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New Haven, CT (September 22, 2016) - The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the region’s largest grantmaker and charitable endowment, announces the winners of the Milton Fisher Scholarship for Innovation and Creativity for students who came up with distinctive solutions to problems faced by their schools, communities, and families.  A large number of extraordinary applications were received. While each application submitted for consideration highlighted a creative project, scholarships were awarded to the candidates whose innovative and distinctive projects had the most likely potential impact. In total, seven four-year scholarships and nine honorable mentions totaling $29,500 were awarded.  

The Milton Fisher Scholarship for Innovation and Creativity was established in 2003 at The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven by the Reneé B. Fisher Foundation. This scholarship is not a traditional scholarship focused on rewarding academic achievement and addressing financial need.  Its specific goal is to reward and encourage innovative and creative problem-solving. High school juniors and seniors and college freshmen from Connecticut and the New York metropolitan area are eligible to apply. The application deadline for 2017 is April 30th; potential applicants should consult the listings of past winners at www.rbffoundation.org and may apply online at www.cfgnh.org/scholarships

For more information, please email mfscholarship@gmail.com or contact Denise Canning at The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven at 203-777-7076 or dcanning@cfgnh.org.

Milton Fisher was born and educated in New York City and was a Connecticut resident from 1960 until his death in 2001. He was an attorney and an investment banker who also taught a unique course for adults called "Applied Creativity" for over 25 years. His deep interest in the roots of creativity, and the many exercises he developed to help people become more innovative and creative in their lives, also led him to write the book Intuition: How to Use it in your Life, which has been translated into several languages. Fisher also served on the boards of several public companies and wrote two books about Wall Street.  
 
The Milton Fisher Scholarship is one of dozens of scholarships administered through The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. Thanks to the generosity of three generations of donors, The Community Foundation awarded over $30 million in grants and distributions in 2015 from charitable assets of more than $500 million composed of hundreds of individually named funds. In addition to its grantmaking, The Community Foundation helps build a stronger community by taking measures to improve student achievement, create healthy families in New Haven, promote local philanthropy through www.giveGreater.org® and The Great Give®, and encourage better understanding of the region. The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven’s 20 town service area includes: Ansonia, Bethany, Branford, Cheshire, Derby, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Milford, New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Wallingford, West Haven and Woodbridge. For more information about The Community Foundation, visit www.cfgnh.org, find us on Facebook atwww.facebook.org/cfgnh or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cfgnh

 

2016 Winners

 

Ting Gao (Mount Saint Mary Academy, Kenmore, NY) Finding that many students with special needs or financial difficulties whom she tutored at her local library couldn’t afford basic school supplies, Ting wanted to find a way to help. She founded a student-run non-profit that provides essential school supplies year round, not just during the back-to-school time period. The group pays for them by collecting empty ink cartridges and old electronics from local businesses, essentially establishing a “recycling network.” The 50-member student-run organization has distributed more than a thousand items at five high schools in Western New York—including two new printers and five laptop computers. She plans to study biomedical engineering at Yale.  

 

Chinanu Gubor (Hill Regional Career High School, New Haven, CT) Chinanu, who was born and raised in the US, was concerned that children in her family’s village in Nigeria lacked basic  information to protect themselves  from disease. To help them learn about hygiene, first aid and disease prevention, she developed creative, illustrated kid-friendly teaching materials and raised funds to distribute them along with first aid kits to 470 children in  the village—the start, she hopes, of a health curriculum that will help them recognize, avoid, and treat malaria and typhoid. She will study Pre-Med/Physiology and Neurobiology at the University of Connecticut. 

 

Kianjai Huggan (Housatonic Valley Regional High School, Falls Village, CT) Kianjai became interested in finding a Smartphone software program that would help blind people better scan signs, books and other items after discovering the struggle a friend of hers had with having to read Braille as a germophobe. Kianjai developed the coding for a program that will allow Braille to be read through a camera and spoken out as audio, allowing Braille text to be read at the touch of a button. She is developing software that will be compatible with Braille keyboards. She plans to study computer science at the University of Connecticut.

Abigail Kelly (Sacred Heart Academy, Hamden, CT) Aware of the role that the lack of disinfectants play in spreading disease in Africa, Abigail devised an experiment to convert mangoes and oranges into ethanol using a simple fermentation/distillation process and researched the economics involved. She found that converting surplus fruit to ethanol could economically produce large amounts of effective alcohol-based disinfectant for hand sanitizers and other uses that could help stem the spread of Ebola and other infectious disease in poor West African countries. She is a high school junior.

 

Xerxes Libsch (Regis High School, New York, NY) Returning to an area in which he had camped as a child, Xerxes was appalled to see manure and animal waste polluting a stream that fed into drinking water reservoirs serving New York City, and invasive species of plants crippling the local ecosystem. After researching the best ways to restore and revive the ecology of the farm and the area around it, he inspired and led many volunteers to dig a new waste management system, remove invasive plants, and build a learning center that will serve the public for years to come. He plans to study mechanical engineering at Princeton.

 

Helen Liu (Amity Regional High School, Orange, CT) Aware that lysosome dysfunction in cells reduces their ability to break down, recycle and reuse materials—a problem that can lead to disorders such as Gaucher Disease—Helen sought to find an efficient and low-cost way to support healthy lysosome function using chaperone-based therapy. Her experiment paves the way for a novel drug treatment for Gaucher Disease.  She plans to study biochemistry at Brown University. 

 

Sabina London (Northern Valley Regional High School, Demarest, NJ) Troubled by the lack of girls in her advanced science and math classes freshman year in high school, Sabina founded   “Girls Science Interactive,” a non-profit   that provides free STEM summer camps for elementary- and middle-school girls. Focused around group discussions and hands-on experiments, the girls who attend the camp learn about topics such as energy and matter, global warming and renewable energy, astronomy, chemistry and neuroscience. Sabina has worked with other high school and college students to organize similar camps in their communities, and has helped raise funds for them. Camps are now offered in Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. She plans to study biology or cognitive and brain sciences at Tufts University. 

