NCVA eREPORTER - November 29, 2005

The National Congress of Vietnamese Americans' NCVA eReporter is a regular email newsletter containing information on grant/funding opportunities, events/forums/conferences, available internships and news items pertinent to the Vietnamese American and Asian Pacific American communities.

In this NCVA eReporter:

EVENTS

• Library's Vietnamese Book Collection Grows – Dec 2, 2005

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

• Kaiser Permanent Grants Target Community Health
• AED Salary Support for Social Justice Organizations
• CiviConnections Grants for Service-Learning Projects
• Citigroup Foundation Supports Company Communities
• Staples Foundation Supports Youth Training
• Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Program

JOBS/INTERNSHIPS

• Deputy Director for Integration Policy and Programs
• Civic and Electoral Participation Program Coordinator (Full-Time)

TIPS/RESOURCES

• Online:  Tapping the potential for new donors
• Clearinghouse for Nonprofits- Idealist.org

NEWS

• New Wave of Vietnamese Immigration (Pacific Time)
• WestConn Vietnam Week explains cultural ties (The News-Times)
• Cowboys' Nguyen out for season, considering retirement (Star-Telegram)
• Panel to discuss feasibility of Asian American director (Alligator Online)

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EVENTS

LIBRARY’S VIETNAMESE BOOK COLLECTION GROWS

December 2, 2005 @ 1 PM

The county library system will unveil a collection of more than 500 books in Vietnamese on Dec. 2 at the Thomas Jefferson Library in the Falls Church area.

The Vietnamese National Institute of Administration Alumni Association and the Quang Da Mutual Assistance Association donated the books, which will be added to more than 8,000 other Vietnamese language books offered by the library system.

After a 1 p.m. ceremony with state and local officials, there will be Vietnamese cultural activities. The Nga Mi group will perform a lion dance. In addition, there will be food, art and musical performances. Attendees can also view an exhibit of Vietnamese calligraphy by artist Vu Hoi.

The library is at 7415 Arlington Blvd. For more information, call 703-573-1060.

(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/23/AR2005112300741.html)

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FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

KAISER PERMANENT GRANTS TARGET COMMUNITY HEALTH

The Kaiser Permanente Cares for Communities Program provides support to nonprofit organizations that focus on community health in the locations the company serves, as well as national nonprofit organizations that address the company's grantmaking priorities. The companys grantmaking priorities include: vulnerable populations, evidence based medicine, education, and public policy. Kaiser Permanente is vitally concerned about disparities in health care, especially among racial and ethnic minorities, and much of the company's grantmaking focuses on reducing these disparities. Applications are accepted throughout the year.

(http://members.kaiserpermanente.org/kpweb/communityinvolve/entrypage.do)

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AED SALARY SUPPORT FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE ORGANIZATIONS

The Academy for Educational Development's New Voices Fellowship Program is a national program to help nonprofit organizations bring innovative new talent to their staffs. The program is a capacity-building and leadership development grant program that assists nonprofit organizations and professionals related to human rights and social justice. New Voices Fellows are offered financial assistance, training, and other opportunities for personal and professional development. Their host organizations are provided salary-support grants. The goal of the program is to help both the host organization and the fellow realize their full potential. The application deadline is February 13, 2005.

(http://www.aed.org/newvoices/)

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CIVICONNECTIONS GRANTS FOR SERVICE-LEARNING PROJECTS

CiviConnections is a three-year teacher grant program funded by the federal Corporation for National and Community Service and National Council for the Social Studies. From 2003-2006, CiviConnections will involve teachers and 3rd-12th grade students nationwide in linking local history inquiry with community service-learning activities. Teachers will develop and adapt these activities based on their students' interests and abilities, the needs or problems in the local community, and their local social studies curriculum requirements. Teams of three teachers can apply for $7,500 grants to cover their costs for attending summer workshops, implementing the program during the fall of 2006, and attending the 2006 NCSS Annual Conference in Washington, DC. The application deadline is February 24, 2006.

