Learning Session Scheduled for January 30th at 1PM - Lessons of a first time digitizer

Session Description: Lessons of a first time digitizer

Most presentations provide "best practices" in undertaking digitization projects. In this case study, disclosures of two incorrect approaches will be discussed leading to a final correct outcome. This program is specifically geared toward solo librarians who have little or no experience in undertaking a digitization project. Please note that this presentation will not cover digital preservation.

Presenter Biography: Jackie Kilberg has been a corporate librarian for over 25 years. During that period she served on the audit, membership and employment task force committees for the SLA New York Chapter. While working as the research associate and corporate archivist for The McGraw-Hill Companies in New York City, Jackie was involved in several library and archival associations. As a member of the Business Reference and Services Section of ALA's Reference & User Services Association, Jackie moderated programs at two national conferences featuring McGraw-Hill reference products. This past June, Jackie presented at the SLA National Conference on becoming an accidental archivist and has addressed this topic at NCSU. Jackie and the McGraw-Hill Corporate Archives have been featured in the Society of American Archivists - Business Archives Section newsletter and Metropolitan Archivist magazine.

Jackie was also a board member for the McGraw-Hill Women's Networking and Success and the Society of American Archivists - Business Roundtable Section. Since relocating to North Carolina in August, Jackie, a certified competent communicator of Toastmasters International, is now Vice President of Membership and Public Relations for Cary Club Toastmasters and has currently joined the Society of North Carolina Archivists. While looking for new employment opportunities, Jackie is volunteering at her daughter’s middle school library, conducts database evaluations for Lexis-Nexis, provides pro-bono career advisory services to SLA colleagues and continues to write articles for the SLA New Chapter Newsletter.

Make sure to mark your calendars for January 30th at 1:00PM (ET) so that you can call in to learn more. The registration deadline is January 25th.

*A 15-min Q&A is scheduled after the 30-minute learning session. Please do not use a speakerphone to call in. Remember to write down the call-in information and passcode that will be shown in the confirmation message once you submit your registration.

Register for this learning session by January 25th.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. 1 of 7 state residents lacks health insurance; The Seattle Times, December 13, 2011
Brief Introduction: The number of people in Washington state without health insurance has risen sharply since the end of 2008 and is expected to reach 1 million by the end of the year, according to a new report from state Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler

2. Wisconsin gets OK for some Medicaid cuts; Businessweek.com, December 9, 2011
Brief Introduction: Gov. Scott Walker's administration received preliminary approval Friday from the federal government for some Medicaid cuts it sought to balance a budget shortfall, but a final determination won't come until later, raising the possibility 53,000 people may lose coverage in the meantime.

Education
1. Judge rules Colorado education law unconstitutional; Reuters, December 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: A Colorado judge ruled on Friday that the state's education law is unconstitutional because it underfunds public schools and fails to provide a "thorough and uniform" education to all students.

2. Safety violations found at Head Start Centers; Boston.com, December 13, 2011
Brief Introduction: It's the kind of stuff that gives moms nightmares: a machete near a play area, household chemicals accessible to preschoolers, and instructors teaching without a criminal background check. These violations and others were found at Head Start centers across the country, according to a report released Tuesday by the inspector general of the Health and Human Services Department.

Race
1. Black women were hit hard with job losses in economic crisis; Washington Post, December 11, 2011
Brief Introduction: According to a recent study by the National Women’s Law Center, black women have lost more jobs during the recovery — 258,000 — than they did during the recession — 233,000. Put another way, black women represented 12.5 percent of all women workers in June 2009. But between then and this June, black women lost 42.2 percent of jobs lost by women overall.

2. New Frisco ISD program tackles black student's low test scores; CW33, December 12, 2011
Brief Introduction: African-American students within the Frisco Independent School District do just as well as their White and Hispanic peers on state TAKS tests. But when it comes to college entrance exams, the failure rate for black students in FISD is almost twice as high.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Controlling trillions, women drive charitable giving; Reuters.com, December 12, 2011
Brief Introduction: Because they live longer than men, women could oversee more than $41 trillion passed from generation to generation during the next 50 years, according to the Center for Philanthropy at Indiana University, which researched the Bank of America report. For most women, however, philanthropy is much more than writing a check.

2. The joys of nonprofit re-gifting; The Nonprofit Quarterly, December 12, 2011
Brief Introduction: As part of an annual urban studies class at the University of Pennsylvania this semester, students not only got the chance to assume the role of philanthropists but they also got $100,000 to back up their choices. According to NewsWorks, this was the first year that an anonymous donor made a gift to the university in support of the program, which, along with many other smaller gifts, included $20,000 for a neighborhood-based nonprofit with an operating budget of $160,000.

3. Gates working with China on poverty, hunger and nuclear power; Bloomberg.com, December 7, 2011
Brief Introduction: A partnership between the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and China’s Ministry of Science and Technology announced Oct. 26 aims to start work “quickly,” Gates, the foundation’s co- chairman and Microsoft Corp. chairman, said at a briefing in Beijing today. The two sides are still in talks on how to make the accord “come to life,” he said.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. Study: More evidence links specific genes to ADHD; USA Today, December 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: Variations in genes involved in brain signaling pathways appear to be linked to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), according to a new study. The findings suggest that drugs that act on these pathways may offer a new treatment option for ADHD patients with the gene variants, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia researchers said.

2. Too few doctors may be telling parents their kids are overweight; Los Angeles Times, December 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: Parents can sometimes be clueless about the fact that their kids are too heavy, but doctors may not be steering them in the right direction. A study finds that less than a fourth of parents recollect their healthcare providers telling them their children were overweight.

Education
1. Study: Phys. Ed., recess mandates boost school physical activity time; Education Week, December 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: Schools are more likely to offer students 150 minutes of physical education per week if located in a state or district that mandates that level of P.E., according to a study published online today in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

2. Education a fresh start for those in poverty; Marionstar.com, December 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Wiseman, 20, is among students enrolled at Marion County Jobs for Ohio's Graduates. Its students refer to it as their second chance, and sometimes as their only hope as many struggle to not fall into a cycle of poverty.

Race
1. Postal service cutbacks to hurt blacks; Chicago Tribune, December 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: The U.S. Postal Service's announcement Monday that it plans to close 252 mail processing centers and trim 28,000 jobs to fend off possible bankruptcy is part of a growing trend of shrinking government employment opportunities. For its workforce, which is disproportionately composed of African-Americans, the news means a lot more than the prospect of slower mail delivery.

