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IRIS – Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (www.irisct.org), a dynamic nonprofit organization in New Haven CT, has an immediate opening for the full-time position of Operations Manager. IRIS helps refugees and asylees— people fleeing persecution in their home countries who are invited to the US by the federal government—to start new lives and become self-sufficient, contributing members of their communities. IRIS currently serves clients from countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Congo, Eritrea, and Sudan.

General Description

The Operations Manager is responsible for organizing and directing IRIS’s daily office operations.  The goal of this position is to ensure a smooth operation of the day-to-day business of IRIS, making it possible for clients to be served effectively; for staff members to function efficiently; and for IRIS to comply with government requirements.  The Operations Manager provides administrative and case management support to all staff, but works most closely with the Deputy Director, Executive Director, and Manager of Case Management.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities include:

• Serve as receptionist in front office, including answering phones, greeting dozens of refugee clients and visitors each day, and triaging client requests
• Help staff members troubleshoot IT issues, and serve as liaison with IT consultant
• Process invoices and mail payments  
• Compile and submit biweekly payroll
• Maintain office files, including payroll, grantor documentation, and client finance reports; help prepare for annual financial audit
• Compile program and financial statistics and information for reports, as necessary
• Order office supplies and maintain office equipment; communicate and negotiate with vendors
• Maintain and update IRIS website
• Provide human resources support, including liaising with IRIS’s insurance company
• Provide basic administrative support to all staff and departments
• Maintain a neat, secure, and orderly office by preparing hospitality section (coffee & tea) each morning, and supervising the office cleaner
• Oversee Diaper Bank and Food Bank distributions
• Supervise volunteers and interns assigned to administrative and operations tasks
• Assist with fundraising tasks including appeal letters, thank you letters, and donor database maintenance.
• Other related tasks as necessary

Requirements

The successful candidate will have a minimum of 3-5 years of experience in an administrative position, non-profit experience preferred; excellent writing, communication, and organizational skills; and the ability to handle multiple demands and shifting priorities in a fast-paced environment. Candidate must be fluent in English. Ability to speak a second language is preferred. Candidate must have a demonstrated commitment to the mission of IRIS and awareness and sensitivity to multicultural issues.  Candidate must be proficient with MS Windows and MS Office, including Word, Excel, and Outlook.  Experience with Quickbooks, GiftWorks, Salesforce, MS Access or other databases, website maintenance, IT trouble shooting, and social media a plus.  

To apply, send an email to Deputy Director Kelly Hebrank, at humanresources@irisct.org by July 14^th with the following:

• A subject line that says “OPERATIONS MANAGER: [your first and last name]”
• A Cover Letter describing your relevant skills and experience, and why you are interested in this position
• An attached resume

IRIS – Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (www.irisct.org), a dynamic nonprofit organization in New Haven CT, has an immediate opening for the full-time position of Reception & Placement (R&P) Case Manager. IRIS helps refugees and asylees— people fleeing persecution in their home countries who are invited to the US by the federal government—to start new lives and become self-sufficient, contributing members of their communities. IRIS currently serves clients from countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Congo, Eritrea, and Sudan.

General Description

Operating under the Reception & Placement (R&P) requirements of the federal refugee resettlement program, the Case Manager will join a dedicated team in providing case management services to hundreds of refugees and asylees each year.  The R&P Case Manager will ensure that clients’ basic needs are met during their first 90 days in the US; that they learn about US culture and norms and feel comfortable navigating their new communities; and that they make progress towards becoming self-sufficient.  The R&P Case Manager will supervise a part-time assistant, and a team of interns and volunteers.

This job is primarily direct service with refugee clients, along with administrative work required by funders. 

Essential Duties and Responsibilities include:

• Prepare for and welcome newly arriving refugee families and individuals
• Ensure refugees’ basic needs (housing, food, clothing, etc.) are addressed
• Provide community and cultural orientation
• Assist clients in accessing appropriate external services and public benefits, including from Social Security Administration and Department of Social Services
• Communicate and coordinate closely with other IRIS staff who provide services such as English class, childcare, education, health care, employment, and immigration legal services
• Help refugees develop a resettlement plan and household budget, and encourage clients to work towards self-sufficiency and early employment
• Identify and address barriers and challenges to successful resettlement
• Operate as a cultural broker between refugees, volunteers, and service providers
• Working with the IRIS Volunteer Coordinator, ensure that proper language interpretation and translation are provided for all meetings with clients and for important documents
• Maintain and complete case files and documentation for each case, including financial expenditures, reports of client outcomes, and evidence of client self-sufficiency
• Maintain regular contact with cases, including home visits
• Other related tasks as assigned