 

2016 Honorable Mentions

 

Yamiya Fowlkes (School Without Walls, Washington DC) Yamiya conducted an innovative and ambitious aerospace engineering study to determine how to increase fuel efficiency in aircraft by evaluating wing geometry and other aspects of an aircraft’s construction. She plans to study aeronautical engineering at New York University.

 
Isabelle Geller (Hill Regional Career High School, New Haven, CT) After researching the issue herself, Isabelle devised creative ways of making students in both privileged and underserved communities near her home more aware of the complex issue of education inequality. She will study political science at the University of Connecticut.

 

Catherine Hua (Brooklyn Technical High School, Brooklyn, NY) Concerned by the fact that antibiotic-resistant bacteria increasingly challenge the effectiveness of current antibiotics, Catherine Hua conducted an innovative experiment to synthesize novel antibiotics that would be less vulnerable to antibiotic-resistant bacteria. She will study biochemistry at Johns Hopkins University.

 

Dongbeom Eem (Saratoga High School, Saratoga, California) Tapping into both his passion for music and desire to help others, Dongbeom created, the Great Ensemble of Musicians, a program that encourages advanced students to give free music lessons to younger students in his high school and that increased students’ proficiency as musicians and also helped develop a sense of community at the school. He will study economics and history at Columbia University. 

 

Ariel Creamer (Edward R. Murrow High School, Brooklyn, New York) After watching Hurricane Sandy destroy her community, Ariel created Survivors Silver Lining. Using Facebook to match generous donors with children who had lost cherished items in the storm, she got a large Lego collection to  a child who loved Legos but had lost his own, and over sixty bikes to replace bikes lost in the storm. She is a high school junior. 

 

Jonas Lustbader (Hamden Hall Country Day School, Hamden, CT) To encourage a love of reading among children with few books in their homes, Jonas created The Gift of Words, an organization that has presented over 1300 kindergarten through fourth-grade children with individually-selected books on their birthdays. He is a high school junior.

 

Anuoluwapo Osibajo (The Frederick Douglass Academy, New York City) Anuoluwapo created a free photo-journalism publication, “OKIDS,” to explore serious issues such as poverty and hunger for a diverse global audience of children in the United States, United Kingdom the Philippines, Japan, and Ethiopia. She plans to major in political science and economics at Georgetown University. 

 

Tessa Southwell (Palos Verdes Peninsula High School, Rolling Hills Estates, California)  Having had her own love of writing sparked by her involvement in the newspaper she co-founded in her elementary school, Tessa organized PressFriends, a student volunteer group that helps 3000 diverse and underprivileged elementary-school students create, design, and run newspapers in their schools. She also created a range of other programs that help volunteer student mentors inspire children to explore creative opportunities they would not otherwise be able to experience or afford. She will study acting at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. 

 

Nicholas Serrambana (Classical Magnet High School, Hartford, Connecticut) Fascinated by the accessibility of music and its potential to serve as a catalyst for change, Nicholas organized a multifaceted conference (that included improvisation workshops and hands-on playing experiences). He also organized a music festival that attracted hundreds of people from across Connecticut and that raised funds for a charity dedicated to mental health issues that honored a child killed at Sandy Hook Elementary. He will study philosophy and math at Yale. 

 

Click here to view this press release on our website. 

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Comments to the Connecticut Department of Social Services Home and Community Based Services Unit by David V. Hunter

 

September 21, 2016

I am the President & CEO of Mary Wade, which is a nonprofit senior living campus located in New Haven.  Mary Wade provides a continuum of programs and services including adult day health center, transportation, primary care, out-patient rehab, and 45 accommodations in its residential care home.   Mary Wade also provides 94 accommodations in its Skilled Nursing Center that includes both short term rehab and long term care for those with significant chronic illness.   Mary Wade also is a recipient of the Department of Social Services Nursing Home Diversification Grant for the development of a homemaker and companion program and community navigator services.  

 

As a provider with 150 years of serving the community, Mary Wade is very supportive of Connecticut’s Statewide Transition Plan: http://www.ct.gov/dss/lib/dss/pgr/transitionplannotice.pdf and your efforts to ensure compliance with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) Home and Community Based settings final rule.

 

Specifically, I wholeheartedly support the state’s effort to bring the residential care home setting into compliance.  Tenants who reside in our residential care home and who receive services and supports through the Connecticut Home Care Program for the Elderly are offered the opportunity to remain in the place they call home.   These services and supports allow them to continue to integrate with the greater community and in many cases, avoid nursing home placement.

 

Mary Wade would very much like to ensure that its residential care home setting can comply with the CMS final rule and we support the state’s efforts to establish the regulatory environment and opportunity to do so.

 

I can provide many examples how these tenants are living a residential lifestyle and why they truly consider this to be their home. 

 

One of our residents, participates in numerous New Haven community activities as a result of her membership in an association, called Chatham Square Neighborhood Association.  She regularly attends monthly meetings and social events, such as dining out with neighbors at local restaurants.  She is involved in a neighborhood program that teaches school age children how to grow vegetables, and then how to cook with the produce.  During the school session, she meets weekly in the neighbor’s home and helps students with their homework.  She has even been known to canvas and make telephone calls in neighbor’s home during the election season.  One of the main reasons for her to live at Mary Wade is due to a significant heart condition. 

 

Several residents go out nearly every day and use the public transportation to visit friends and families, while other residents make frequent trips to shop at Walmart, and attend Centers of Worship on the weekend and Holidays.

 

All residents live in a private room, and locks are installed upon request.  Meals are provided throughout the day, and, some residents request refrigerators to keep food in their rooms.  

 

Parking is available when residents wish to bring an automobile. 

 

Social and life-long learning events are planned throughout the Mary Wade community, and residents participate based on their wishes. 