2. Nudging Latinos toward math and science; Chicago Tribune, December 7, 2011
Brief Introduction: For Chicago-area educators such as Adrianzen, empowering Latino boys and girls to enroll in and excel in math and science classes is important to combating relatively high absenteeism and dropout rates, low college enrollment rates and disproportionately low numbers of minorities working in STEM careers.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. MBAs lend their skills to nonprofit boards; Bloomburg Business Week, December 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: Programs like the one Bell participated in, known as Board Fellows, are becoming increasingly common on business school campuses throughout the country. The initiatives are a way to get young people—a demographic that most nonprofit boards have trouble connecting with—involved with boards at an early stage in their careers. On average, only six percent of nonprofit boards have members under the age of 35, according to a 2008 Urban Institute study of nonprofits with annual expenses between $500,000 and $5 million

2. Five fascinating philanthropists; Barrons.com, December 3, 2011
Brief Introduction: Barron's is profiling five of these innovative philanthropists, looking at the entrepreneurial spirit that propelled them to think of new solutions for social problems. None of our picks are headline-grabbing billionaires using $100 million grants to wipe out a disease, but each is deploying grants and sweat equity in such an original way that it changes the world.

3. CPS vies for Gates Foundation funding; Chicago Tribune, December 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Chicago Public Schools have signed a charter school compact agreement with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in an effort to increase funding for charters and improve collaboration between charter and neighborhood schools.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. More kids skip school shots in 8 states; Usatoday.com, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: More parents are opting out of school shots for their kids. In eight states now, more than 1 in 20 public school kindergartners aren't getting all the vaccines required for attendance, an Associated Press analysis found.

2. Medicare in America: "It has to get better"; CNN Money, November 29, 2011
Brief Introduction: As administrator of Medicare and Medicaid, Donald Berwick has been in charge of paying for the health care of nearly one in three Americans. He has also had an important role in implementing last year's health reform law, which uses the Medicare system as a big lever to change how doctors and hospitals do business, in hopes of containing costs.

3. Pastor fights HIV stigma in Southern town; CNN.com, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: It's a problem all across the Bible Belt. In 2007 -- the most recent data available from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- the rate of diagnosed AIDS cases in the Southeastern United States was much higher than in other regions of the country: 9.2 per 100,000 people, versus 2.5 in the Midwest, 3.9 in the West and 5.6 in the Northeast.

Education
1. Detroit schools face fines over truancy; UPI.com, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: The Detroit News reported Monday the documents it obtained show the financially struggling school district could lose about $25.9 million because attendance fell below the state minimum of 75 percent on 46 days last school year.

2. Homeless children snap their dreams; Detroit News, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: When asked what she wishes for, Julie, a 10-year-old resident of a homeless shelter, said she wants her mother to feel better. Nine-year-old Dearon, also a shelter resident, wants to go to college. Diamond, age 7, hopes to make her mother proud. The children were among 15 Detroit kids living in the Detroit Rescue Mission Ministries shelter who articulated their hopes and dreams by taking photographs as part of the nationally acclaimed Pictures of Hope project.

Race
1. As public sector sheds jobs, Blacks are hit hardest; The New York Times, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: Mr. Buckley is one of tens of thousands of once solidly middle-class African-American government workers — bus drivers in Chicago, police officers and firefighters in Cleveland, nurses and doctors in Florida — who have been laid off since the recession ended in June 2009. Such job losses have blunted gains made in employment and wealth during the previous decade and undermined the stability of neighborhoods where there are now fewer black professionals who own homes or who get up every morning to go to work.

2. Ruling on Ala. immigration law averts exodus, groups say; USA Today; November 29, 2011
Brief Introduction: Civil rights groups say a judge's decision to halt part of Alabama's strict illegal immigration enforcement law averted a Thanksgiving weekend exodus of Hispanics from the state. Some portions of Alabama's law, known as HB 56 and described by supporters and critics as the harshest state immigration law in the country, were already blocked by a federal judge. On Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson took an additional step by ordering the state to stop denying manufactured home registration permits to people who couldn't prove their U.S. citizenship.

3. Black and Hispanic N.J. residents less likely to own homes following housing crisis, U.S. Census reveals; NJ.com, November 26, 2011
Brief Introduction: Sixty-five percent of Garden State householders live in homes they own. But for black households, that number drops to 40 percent. For Hispanics, the home ownership rate is even lower, at 36 percent, even as the community’s population has exploded in the last decade, according to data from the 2010 Census.

December Podcast: Mr. Paul Brest, President, Hewlett Foundation

For this month's podcast, I had an opportunity to interview Mr. Paul Brest from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. Mr. Brest shared information that included his view of strategic philanthropy, creating a learning culture in his organization, and lessons learned during his career. This is an excellent interview and well-worth your time to listen:

MP3
WAV

Many thanks to Mr. Brest for his participation.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Policy Making Billionaires; Nytimes.com, November 26, 2011
Brief Introduction: Over the past 30 years, as the gap between wealthy and poor grew ever wider, total philanthropic giving almost tripled, according to annual estimates published by the Giving USA Foundation and the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. In an age of widening partisanship and plummeting trust in government, this outpouring of philanthropy has produced a distinct breed of philanthropist: The policy-making billionaire.

2. To advance their cause, Foundations buy stocks; Nytimes.com, November 24, 2011
Brief Introduction: Earlier this year, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation invested $10 million to acquire a stake in Liquidia Technologies, a biotechnology company working on new ways to deliver vaccines. The foundation bought its shares using a program-related investment, or an investment that can be counted toward federal requirements that it pay out 5 percent of its assets each year.

3. Great way for boomers to prepare for nonprofit work; Forbes.com, November 22, 2011
Brief Introduction: Today, Civic Ventures, a nonprofit think tank that focuses on boomers and encore careers with social purpose, announced a program with the Santa Clara, CA-based chip maker to offer all of Intel's U.S. employees who are eligible to retire the chance to apply for Encore Fellowships – paid, part-time, yearlong assignments working at local nonprofits.

4. Donations inch back up after recession decline; Usatoday.com, November 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: Giving totaled $291 billion in 2010, according to the 2011 annual report by the Center on Philanthropy at Indiana University. That's up 3.8% from 2009 and follows two consecutive years of declines.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. New study shows health insurance premium spikes in every state; WashingtonPost.com, November 17, 2011
Brief Introduction: Premiums for employer-sponsored health insurance have risen faster than incomes in every state in the nation, according to a report released Thursday. The District of Columbia had the highest annual total premiums, including both the employer’s and the worker’s share. In 2010, they averaged $5,644 for a single policy and $15,206 for a family version — a rise of 51 percent and 41 percent, respectively, since 2003.

2. Feds provide $6M for rural health care in 6 states; Chicagotribune.com, November 19, 2011
Brief Introduction: Six states in the Mississippi River Delta region are getting more than $6 million in rural health care grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. More than half of it is going to Mississippi. Nearly $3 million in rural development grants will pay for the first urgent care center in Mound Bayou, Miss., and almost $700,000 will create an electronic intensive care unit system among five hospitals in Mississippi's poorest rural counties, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said Friday.