Requirements

Candidates must have at least three years of relevant experience; strong writing, communication and organizational skills; computer skills including Microsoft Word and Excel; and ability to handle multiple demands and shifting priorities in a fast-paced environment.  Ideal candidates will have experience supervising others.  Candidates must have a demonstrated commitment to the mission of IRIS and awareness and sensitivity to multicultural issues.  Candidates must be fluent in English. Proficiency in another language is desirable, especially Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Swahili, Tigrinya, French, or Spanish.  Candidates must be able to work occasional evenings.  Candidates must have US driver’s license and be willing to drive clients to appointments. 

To apply, send an email to Deputy Director Kelly Hebrank, at humanresources@irisct.org by July 14^th with the following:

• A subject line that says “R&P CASE MANAGER: [Candidate first and last name]”
• A cover letter describing your relevant skills and experience, and why you are interested in this position
• An attached resume

Every Sunday night, West Haven family child care provider Yanerys Aziz strategizes for the coming week. She thinks about the materials she’ll lay out for children on her theme table, the arrangement of her child care space, and the activities she’ll propose in the days to come. The children she cares for will arrive early the next morning, and Yanerys wants to be prepared to offer them experiences that nurture their curiosity and help them grow and learn. Since 2007, when she opened the doors to her family child care program, Yanerys has exemplified the creativity, perseverance, and commitment to continuous learning that so many of All Our Kin’s providers share.

Continue reading on All Our Kin's blog, All Our Words.

It is pretty much the practice of nonprofits to establish board term limits. Most common among these practices is the 2-3 year term and 1 year off rule recognizing that for large organizations, 3-3 year terms takes into account the learning curve that may be needed to create effective boards. Admittedly, there are quite a number of nonprofit boards that I have encountered that do not implement their term limits for all kinds of lame reasons: we don't want to lose our invaluable member (what, once they aren't a board member they will never talk to the organization again?) and, it's too hard to find qualified and capable members (how well have you looked?). But pretty much it is understood that terms and term limits. when practiced, produces better outcomes for the board and organization.

But what about execs? I have been and will continue to maintain that the "habit" of many nonprofits to not establish a "term limit" on the exec can produce its own negative results. A recent Conference Board report illustrates what for-profits are doing around this issue. And one statement is particularly noteworthy to me:

With longevity, the CEO can cultivate closer ties with directors, which may hinder the independence of board oversight and weaken the objectivity of the performance evaluation process. When adequately used, policies on CEO retirement based on age or term limits may offer an additional safeguard to existing governance practices and serve as an integral component of CEO succession planning.

I think the lessons from this report apply equally to nonprofits and nonprofit boards should consider the question of ceo term limits which can in the end, compliment and be a sound part of succession planning. Note, I'm not needing to see all nonprofit execs retire, I'm just, saying that staying forever is not in the long range best interest of the nonprofit.

It's finally here a fun loving fitness facility that is dedicated to the entire family. Not only do we provide affordable classes but we also have FREE Zumba®  classes for both adults and kids.

Take a look: BEyond FITness

Feel free to "like" us on Facebook for more fitness fun at FACEBOOK

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Every Tuesday 6:15pm Zumba®  (adults class)

Session 2- June 3- June 24th: 5:30pm Zumba®  Kids (ages 4-11yrs) Parents/Guardians are encouraged to participate.

Share away ;)

A recent shake-up in a nonprofit dependent on its credibility and adherence to high ethical standards can serve to remind nonprofit board and staff that conflicts of interest are not specific to board members alone.

"The CFA Institute (Chartered Financial Analyst Institute) is best known for administering the Chartered Financial Analyst exams, a rigorous test of financial analysis and ethics. This year, nearly 150,000 candidates from 179 countries registered to take one of the exams, often after years of study, on June 7. The organization has 119,000 members. CFA has an annual budget of $231 million. Its executive was paid $1.4 million in fiscal year 2013.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the executive "stepped down" after a board review that followed its learning about the executive's relationship with a senior staff member. The Journal notes that "While the organization's code of conduct doesn't prohibit relationships between staff, a concern on the board was that potential conflicts from the relationship could open CFA Institute to litigation or public criticism, people familiar with the situation said."

