RESTORE Online Lead Trainer Certification is for small economic development organizations and local churches that want to start church-based savings groups.

There are 3 parts to the RESTORE Online Lead Trainer Certification process. The full process will take about 12 months.

Part 1: Church Facilitator Online Training, 6 weeks (approx 3 hours of work per week)

Part 2: Form, Train, and support a Savings Group (complete 1 cycle 9-12 months)

Part 3: 3 week (4 hours of work/week) online Lead Trainer training (only for those who fully complete section 1 and a complete savings group cycle)

By offering the training online, we have been able to significantly reduce the cost of certification.

For an individual from an organization or church to get certified, the cost is $425.

For multiple individuals from a church or organization, the cost is $375 per participant.

If you are in need of a scholarship to attend, please reach out to us via our contact page.

Our training happens online, so you can access it from anywhere at any time. You’ll watch videos and complete assignments using our online training platform. 

In addition to learning on our online training platform, you’ll join weekly video calls with your coach and other church and ministry leaders from across the country. Once you sign up, we'll do our best to assign you to coaching calls that work best for your time zone and schedule.

While traditional savings groups are common in under-resourced areas of the world, most focus exclusively on economic poverty alleviation with group members acting as savers and consumers.

As Christians, we believe that the materially poor are people who bear God’s divine image and are deserving of dignified holistic engagement that respects them as spiritual, intellectual, social, emotional, and physical beings who live in a household and community.

In addition to meeting financial needs, RESTORE savings groups create opportunities for learning together, spiritual growth, and social connection.

We’ve helped thousands of churches and nonprofits start RESTORE savings groups ministries in their communities. We’re confident that after completing this training, you’ll be prepared to launch church based-savings groups in communities around the world!

If you encounter challenges getting started, our network of Coaches will be there to lend support and offer expert guidance to help you succeed.

Check out a sample of our curriculum! Our curriculum addresses a wide range of financial basics, including:

• Overview of RESTORE process 
• Church leadership orientation 
• 4 Key relationships
• Typical savings group
• Prepare to Open a Savings 
• Benefits of SGs
• House of Principles
• Forming a group and rules
• Loans/emergency fund
• Ledgers & calculations
• Leadership selection 
• Practice facilitation
• The savings meeting process
• Record keeping 
• Group meeting with loans
• Leadership roles 
• End of cycle
• Testing what we learned 
• Reflection exercise

Drop us a line on our Contact Us page. We’d be glad to help!