News
 

hsn / human service newsbytes

a publication of the National Human Services Assembly, www.nationalassembly.org
March 1, 2012

NEWS & DEVELOPMENTS

Children and Youth

1.6 million children in poverty at greater risk to repeat a school grade, be expelled or drop out of high school or have a major developmental delay, underscoring the need for adequate child care and educational supports for homeless youth (Child Trends).

Children in poverty more likely to have special health care needs,  according to a survey of 190,000 households from the National Survey of Children with Special Health Care Needs (NS-CSHCN).

Summer Jobs+, a new cross-sector initiative between businesses, non-profits, and government, aims to create pathways to employment for 250,000 low-income and disconnected youth by summer of 2012, at least 100,000 of which will be placements in paid jobs and internships (Department of Labor).

State Children’s Cabinets can increase efficiency while maintaining or even improving supports for young people by systematically breaking down silos and use of a data-driven, results-oriented approach, according to the Forum for Youth investment.

Older Americans

It takes someone age 55 or over three months longer to find a job than a younger person.  There is increasing public awareness about the issue and tools available to seniors and advocates that help to confront it (AARP).

AARP filed a brief on behalf of persons with disabilities who find barriers in the housing market despite laws that meant to guarantee access to housing, over service animals not permitted by a landlord is in violation of the Fair Housing Act.

Needs of 10 million frail seniors and younger people with disabilities for long-term found absent from this presidential campaign, prompting NCOA and fourteen other groups to invite the candidates to answer five questions about their views on this critical topic.

Poverty and Community

The National Foreclosure Mitigation Counseling program, administered by NeighborWorks®,  has been found to be effective at helping homeowners get more affordable loan modifications, cure serious delinquencies and remain current on their loans and reduces the number of foreclosure completions.

Ascend, the Aspen Institute’s Family Economic Security Program, has recently published a report promoting a two-generation approach that addresses needs of both vulnerable parents and children together (e.g., early child education programs that also create educational opportunities for parents) and advancing a three-pronged strategy that focuses on education, economic supports and social capital.

Nonprofit Sector

Irv Katz – President and CEO of the National Human Services Assembly, reflects on bigger picture implications of the recent collapse of Hull House in “Reality Time for Human Service Organizations,” featured in the Stanford Innovation Social Review, commenting that tectonic shifts in the sector (such an increased demand for services and curtailed funding) cannot be avoided and require nonprofit human service organizations to consider new operational options.

55% of respondents to a survey on workplace engagement by Opportunity Knocks report an intention to continue working for their current employer; 45% of those planning on leaving their current organization plan to do so within the next two years.

Chief Learning Officer magazine (CLO) has unveiled the 2012 LearningElite finalists, including National Assembly member - National Industries for the Blind, who were selected through peer-based benchmarking as representatives of the nation’s leading innovators in learning and development.

POLICY

National Human Services Assembly overview of the impact of President Obama budget for Fiscal Year 2013 released, citing the impacts on human services broadly and youth development programs in greater detail. 

Congress passed an extension of Unemployment Insurance (UI), which reduces the number of weeks of UI available to unemployed workers to a maximum of 73 weeks of coverage, and extends the pay roll tax, which saves the average family about $1000 annually (Coalition on Human Needs).

Congress passed a bill extending Medicare physician payments, and Medicare QI low-income premium assistance through the end of 2012 – which will help to support millions of seniors – yet, the bill also includes a $5 billion cut to the Prevention and Public Health Fund over 10 years and will reduce it from $15 billion to $10 billion (C-SPAN).

RESOURCES

The National Human Services Assembly has launched a new site featuring multiple resources that document the history of social welfare in the U.S.

A new report from Public/Private Ventures offers practical advice about collecting and using data to document the efforts of  multi-agency collaborations.

Human services professionals have a new online tool available to them to help with management of day-to-day operations – PerformWell – that was co-developed by Urban Institute, Child Trends, and Social Solutions and will be introduced in an upcoming webinar on Tuesday, March 6th, 2012 3:00- 4:00 pm EST.

A simple new “How to Guide” is available to organizations and individuals hoping to get involved with the Strong Foundations Social Media Campaign, an initiative Child Trends is spearheading that aims at increasing awareness about research that supports early childhood policies through use of social media tools to promote research-based messages.

Older Americans Month 2012 materials – including posters, fliers, branding recommendations and more – are now available to help promote this year's theme,  It’s Never Too Old to Play, designed to encourage older adults to stay engaged, active, and involved.

The NEW American FactFinder can help nonprofit human service organizations to better understand the constituents and communities they serve through access to more than 40,000 preset data tables, and data for more than 12 million geographies.  Also check out the new Bureau of Justice Statistics’ Arrest Data Analysis Tool.

ParentFurther.com, Search Institute’s parenting resource, will be offering free, monthly, expert-guided parenting webinars starting this March that are designed to accommodate busy parents and organizations who need to engage parents with positive parenting tips and resources.

 

EVENTS

Sustaining Impact in a Changed Economy

Human Services in Transition: Sustaining Impact in a Changed Economy, the uNetwork for Social Work Managers' 23rd Annual Management Institute, provides an opportunity to learn essential skills to be an effective nonprofit human services  manager. The event is co-sponsored by the National Human Services Assembly and will feature Rick Wartzman, from the Drucker Institute, as the keynote speaker. April 26-27, 2012 in San Diego.

The Teen Pregnancy Prevention Conference, "Expanding Our Experience and Expertise: Implementing Effective Teenage Pregnancy Prevention Programs," hosted by the U.S. Office of Adolescent Health, will feature Karen Pittman, CEO of the Forum for Youth Investment, as the keynote speaker. March 12-14, 2012 – Baltimore, Maryland.

A special event on Capitol Hill in Wash, DC., Generations United highlight the innovative programs and practices that different communities are using to intentionally bring multiple generations together to thrive.  March 28, 2012, 1:30 PM to 2:30 – Washington, DC.

Join senior and aging community advocates from around the country for the 2012 American Society on Aging’s Aging In America Conference, the nation's largest gathering of professionals from the fields of aging, health care, and education. March 28-April 1 – Washington, DC.

The 23rd Annual National Service-Learning Conference and youthrive PeaceJam Leadership Conference, the largest gathering of youth and practitioners involved in service-learning is less than two months away. April 11-14, 2012 – Minneapolis, MN.

USICH and the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) will be hosting a webinar on to learn how to transform homeless services to crisis response systems that prevent homelessness and help to quickly return people who experience homelessness to stable housing and why this is essential to ending homelessness. March 6 at 3pm EST. There will also be a follow-up webinar on  how to coordinate and centralize intake - an essential ingredient of an effective crisis response system.  March 20 at 3pm EST.

FUNDING & OPPORTUNITIES

The Eisner Foundation is now accepting nominations and applications for the $100,000 2012 Eisner Prize for Intergenerational Excellence.  Deadline: March 16, 2012.

The Health and Human Service’s Drug Free Communities Support Program provides support to programs that strengthen collaboration and community coalitions that work to prevent and reduce substance use among youth (individuals 18 years of age and younger). Deadline:  March 22, 2012.

The Active Schools Acceleration Project (ASAP) Innovation Competition will award ten regional winners $25,000 and two national winners receiving $100,000 for programs that increase quality in-school physical activity. Deadline: April 2, 2012.