Whew! I understand rigor and all and the duty by the board to ensure that its biggest asset, rigor to high standards, is preserved but I for one wonder that this action doesn't stretch the meanings. I however do recognize that when an inner office relationship between a supervisor and supervisee shifts to something of an amorous nature, power dynamics can also change and perhaps in turn, risks to outcomes. At the same time I would expect that an organization like the CFA would have instituted enough checks and balances that inner-office dynamics would not directly affect the quality of its product. Might word of a relationship affect perceptions of quality by members? This of course becomes the basis for the board's action. I would expect though that the board must adjust its code of conduct to reflect its own sense of the impact of inner-office relationships.

At this point, based on its action, I'm led to wonder whether the board didn't have previous issues with its exec to reach this end result. This for me would be the only reason to take an action that did not otherwise have institutional documentation. Food for thought.

IRIS – Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (www.irisct.org), a dynamic nonprofit organization in New Haven CT, has an immediate opening for the full-time position of Health & Wellness Program Coordinator. IRIS helps refugees and asylees— people fleeing persecution in their home countries who are invited to the US by the federal government—to start new lives and become self-sufficient, contributing members of their communities. IRIS currently serves clients from countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, Cuba, Congo, and Sudan.

The goal of IRIS's Health & Wellness Program is for refugees to have prompt access to high quality, culturally and linguistically competent medical care.  Refugees' health needs will be addressed and they will receive health education, to enable them to become healthy, productive members of the community.

The Health and Wellness Program Coordinator (HWPC) will coordinate healthcare and health education for newly-arrived refugees (approximately 200/year) and other IRIS clients.  The HWPC will provide refugees and asylees with medical case management, and will orient them to New Haven and the healthcare system.  The HWPC will also advocate on behalf of clients and engage with the medical community on issues related to refugee and immigrant health and health care.  The HWPC will coordinate with other IRIS staff members to help clients overcome health-related barriers to employment or education, and to help them achieve self-sufficiency soon after arriving in the US.

This job is a mix of direct service and administrative work. 

Candidates must have relevant experience; strong writing, communication and organizational skills; and ability to handle multiple demands and shifting priorities in a fast-paced environment.  Candidates must have a demonstrated commitment to the mission of IRIS and awareness and sensitivity to multicultural issues.  Candidates must be fluent in English. Proficiency in another language is desirable, especially Arabic, Spanish, French, Swahili, or Tigrinya.  Candidates must be able to work occasional evenings.  Ideally, candidates would have driver’s license and be willing to drive clients in personal vehicle to appointments in the area. 

To apply, send an email to Kelly Hebrank, Deputy Director, at humanresources@irisct.org by June 27^th with the following:

• Subject line MUST say “HEALTH & WELLNESS PROGRAM COORDINATOR: [Candidate first and last name]”
• Cover letter describing your relevant skills and experience, and why you are interested in this position
• Attached resume

Originally posted on new haven speaks:

Over the years, I’ve started many workshops for parents and child care providers with a simple brainstorm activity.  I ask, “What are your dreams for your children, or for the children in your child care?” I’ve completed this activity more than twenty times. Every time, the answers are the same: independence, love, safety, relationships.

This has been an important lesson for me. All people, no matter how diverse, have the same basic dreams for the young children in their lives.

But here in New Haven, many children don’t get the kind of start any of us would hope for.  More than a third of kids in our city live in poverty (37.3 percent, according to the 2008-2012 American Community Survey). Close to twenty percent of children in our county were “food insecure” in 2011—meaning that they lacked consistent access to adequate food.

Continue reading on new haven speaks.

This year is the 150th anniversary of what was once known as the Girls Club of America and is now called Girls Inc. The story of Girls Inc involved seven women, the founding board, who shared a passion and a commitment to get the job done. I pose that this is what governance is all about.

Here's the story from the Christian Science Monitor:

In 1864, with the Civil War in its fourth year and Union troops wearing Waterbury Button Company buttons on their uniforms, seven society women in Waterbury decided it was high time to help the young women in their midst. And so on Jan. 15 the founders inked their names in what is now a sepia-toned notebook.

