Most training is treated like an event: a two-day workshop, a webinar, or a staff meeting where new strategies are introduced. People leave inspired, take notes, and maybe even try one new thing. But a few weeks later, nothing has changed.
Jordan, a new facilitator at a midsize agency, experienced this firsthand early in their career. Their agency had brought in an outside trainer to teach a promising new model. Jordan left the workshop buzzing with ideas. But when they returned to daily work, the excitement faded. They faced complex family situations, team members who weren’t on board, and leadership who didn’t know how to support the new practices.
Without guidance, Jordan struggled to apply what they learned. The binder of workshop materials sat on a shelf, collecting dust. Families kept cycling through the system. Staff slipped back into old habits. Nothing changed.
That story is all too common. Training as a discrete event rarely produces lasting results. MiiWrap takes a different approach, treating learning as a continuous, supported journey, and Jordan’s story illustrates why it works.
Jordan’s MiiWrap journey began with the Foundations of MiiWrap. Unlike a typical workshop, Foundations isn’t just a set of slides or a crash course. It’s a coach-supported eLearning program that takes months to complete: paced so learners can absorb, apply, and reflect at every step.
This matters because real practice change can’t be crammed into four days.
In fact, we know this from our own history. Years ago, VVDB pioneered the 4-day Wraparound workshop. We built the tightest slides in the business, integrated adult learning principles, kept the energy high, and filled rooms with engaged practitioners. People left with binders full of tools and good intentions.
But here’s the hard truth: it didn’t stick. One facilitator put it bluntly:
“People completed the course, said they loved it. But when I observed them weeks later, I saw little change in their practice. It was frustrating.” Coach Elena
Why? Because the workshop gave them surface-level knowledge, not deep roots. As soon as external trainers left, practice slipped back into old patterns.
That’s why we abandoned the workshop model and rebuilt MiiWrap certification from the ground up. Today, the Foundationsof MiiWrap is:
Jordan noticed the difference immediately. Instead of walking away with overwhelming notes and fading inspiration, they walked into daily practice with clarity, confidence, and a coach to guide them.
Foundations wasn’t the finish line. It was the launchpad.
Even with strong Foundations, Jordan still hit challenges. One family resisted the process. A colleague dismissed new methods as “too complicated.” Leadership pressured staff to prioritize speed over fidelity.
In the old training model, this would have been the point where the binder got shoved on the shelf and change ended. But this time was different. Jordan had a MiiWrap coach.
Their coach reviewed session recordings, reflected on difficult cases, and offered targeted feedback. When Jordan unknowingly filled silences that should have belonged to families, the coach gently surfaced the pattern. When organizational pressure clashed with fidelity, the coach helped Jordan strategize responses.
Through this ongoing support, Jordan didn’t just “use” MiiWrap: they practiced it with depth, adjusted through reflection, and grew into proficiency.
And the research backs this up. Training alone results in only about 10% transfer to practice. Add coaching, and that number climbs to 80%.
As Coach Marcus put it: “I’ve seen more depth in 20 minutes of tailored coaching using insights from the LMS than in hours of traditional training. I finally actually know who really gets it, who kind of gets it, and who flat out doesn’t.”
Coaching is the bridge between knowing and doing. Without it, fidelity fades. With it, practice deepens, morale improves, and outcomes strengthen.
For Jordan, coaching turned theory into habit.
Still, Jordan noticed bigger barriers. Some policies contradicted MiiWrap principles. Leadership priorities shifted week to week. Team dynamics made implementation inconsistent. Even the best facilitators and coaches struggle when the system itself isn’t aligned. That’s where the Process Mentor came in.
A Process Mentor (PM) worked with Jordan’s coach and agency leaders to create readiness and alignment:
With this guidance, the agency stopped working against itself. Facilitators focused on families. Coaches focused on growth. Leaders reinforced fidelity instead of unintentionally eroding it.
And here’s another critical point: without a Process Mentor, agencies often become dependent on outside trainers forever. With one, they build the internal expertise to sustain MiiWrap for the long haul.
That’s why we encourage agencies to eventually train and certify their own Process Mentors. For smaller agencies, that might mean banding together with neighbors to share a PM. For larger ones, it often means building a permanent leadership role that ensures MiiWrap quality never fades with staff turnover or leadership changes.
For Jordan’s agency, the Process Mentor became the glue holding the system together, making fidelity not just possible, but inevitable.
As Jordan’s practice grew, they joined a MiiWrap learning community: a network of facilitators, coaches, and process mentors.
When Jordan hit a particularly complex family situation, the community was there. They swapped strategies, shared stories, and normalized the struggles that come with real-world practice.
Instead of isolation, Jordan felt part of something bigger. Instead of reinventing the wheel, they learned from peers. And over time, Jordan contributed back, mentoring newer facilitators and sharing their own lessons. This wasn’t just “extra support.” It was exponential growth. Learning communities amplify practice by:
As one facilitator put it:
“In past trainings, I always felt rushed. With MiiWrap, I had space to learn at my pace. And when I joined the community, I stopped feeling like I had to figure it all out alone.”
For Jordan, the learning community turned professional development into a shared journey, one that sustained energy and growth.
Traditional training has a fatal flaw: it’s static. By the time new challenges emerge, the training is outdated.
MiiWrap avoids this trap through continuous innovation. Research findings, fidelity data, and practice insights from facilitators like Jordan are constantly fed back into Foundations, coaching tools, and community resources.
That means whether you’re a brand-new facilitator or a veteran coach, you’re always learning and practicing the most current, effective version of MiiWrap.
Jordan never had to wonder if their methods were outdated, they knew they were working from the cutting edge. And agencies don’t need to bring in outside consultants every year to “refresh” their training. The innovations are built into the system itself.
Over time, Jordan’s agency grew its own coaches and eventually certified its own Process Mentor. New staff could enter Foundations at any time. Coaches had data and tools to guide growth. Leadership had structures for fidelity and quality improvement.
They didn’t need to keep paying for external trainers to reteach the basics. They didn’t lose fidelity every time turnover happened. They didn’t fear the model fading away.
Instead, they built a self-sustaining MiiWrap community within their agency: stronger, more resilient, and more aligned with their mission.
Jordan’s story wasn’t just about individual growth. It was about building an ecosystem where MiiWrap could thrive permanently.
Jordan’s journey shows why MiiWrap succeeds where traditional training fails:
The result? Permanent practice change, stronger staff, lower turnover, and better outcomes for children, youth, and families. At MiiWrap, learning is never finished. And that’s exactly why it works.
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