For years, a big part of the job at VVDB was flying out to local sites to lead 4-day workshops. We taught the foundational elements of Wraparound to facilitators, support partners, and coaches. And honestly? We were really good at it. The slides were tight. The pacing worked. Every adult learning principle was baked in. People laughed. They learned. They left with binders full of tools.
But one moment has stayed with me. About a decade ago, I was delivering one of those trainings to a packed room: 30 people crammed into a classroom, from brand-new staff to folks who’d already been through another Wraparound training. Some were fully engaged. Others, not so much. At one table, a woman kept making this confused face. I tried to chat with her on break. She dodged me. During the next session, I asked some probing questions to gauge understanding. Her answers were vague. Thin. I realized I had no idea how much she had actually absorbed, or how many others in the room were in the same boat.
There was no way to slow down for her without losing the rest of the group. And no way to really tell who was getting it and who wasn’t. I figured the follow-up coaching would fill in the gaps.
And for a while, it did. For about a year, with our intensive coaching, the team made progress. But as soon as we stepped out and the internal coaches took over, things started slipping. Two years later, they were back to what we’d call low-fidelity Wraparound – or even just intensive case management.
They wanted to make a meaningful shift. We poured hundreds of hours into helping them do it. But the change didn’t hold.
Why?
Because most of them only had a surface-level understanding. The workshop gave them a good time, not deep roots. Coaching became endless reteaching of the basics. They never felt the model in their bones.
That’s why we’ve stopped running 4-day workshops entirely. It’s not enough. It never was.
Today, all MiiWrap certification happens through a completely reimagined model: self-paced, high-retention eLearning, designed to build mastery, not just memory.
We committed to this shift because we’ve seen firsthand what happens when training doesn’t stick. We’re never going back.
Packing 24 hours of content into four days sounds efficient. But here’s what we learned: it’s not. Staff leave those workshops oversaturated, unsure of what to do next, and without time to absorb or apply what they’ve learned.
“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
Our workshops were some of the most thoughtfully designed in the field – and even they didn’t create reliable results at scale. That’s why we’ve shifted fully to eLearning. Because retention, reflection, and real-world practice can’t be rushed.
Every MiiWrap certification is now done through eLearning. Why? Because it works.
Each module breaks learning into manageable pieces:
It’s not just passive content. It’s a full-cycle learning system, grounded in how humans retain and apply new skills.
“This time, the training didn’t just inform me. It changed me.” Andre, Support Partner
We didn’t choose this because it’s easier. We chose it because it’s better. For learners. For coaches. For outcomes.
The old model relied on powerful presenters and packed agendas. But that style doesn’t leave space for integration.
As Facilitator Tierra puts it: “In past trainings, I always felt rushed. It was like drinking from a firehose: too much, too fast, and nothing stuck. With MiiWrap eLearning, I could learn at my own pace.”
Instead of hoping something sticks, we designed a system that helps it sink in – one concept, one skill at a time.
In the old model, coaches were flying blind. After a 4-day workshop, it was nearly impossible to tell who actually understood the material and who was just nodding along. By the time gaps showed up in practice, it was often too late – they’d already taken root. Coaches spent months reteaching foundational concepts that never really landed in the first place.
Now, that’s changed.
With our eLearning model, every quiz, activity, and written response generates clear data. Coaches can see exactly who gets it, who’s almost there, and who’s struggling, before staff ever work with families. That means coaching isn’t about backtracking. It’s about building.
“I’ve seen more depth in 20 minutes of tailored coaching using insights I learned from work my staff submitted to the LMS than in hours of traditional training. I finally actually know who really gets it, who kind of gets it (and where they are missing the mark), and who flat out doesn’t get it during the training period when I can correct it the easiest.” Coach Marcus
This is what real coaching looks like: targeted, timely, and transformative.
Staff who don’t feel confident in their role are more likely to leave. Our eLearning system gives them the knowledge, confidence, and support they need to succeed long term.
And unlike one-off workshops, the system is designed to sustain itself. New staff can enter anytime. Coaches stay aligned. Leadership has visibility.
“My coaching focuses less on repeating content and more on helping staff integrate what they’ve already seen, tried, and thought about. The structure does the heavy lifting.” Coach Elena
We pioneered the 4-day workshop. We’ve run more of them than most. And we’ve spent the last decade refining our approach.
Now we’re clear: eLearning, supported by skilled coaching, gets better results, every time.
If you’re still relying on workshops that frontload training and hope it sticks, it’s time for a change. MiiWrap’s learning system doesn’t just inform. It transforms.
Learn more about our system and how you can use it at your agency here:
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