hsn / human service newsbytes

Children and Youth

Rise in Graduation Rates Signal Gains in Fight Against the Dropout Epidemic

The U.S. graduation rate increased from 72 percent in 2002 to 75 percent in 2008 while the number of “dropout factory” high schools fell by 13 percent – several of which were schools from lower-income, urban and rural districts that were previously thought by many to be hopeless. Read the America’s Promise Alliance report, Building a Grad Nation, and learn more about the dropout epidemic.

Data Uncovers Who America’s Uncovered Kids Are

According to 2008 data from the American Community Survey an estimated 7.3 million children lacked health insurance, 4.7 million of whom were eligible for CHIP or Medicaid but were not enrolled, furthermore, uninsured rates varied significantly across the nation – ranging from a low of 1.7 percent in Massachusetts to a high of 20.1 percent in Nevada. Download the Urban Institute reports on uninsured children here.

Speaking Out – Latino Youth Voice Their Thoughts on Discrimination in New Report

Close to 83% of Hispanic youth indicated in a recent national survey that discrimination is a personal problem for them.  Speaking Out, a new report from The National Council of La Raza, gives voice to these youth along with important analysis of the impact of social and institutional racism on their lives.  Download the report.

Full STEM Ahead! Out-of-School Time Programs Commit to “The Year of Science.”

Studies estimate that nearly 80% of future careers will require awareness of, and facility with, Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM). In light of this, the Afterschool Alliance, National AfterSchool Association (NAA), and National Summer Learning Association (NSLA) have declared 2010-2011 the Year of Science.  Learn more about this initiative and get involved.

Older Americans

Collaborative Effort Underway to Ensure Economic Security for Older Adults

The National Council on Aging (NCOA) and Bank of America Charitable Foundation are partnering to provide one-on-one financial assistance through economic security centers for over 1,200 older adults in six communities – Baltimore, Detroit, Houston, San Francisco, Trenton, and Orange County, NY – that have been hard hit by the recession.  Find out more about the initiative.

New Year, New Benefits for Seniors

January 1, 2011 ushered in new benefits for people with Medicare.  Improvements include a 50% discount on prescription drugs in the Medicare Part D donut hole, free preventive screenings, and the creation of a new Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation. Visit the NCOA website to learn more.

Unemployment Rates Among Boomers

Unemployment rate for men age 55 to 64 increased from 3.2 percent in December 2008, when the recession began, to 7.8 percent in November 2010. The counterpart unemployment rates for women were 2.9 percent and 6.1 percent.  Read more in the Urban Institute report, updated December 2010.

Poverty and Community

Two Birds With One Stone – Is Health Reform a Way to Close the Gap on Racial Disparity?

Chronically ill Americans from racial and ethnic minorities make up more than half of America’s uninsured and they suffer higher rates of chronic illness than the general population – 46 percent of nonelderly black adults and 35 percent nonelderly Hispanic adults have one or more chronic condition. Learn about health disparities at the Center for American Progress and ways The Affordable Care Act can help to reduce them.

Up to 3.6 Million People Owe Their Jobs to the Recovery Act

The impact of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) on employment peaked in the third quarter of 2010, when it increased the number of people employed by between 1.4 million and 3.6 million jobs.  Read more at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

Nonprofit Sector

Spotlight Feature in Nonprofit Times – “Slow to Pay Funders Causing Service Bottlenecks” Did you know that more than half of nonprofit human service organizations encountered trouble during the past year with either government contracts or grants?  Or that among the 33,000 human service providers nationally there were nearly 200,000 government contracts and grants in 2009?  Read the Nonprofit Times article featuring Irv Katz, President and CEO of NHSA and Jill Schumann, President and CEO of Lutheran Services in America on how these hold ups are affecting the sector.

Giving’s Up, but Not Enough

Thirty-six percent of charities reported an increase in donations in the first nine months of 2010, compared with only 23 percent in the same period of 2009, but the small rebound hasn’t been enough to help many nonprofits. Read more in a recent report for the Nonprofit Research Collaborative.

Need a Re-Cap on the Important Developments from the Lame Duck Session Just Before the Holiday Madness Set in? Here’s where things stand as we enter 2011 and wait to see what happens with the new Congress:

Major Steps Taken Towards a Healthier, Hunger-Free America

Year-long efforts by children, youth and health advocates paid off in early December when President Obama signed the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 into law, which reauthorizes child nutrition programs for five years and includes $4.5 billion in new funding for these programs over 10 years. Read more about the Act in the official Whitehouse press release.

Landmark Moment for Civil Rights – Don’t Ask Don’t Tell Repealed

The military’s longstanding ban on service by gays and lesbians came to a historic and symbolic end when President Obama signed legislation repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the contentious 17-year old Clinton-era law that allowed gays to serve if they concealed their sexual orientation. Read more in the New York Times in their DADT archive and resource section.

A Dream Deferred? DREAM Act Passes House, but Stalled (Indefinitely) in Senate

The DREAM Act, HR 5281 – a bill to grant legal status to hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrant students and undocumented children estimated to reduce the deficit over the next 10 years by $1.4 billion – passed the House in early December, but failed to pass in Senate leaving advocates worried that despite Obama’s commitment to immigration reform, hope for the Act is gone. Learn more on ABC News online showcase. Read a UCLA report on the economic benefits of the Act.