 

The majority of these residents range in age from 70 to 90 years of age, and they are utilizing supportive services in the residential care home setting in order to maintain the most active and healthy lifestyle.

 

I appreciate the opportunity to comment in support of the statewide transition plan and the ability for a residential care home to meet the requirements of a community based setting in compliance with the final rule.  I am available for further discussions and meetings should the need arise to elaborate on this important and vital topic to the seniors in our community.

 

 

David V. Hunter

President & CEO

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New Haven, CT (September 19, 2016) –The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the region’s permanent endowment and largest grantmaker to nonprofits, announces that it has committed $1.3 Million to New Haven Promise (NHP). The grant will be distributed over three years starting in 2017, following the end of The Foundation's current grant to NHP.

“The Community Foundation sees New Haven Promise as one of the most ambitious and important things happening in our community today,” says William W. Ginsberg, President and CEO of The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. “It is creating a college-going culture in our schools and promoting college access and success for our most promising young people. The Foundation is deeply proud of our role in helping to create, sustain and grow New Haven Promise since 2010 and we are very excited about what New Haven Promise can contribute over the next three years. With more and more NHP Scholars graduating and returning to our city with the education and skills needed in today’s economy, New Haven Promise is proving itself to be indispensable to how our community creates opportunity for the next generation of our young people.”

“Nearing the end of its sixth year of operation, New Haven Promise has provided invaluable scholarship benefits in excess of $5.2 Million for more than 1,000 students and their families in New Haven,” says Patricia Melton, President of New Haven Promise. “It has developed stronger connections for New Haven’s most accomplished and best educated students with Connecticut’s institutions of higher education and with local institutions and employers through mentorship and career-focused internships. Our students benefit from an entire city’s support and their success is our community’s success.”

Since its founding, New Haven Promise has been The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven’s largest and highest profile programmatic commitment. With this grant, it will remain so. The Foundation has provided approximately $3 Million in administrative support for NHP since 2010. The Community Foundation appoints a member of the NHP board of directors.

New Haven Promise was established in November of 2010 by way of a five-year three party agreement by and among The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Yale University and the New Haven Board of Education. Its program consists of three pillars: “To: College Access; Through: College Success; And Back: Career and Civic Launch.” It provides scholarships of up to 100% tuition for residents and graduates of New Haven Public Schools and local charter schools attending a public college or university in Connecticut. A key to New Haven’s future, Promise is revitalizing the City of New Haven through increasing educational attainment, cultivating a culture of college-readiness, reducing high school dropout rates, and promoting community and parental engagement. New Haven Promise is currently supported and funded by Yale, The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, Yale-New Haven Hospital, and other donors and has received support from other funders, including Wells Fargo.

Thanks to the generosity of three generations of donors, The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven awarded over $30 million in grants and distributions in 2015 from charitable assets of more than $500 million composed of hundreds of individually named funds. In addition to its grantmaking, The Community Foundation helps build a stronger community by taking measures to improve student achievement, create healthy families in New Haven, promote local philanthropy through www.giveGreater.org® and The Great Give®, and encourage better understanding of the region. The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven’s 20 town service area includes: Ansonia, Bethany, Branford, Cheshire, Derby, East Haven, Guilford, Hamden, Madison, Milford, New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Wallingford, West Haven and Woodbridge. For more information about The Community Foundation, visit www.cfgnh.org, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.org/cfgnh or follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/cfgnh.

Media Contact: Ratasha Smith, Community Foundation for Greater New Haven 203-777-7096 rsmith@cfgnh.org

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A Tribute From Grove Street Cemetery

Dear Friends,

I have been remiss concerning writing about Grove Street but today I feel I need to give Tribute to two special people from the Cemetery - Bill and Joan Cameron. Two people who dedicated themselves to the preservation of the history of New Haven. Both worked unending in the cemetery for over 40 years. In tribute to them both I would like to put their life works into a poem:

R. Lee Sharpe’s (1870-1950) poem

“A Bag or Tools”:

Isn’t it strange that princes and kings
And clowns that caper in sawdust rings
And common people like you and me
Are builders for all eternity?
To each is given a bag of tools
A piece of clay and a book of rules
And each must fashion ere life has flown
A stumbling block or a stepping-stone
.

Thank you Bill and Joan

Patricia Illingworth

   

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Nonprofit Board Chairs Study Report Now Available

Voices of Nonprofit Board Chairs reflects the voices of 635 nonprofit board chairs across the United States. The study was conducted by the Alliance's Governance Affinity Group and is intended as a first step in hearing directly from board chairs about their experiences and perceptions, acknowledging the importance of the leadership role of board chairs and the significant dearth of research in this area.  

 

Although there is much prescriptive information in the field, there is surprising little research or evidence to back up these assertions.  As one of the few studies on board chairs, this study sought to answer two research questions:  How do individuals prepare for their role as chair of a nonprofit board? and, what do board chairs perceive their leadership roles to be in relationship to the board, the community, and the CEO?

 

To learn about the findings, implications for practice, and access the research report, please download the report here.  The Research Team is available for workshops, talks, webinars and articles based on this research. For more information, please contact, Governance Membership Affinity Group Chair,Judy Freiwirth.

 

 

Free Webinar: Voices of Nonprofit Board Chairs

Research Findings and Consulting Practice Implications from the Largest National Research Study on Board Chairs

 

September 15, 2016

 

9 am - 10:30 Pacific / 12:00pm - 1:30 Eastern

 

Hear about the key findings and consulting practice implications of this important national study conducted by the Alliance's Governance Member Affinity Group.  The Research Team will lead an interactive discussion regarding implications for consulting practices and new thinking about board chair preparation and effectiveness. 

 

Presenters: Judy Freiwirth, Psy.D.; Mary Hiland, Ph.D., Mike Burns, M.A., Gayle Gifford, M.S., and Debra Beck, Ed.D.

 

Click here to register for the webinar. 