Education
1. Congress blocks new rules on school lunches; New York Times.com, November 15, 2011
Brief Introduction: Congress on Monday blocked rules proposed by the Agriculture Department that would have overhauled the nation’s school lunch program. The proposed changes — the first in 15 years to the $11 billion school lunch program — were meant to reduce childhood obesity by adding more fruits and green vegetables to lunch menus, Agriculture Department officials said.

2. States strengthening teacher evaluation standards; Boston.com, November 18, 2011
Brief Introduction: President Barack Obama's recent use of executive authority to revise the No Child Left Behind education law is one of several factors driving a trend toward using student test scores, classroom observation and potentially even input from students, among other measures, to determine just how effective educators are. A growing number of states are using these evaluations to decide critical issues such as pay, tenure, firings and the awarding of teaching licenses.

Race
1. Perceived racism may impact Black American's mental health; St. Louis American, November 19, 2011
Brief Introduction: For black American adults, perceived racism may cause mental health symptoms similar to trauma and could lead to some physical health disparities between blacks and other populations in the United States, according to a new study published by the American Psychological Association (APA). Black Americans' psychological responses to racism are very similar to common responses to trauma, such as somatization, which is psychological distress expressed as physical pain; interpersonal sensitivity; and anxiety, according to the study. Individuals who said they experienced more and very stressful racism were more likely to report mental distress, the authors said.

2. Arizona educators clash over Mexican American studies; Latimes.com, November 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: A state law adopted this year aims to outlaw divisive ethnic studies, and Huppenthal will soon decide whether the Tucson district's program violates the law and should be eliminated. In a state known for cultural clashes, the debate over the future of Mexican American studies in Tucson is particularly charged, prompting raucous protests and a host of accusations — of brainwashing, of sloppy academics, of racism.

3. A hard life for one Latina teenager; Latimes.com, November 18, 2011
Brief Introduction: She is 16 years old, and a native-born Georgian. She has a learner's permit and would like to take the driving class that would allow her to get a license — that elusive prize so many of her foreign-born friends will never have. The class costs $230, but the money from her two jobs is spoken for. Since her stepfather, an illegal immigrant named Abigail Carrillos, returned to El Salvador to avoid a forced deportation, she has stepped up as the family's main breadwinner.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. For job hunters, digital merit badges; Nytimes.com, November 19, 2011
Brief Introduction: Now the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is putting millions of dollars into a competition to spur interest in a new type of badge — one that people can display not on their clothing but on a Web site, blog or Facebook page while they are looking for a job.

2. St. Paul Library gets $165,000 technology planning grant; StarTribune.com, November 17, 2011
Brief Introduction: The St. Paul Public Library will begin designing a digital learning lab for middle and high school students, thanks to a $165,000 planning grant it received on Thursday. When the plan is completed, the library will have to apply for a separate grant this spring to build the lab. The planning process will be funded by a $100,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation . The library was one of 12 organizations in the nation to receive that grant.

3. Study: cyberbullying associated with greater psychological distress than bullying at high school; Boston.com, November 17, 2011
Brief Introduction: High school students who are bullied online are more likely to report symptoms of depression and suicide attempts than students who were bullied only at school, according to a survey of students in the communities west of Boston published today. The survey, funded by the MetroWest Health Foundation, was distributed at 22 high schools west of Boston in the fall of 2008. Researchers surveyed more than 20,000 students using written questionairres.

4. Middle-class areas shrink as income gap grows, new report finds; Nytimes.com, November 15, 2011
Brief Introduction: The portion of American families living in middle-income neighborhoods has declined significantly since 1970, according to a new study, as rising income inequality left a growing share of families in neighborhoods that are mostly low-income or mostly affluent. The study, conducted by Stanford University and scheduled for release on Wednesday by the Russel Sage Foundation and Brown University, uses census data to examine family income at the neighborhood level in the country’s 117 biggest metropolitan areas.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. In developing world, poor still means thin; Reuters.com, November 2, 2011
Brief Introduction: Although "first-world" health problems like obesity and heart disease are gaining ground in developing nations, a new study finds they are mostly afflicting the rich and middle class while poor people remain undernourished and underweight.

2. Low-income state workers begin to gain access to Children's Health Insurance Program; The Washington Post, November 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: At least six states have opened their Children's Health Insurance Program to the kids of low-income state employees, an option that was prohibited until the passage of the 2010 health-care law.

Education
1. Analysis: is student loan, education bubble next?; Boston.com, November 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: First the dot.coms popped, then mortgages. Are student loans and higher education the next bubble, the latest investment craze inflating on borrowed money and misplaced faith it can never go bad?

2. In Tennessee, following the rules for evaluations off a cliff; The New York Times, November 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Last year, when Tennessee was named one of the first two states to win a federal Race to The Top grant, worth $501 million, there was great joy all around.


Race
1. City to provide housing to poor, pregnant women; Boston.com, November 4, 2011
Brief Introduction: In an effort to drive down the number of deaths among black and Latino infants in Boston, the city today launched an initiative to lessen the stress on pregnant women by providing them with housing, counseling, and other critical support.

2. Rage ensues as study shows soda ads target minorities; NYDailyNews.com, November 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: In her Harlem neighborhood, the barrage of soda ads is constant. “Pepsi and Coke are everywhere,” said Rashida Jones, 34, a mother of three. “As a parent, I can’t control what my children see. They even show the ads on tv during cartoons.” A recent study shows Jones - a black woman whose kids are 10, 14 and 15 - isn’t alone. The study found that young blacks and Hispanics are bombarded with soda ads at a higher rate than white children.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. At G-20, Bill Gates addresses leaders about helping poor; WashingtonPost.com, November 4, 2011
Brief Introduction: Organizations representing the world’s poor have had a fitful relationship with the Group of 20 world leaders. They arrive en masse to hold news conferences and usually get a nice mention of food security and health in any communique, but they mostly see their larger aims shoved aside by whatever crisis has hit major banks or currencies. Enter Bill Gates, literally. In what may mark a signature breakthrough, the Microsoft chairman and Gates Foundation philanthropist was given 90 minutes before a group that’s become a kind of executive board for the global economy.

2. Nonprofits get creative; WashingtonPost.com; November 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Nonprofits have had to become ever more creative as the economic slowdown lingers — and their work is only just beginning. Two of the region’s largest philanthropic organizations, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, announced plans to phase out their charitable giving. Corporations are becoming much more selective in their philanthropy. And foundation budgets remain largely stagnant — they are handing out fewer grants — amid fears of continued budget cuts from the federal government.

3. Students could save millions on open-source texts; The Seattle Times, October 31, 2011 Brief Introduction: College students in Washington state will be the first beneficiaries of a state project to make inexpensive, open source textbooks available for the most popular college classes. But the $1 million the state invested in creating educational materials for 42 classes will benefit more than just students in Washington. That money was matched by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

4. The MacArthur Foundation examines the link between housing and human and community outcomes; The Nonprofit Quarterly, November 4, 2011
Brief Introduction: Some of us thought it was quite a coup when the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation landed Mike Stegman as its director of policy and housing. Stegman was a phenomenal researcher on housing and community development at the University of North Carolina before a stint as Assistant Secretary for Policy Development and Research at the Department of Housing and Urban Development. And he’s been generating some great stuff at MacArthur.

