May not be displayed as page — Placeholder
On In-Service Trainings
“As the Staff Development/Quality Assurance Director of a local nursing home, our staff have been fortunate to receive and participate in monthly training and education provided by Dr. Stafford. The topics she has covered in her education sessions have centered on a variety of topics related to the psychosocial and behavioral aspects of providing care to our residents. Our staff have found her instruction interesting, relevant to the care that they provide, and have commented to how informative and helpful the education has been. We are truly fortunate to have her as part of our team!”
- Steve Schuman; RN
“Great content. Helpful, practical examples”
- Anonymous evaluation comment from a nurse
“I liked being able to discuss case situations and get a better understanding of how to relate to residents.”
- Anonymous evaluation comment from a nurse
The most helpful thing about this training was “distinguishing the symptoms of anxiety, panic attacks, and the other disorders that were mentioned.”
- Anonymous evaluation comment from a CNA
The most helpful thing about this training was “learning new things about an illness [psychosis] that we deal with often.”
- Anonymous evaluation comment from a CNA
“What was most helpful is how to approach a person with a trauma history.”
- Anonymous evaluation comment from a CNA
On Public Speaking
“Amra Stafford’s gifts as a speaker reflect her deep connections to place, and her reverence for spirit. She has the ability to see the unique traits in people, and to bring them to light for celebration. I worked with Amra in three distinct settings where I saw her speak publically. Even venue revealed different facets of her speaking talents. She is articulate and thoughtful in all ways, and very adept at aptly matching the words she chooses with the occasion for which she is speaking.
As the leader of our campus service-learning efforts, Amra worked hard to build support for and to celebrate the efforts of professors, student leaders, and community partners. Each spring she planned a spring celebration event called the Sunrise Awards. She would present the awards to various partners in the service-learning courses, always finding the unique contributions of each person. She has strong intuitive grasps of the people she works with, knowing how to speak to and celebrate their strengths in ways that make them feel particularly valued.
I also worked with Amra as a co-teacher for a world literature class. In that venue, her speaking was more dialogue-based, as we had a small group of students for our summer class. Amra’s easygoing manner established an excellent rapport with the students, and she shared effortlessly her impressive knowledge of Slavic literatures with these students. Since I was the more analytical partner in that co-teaching experience, our team approach provided students with a nice contrast to think through the politics of place as seen in the literature we studied that summer. Amra can be a fairly quiet person in some ways, but meaning fills the spaces she does not need to fill with words. In her manner with students, she suggests a reverence for stillness, meditative thoughts, and the contemplation of place, and rarely chooses a word unwisely.
The last venue I saw Amra speak in was when she gave a lecture for the Sonoma State War and Peace Series. Her topic was on land. This was a more formal presentation than even the Sunrise ceremonies. Here, she shared her expertise on the significance of land, especially with regard to spiritual practice. Again, she is a speaker that does not waste words and is comfortable with allowing even a large room to explore a thought or concept in silence as she pauses between topics. This is not an easy skill as a speaker, as many of us rush to fill in every second of time with words. She speaks deliberately, and with good pacing and dynamics, drawing attention to both the visible trauma of violence surrounding completing claims to land, as well as the less visible but equally compelling feelings of reverence for land that connect humans to it in the first place.”
- Tim Wandling, Ph.D.; Professor, Sonoma State University
1a: “Amra Stafford’s gifts as a speaker reflect her deep connections to place, and her reverence for spirit. She has the ability to see the unique traits in people, and to bring them to light for celebration.
Tim Wandling, Ph.D.; Professor, Sonoma State University
1b: “Again, she is a speaker that does not waste words and is comfortable with allowing even a large room to explore a thought or concept in silence as she pauses between topics. This is not an easy skill as a speaker, as many of us rush to fill in every second of time with words. She speaks deliberately, and with good pacing and dynamics, drawing attention to both the visible trauma of violence surrounding completing claims to land, as well as the less visible but equally compelling feelings of reverence for land that connect humans to it in the first place.”
Tim Wandling, Ph.D.; Professor, Sonoma State University
