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Civic Engagement in an Older America E-Newsletter January, 2009 CONTENTS Martin Luther King Day of Service Older Worker Demonstration Grants Hill Briefing Forcasts Future Service Legislation Community Treasures: Recognizing the Contributions
of Older Immigrants and Refugees ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Martin Luther King Day of Service
Initiated by Congress in 1994, the Day of Service honors the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. by transforming the holiday in his name into a day of civic engagement and volunteer commitment across the nation. President-elect Barack Obama will celebrate King Day along with Vice-President Joe Biden and their families by volunteering in a service project in Washington, DC and will be calling on all Americans to join him in ongoing active citizenship. The Presidential Inaugural Committee will reveal a new website in early January dedicated to promoting and organizing this day of service. Americans in every state will be able to go to the website, enter their zip code, and signup for events in their community. You can also learn about MLK Day of Service opportunities in your
area by clicking here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Older Worker Demonstration Grants
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Employment and Training Administration
(ETA) announced the availability of approximately $10 million in
funds for Older Worker Demonstration Grants. Grants are intended
to address the workforce challenges facing older individuals by
developing models for talent development in regional economies that
recognize older workers as a valuable labor pool and include employment
and training strategies to retain and/or connect older workers to
jobs in high growth, high demand industries critical to the regional
economy. The DOL and ETA anticipate awarding 10 to 13 grants of
between $750,000 and $1,000,000 each. Applications are due February
19, 2009. For the full announcement, click here. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Hill Briefing Forcasts Future Service Legislation
Older Americans can expect a boost from the 111th Congress in helping
them find worthwhile volunteer and community service opportunities,
according to experts speaking at a recent Capitol Hill briefing
sponsored by GSA's Civic Engagement in an Older America project.
Congressional staff discussed proposed national service bills, including
the Serve
America Act (S. 3487) and the Encore
Service Act (S. 3480). Also participating was former U.S. Senator
Harris Wofford, AARP COO Tom Nelson, IBM VP of Corporate Citizenship
and Corporate Affairs Stanley Litow, and several volunteers. Click
here
for more details and pictures from the event. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This cover article from the Stanford Social Innovation Review provides concrete suggestions for nonprofit leaders on how to capitalize on "the new volunteer workforce" by expanding their vision of volunteering, integrating volunteers into their strategic planning, and by reinventing the way that their organizations support and manage volunteer talent. The article also quantifies the tremendous loss in volunteer time that occurs each year as a result of poor volunteer management practices. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Community Treasures: Recognizing the Contributions of Older Immigrants and Refugees
This new report
from the Temple University Center for Intergenerational Learning
highlights the ways in which older immigrants contribute to their
families and communities, and identifies promising practices and
strategies for supporting immigrant elders in civic roles. The findings
challenge us to redefine our view of "civic engagement"
and reexamine the common notion of immigrant elders as clients to
be served rather than community partners and leaders. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The CE-Newsletter is the E-Newsletter of GSA’s Civic Engagement in an Older America Project. The "Civic Engagement in an Older America" project is supported by a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies. If you have been forwarded this by a colleague and would like
to subscribe, please click
here and type “Subscribe” in the subject line. If
you would like to unsubscribe to this newsletter, please click
here and type “Unsubscribe” in the subject line.
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