November CFL Podcast Interview: Dalia R. Levine

For this month's podcast, I had the opportunity to interview Dalia R. Levine who is the Enterprise Information Architect for the Ford Foundation. In this interview, she discusses information architecture and its value within the information environment.
MP3:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/DaliaRLevine_Ford_Podcast_MP3.mp3
WAV:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/DaliaRLevine_Ford_Podcast_WAV.wav

Many thanks to Ms. Levine for her participation.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. Public health program urges smokers in KY city to switch from cigarettes to smokeless tobacco; Washington Post, October 28,2011
Brief introduction: The James Graham Brown Cancer Center and the University of Louisville are aiming their “Switch and Quit” campaign at the city of Owensboro. It uses print, radio, billboard and other advertising to urge smokers to swap their cigarettes for smokeless tobacco and other products that do not deliver nicotine by smoke.

2. 11,000 may rejoin state's Basic Health plan; The Seattle Times, October 26,2011
Brief introduction: About 11,000 people who were kicked off the state's Basic Health insurance program for the working poor in March because of their immigration status will be allowed to re-enroll after a federal court judge said the state likely had violated their constitutional equal-protection rights.

Education
1. Colorado faces nation's only statewide tax vote to raise taxes for Education; Huffington Post, October 30, 2011
Brief introduction: The nation's only statewide tax vote on the November ballot asks Colorado voters whether they want to temporarily raise taxes to generate $3 billion for classrooms and colleges – a proposal that has stirred fierce opposition because of the stagnant economy.

2. Higher education costs continue to soar; CBS News.com, October 26, 2011
Brief introduction: The College Board says average in-state tuition and fees at four-year public colleges rose an additional $631 this fall, or 8.3 percent, from a year ago. Nationally, the cost of a full credit load has passed $8,000, an all-time high. With room and board, the average list price for a state school now runs more than $17,000 a year.

Race
1. Report shows African-American, low-income children in California at highest risk of secondhand smoke; Scope, October 28,2011
Brief introduction: Although smoking rates in California have steadily declined since 1998, nearly 2.5 million children in the state are still at risk of secondhand smoke, according to a recent report from the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.

2. Miscommunication about asthma leaves Latinos gasping for answers; Fox News Latino, October 27, 2011
Brief introduction: Miscommunication, more than unhealthy lifestyles, are contributing to high rates of the respiratory condition among Hispanics, the American Lung Association said earlier this month.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. The biggest gift in the world; Wall Street Journal, October 28, 2011
Brief Introduction: In the past year, Buffett has carried his philanthropy to a new extreme and, in the process, sparked a revolution in the world of giving. Through his launch of the Giving Pledge in June 2010, a joint venture with his partner-in-patronage Bill Gates, Buffett has unlocked billions of dollars for philanthropic causes. The Pledge has touched off a national debate about how much is "enough" when it comes to giving, and created the most powerful movement in American philanthropy since Andrew Carnegie released his famous "Gospel of Wealth" treatise in 1889.

2. Interactive: How many Canadians give, and other trends in Canadian philanthropy; Globe and Mail, October 30, 2011
Brief Introduction: An interactive diagram that provides information about Canadian philanthropy.

3. New center draws job seekers; Delmarvanow.com, October 31, 2011
Brief Introduction:In just a few months, the Job Center@Delaware Libraries, an estimated $2.7 million employment services project, has helped hundreds of Georgetown library patrons with in-house counseling and educational programming, Internet access to employment resources and unlimited computer use for resume and correspondence preparation. Job Center@Delaware Libraries also received $800,000 from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and a matching contribution through the Delaware Division of Libraries.

4. What these 3 MacArthur Foundation winners do is genius; Detroit Free Press, October 31, 2011
Brief Introduction: A historian, a chemist and a biologist who balance lecturing, teaching, research and raising kids were among 22 people named MacArthur Foundation fellows last month. The national award comes with a no-strings-attached $500,000, and the awardees have come to be deemed geniuses.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Education

1. Senate panel approves bill that rewrited education law; The New York Times, October 21,2011

Legislation rewriting the No Child Left Behind education law finally gained traction this week, and the Senate Democrat whose committee passed the bill said on Friday that progress became possible because lawmakers were irritated by the Obama administration’s offering states waivers to the law’s key provisions.

2. Texas trails most states, many countries in young adults with degrees; Statesman.com, October 21, 2011

Texas trails most other states and many developed countries in the percentage of young adults with a college degree, and demographic changes suggest the underperformance will worsen as time goes on. About 32 percent of Texans ages 25 to 34 have earned an associate's degree or higher, compared with 41 percent for the nation as a whole. Massachusetts ranks first among the states at about 54 percent, and South Korea led an international sampling at 63 percent.

Health
1. Study: Foreclosure crisis threatening America's health; USA Today, October 22, 2011
A new study finds that falling behind on your mortgage payments hurts more than just your finances, as the stress and financial strain that come with the struggle can also harm your physical and psychological health. People who reported that they had fallen behind on their mortgage between 2006 and 2008 reported more depressive symptoms, more food insecurity and were more likely to say they weren't taking prescription medications as prescribed because of cost.

2. Massive free health clinic serves more than 1,000 on first day; Los Angeles Times, October 21, 2011
More than a thousand people on Thursday took advantage of a massive free clinic that opened at the L.A. Sports Arena. The outreach event, which goes until Sunday, is expected to treat more than 5,000 patients for tooth decay, high blood pressure, diabetes and other medical needs. It is organized by CareNow, an L.A.-based nonprofit that assists urban areas with healthcare needs.

3. Change your neighborhood, improve your health; Time.com, October 20, 2011
When a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) offered a program in the 1990s to move families out of poor neighborhoods, it created a unique opportunity not only to improve people's day-to-day lives, but also to study how a change in environment might impact their health over the long term. Now, more than a decade later, the researchers have found that families who moved to lower-poverty neighborhoods had lower levels of obesity and diabetes than those who stayed behind. What's more, the improvements in health were as significant as those that typically result from targeted diet and exercise interventions or the use of medications to treat diabetes.


Race
1. SC voter ID law hits some black precincts harder; Boston.com, October 19, 2011
South Carolina’s new voter photo identification law appears to be disproportionately affecting minority voters in one of the state’s largest counties and black precincts elsewhere, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. For instance, nearly half the voters who cast ballots at a historically black college in Columbia lack state-issued photo identification and could face problems voting in next year’s presidential election, according to the analysis of precinct-level data provided by the state Election Commission.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Facebook teams up with Department of Labor, nonprofit groups to launch social jobs partnership; Scribbal, October 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: Facebook has teamed up with the U.S. Department of Labor, the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), DirectEmployers Association (DE) and the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) to create the Social Jobs Partnership. The main aim of the initiative is to get unemployed Americans back to work by harnessing the power of social networks.