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The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the region's largest grantmaker and permanent charitable endowment, is seeking qualified candidates to fill the following positions: 

Human Resources Manager

Development Associate

Vice President of Operations

LEARN MOREhttp://www.cfgnh.org/About/ContactUs/EmploymentOpportunities.aspx

Thank you for your interest.

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Director of Milieu for S-FIT, CARE and EDT Programs

The Director is responsible for carrying out the treatment philosophy of the Agency, and has a significant role in shaping that philosophy as a member of the Management Team.  The Director is responsible for participating in the admission process and the coordination of treatment for each young person the in the programs. This employee is also responsible for ensuring an appropriate therapeutic milieu and safe environment with the programs.

The ideal candidate for this position will have the ability to provide a trauma informed milieu via the leadership of a supervisory staff and childcare workers and the ability to multi-task.  Good organizational skills required.  Master's Degree required.

For more information please contact Human Resources -- employment@tccoh.org.  You can also visit our website at www.tccoh.org to learn more about the Agency.

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We have several positions open at New Haven Reads! We are currently seeking an Assistant Site Director (part-time) at our Willow Street location, and 2 Kindergarten Teachers (part-time, Dixwell and Willow Street locations). 

For more information and application instructions, visit the career page of our website: http://newhavenreads.org/home/get-involved/careers/

Kindergarten Teacher (Willow)

Kindergarten Teacher (Dixwell)

Assistant Site Director (Willow)

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St. Hilda's House is a service year program and intentional community in New Haven. Every year a group of interns arrive in New Haven to work and serve in service agencies and nonprofits throughout the city. Hildans are college educated young adults, committed to work and serve in various roles and locations. St. Hilda's House has been serving young adults, agencies, and nonprofits for the last five years. We are always looking to expand our network and partners in the community.

We are currently looking for community agencies and nonprofits to place our incoming class of interns. Hildans are college-educated young professionals, available to work 35 hours per week, and supervised and mentored. They are great resources for nonprofits -- at a rate of $15,000 including healthcare and all other support, they require half the resources of traditional employees even in starting jobs.

For more information, please contact Carlos de la Torre -- Cdelatorre@christchurchnh.org

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Nonprofit Board Relationships

The following is not a case unfamiliar to my work. On too many occasions I have been called upon to help resolve the "relationship" between a nonprofit organization and it's "arm" designed to raise money on its behalf. The issues are as relational as they are transactional although most frequently stimulated by one or another transaction that just didn't sit well with the other party. The question at its core: where does the fiduciary duty lie most: with the "parent' institution or with the "child" institution. Clearly, some steps might have been taken when establishing the "arm". But once the damage and more importantly, the relationship sours, it generally falls upon the "parent' to reel the "child" back-in and doing so without damaging what are likely important relationships as well as the donors. Not a great situation all the way around but not so isolated and clearly one that offers lessons.Here's the Philadelphia Inquirer article about Mansfield University and its fundraising arm.Fight over fund-raising fractures relationships at Mansfield U.Updated: JULY 31, 2016 — 1:08 AM EDTMansfield University and its nonprofit fund-raising foundation are in a dispute that has led university leaders to ask for the donor list so they can raise money independently of the organization. The foundation staff has been forced out of its campus office.by Susan Snyder, Staff WriterThe 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education have separate nonprofit foundations that act on their behalf to raise money from donors.Mansfield University and its nonprofit fund-raising foundation are in a dispute that has led university leaders to ask for the donor list so
they can raise money independently of the organization. The foundation staff has been forced out of its campus office. Slideshow icon SLIDESHOWFight over fund-raising fractures relationships at Mansfield U.But that relationship at Mansfield University in north-central Pennsylvania - the second-smallest school in the system - has soured in a big way.The dispute between the Mansfield University Foundation and university leaders became so acrimonious earlier this year that the foundation's three-person staff was forced out of its campus office with just four days' notice. The foundation alleges the university confiscated some of its records, withheld its mail, and forced it to change its name - all after the foundation refused to release donors' names and records to university leaders. The sides agree on little. The university says it didn't confiscate foundation records or keep its mail.At the heart of the dispute is control over fund-raising for a university that has been running a deficit and losing enrollment. Unhappy with the foundation's performance, the university wanted the donor records so it could begin cultivating donations on its own. Foundation officials refused, saying they promised donors confidentiality and have been supporting the university quite well.The university has begun its own fund-raising, putting it in direct competition with the foundation and creating confusion among donors. The foundation, now in a rented office just off campus, has hired a lawyer and is mulling legal action to protect its rights as an independent nonprofit.Both sides have talked to the Attorney General's Office, which declined comment.Welcome to the Kramer vs. Kramer of university fund-raising.As more universities in the state system struggle with enrollment loss and less state funding, the battle over fund-raising at Mansfield could serve as a cautionary tale."At the end of the day, it is in the best interest of both parties to work closely together," said Mindy Engel, executive director of the renamed Mansfield Foundation. "The foundation stands ready to work out our differences."Rita Dibble, vice president for institutional advancement, said the university would like to resolve the conflict, too."I have not given up hope, hope that they will turn around and partner with us," she said. "It would be beneficial for us, but also for them."The foundation has existed for more than 40 years and for much of that time worked cooperatively with the university, which is 25 miles from Pennsylvania's "grand canyon" in Wellsboro. At one time, a university employee oversaw the foundation.The foundation currently administers $18 million in endowments, much of it restricted by donors for specific scholarships and programs.The relationship between the foundation and the university became increasingly strained after the arrival in 2013 of president Francis L. Hendricks, a retired brigadier general, who has wanted the foundation to raise more money, foundation officials said. Financial pressures also contributed to the friction.The 2,376-student university faced a $7.8 million deficit in its $45 million budget last school year, which it covered by drawing on reserves and making cuts. In May, the university said it would close a projected $5.1 million deficit for 2016-17 through furloughs, the use of reserves, and other cuts.The memorandum of understanding between the university and the foundation expired last July. After six months of negotiations failed to produce a new agreement, the university moved to cut ties with the foundation.The foundation, Dibble said, didn't raise enough money for projects the university wanted. She said of 11 requests she made, only one was honored."What they have been doing is hopelessly inadequate," said Dibble, who joined Mansfield last July.Engel acknowledged there have been times when the foundation declined to fund-raise for projects deemed not feasible by the board. She cited a former president's request to build a movie theater in town.Other times, she said, the foundation has embraced projects. More recently, the foundation contributed funds for an international walkway on campus.During the last fiscal year, the foundation received approximately $1 million in directed gifts from donors and disbursed more than $600,000 in scholarships and other support to the university, Engel said. (Dibble disputed the $600,000 figure as too high and said she believed it's about $230,000).Engel said the foundation has given the president information on donors he wanted to cultivate. Where it drew the line, she said, was on turning over all records."They were asking for unfettered access to the foundation's database. That's not something our board found acceptable," she said.Dibble said she asked the foundation to share information with her, the president, and the alumni director, all of whom would have kept confidentiality, so they could work together on fund-raising.John Mansfield, president of the faculty union, said university retirees who have donated to the foundation are confused and concerned."They trust the foundation," he said. "And now the message [from the university] is 'don't trust them. Just give directly to the university.' "He said he hopes the conflict can be resolved before the university is harmed."We have people here who would never have a chance to go to college if the school closed its doors," he said.At West Chester University - the largest in the state system - the relationship between the foundation and university leadership stands in stark contrast.Their officials collaborate and set goals each year and meet monthly."It's important for universities and foundations to work well together because that's in the best interest of the students," said Richard Przywara, the foundation's executive director.All university fund-raising is done through the foundation, which raised more than $5.6 million in cash and in-kind gifts and $5.2 million in planned gifts for 2015-16, much of it from donors who want to remain anonymous, he said.For that reason, the donor database is maintained at the foundation. If West Chester - a state university - had donor data, some of it could become a public record, said Mark Pavlovich, West Chester's vice president for advancement and sponsored research.Dibble pointed out that the right-to-know law includes an exemption for donor information.Erik Arneson, executive director of Pennsylvania's Office of Open Records, said it appears that universities could keep most donor information confidential, perhaps with the exception of amounts. But he said the issue hasn't really been tested in court or before his office."We don't want to test it," Przywara said. "It's too critical."Pavlovich said amounts could point to a donor."At an institution where a large gift is pretty noticeable, it can be figured out pretty quickly," he said.That's what concerns Engel - that donor confidentiality could be compromised. The foundation is continuing to raise money for Mansfield and donors are giving, Engel said."But as you can imagine," she said, "donors are cautious and a little concerned about an active dispute between the university and the foundation."ssnyder@phillynews.com215-854-4693@ssnyderinqwww.philly.com/campusinq
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New Haven Farms is looking for volunteers!