The founders envisioned a school where young women would learn how to keep a home together with some basic education in writing, reading, and mathematics. Primarily it was akin to a finishing school for young working women, Maglio says.

That approach lasted into the 1950s. But as the sexual revolution and women’s rights movements arrived, and the organization realized it needed to shift its focus – and quickly. “We’re about having our girls feel confident with what success is – and it can be different things for different girls,” Maglio says.

Kudos to those who have keep the founders' dreams alive!

When the US Justice Department says to your nonprofit board: " the one-man staff of Philadelphia Safety Net, repeatedly gave himself raises without board approval." you know you must be doing something wrong.

But this is indeed what the Justice Department said to the Philadelphia-based Safety Net which was undergoing an audit from having received its funds through its Congressman's earmark. Turns out that the organization, staffed by one individual who was a former staff member to the Congressman received an annual salary of $364K. The audit concluded saying that it found that "62 percent of Safety Net's spending of federal funds was unallowable, unsupported, or unreasonable". In addition, the executive was cited as having "used some of the public funds for his own expenses", the audit said. It said he did not repay Safety Net for $2,218 in personal spending in 2009, including paying off $393 in parking tickets, a $286 hotel room, and cash withdrawals totaling $1,149. The audit also said Jones used $1,171 in state funds in 2008 to pay for clothing and restaurant bills."

However, from an outcomes perspective, the organization appears to have had an impact taking more than 3500 guns off the street (the program was all about buying back guns).

So, failed board? I would offer there was barely any board, at least providing oversight. But how much does it matter if goals were met?

To review the article, take a look here.

The case of a New York City minister, his wife and the executive director have agreed to pay-back loans with interest and penalties they borrowed from their church and two related nonprofits. I am scratching my head a bit over the "must pay back clause" because the Wall Street Journal doesn't really indicate there was any intention not to pay back their loan (which they used to buy a house and property. Some of the loan was also used to buy a car (yes, a BMW). Alas, additional monies were used to purchase trips for the couple to visit their sons in college.

So, we have here a few issues. According to the Attorney General, it is state law that directors and officers may not be the beneficiary of a nonprofit's loans. I will admit that this was new to me. Over the years I have known of a number of instances where boards have indeed made financial loans to their execs particularly for a house to live-in.

This particular case came to the forefront of the news because these loans were viewed externally as diverting nonprofit money away from their intended purpose. But the couple did actually conduct related transactions that were less than legally or even morally acceptable and indeed, action should be taken, I think, beyond just getting the money with penalties paid.

And indeed, this is likely the reason boards should be cautious about lending. That there were legal prohibitions agains these transactions was news to me so I poked around the web and found that such transactions are not actually prohibited in every state in the US. And, when their are sanctions, their are circumstances. The lesson: boards should seek legal counsel should the subject arise and their is not already a board-developed policy in place recognizing that federal and state laws always trump a nonprofit's laws when there is a difference between the two.

But, to wrap this story up, the Journal article also notes that: Three former members of the Glad Tidings' board agreed to pay $50,000 in penalties for neglecting their oversight duties. Whoa -- gotta hand it to the AG who took all of this very seriously. And nonprofit boards everywhere should do the same. Ignorance is not blissful.

Good Day To All,

Usually I like to write about the various persons connected within the cemetery and the walk-about with those persons. But for this note today, I would like to discuss the Walk for Autism which took place in Wallingford two weeks ago.

Needless, to say, it was a wonderful time to give to a great cause. My team was the "Marissa Monsters". Marissa is the daughter of Lisa and George Carranzo, the owners of Grand Apizza (New Haven's Best Kept Secret) located at 111 Grand Avenue, New Haven, 203.624.7646.

The walk is hosted at Rosemary-Choate School and then from this point of central position we walked through the historic part of the city of Wallingford. There was a Dixie Jazz Band and other amusements - like walking on bubblewrap, etc. The day was awesome with the best weather ever and the people were just as great.

So I encourage anyone to commit to this occasion once a year - it is for such a great cause. This past year the group raised around $2500.00 to develop a cure.

If interested call Lisa or George at 203.624.7646 and they will assist in any questions, or concerns you may have with the Walk.

Cheers to All,

Patricia Illingworth

Chief Docent

Grove Street Cemetery

I recently observed a nonprofit's board members panicking over the organization's total annual deficit of $23,000. Members seriously questioned the exec's abilities.

