STUDY GROUP
LEADER TRAINING
Level One: Text

9-Week Intensive for Current or Future Study Group Leaders
Hosted by Robert Perry & Mary Anne Buchowski
Circle of Atonement

September 11th - November 6th
Classes will be held on Saturdays from
2pm - 4pm Eastern

REGISTER

Do you have a calling to lead a Course in Miracles Complete Edition (CE) study group?

For those who love the Complete and Annotated Edition (CE), this is a natural thing to do. We hear from many of you about wanting to start a group around the CE (or to convert an existing one), and we are pleased to help you in that process.

From September 11 through November 6, we will be hosting a 9-week training for study group leaders, focusing on taking students through the Text.

In this study group leader training, you will learn the following:

  • The crucial role of teachers
  • The fear of teaching and what to do about it 
  • Being a devoted, rather than an egotistical, teacher
  • The importance and nature of the Text
  • How to deal with incorrect views, common misunderstandings, and outside influences
  • Teaching as miracle working and a holy encounter
  • How to facilitate groups and lead discussion
  • How to manage a group process and navigate challenging dynamics

At the end of the training, with satisfactory class attendance and completion of the weekly assignments, you will receive a certificate indicating that you have completed the Circle's Study Group Leader Training Level One (Text). 

The following will be our training schedule:

Week 1: September 11th 

Welcome and introductions
The Circle’s Approach
The Course’s program: study, practice, and extension 

Week 2: September 18th

The crucial role of teachers
The fear of teaching
The egotistical teacher and the devoted teacher 

Week 3: September 25th

The Course as a complete path: “nothing is lacking that is needed”
How to deal with erroneous views and outside influences
Course lore: common misunderstandings about ACIM teachings

Week 4: October 2nd

Preparing for the meeting: setting the goal
How to go through the study guides / delivering experiential exercises
The format of your meetings 

Week 5: October 9th

Sample meeting: Taking students through the study guides

Week 6: October 16th

Teaching as miracle working / holy encounter

Week 7: October 23rd

Leading discussion: listening, asking, and answering questions 

Week 8: October 30th

Group dynamics / facilitation / resistance 

Week 9: November 6th

Summary session and wrap-up

In addition, once the training itself is complete, we provide a tremendous amount of support to help you begin and sustain your group. This support is offered at no extra charge and includes: 

  • A series of 73 discussion guides for taking your group week-by-week through the Text over a period of 18 months. These guides are written by Robert and contain summaries of key themes, a selection of important passages to cover, and questions for discussion. Robert and Mary Anne will show you — through a combination of instruction and demonstration — how to take your group through the Text with these guides. Many of our graduates use the discussion guides to lead meetings and find they make the process much easier. Click here to view a sample discussion guide.
  • Inclusion on the Circle’s Study Group webpage. Once you form your group, we will be happy to add you to our study group page on the Circle’s website. We regularly promote this page to our mailing list, which will help students find you more easily. You can view the Study Group page here: https://circleofa.org/studygroups/
  • Done-for-you marketing materials. At the end of the training we will provide you with a “promotional kit” of marketing copy and beautifully-designed graphics you can use to share your group online. This promotional kit is perfect if you don’t want to bother with copywriting or design at all, or if you just need some inspiration to create your own. Click here to view a sample graphic.

We also have an option for you to receive additional support from Mary Anne in an ongoing Teacher and Leader Support community. Teacher and Leader Support meetings are held weekly and offer a way to address real-time situations in your group, stay connected to other CE study group leaders, and go deeper into topics from the original training.

Note: To register for this training, we require that you have read the Text of the Complete and Annotated Edition of A Course in Miracles (CE). In addition, it is highly recommended that you have participated in our Course Companions online community.

I feel called to teach ACIM and fortunately The Circle of Atonement graciously put together a comprehensive, beyond expectation SGLT. I loved every minute and still reap the benefits of understanding the role of teacher, what to do, what not to do and all the associated how tos. The light within me shines a little brighter every day as I walk this path and play my part in God's plan and I can truly thank Robert, Mary Anne and The Circle for their insightful guidance and support.

- 2020 SGLT Participant

About Your Hosts

Robert Perry

Founder

Robert Perry brings to A Course in Miracles many years of private study and public teaching. He began teaching at Miracle Distribution Center in 1986, and has since taught throughout North America and around the world. 

Robert is the founder of the Circle of Atonement and the author of numerous books and booklets based on the Course. Among these are the popular An Introduction to A Course in Miracles and Path of Light: Stepping into Peace with A Course in Miracles. He is also the lead editor of the Complete and Annotated Edition (CE) of A Course in Miracles, based on the original handwritten notes of Helen Schucman.