ABOUT NEW HAVEN FARMS:


New Haven Farms' nonprofit charitable mission is to promote health and community development through urban agriculture. We transform vacant, contaminated urban land into vibrant and productive organic farms. Our Farm Manager and volunteer corps cultivate urban farms, and our harvest is made accessible to low-income families who struggle with diet-related chronic diseases and food insecurity. Farm members receive produce baskets combined with farm education, cooking demonstrations, and nutrition education on a weekly basis. For more information about New Haven Farms, visit newhavenfarms.org.
 


 
Youth Environmental Education Volunteer

POSITION SUMMARY AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

 

The Environmental Educator Volunteer will be a leader in supporting and developing the Youth Farm ­Based Wellness program. The purpose of the program is to give children a chance to explore and learn about the environment, food system and nutrition through interactive lessons and on­ farm activities. The youth program runs in conjunction with our adult Farm Based Wellness Program on Tuesday and Thursday evenings on our farm site through September.


Volunteers are needed Tues/ Thurs 4:30pm to 8:00pm through September.


DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

  • Ability to work with diverse populations including youth and adults
  • Knowledge or interest in gardening, environment, science, health and nutrition, and physical activities
  • Bilingual (Spanish/ English) desired but not essential
 
TO APPLY:
 
Please send a paragraph summary of your interest and qualifications, along with your resume and whether or not you speak Spanish to Liana at volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org
 



Farm Team Volunteer POSITION SUMMARY AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
 
The Farm Team is really the heart of our organization—without these individuals, our farms would not function! As a Farm Team Volunteer you will work with our farm manager, Jacqueline, to plant, cultivate, water and harvest the produce that gets distributed to our CSA members. This is a wonderful opportunity to get your hands dirty, learn about organic vegetable production, and most importantly enjoy the satisfaction of being outside and growing healthy food! We are looking for individuals who can commit to coming regular weekly hours - either Tuesdays or Thursdays 8am - noon or Tues/ Thurs 3pm - 6pm. This position is unpaid however if the volunteer is able to commit to regular weekly volunteering we will provide a half share of weekly vegetables (enough veggies for a house of 2-3 people).
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
  • Ability to lift 50 lbs
  • Reliable
TO APPLY:
 
Please send a paragraph summary of your interest and qualifications, along with your resume and whether or not you speak Spanish to Liana at volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org
 


 

Cooking + Nutrition Team Volunteer -

 

POSITION SUMMARY AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

New Haven Farms’ Farm-Based Wellness Program develops participants’ knowledge of healthy eating: the preparation of balanced meals as well as the nutritional content of foods, with special attention on fats and carbohydrates. A cooking and nutrition team volunteer will help support our Chef and Nutrition Educator in healthy meal preparation, material preparation, food distribution, recipe creation and nutrition education (if qualified). Volunteers for Cooking + Nutrition are needed on Tuesdays and Thursdays through September for any amount of time between 3pm and 8pm to help with our Farm Based Wellness Program. This position is unpaid however if the volunteer is able to commit to regular weekly volunteering we will provide a half share of weekly vegetables (enough veggies for a house of 2-3 people).