2. GlaxoSmithKline , Bill Gates -backed vaccine cuts Malaria infections by half; Forbes.com, October 18,2011
Brief Introduction: A vaccine invented at drug giant GlaxoSmithKline and funded in part by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation cut the rate of malaria infection in small children roughly in half, providing real hope of cutting the toll from a mosquito-borne disease that infects 250 million people a year and kills 800,000 children annually in sub-Saharan Africa.

3. Nonprofits bear burden of Illinois' unpaid bills; Bloomberg Businessweek, October 17, 2011
Brief Introduction: Illinois ranks first nationwide when it comes to nonprofit groups reporting late payments from the government, according to a survey last year by the nonpartisan Urban Institute. More than 80 percent of Illinois groups say their money doesn't come on time.

Grantmaking in 2009: average grant by category

2009 Foundation Grants: average grant by category

Foundation Giving Trends, a 2011 report produced by the Foundation Center, was recently released and covered grantmaking data for the 2009 year. In regards to the average grant amount awarded per category, the report determined that Human Services was ranked the lowest, with an average of $68,794 per grant and a median of $25,000. The category ranked the highest was International Affairs, Development, Peace, and Human Rights with an average of $311,376 per grant and a median of $50,000.

Top funders by category in 2009:

1. Arts and culture:
The American Art Foundation, Inc.

2. Education:
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

3. Environment and animals:
The David and Lucile Packard Foundation

4. Health:
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

5. International Affairs, development, peace and human rights:
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

6. Public Affairs:
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

7. Civil Rights and Social Action:
Ford Foundation

8. Science and Technology:
Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation

9. Social Sciences:
John Templeton Foundation

10. Religion:
Lilly Endowment Inc.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. "Supercommittee" decision may lead to cuts funding for public health initiatives; Washington Post, October 16,2011
Brief Introduction: Federal funding for medical research, disease prevention and a host of public health initiatives could be sharply reduced if the congressional “supercommittee” fails to agree on a deficit-reduction package, triggering automatic cuts. Public attention has largely focused on possible cuts to entitlement programs for seniors and the poor, Medicare and Medicaid, but health advocates are raising an alarm about many other smaller programs they say need to be protected.

2. Health insurance set up for the masses; Philly.com, October 16,2011
Brief Introduction: The federal government is taking on a crucial new role in the nation's health care, designing a basic-benefits package for millions of privately insured Americans. A framework for the Obama administration was released Thursday.

Education
1. Education funds sought to uncover cheating; Wall Street Journal, October 15, 2011
Brief Introduction: New York state education officials, in an attempt to boost confidence in test scores as they become part of teacher evaluations across the state, want to spend $2.1 million to hunt among millions of students' tests for evidence of cheating.

2. Education bill draws fire from rights groups; Washington Post, October 11,2011
Brief Introduction: A top Senate Democrat rolled out his plan Tuesday to revamp the main federal education law, but it immediately drew fire from civil rights groups that argued it would ease pressure on schools to provide quality education to all children, regardless of race or income. Under Harkin’s bill, the federal government would no longer require all students to meet achievement goals — a cornerstone of the current law. Instead, Harkin proposes to require that schools show that students are making academic progress.

Race
1. 5 diseases more common in minorities; ABC News, October 13,2011
Brief Introduction: Although more and more people are living longer with colorectal cancer, new research has found that black people with the disease aren't living as long as whites.

2. LAUSD agrees to revise how English learners, blacks are taught; Los Angeles Times, October 11,2011
Brief Introduction: The Los Angeles Unified School District has agreed to sweeping revisions in the way it teaches students learning English, as well as black youngsters, settling a federal civil rights investigation that examined whether the district was denying the students a quality education. The settlement closes what was the Obama administration's first civil rights investigation launched by the Department of Education, and officials said Tuesday that it would serve as a model for other school districts around the country.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Federal security funds granted to hundreds of N.Y. nonprofits from 2006-2009 total in millions;NY Daily News, October 16,2011
Brief Introduction: Hundreds of New York nonprofit groups have gotten a slice of nearly $2 billion in national Homeland Security grants this year by claiming they face a "high risk" of a terror attack.

2. Infographic: How the top 50 nonprofits do social media; Huffington Post, October 15,2011
Brief Introduction: I get asked a lot if nonprofits are using social media effectively. After taking a look at the Nonprofit Times list of 100 top nonprofits based on income, the craigconnects team decided to look at who was proactively and effectively utilizing social media in August and September of 2011. Do the highest earning nonprofits use social media the most effectively? How are people responding and interacting? The deal is, with social media use on the rise, we decided to check this out and created an infographic to show the results.

3. A quest for hybrid companies that profit, but can tap charity; The New York Times, October 12,2011
Brief Introduction: A new type of company intended to put social goals ahead of making profits is taking root around the country, as more states adopt laws to bridge the divide between nonprofits and businesses. California is the latest state to adopt a statute permitting what is called flexible-purpose corporations, new companies that are part social benefit and part low-profit entities. The companies are now allowed under laws in more than a dozen states and two Indian tribes.

4. Job's wife backs education causes; Wall Street Journal, October 10,2011
Brief Introduction: Ms. Powell Jobs has become a leader in education policy, advising nonprofits and politicians, says Ted Mitchell, chief executive of NewSchools Venture Fund, whose board Ms. Powell Jobs joined five years ago. The Jobs family has donated millions of dollars to the group, he says, and her work "is even more effective because she does this work quietly, constantly, with incredible integrity and great insight."

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. Dietary supplements risky for older women, study finds; Los Angeles Times, October 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: In an analysis of about 39,000 women tracked over 19 years, researchers led by a team at the University of Minnesota found that those who took multivitamins, vitamin B6, folic acid, magnesium, zinc, copper and especially iron died at higher rates during the course of the study than those who did not take supplements.

2. Physicians treating Latinos have high hurdles to jump, study shows; UCLA, October 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: Research out of UCLA and the City University of New York has found that primary care physicians who treat Latinos are less likely than physicians treating primarily white patients to believe they can provide high-quality care. Among the reasons: inadequate time with patients, patients' lack of ability to afford care, patients not adhering to recommended treatments, and difficulties in communicating.

Education
1. Proposal stirs charter school debate: choice vs. quality?; Detroit Free Press, October 11,2011
Brief Introduction: A legislative proposal to lift the state cap on charter schools would provide parents unprecedented options for K-12 education, but some critics fear it would litter the state with ineffective, profit-minded operators.