Mary Anne Buchowski

Teacher

Mary Anne Buchowski is a long-time Circle teacher who has been associated with the Circle from its beginnings. She spent several years working for the Circle in Sedona, fulfilling administrative, programming, and teaching duties, while being trained as a teacher and mentored by Robert.

In 2004, she returned home to Ottawa, Canada and founded, with her husband James Gregory, Course Oasis, the Circle’s first satellite organization. Mary Anne is responsible for the Circle’s Teacher-of-Pupils Training Program and study group leader training and support. She works and teaches from her home base in Ottawa.

Registration includes:

  • Nine weeks of training (September 11th - November 6th from 2 pm - 4 pm Eastern on Saturdays).
  • All recordings and handouts.
  • 73 discussion guides to take your group week-by-week through the Text over a period of 18 months.
  • Done-for-you promotional copy and social media graphics to share your group.
  • Study Group Leader Training certificate. (Class attendance and homework completion required for certification.)

$299
(Two-month payment plan available.)

We are pleased to offer members of our Course Companions program 15% off. Please email info@circleofa.org for the discount code.

REGISTER

Please note that no one is turned away from Circle programming for an inability to pay. For partial or full scholarship information, please email info@circleofa.org.thirea

FAQs

What if I can’t come to all of the classes?

Although it is highly recommended that you attend all of the Saturday classes, they will be recorded, with replays and handouts being sent out on the following Monday. So even if you can’t attend a class, you will be able to catch up at your convenience.

How much time will this training take?

We will meet over 9 weeks for 2 hours of live teaching and discussion, followed by a weekly homework assignment. It’s up to you how long you spend on each assignment, but it is advisable to allow an hour or two. Completion of the assignments is required to achieve certification as a Circle-trained study group leader. (Please note: You will have up to November 30th to complete assignments for certification.)

What is required to receive certification?

At the end of the training, upon completion of the weekly assignments and with satisfactory class attendance, you will receive a certificate indicating that you have completed the Study Group Leader Training Level One (Text). This certification will allow you to note that you are a Circle-trained study group leader and will also enable you to receive special designation on our Study Group page.

If I take the Study Group Leader Training, am I committed to starting a study group?

While there is no requirement to start a study group, we have designed the training and offer post-training resources to make the process of leading a group as easy as possible.

How long do I need to have been studying A Course in Miracles before I can lead a CE Text study group?

The length of time you have been studying the Course is less important than your confidence and familiarity with the Text. As a minimum, we require that you have completed the Text of the CE yourself before taking this training. In addition, we highly recommend that you have participated in our Course Companions online community.

Do I have to use a particular version of A Course in Miracles to take this training? And what about study group members?

Study Group Leader Training was designed for students of the Complete and Annotated Edition (CE) of A Course in Miracles, and this is reflected in the reading schedules, class content, and discussion guides. 

While the Workbook for Students and Manual for Teachers contain only minor differences when compared with earlier editions, the Text of the CE is significantly different. It includes around 45,000 words that have been restored from Helen Schucman’s original notebooks. In addition, the 33 Cameo essays in Appendix I of the CE are an important part of the Text Reading Schedule and aid foundational understanding, especially of the earlier chapters. 

I’ve been running a study group for many years, using another edition of the Course. Is it worth me taking this training?

Yes. This training has proven to be very helpful for existing study group leaders who would like to transfer to using the CE in their groups.

Are scholarships available?

Yes. No one is turned away from Circle programming for inability to pay. If you’re feeling the call to take this training and would like information about partial or full scholarship opportunities, please email info@circleofa.org.

I was hesitant about taking Study Group Leader Training, but I am grateful that I bit the bullet. I gained a deeper understanding of Course teachings which in turn gives me greater confidence in leading a Course study group. The icing on the cake is my ongoing, developing relationship with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. The quality of the content and the team effort of delivery and support are priceless. I would recommend the training to anyone.

- 2020 SGLT Participant

From our origin in 1993, the purpose of the Circle of Atonement has been to be a bridge into the profound and unparalleled wisdom of A Course in Miracles. We clarify the Course’s sometimes difficult language in order to make possible a deeper understanding of its teachings. We then help you put those teachings into practice, explaining how to apply them in your everyday life. Our work grows out of our commitment to be as faithful as possible to what A Course in Miracles says. It also grows out of our years of dedication to walking this path ourselves and our desire to see the Course’s purpose realized in the lives of students and in the world.