 

TO APPLY:

Please send a paragraph summary of your interest and qualifications, along with your resume and whether or not you speak Spanish to Liana at volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org

 


 

Research + Welcome Table Team Volunteer

 

POSITION SUMMARY AND RESPONSIBILITIES:
 
The welcome table team volunteer plays an essential role in greeting participants to our Farm Based Wellness Program, taking weights and other vitals (training provided), helping with weekly participant surveys and providing program support as needed. This is a fun position for a well organized, social individual. This position can be combined with any of our other Tuesday/ Thursday evening volunteer positions.
DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
  • Ability to work with diverse populations including youth and adults Knowledge or interest in gardening, environment, science, health and nutrition, and food systems Bilingual (Spanish/ English) - must be bilingual for Tuesdays, English only is ok for Thursdays
TO APPLY:
 
Please send a paragraph summary of your interest and qualifications, along with your resume and whether or not you speak Spanish to Liana at volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org

 

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SCHOOL BASED ENROLLMENT and MATCH SPECIALIST

 

Position open until filled. Please send resumes to: bbbsswctprogram@gmail.com

Position Summary

 

Big Brothers Big Sisters is seeking a qualified candidate to assist and manage an after school mentoring program in New Haven and manage a case load of mentoring matches in the Southwestern CT area.

37.5 Hours a week

FLSA classification:  non-exempt

Compensation: $15/hour & benefits

 

 Position Responsibilities

 

The School Based Enrollment Specialist will be responsible for approximately 3 different Big Brothers Big Sisters program sites in the New Haven area, working with and being supervised by the Site Based Programs Manager.

 

-The Specialist is to recruit, interview and assess high school-aged volunteers and children during the enrollment process, match them according to their individual interests, needs and locations.

 

-The Specialist will then provide thorough support to guarantee strength and safety in the match.

 

-At site locations, staff will also provide activities for the matches to complete as they develop their relationship, assisting with activities and re-directing children as necessary to ensure they benefit from the program. Staff member will engage and develop a strong rapport with the participants.

 

-Collaborate with on-site partners and staff, notifying all parties of program changes, absent participants or scheduling issues promptly, maintaining consistent contact throughout the week.

 

-Provide support to New Haven area University Site Based Programs (enrollment, matching, support)

 

-Specialist will, in addition to facilitating the School Based programs, be responsible for supporting a small case load in-office.

 

Job Qualifications

 

Applicant must minimally hold a Bachelor’s degree, preferably in social services, human resources or related field Bilingual, Spanish speaking required. Experience working with both child and teenage populations preferred; specific assessment, intake or interview experience preferred.  Proficiency in Microsoft OFFICE; including Word, Outlook, and Excel.  Must have car, valid driver’s license, and meet state required automobile insurance minimums. 

 

Required Skills and Abilities

High-level interviewing skills; ability to: form appropriate assessment-based relationships; relate well in multicultural environments; maintain confidentiality throughout daily operations; effectively collaborate with other volunteer match staff; use time effectively; and focus on details. Ability to collect meaningful data and draw solid conclusions. Ability to plan and execute meaningful activities for the matches at each site (Examples- Activities that are academic, creative and artistic, help self-esteem or improve peer relations). High energy with a history and love of working directly with children

 

 

Work Environment 

Must have flexible work hours to meet customer needs, occasional weekend/evening hours may be necessary.  Must frequent the New Haven area to be on site at programs for implementation and support as well as in our main office in Bridgeport.  Must be available afternoons for site program.

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Hello!

 
We are right in the middle of our best program year yet. We have the most people enrolled, fantastic participants, great attendance, great staff, interns and great volunteers! 
 
Unfortunately many of our interns will be returning to school and other projects in the next few weeks and we urgently need some more volunteers to support our program. 
 
The Farm Based Wellness Program takes place Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm. 
 
WE NEED VOLUNTEERS STARTING IMMEDIATELY to help with: 
1. Cooking prep (any time between 3pm - 8pm)
2. Youth Programming (4:45 pm - 7:45 pm)
3. Research collection (Spanish speaking preferred; 4:30pm to 6:30 pm) 
 
We are looking for volunteers who can fill these roles tomorrow and/ or during the next 8 weeks. Our program continues weekly until the end of September. Even an hour of volunteering would help us greatly. 
 
PLEASE CONTACT LIZ AND LIANA (liz@newhavenfarms.org and volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org) if you would like to volunteer. 
 
We look forward to seeing you on the farm! 
 
Happy summer! 
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We are looking for an energetic, creative and extremely well organized volunteer to help in organizing parts of our annual Contra Dance! The dance is our annual fundraiser and harvest celebration. It will be the third annual event - it consists of a silent auction, contra dance led by local contra hero Billy Fischer, light locally sourced hors d'oeuvres and alcohol for sale. This is a great opportunity for an enthusiastic person looking to work with some great people in the food world in New Haven. This would require about 5-10 hours/ wk until the event on Oct. 21. Your role will mostly be with contacting local businesses about donating silent auction items. We are also flexible and happy to work around your goals and time frame!

Full job description and posting: http://www.idealist.org/view/volop/mWDx3BCmz95P

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New Haven Farms Communications and Marketing Volunteer

Job Description

ABOUT NEW HAVEN FARMS:

New Haven Farms' nonprofit charitable mission is to promote health and community development through urban agriculture. We transform vacant, contaminated urban land into vibrant and productive organic farms. Our Farm Manager and volunteer corps cultivate urban farms, and our harvest is made accessible to low-income families who struggle with diet-related chronic diseases and food insecurity. Farm members receive produce baskets combined with farm education, cooking demonstrations, and nutrition education on a weekly basis. For more information about New Haven Farms, visit newhavenfarms.org.