2. DPS special ed program gains; Detroit Free Press, October 7, 2011
Brief Introduction: It took two years of state pressure and the threat of losing millions in funding, but Detroit Public Schools has reformed its special education evaluation system to comply with state and federal laws. As a result, more of the 12,000 disabled students across the district are getting more time in regular classrooms, a goal shared by state education officials.

Race
1. Downsides of cancer rarely seen in black media; Reuters, October 5, 2011
Brief Introduction: Since people often get medical information from the media, Fishman and her colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia looked at whether there might be racial differences in how the media cover cancer care.

2. Hopkins researchers find place, rather than race, may be greater determinant of health; Stanford.edu, October 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Of all the variables that contribute to health disparities, where patients live may be more significant than their race, according to findings published in the latest issue of Health Affairs.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Philanthropy, now yielding financial returns; Forbes.com, October 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: For decades, giving for social benefit and investing for financial return have been practiced as separate and distinct activities. But today there are a range of philanthropic investment strategies available that simultaneously yield social and financial returns.

2. Study: Gates project spared 100K Indians from HIV; CBSNews.com, October 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: An estimated 100,000 people in India may have escaped HIV infection over five years thanks to one of the world's biggest prevention programs, an encouraging sign that targeting high-risk groups remains vital even as more donors focus on treatment, a new study suggests.

3. Organizations strive to solve the Latino childhood obesity epidemic; Fox News Latino, October 8, 2011
Brief Introduction: Salud America is a research network and online portal with a unique goal. The organization is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and encompasses a network of Latino scientists and policy makers that aim to prevent obesity among Hispanic children in the United States.

4. Teens help create model digital library; Chicago Sun Times, October 10, 2011
Brief Introduction: Funded in part by the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the project sprang from research on how digital media affect kids' literacy. "We are in one of those rare moments in time where what it means to be literate today, what it meant for us, is going to be different from what it means to be literate for our kids, " says DePaul University's Nichole Pinkard, who first envisioned the space.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. When the nurse wants to be called "Doctor"; The New York Times, October 1, 2011
Brief Introduction: Dr. McCarver calls herself a doctor because she returned to school to earn a doctorate last year, one of thousands of nurses doing the same recently. Doctorates are popping up all over the health professions, and the result is a quiet battle over not only the title “doctor,” but also the money, power and prestige that often comes with it.

2. Physicians sue Washington State for limiting emergency room visits; Global Post, October 2, 2011
Brief Introduction: The American College of Emergency Physicians is suing the state of Washington over its new policy of paying for only three non-emergency trips to the emergency room per year for low-income Medicaid patients.

3. Workers in construction, mines, food service more likely to smoke; Chicago Sun-Times, October 1, 2011
Brief Introduction: Construction workers, miners and food service workers top the list of occupations that smoke the most, according to a new government report. Experts say it might have as much to do with lower education levels as the jobs themselves.

Education
1. Illegal students face obstacles even after college; The Wall Street Journal, October 2, 2011
Brief Introduction: When Rhode Island became the thirteenth state to allow in-state tuition for illegal immigrants at public colleges, supporters heralded the move as one that would give students the kind of advanced education they need to succeed in the work force.

But students who are not here legally may still face a major obstacle even with the benefit of a college degree: Many have no immediate pathway to legal status and, under current federal immigration law, employers cannot legally hire them.

2. Once left behind, a single mom refuses to give up on her quest to read; Detroit Free Press, October 2, 2011
Brief Introduction: Thirty-eight-year-old Luvanis O'Neal kept her secret for more than 20 years by hiding in silence behind a sweet, demure smile. It was easier being quiet. Nobody asked questions of the shy girl.

Race
1. Black population concentrated in South: Census; NBC Washington, October 1, 2011
Brief Introduction: The majority of the United State’s population that identifies itself as black or African American is concentrated in the southern states, according to a new report by the Census Bureau.

2. More Hispanics listed themselves as White on U.S. Census; The Beacon News, September 30, 2011
Brief Introduction: In a twist to notions of race identity, new 2010 census figures show an unexpected reason behind a renewed growth in the U.S. white population: more Hispanics listing themselves as white in the once-a-decade government count.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Three cars "for good" go to local nonprofits; JournalStar.com, September 28, 2011

Brief Introduction: The 100 Cars for Good promotional program was launched by Toyota in May, and nonprofits across the land competed to land a car. Local winners survived several rounds of cuts to make it to the final 500 -- and then each was assigned a day. On that day, they competed head-to-head with four other nonprofits of similar size, gathering votes via Facebook, Twitter, email and good ‘ol word-of-mouth.

2. The White House and National Science Foundation announce new workplace flexibility policies to support America's scientists and their families; WhiteHouse.gov, September 26,2011

Brief Introduction: Today, White House Council on Women and Girls Executive Director Tina Tchen, White House Office of Science and Technology Policy Director John P. Holdren, and National Science Foundation (NSF) Director Subra Suresh announced the “NSF Career-Life Balance Initiative,” a 10-year plan to provide greater work-related flexibility to women and men in research careers. Among the best practices that NSF will expand Foundation-wide, are ones that will allow researchers to delay or suspend their grants for up to one year in order to care for a newborn or newly adopted child or fulfill other family obligations. — maximizing current policy to facilitate scientists’ reentry into their professions with minimal loss of momentum.

3. Meeting with Bill Gates, Nigerian president Jonathan re-affirms country's commitment to eradicating polio within two years; Kaiser Daily Global Health Policy Report, September 30, 2011

Brief Introduction: In a meeting at the presidential villa on Thursday, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan told Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, "that he was determined to eradicate polio within two years after the crippling disease re-emerged earlier this year."

4. High school students gain college credits at Akron Early College High School at University of Akron; Cleveland.com, October 2, 2011

Brief Introduction: Early college high schools, aimed at low-income, first-generation college students, were developed and funded in 2002 by several organizations, including The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Ford Foundation. More than 230 schools have opened in 28 states, including 10 in Ohio.

October CFL Podcast: Melanie Sciochetti & Bruce Compton from Pew (Librarian/Archivist)

This month, I had the opportunity to interview Melanie Sciochetti and Bruce Compton from Pew. Melanie is a librarian and library manager and Bruce is an archivist and senior manager for their Research & Records department. They share how they have worked together with their team to provide excellent service to their colleagues. Bruce also shares valuable tips for librarians looking to improve their collaboration with their organization's archivist.

This turned out to be an excellent podcast interview and I thank Melanie and Bruce for their participation.

MP3 file:

https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/Bruce_Melanie_Interview_Pew_MP3.mp3

WAV file:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/Bruce_Melanie_Interview_Pew_WAV.wav

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. Hospital drug shortages deadly, costly; Forbes.com, September 24, 2011
Brief introduction: A growing crisis in the availability of drugs for chemotherapy, infections and other serious ailments is endangering patients and forcing hospitals to buy from secondary suppliers at huge markups because they can't get the medications any other way.