Omnibus Bill Fails and Serious Cuts to Come

Without the votes to pass the $1.1 trillion omnibus bill, which included funding for child care, disability and low-income housing programs, Congress instead passed a short-term stop-gap bill and opens up the possibility for alternate bills like the Boehner proposal which decreases current annual funding by $62 billion and emphasizes military spending.  Learn more at the Coalition on Human Needs.

Unemployment Insurance Extended, but Not Without a Cost

A fierce battle over federal funding has led to a compromise that many feel was a bum deal for lower-income Americans – Republicans signed off on a 13-month unemployment insurance extension in exchange for Bush-era tax breaks that benefit the wealthiest 2% in America, around 3,500 families. Read more at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

For an overview of the Lame Duck Session and Pending Bills that Affect the Human Service Sector and Our Clients and Constituents check out the Coalition on Human Needs Report.

It’s 2011 – Time to Get Social Media Savvy

Want to learn more about how to use social media to promote your organization and raise funds? How about what it takes to set up a blog, microblog or vlog? Want to know if it’s even worth your while to look into these things? Then check out the free ppt presentations on nonprofits and social media available at slideshare.net.

Promoting Civic Engagement and Advocating for Youth Just Got Easier

Civic engagement doesn’t have to be hard to promote, in fact, the SparkAction DIY Democracy Guide and toolkit make it incredibly easy for anyone to become a committed youth advocate.  Rev-up your organization’s advocacy efforts or help the parents and youth in your communities get involved today. Also, be sure to check out the other resources available to youth development professionals and their constituents on the SparkAction site.

Get the Tools You Need to be the Best Ally You Can

Educators and out-of-school time professionals working with LGBT youth will definitely benefit from the range of tips, tools, and resources that Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network has put together from curricula to “safe space” kits. Be and ally and access them today.

New Online Community Helps Parents Create Safe Environments for Kids

To help parents foster safe and healthy environments for their kids, Safe Kids USA created Safe Kids and You, a new online community that connects parents, health professionals and safety advocates in an open forum to share information about unintentional injury prevention. Visit the Safe Kids resource site today.

Start Planning Ahead – Get These on Your Calendar Today.

Join the 2011 Campaign for Black Men and Boys

On January 12, 2011, CLASP and the 2025 Campaign for Black Men and Boys will host an event to advance the vision and policy solutions presented in the We Dream A World report calling for collaborative efforts to  develop and implement an initiative for the educational, social, emotional, physical, spiritual, political and economic development and empowerment of Black men and boys in the United States. For those outside of D.C., the event will be webcast live.

When: January 12

Where: Washington, DC

Register to attend. 

Sign up for the webcast.

Help Put an End to Bullying

Experts in the field have long explained that the root causation of many of our schools most violent incidents have been episodes of bullying. The National Conference on Bullying will take an in depth look at the causation, prevention and mitigation of what has become one of our nation's most pressing problems

When: February 14-16

Where: Orlando, FL

Register to attend.

Call for Presentations – 2011 Nonprofit Human Resources Conference

The 2011 Nonprofit Human Resources Conference is designed to bring together nonprofit human resources practitioners, executives, thought leaders and researches to discuss human resources issues of critical importance to the nonprofit sector. The conference is also designed to identify resources - human, financial and programmatic - that will advance the missions and organizational effectiveness of individual organizations and position the sector more effectively for the future.

Deadline for Proposals: February 1, 2011

Where: Washington, DC

Submit a proposal.

Save the Date - National Network for Social Work Managers 2011 Annual Conference

Each year the National Network for Social Work Managers (NNSWM) holds an annual institute that brings together leaders from throughout North America, including:

- Middle and senior managers of non-profit, for-profit and government organizations,

- Faculty of social work administration and other administration programs and,

- Social work management students interested in learning about the most current issues, practices and theories associated with agency management.

When:  April 28 and 29, 2011

Where:  Baltimore, MD

Learn more.

Programs for Disabled Vets Funded

The Disabled American Veterans Charitable Service Trust supports nonprofits that provide long-term, direct assistance to disabled veterans and their families. Requests are reviewed quarterly and the first application deadline for 2011 is January 20.

Deadline: January 20.

Download an application.

After-School Arts Programs Recognized

The National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Awards recognize excellence in after-school and out-of-school arts and humanities programs for underserved children and youth. Twelve winners will receive a $10,000 award and an invitation to accept their award at a ceremony at the White House.

Deadline: January 31.

Download an application.< /p>

Call for Nominations – National Hispanic Medical Association Leadership Fellowship Program Class of 2011

NHMA is seeking fellowship candidates who are physicians and outstanding leaders, out of training for 5 years, and interested in future careers in public service at the national, state or local level. The Fellowship is a one year executive leadership training program and the nominee must be available for the 2011 dates -- March 17th Orientation, the July 11-22 NYU Institute in New York City, and the September 11-16 DC Institute in Washington, DC.

Deadline: January 31, 2011. 

Learn more.