POSITION SUMMARY AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

We are looking for an energetic, creative and extremely well organized volunteer to help in organizing parts of our annual Contra Dance! The dance is our annual fundraiser and harvest celebration. It will be the third annual event - it consists of a silent auction, contra dance led by local contra hero Billy Fischer, light locally sourced hors d'oeuvres and alcohol for sale. This is a great opportunity for an enthusiastic person looking to work with some great people in the food world in New Haven. This would require about 5-10 hours/ wk until the event on Oct. 21. Your role will mostly be with contacting local businesses about donating silent auction items. We are also flexible and happy to work around your goals and time frame!

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

  • Excellent communication skills
  • Marketing experience
  • Word, Excel, ppt experience
  • Media design experience (photoshop or similar)
  • Social Media experience
  • Flexibility, ability to go with the flow
  • Enthusiasm!

TO APPLY:

This position is a volunteer position and is unpaid. However, we have a lot of vegetables this time of year and would like to provide this volunteer with ample veggies. Please inquire for more details.

Please provide a paragraph summary of your interest in the position and attach your resume to Liz Marsh email:liz@newhavenfarms.org and cc volunteercoordinator@newhavenfarms.org

We look forward to hearing from you!

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Mary Wade – Past, Present, Future

Mary Wade’s Mission of Service

Mary Wade is planning to expand its mission to meet the growing needs in the community.  Connecticut is undergoing a permanent and historic transformation in its demographics - it is aging. Between 2010 and 2040, Connecticut’s population of people age 65 and older is projected to grow by 57%, with less than 2% growth for people age 20 to 64 during the same period. Moreover, residents born in Connecticut today can expect to live to be 80.8 years old—the third highest life expectancy in the nation.  This unequalled long life, combined with firm increases in the number of older adults, has profound implications for everyone in Connecticut.

In addition, the State of Connecticut has been actively engaged in rebalancing their Medicaid long-term care services from institutional settings such as skilled nursing centers, toward more emphasis on home-and community-based services and settings, for example, home care and adult day centers. The State has invested a significant amount of resources toward creating an environment where Medicaid recipients with a skilled nursing center level of care designation are aware of their options, including the opportunity to receive home and community based services (HCBS). In 2013, 56.6% of CT Medicaid recipients were utilizing HCBS and with State intervention it is predicted that by 2025, 75.1% of these individuals will be utilizing HCBS.  

Mary Wade’s Programs and Services

Mary Wade has a longstanding and proven record of responding to the needs of the community, and in particular with the needs of seniors and their families.  This is evidence by the fact that Mary Wade’s Senior Care Campus has an array of services available to seniors from:

Home and Community Based Services, such as, (1) transportation, (2) adult day health center, (3) homemaker and companion service, (4) community navigator, (5) outpatient rehabilitation, and (6) primary care.

Institutional Senior Care Services, such as, (1) assisted living (Residential Care Home), and (2) short term rehabilitation including pulmonary rehabilitation, innovative treatment modality for dysphagia, (3) chronic long term care, (4) hospice & palliative care.

Housing, such as providing low income housing to workforce families.

Mary Wade has been able to continue to expand its services and programs, improve its campus, while intensifying its relationship and role in the urban setting by engagement of the neighborhood.  By working closely with our neighbors and neighborhood association (in particular Chatham Square Neighborhood Association) we build a stronger community. www.marywade.org

Mary Wade’s Naming Origins

Mary Wade’s name originated from Lucy Boardman and her sister, Mary Wade

In 1866, a group of women founded this organization initially to serve women and children following the Civil War, and named it the Home for the Friendless.  In 1897 Lucy Hall Boardman made it possible to begin new construction on the previous building when she contributed $20,000 in honor of her sister, Mary Wade.  Lucy (1819-1906) was born in Poland, Ohio, into a family that had originated in Connecticut.  In 1857 she married William H. Boardman, a New Haven man whose family owned land in Ohio.  She came to New Haven, and she and her husband, who was both a judge and member of Congress, lived at 46 Hillhouse Avenue.  She became Connecticut’s leading female philanthropist, giving away more than $750,000 including $125,000 to Yale for the construction of Kirtland Hall (Kirtland was a family name), $100,000 to Christ Church, and $83,000 for the building of the Boardman Training School.  The last-named gift was made in 1894 in memory of her husband.

Her sister, Mary P. Wade (1816-1908), also was born in Poland, Ohio.  She married Edward Wade of Ohio, who was also a judge and congressmen, and they lived in Washington, D.C., during the Lincoln administration.  He died in 1866, and she lived thereafter with the Boardmans on Hillhouse Avenue.  When Lucy died, Mary Wade moved to 331 Temple Street.  She, too, was very charitable.  Neither Lucy nor Mary had children.  They are buried at the Grove Street Cemetery in the Boardman Plot. 

 

Mary Wade’s Goal over the next ten years

Over the next decade, Mary Wade will continue its commitment to serving the needs of the Greater New Haven Community from our original address at 118 Clinton Avenue and as an integral part of our community.  As a senior care community, it is the goal to continue to link a venerable history of care with a commitment to energetically offer a continuum of coordinated, innovative and high quality care in which compassion, human dignity, diversity and social responsibility are primary concerns.  It is the intention of this organization to endeavor to expand this philosophy in the broader community

 

Two immense challenges to be faced in the future

One of the biggest concerns in the future is to have the pool of skilled individuals to employ in order to sustain the mission and services.  This is a concern among all providers of health services as we see the increase of the older population while birth rates have been steadily decreasing.  Financial resources is another challenge since both State and Federal Governments struggle to balance these budgets, and funding for social services continues to increase and strain the economy.  This is the reason Mary Wade is focusing on philanthropic initiatives in order to fund vital services and maintain the level of quality we are best known to provide.

 

David V. Hunter, President & CEO

Mary Wade

July 19, 2016

 

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Book Review: Make It So

As timing is everything (think summer reading) and a new Star Trek movie has just been released I just happened to come across, Make It So. Make It So, by Wess Roberts and Bill Ross offers leadership lessons from Star Trek The Next Generation (which for those of you who are not Trekkies, is the series with Jean-Luc Picard as the captain of the starship Enterprise).