The organization's annual budget: $8 million. The deficit, less than 1% of the annual budget.

Many of the board members have grown old with their organization with some having been members for 25 years, since the founding of the organization (that's likely not the best scenario). The nonprofit started as most do with only a bit of money: $25,000. Imagine if at the end of the first year, the deficit had been $23,000. Panic would have been conceivably in place and possibly justifiably so.

One of the realities I would observe of nonprofit board members is that many view a nonprofit's finances in the way they view their own personal finances. Many do not have a lot of experience managing a business or a nonprofit and so their only world view when it comes to money is themselves. The consequence: what appears alot on a personal basis is very small on a business basis.

The panic that was set forth from this news, in my opinion, is to be expected. A loss is a loss whether it's mine or the nonprofit's. But the response to the loss -- this is clearly something that can be managed more effectively.

First, given that the majority of board members do not know what to expect or expect as reasonable when it comes to corporate finances, the Governance Committee would do well to a) learn the level of experience when interviewing prospective board members and b) be sure to include in the orientation and on-going training, what corporate finances are like and how they cannot be assessed at the same level as personal finances, perhaps using comparisons with other organizations. In step (b), adjusting personal culture and awareness is essential.

Next, the Exec and the Treasurer should be sure to always keep members abreast of financial challenges and changes. When something "bad" is coming, it is better to be prepared than surprised.

Finally, it's possible and likely that the characteristics and skills/knowledge of individuals who serve as board members in an earlier stage nonprofit are not the best skills/knowledge and characteristics of those who are best for a more mature, large nonprofit. A so-called, corporate-focused or experienced indiivdual may be much more suited for providing fiduciary oversight of a big-budget nonprofit because their skills and knowledge are better matched. These members will still panic but at a significantly different level than the individual with no corporate experience.

Should the characteristics change as the organization grows? I would suggest: yes. The early stage manager is different than a mature stage manger. I would pose that the same is true for the board.

Some rules are meant to be broken to protect your personal space.  In this regard I have learned from teachers who assume Avatar identities to communicate with friend in social media.  

I have done the opposite.  At this time tweets from @FreemanWPAATV are mine and I do 99% of the Outreach communication from the organization I manage under this pseudonym. I also wear the costume at community events to increase our awareness with the next generation.

Freeman Penny Quinn,1st AMBASSADOR of FREE SPEECH

Public Art/Percent for Art Coordinator -P/T on Project Basis

The City of New Haven Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism/New Haven Festivals, Inc. seeks individual with public art background to coordinate upcoming Percent for Art project. Temporary P/T with flexible hours. Send resume/letter of interest and salary requirements to Kim Futrell, City of New Haven, Department of Arts, Culture and Tourism, 165 Church Street, New Haven, CT 06510.  Or email to kfutrell@newhavenct.net.

Work Life balance is even more challenging if you work in a non-profit that you are passionate about: And work-life balance is a personal responsibility --- right?  In my paying day job I was totally out of balance and the old habits are not easy to shed in my encore choices. 

So I will travel to #NHV from #w06492 to stretch my mind today at The Writer's Circle. 

Before doing so let me share a good read on What is Productivity:  http://intentionalworkplace.com/2014/04/17/how-many-hours-do-we-need-to-work-to-be-productive-reprise/  

$100 million from the Gates Foundation, InBloom has faded into the night. In brief terms, InBloom was designed to wharehouse and store student data for public school systems which in turn can streamline how teachers and administrators accessed student records. The system was meant to extract student data from disparate school grading and attendance databases, store it in the cloud and funnel it to dashboards where teachers might more effectively track the progress of individual students.

According to the New York Times story, the environment, particularly regarding privacy and security, isn't ready for what InBloom had to offer. I recognize that the message grantmakers have been giving in recent years is that there is much to be learned from failure (so it's ok -- especially if the source of the money has really deep pockets) but $100 million to learn this lesson? And which should come first: the investment in figuring out the solution, or figuring out the demand?

This of course raises the question, did the InBloom board really fulfill its fiduciary responsibility using the process it used? And yes, I know, I'm the armchair quarterback offering my own opinion on what InBloom has done (or not) but this of course is the job of a blogger. What's your opinion: good investment; good board; good learning?