2. California leads U.S. in measles cases; Los Angeles Times, September 22, 2011
Brief introduction: As more parents forgo measles vaccinations for their children, the number of Californians contracting the highly contagious disease has reached a 10-year high, outpacing every other state in the nation.

Education
1. Obama turns some powers of education back to the states; The New York Times, September 23, 2011
Brief introduction: Mr. Obama invited states to reclaim the power to design their own school accountability and improvement systems, upending the centerpiece of the Bush-era No Child Left Behind law, a requirement that all students be proficient in math and reading by 2014.

2. 'Parent Trigger' law to reform schools faces challenges; The New York Times, September 23, 2011
Brief introduction: The Compton Unified School District has challenged a group of parents who collected hundred of signatures in order to enact change at one of the schools using the 'parent trigger' law. The parents want the under-performing school shut down and a charter school to take its place.

Race
1. Many black men in cold climates lack vitamin D; US News, September 23, 2011
Brief introduction: A new study suggests black men who live in areas of the United States with low sunlight are more likely to have vitamin D deficiency than whites who live in the same places.

2. Black teachers unfairly targeted by CPS layoffs, union says; Chicago Tribune, September 25, 2011
Brief introduction: The Chicago Teachers Union says that while fewer than 30 percent of teachers in CPS are African-American, they represent more than 40 percent of those getting pink slips this year, either for budgetary reasons or because of enrollment declines. Latino teachers, who represent 15 percent of teachers in CPS, make up about 12 percent of layoffs, union officials said.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Increasing transparency to galvanize impact; Huffington Post, September 23,2011
Brief Introduction: Through the efforts of the Global Corporate Citizenship Program, BCLC will be launching a new tool to dramatically change the way we learn from each other and work together across sectors. At the 2011 Adding Value in Emerging Markets and Local Communities Conference, BCLC will be launching the Business for Good Map. This online, interactive map will catalog our members' work in communities based on geography and sector. Whether you're looking for education initiatives in Brazil, HIV programs in South Africa, or water programs in South East Asia, you'll be able to view all of these programs on one application.

2. Melinda Gates goes from 0 to 17,000+ Twitter followers in a day; The Seattle Times, September 22, 2011
Brief Introduction: Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Gates Foundation, joined Twitter Wednesday ("Excited to be joining the conversation on @twitter," she said) and, in some 24 hours, has gained more than 17,000 followers.

3. Health IT key to patient engagement; iHealthBeat.org, September 19,2011
Brief Introduction: The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality have teamed up on a new initiative aimed at boosting patient engagement in an effort to improve the quality of health care in the U.S. Health care experts argue that patient empowerment is key to driving health care improvements.

4. White House targets innovative education technologies; Information Week, September 19, 2011
Brief Introduction: The White House has formed a nonprofit organization aimed at creating innovative learning technologies to transform education in the United States. The National Center for Research in Advanced Information and Digital Technologies, aka Digital Promise, will engage exclusively in research and development (R&D) to use the most advanced technology to improve learning at all educational levels.

The Department of Education, the Carnegie Corporation of New York, and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation are providing startup funds and support for the nonprofit, which brings together a coalition of business leaders and educators.

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. 4 insurers will supply health data; The New York Times, September 19, 2011
Brief Introduction: Several major health insurers have agreed to provide their claims data on a regular basis to academic researchers, in an unusual agreement that they say will open a window onto the rising costs of health care.

2. Study: Exercise helps teen smokers quit; USA Today, September 19,2011
A program that combines counseling with physical activity may offer teens a more effective way to stop smoking.

Education
1. Kansas City Schools to lose state accreditation; September 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: Missouri education officials revoked the accreditation of the Kansas City School District on Tuesday after it failed for several years to meet most of the state's academic performance standards.

2. Kansas joins national science standard team; September 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: Kansas has been named one of 20 lead states to help write academic science standards that could be used as a national model for public schools and will include requirements for teaching evolution, project leaders announced Tuesday.

Race
1. Higher risk of second breast cancer seen in black women; US News, September 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: Black women who develop breast cancer are more likely than white women to suffer a second cancer in the other breast, and those who are diagnosed under age 45 are more likely to get a primary breast cancer of a more aggressive form, new research indicates.

2. Latinos at risk without new pollution standards; San Francisco Chronicle, September 21, 2011
Brief Introduction: Latinos would have a higher risk of disease and death without tougher standards that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has developed for ozone and toxic emissions, environmental and Latino groups said Tuesday.

3. Risks seen for children of illegal immigrants; The New York Times, September 20, 2011
Brief Introduction: Children whose parents are illegal immigrants or who lack legal status themselves face “uniformly negative” effects on their social development from early childhood until they become adults, according to a study by four researchers published Wednesday in the Harvard Educational Review.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1. Public-Interest lawyer and choral director among MacArthur Genius prize winners ; Chronicle of Philanthropy, September 19,2011
Brief Introduction: The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation today announced the 22 recipients of its annual MacArthur Fellows awards.

2. Map tracks antibiotic-resistant 'superbugs' online; The Washington Post, September 21,2011
Brief Introduction: The "Resistance Map” was launched Wednesday by “Extending the Cure,” a research project that studies the rising problems of antibiotic resistance based at the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy, a Washington-based nonprofit. It is funded in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

3. Social Good Summit 2011; Mashable.com, September 20,2011
Brief Introduction: Mashable, 92Y and the UN Foundation are excited to get day two of the second annual Social Good Summit under way. The event, held in New York City during UN Week, is off to a great start after yesterday’s inspiring sessions with digital philanthropy leaders such as Ted Turner, Nicholas Negroponte and Christy Turlington.

4. Gates Foundation taps Novartis executive; The Wall Street Journal, September 14, 2011
Brief Introduction: A senior executive at the pharmaceutical company Novartis AG will join the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation as president of the philanthropy's global health group, a position that can influence the health of millions of people worldwide.

A change to the blog

In order to better focus this blog, I will be making a few changes to the content that is posted on it. One of those changes will be the ceasing of daily news articles. I hope to make one to two posts a week that focus on philanthropy and a briefing of news of interest. In addition, I am also looking for guest bloggers from the field of philanthropy or nonprofit librarianship who would be interested in contributing a post or two.

If interested, please leave a comment on this blog post to indicate your interest and the best method to contact you.

What's new in Philanthropy

Articles of interest in philanthropy and nonprofits published in the last 10 days:

1.The Post-Jobs era: Tim Cook brings philanthropy back to Apple; Wired, September 8, 2011
Brief Introduction: Mr. Cook announced on Thursday morning in a company-wide e-mail that Apple would now honor a charitable matching program.

2. Menino set to coax nonprofits into hiring; Boston.com, September 5, 2011

Brief Introduction: To encourage job growth, Mayor Thomas M. Menino today will propose financial incentives for hospitals, universities, and other nonprofits to hire out-of-work Boston residents.