So, if you would like to combine your thirst for entertaining with educational reading, Make It So (Pocket Books, 1995) may fit the bill. What Roberts and Ross have done is present chapters, vignettes you might say, from the Star Trek series and gleaned from these, management and leadership lessons as relayed in Jean-luc's post-experience journal. As such, the chapters serve as parables for how an effective manager might think and act. The topics covered include: being clear about mission; vision and focus; initiative; competence; communication; politics; symbiosis; interdependence; and, resilience.

While it is clear that a significant portion of Make It So would offer some thinking to nonprofit CEO's, I think there to be some lessons that nonprofit boards, board chairs and committee chairs might also glean. Clearly, being always clear about mission (this is of course one of the fiduciary duties) stands out but the task for board to both establish a vision and be focused no matter the "blips" is an equally important message. Chapters about communications and politics are areas that surround boards and board chairs and the members should, I believe, regularly take the time to understand what is culturally established; what fully engages or disengages, and what collectively leads a board to make positive contributions to and for the organization.

Nonprofit board chairs and committee chairs might also benefit from the chapters on initiative, competence, symbiosis, and, interdependence. For instance, about the topic of interdependence:

one good leader sometimes makes the difference in the success or failure of a mission. The truth is, however, the cooperative, collaborative, and corroborative effort of the entire team is much more likely to result in mission success.

About politics:

no one member or group of members can ever completely prevent others from sowing seeds of fear, doubt, and distrust. Consequently, every member ought to stand prepared to boldly uproot any seeds so sown by any member. Make no mistake, political games never end and are never totally resolved to everyone's satisfaction. Indeed, there is always something that remains unsettled, always something left unsaid, and always someone ready to replace those people exposed for creating dysfunction with the organization.

And, about communications:

Always bear in mind that no matter the means by which messages are given or received, your method of communicating must allow messages to be understood. Indeed, effective communication is the lubricant of effective leadership. ....you can never become an effective leader without being understood or without understanding those upon whom you rely.

In conclusion, if you prefer beefing-up your management and leadership skills through anecdotes and are in the mood for some light but reasonably intriguing science fiction. Make It So may be just the read for you during these uber warm summer days.

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Long Wharf Memorial Project

Project Details

The National Veterans Council is currently working on a project to develop a schematic plan for redevelopment of the Long Wharf Waterfront Park ,where there is a collection of war memorials, including the Vietnam Veteran Memorial and are sited between I-95 and the New Haven Harbor.This project will not only be enhancement of the Vietnam Memorial and how it is use by the public as a place of memory, but will also be an exciting new comprehensive vision for this disconnected part of New Haven. This vision to revitalize the Long Wharf Waterfront Park would allow for small groups to gather, major celebrations to solitary reflections. This project will en-tale moving monuments,to landscaping, seating area and making the waterfront a scenic area that would produce a cohesive public space befitting this important place of remembrance, We also envision small boats, tour boats/taxis, small vendor shops and eateries along the waterfront.that would add to a scenic view to the waterfront

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Fighting Sex Trafficking

Young girls clad in red dresses, accessorized with numbers for identification sat as prey among predators. As the girls watched cartoons, the predators watched them, shrewdly choosing their next victim. But, one girl in particular stood out – her number read 146. 

“Her name became a number, her number became our name” reads the website of Love146, an international human rights organization working to end child trafficking and exploitation through survivor care and prevention. Co-founders Lamont Hiebert, Caroline Hahm, Rob Morris and Desirea Rodgers’ encounter with number 146 that night in Southeast Asia inspired them to set out not only to aid survivors of trafficking and exploitation, but to prevent it. 

The girl identified only by her number, looked beyond the glass barrier in defiance and caught the attention of those that that meant her no harm but salvation. They were there as part of an exploratory trip to determine how they could serve in the fight against child sex trafficking. That night, they got their answer.

The founders were never able to identify number 146, but her story has inspired them to help thousands. They set-up shop in New Haven, CT, where three out of four of the founders were linked to the city and all of the founders loved its rich abolitionist history. Love146 has expanded to have offices in Houston, TX, the United Kingdom and the Philippines taking a holistic approach to caring for survivors internationally. Read more here.

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Common Ground — the nation’s oldest environmental charter high school, creating the next generation of successful college students and powerful community and environmental leaders — is seeking one passionate, creative, and certified Social Studies/History teacher. This teacher will have the chance to:

  • Teach Common Ground’s core history and social studies classes
  • Help to build a social studies curriculum that addresses intersections of social studies and social justice issues, and incorporates culturally relevant content for our student body
  • Co-teach interdisciplinary courses that integrate social justice and environmental issues with content from social studies and history

Common Ground is seeking outstanding candidates with:

  • A passion for our environmental mission and commitment to equitable and sustainable change
  • An understanding of the circumstances that low income students and students of color have historically and are presently experiencing and an awareness of the role of individual educators and educational institutions in creating and changing those experiences
  • Strong background in Common Core Standards and the C-3 Social Studies framework
  • Passion and experience for curriculum development
  • Prior experience with and commitment to engaging students from racially and economically diverse urban settings
  • Appropriate Connecticut certification.
  • Bachelor degree, Masters strongly preferred
  • Common Ground is particularly eager for candidates who help us fulfill our commitment to building a racially and culturally diverse faculty.

At Common Ground, a truly diverse community of 195 students from 16 different towns experiences a mix of high academic standards, active learning and leadership opportunities, and small school supports that are producing dramatic educational results. More than 90% of our students are accepted to college, and our students’ graduation rates and test scores have pushed above the state average.

Please send cover letter and resume to:

Liz Cox, School Director
Common Ground High School
358 Springside Ave., New Haven, CT 06515
lcox@commongroundct.org

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