument for why the investment is worth it? What should the person go back and tell the big cheese?
So we spend so much time working in the business. You know we're doing the things we're getting them done but we don't always take that time to take a step back and work on the business. And when we invest in that working on the business time, we can make the processes and the the way we do our work every day so much better and more efficient. So getting that dedicated time to step back to be and sometimes too just being in a place that is not where you normally work allows your brain to relax and start seeing other possibilities and you do get so many connections and you make not just friends but you you meet experts um that sometimes people do end up like no shameless plugs or anything but some people do end up hiring the people we bring in to do work at their agencies because they realize Oh, this is a gap we have. We we want to fill that gap.
00:36:32
And for what it's worth, I think our team does a really great job of vetting all of the content to making sure that it's valuable to our participants that the consultants that we bring, the speakers that we bring, are highly skilled, right? We try to be very thoughtful about a mix of those consultants and partners to make sure to bring to the forefront.
um making sure that you know it's people who can really provide the solutions the action steps as you said you spoke to before Mel right it's not just about coming and learning it's also about how do I leave here and have action to be able to to do the thing after I I leave and so I do want to make sure to give you all a shout out because again I'm not the person who's choosing all of those sessions right you all are you're the ones doing the hard work and making sure to then go vet those presentations to make sure that they are the most valuable to the participants that are there so I know that it is something that last year it was one of my favorite comments that we got during Hattie's closing which was that it really felt like leadership is listening to what our needs are what we are concerned about what we are struggling with and that's reflective of not just CAAP leadership but also the network's leadership right and what our executive directors are lifting up to us and where we can be helpful in those those kind of um responsive emerging training needs.
And so I love that. Right.
00:37:56
And I will say too like do the surveys, the session surveys, the conference survey. I know we ask you to do so many surveys. I am sorry. Um but we have intentionally made the session surveys under a minute. It will take less than a minute to complete. And we use those to gauge who do we bring back for other um projects with us and what are the topics and issues that we need to make sure we cover in our next event. Um, so those surveys that we do send out are very helpful. We we use them a lot.
Yeah. I mean, and if you have like a really fun idea about something that we should bring, a swag idea, also share that with us because, you know, we all are very creative. I'd like to think we're all very creative people, but if there's something fun that you see at another event, tell us so that we can think about how to include it. I know this year we we've talked about right like how to shift a couple things and we're racking our brains a little bit about because people say like oh you you know how are you gonna how are you going to top this year? Well we can only top the year if you help to influence right some of those improvement pieces. So yes take the surveys please. There's a there's an app right you can do it on your phone whatever way is more convenient for you specifically but please please fill out surveys.
00:39:13
Erika, anything that you would add to the investment question, the sort of sales pitch question?
Yeah, I guess I am a big believer in taking care of yourself before you can take care of others. And so I feel like this conference is a space we haven't touched on all of the activities intentionally because we want some of them to be a surprise. Um, but a lot of them are, you know, really focusing on the attendee, making sure they have some quiet time, some time to themselves to really re-calibrate, um, reignite, like Mel kind of touched on, to be able to go back to their organizations, to their families, to their communities, and, um, be the best versions of themselves that they can be without taking that time for yourself. I feel like it's really difficult to do that. And so hopefully this space is a is a week where you can really focus on yourself and um learn some new some new tricks.
00:40:07
So any last thoughts you want to share with our listeners about the event? Anything you want to highlight? Another shameless plug here and then I want to make sure to close with a couple housekeeping items that we want to make sure to highlight in terms of how to register, when to register, room block, all of those things. But anything else that you want to highlight about the event, anything you're excited about, missed and wanted to make sure to share today. I'm a little afraid I might end up sharing a secret. So, I'm going to let Erika answer that one because I I I am sometimes the person who overshares and ruins the surprise.
Very exciting. We have some cool new additions this year. Um, but I don't think I don't think that I think that's it.
00:40:48
I don't even think I know about all of them yet. The team likes to surprise me, I think, sometimes. Oh, there are some things that I have in store for you, Beck, that that you Yeah, it's going to be entertaining.
As long as if I have to do a selfie on stage again, somebody gives me a selfie stick because that was my maybe the most awkward thing I've ever done in my entire life.
I'm going to go buy one right now on Amazon.
I'm sure somebody on this team has a selfie stick. All right, so a couple housekeeping items we want to make sure to highlight. So number one, early bird registration has already closed and so but registration stays open through October 7th at 5:00 p.m. So if you haven't registered yet, right, conference itself for dates is October 26th through the 29th at the Eden Resort & Suites in Lancaster. Main conference dates are October 28th through the 29th. Pre-conference dates are the 26th and the 27th. You can go to thecaap.org to check out the website, right? Learn more about the event. You can check out the agenda who the speakers are. Really excited about the uh the the keynote with Marie Conley who was a longtime friend of mine and friend of community action. The room block for this resort uh for the the Eden does close on September 25th. So that's also another important date. And I also just want to remind folks who are listening that we really try to do our due diligence about keeping the cost of attendance low.
And we do that through our great sponsors, right? and our ability to just be thoughtful about all the expenses of the event. Uh we've had scholarship dollars that have been provided from various different partners and so we try to make sure that cost is not preventative for people to attend. So we just want to make sure to shout that out. But we've all obviously like right we've barely scratched the surface. We want people to be surprised. We want people to be excited. So we don't want to give away all of our secrets. There's done dozens of sessions. I think we said 25. Yes.
25. Good job.
Lots of speakers, pre-conference, surprises. Again, head over to thecaap.org, check out the full Mission Possible agenda. Find out the sessions that you want to attend. Registration closes October 7th, and we hope to see people there. It's going to be a great time. Hopefully, that room is filled. 250 of your closest new friends and get to hang out with the CAAP team and the remarkable people like Mel and and Erika who helped to make all the things possible at CAAP.
Appreciate you both.
00:43:14
Appreciate you both so much and hope to see you soon to all of our listeners at the Thinking CAAP. Check you the next time.
Thank you for being a part of this episode of the Thinking CAAP. Check the show notes for resources and links to other episodes. And don't forget to subscribe and follow to be notified when new episodes are released. If you have any Community Action questions you'd like Beck, Amanda, or one of our local experts to answer in a future episode, please email your questions about Community Action to info@thecaap.org. Subject line Thinking CAAP.
If you have any Community Action questions you’d like Beck or one of our local experts to answer in a future episode, please email your questions about Community Action to info@thecaap.org — subject line: Thinking CAAP.