Institutions that hire jobless Bostonians would receive a $1,000 or $1,500 credit that would be deducted from the money nonprofits are asked to pay each year in lieu of property taxes. Boston’s top five employers - four major hospitals and Boston University - contributed more than $8.6 million to city coffers last year despite their tax-exempt status.

3. Pay for female nonprofit CEOs lag; Orlando Business Journal, September 8, 2011

Brief Introduction: Despite more women holding CEO positions at nonprofits, women CEOs earn 13.4 percent to 24.6 percent less than their male counterparts, according to an annual survey released Sept. 8.

4. Big Boost to African Cassava Project; The Scientist, September 7, 2011

Brief Introduction: The Virus Resistant Cassava for Africa (VIRCA) project recently received $5.5 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, $5.5 million from The Monsanto Fund; and more than $850,000 from the Howard Buffett Foundation.

CFL Podcast: Jacob Harold (Value beyond grant money)

For this podcast, I had the opportunity to speak with Jacob Harold from the Hewlett Foundation. In this podcast, he discusses how grantmakers can go beyond the expected and provide value to their grantees beyond grant money.

WAV
https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/Jacob_Harold_CFL_Interview_WAV.wav
MP3
https://s3.amazonaws.com/onlinefiles/Interviews/Jacob_Harold_CFL_Interview_MP3.mp3

Friday Roundup

Here is a listing of articles published in the last 7-10 days that may be of interest:

Health
1. Texas and Mass. still at health coverage extremes in U.S., Gallup, September 6, 2011
Brief Introduction: Texas residents continue to be the most likely in the United States to lack health coverage, with 27.2% reporting being uninsured in the first half of 2011. At the other end of the spectrum is Massachusetts, where health insurance is required and 5.3% of residents lack coverage.

Education
1. Census data: Schools have cut thousands of jobs, September 2, 2011
Brief Introduction: Arizona school districts cut more than 10,000 employees – including 6,640 instructors – from March 2009 to March 2010, according to new data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

2. New York Times and WNYC launch SchoolBook to foster education community, Mashable.com, September 7, 2011
Brief Introduction: On Wednesday, The New York Times and public radio station WNYC launched SchoolBook, a website to provide news, data and discussion about New York City schools. The site aims to increase communication and understanding among parents, teachers, administrators and students.

Race
1. Report shows young workers, minorities hit hardest by recession job losses, Tribuna, September 7, 2011
Brief Introduction: While Connecticut lost over 11 9,000 jobs during the Great Recession, its impact was not borne evenly as young workers and ethnic minorities suffered disproportionately high unemployment rates, according to a new labor report issued Thursday by a New Haven-based public policy research group.

2. Hispanic Birthrate dips in Arizona, AZ Central.com, September, 1, 2011
Brief Introduction: Hispanic women in Arizona are having children at a significantly lower rate than in past decades, which could slow overall population growth if the trend continues, according to new state and federal data.

Arizona Department of Corrections assessing $25 prison visitor fee

Arizona will assess a $25 fee on adults who want to visit inmates at any of its 15 facilities. Originally the Department of Corrections billed the charge as a background check fee, but now says that the one-time fee which will be assessed to visitors over 18, will be used to keep prison facilities safe for both inmates and visitors. The chief of staff for the Arizona Senate, Wendy Baldo, noted that the fees were intended to assist in bridging a $1.6 billion deficit the state faced at the beginning of the year. She added that the department is in need of about $150 million worth of building renewal and maintenance funds. A lawsuit has already been filed against the Department of Corrections in order to stop the collection of the fee, citing that it is unconstitutional.

Appeals court rules against Arizona's mandatory co-pays for Medicaid recipients

A 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against Arizona's assessment of mandatory co-pays for some Medicaid recipients. The Arizona state legislature originally began the implementation of mandatory co-pays in 2003 for some patients, with payments that ranged from $4-$30. According to the policy, if the patient could not pay the co-pay, the medical provider could refuse to provide health services to the patient.

In November 2010, the state started to assess co-pays again and a class-action lawsuit was initiated. The lawsuit claimed that the medically needy shouldn't be required to make co-payments for health services, that the co-pays violated the Medicaid Act cost-sharing restrictions and that notices patients received about changes in their health coverage was inadequate.

Arizona's Kids Care program sees enrollment numbers plummet

Arizona's KidsCare program, a state version of the federally sponsored Children's Health Insurance Program, has seen enrollment numbers in August drop to the lowest level since 1999. Enrollment went from a peak of 66,317 in May 2008 to 16,662 in August, while demand for the program is strong. In July, more than 100,000 children were on the waiting list for KidsCare.

More than half of the decline has come since Jan. 1, 2010, when the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System froze enrollment in KidsCare in response to a lack of funding. State lawmakers have repeatedly cut funding for KidsCare in recent years, from more than $100 million in fiscal 2009 to $36 million this year, fiscal 2012. KidsCare is a premium-based health-care program that covers children whose family income is between one and two times the poverty level, currently $22,350 per year for a family of four. Below that level, a family qualifies for Medicaid.

The freeze raised concerns at the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services about Arizona's ability to retain children in the program. Since the freeze was enacted, nearly 30,000 children have been dropped. State officials attribute most of the decline to long-standing factors that would have occurred with or without an enrollment freeze, including some families qualifying for Medicaid and others failing to renew their eligibility or pay their premiums

Wisconsin bar asks DOJ to investigate new voter identifcation law

The Wisconsin state bar has asked the U.S. Department of Justice to review the state's new voter identification law, citing concerns that the law could disenfranchise thousands of voters.
Sally Stix, chair of the Wisconsin state bar, noted that she was concerned that the law could deter votes of the young, the poor and minorities.

She cited a 2005 University of Wisconsin study that found 59% of Hispanic women and 55% of African-American men in the Milwaukee area lacked a valid state-issued photo ID. She also noted that while Wisconsin's motor vehicle department was supposed to issue no-cost IDs to help voters comply with the law, agency employees were not doing enough to make sure prospective voters get the free cards. She also added that the documents required to receive the free IDs included birth certificates which were not free, possibly harming voters who would be unable to pay.

Department of Justice reviewing concerns in the Madison Metropolitan School District

The U.S. Department of Justice Community Relations Service that mediates racial tension in communities is becoming involved in concerns over the achievement of racial minorities in the Madison Metropolitan School District. DOJ officials will participate in a meeting called by the Urban League to discuss minority achievement, graduation rates and expulsion rates in the district.

When it comes to 2010 statistics, 57.7% of black students in the Madison district scored proficient or better in reading tests compared with 91.7% of white students. In math, 45.3% of black students scored proficient or better compared to 88.9% of white students. When it comes to high school graduation numbers, 48.3% of black students graduated after four years of high school, compared to 87.2% of white students.