(http://www.civiconnections.org/)

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CITIGROUP FOUNDATION SUPPORTS COMPANY COMMUNITIES

The Citigroup Foundation supports nonprofit organizations throughout the U.S., and internationally, where its companies do business. Working with a global network of colleagues and partners, the Foundation gives grants focused in the following three main areas: Financial Education, with emphasis on programs for families and young people; Educating the Next Generation, with emphasis on improving educational opportunities in low-income communities; and Building Communities and Entrepreneurs, with emphasis on the revitalization of low-income communities. Applications are accepted at any time during the calendar year; however, early submission is encouraged.

(http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/corporate/foundation/index.htm)

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STAPLES FOUNDATION SUPPORTS YOUTH TRAINING

The Staples Foundation for Learning announces funds to support programs that provide job skills or education for all people, with a special emphasis on disadvantaged youth. The Foundation now has an online system for submitting grant applications. The application deadline is January 2, 2006.

(http://www.staplesfoundation.org/foundapplication.html)

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LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOR VICTIMS GRANT PROGRAM

This Program is intended to increase the availability of legal assistance necessary to provide effective aid to victims of domestic violence, dating violence, stalking, or sexual assault who are seeking relief in legal matters arising as a consequence of that abuse or violence.

(http://www.usdoj.gov/ovw/ovwfy2006legalassistanceforvictimssolicitation.pdf)

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JOBS/INTERNSHIPS

DEPUTY DIRECTOR FOR INTEGRATION POLICY AND PROGRAMS (Full-time)

The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) is an umbrella policy and advocacy organization for over 150 groups in New York State that fights for fairness and opportunity for today's immigrants and refugees.  Since 1987, we have pushed for pro-immigrant policy, budget, and program initiatives at all levels of government.  Our current agenda includes: fighting for broad legalization and comprehensive immigration reform measures; increasing the availability of key integration services for immigrants, such as English language and literacy programs, legal services, and citizenship classes; combating discrimination and ensuring civil rights and workplace protections; and improving immigrants' access to quality health care, education, and safe and affordable housing.  We also sponsor a variety of trainings and leadership and organizational development initiatives.  These include a training institute that offers hundreds of workshops and seminars each year on immigration law and related topics; a fellows program to help immigrant leaders create more powerful and politically relevant organizations; and a range of civic and electoral participation programs that help to send hundreds of thousands of informed immigrant voters to the polls each year.

RESPONSIBILITIES:
* Ensure successful advocacy and programming in NYIC's integration issue areas, which include education, health care, worker rights and workforce development, housing, funding for ESL/legal services and issues related to access to government services. 

* Supervise staff in these program areas by overseeing their advocacy and grassroots campaign strategies, guiding policy research and analysis, and editing written materials; mentor and support the staff in other ways as needed.

* Coordinate large-scale advocacy events, rallies and media events.

* Take the lead in maintaining/building close and effective working relationships with appropriate government officials, particularly on the City level.

* Represent the NYIC and/or speak at press events, conferences, community education events and various national and local meetings.

* Build/maintain excellent relationships with member groups, other immigrant and advocacy groups, unions, and other key partners

* Take part in coordination of special events, development of new initiatives and programs, fundraising and other tasks that may be necessary to advance the organizational mission of the NYIC

QUALIFICATIONS:
10+ years of relevant experience working on social and economic justice issues and significant experience working directly with immigrant communities.  Demonstrated ability to analyze complex policy issues, develop and implement large-scale grassroots advocacy campaigns, build coalitions across ethnic, racial and sectoral lines, and supervise and mentor staff.  Familiarity with federal, state and local legislative processes and politics and experience working with government officials. Excellent writing, public speaking and interpersonal skills.  Experience in management, media work, community organizing, and fundraising a plus. Ability to work cooperatively with diverse staff.  Bi/multilingual ability preferred.

SALARY:  Commensurate with experience.

START DATE:  January 2006

DEADLINE:  APPLY IMMEDIATELY 

Only those offered interviews will be contacted.

TO APPLY:   NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE.  Mail, fax, or email resume, cover letter and salary history to:

Jackie Wong, Office Manager
The New York Immigration Coalition
275 Seventh Avenue, 9th Floor
New York, NY  10001
FAX:  (212) 627-9314
jwong@thenyic.org
http://www.thenyic.org

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CIVIC AND ELECTORAL PARTICIPATION PROGRAM COORDINATOR (Full-Time)

The New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) is an umbrella policy and advocacy organization for over 150 groups in New York State that fights for fairness and opportunity for today's immigrants and refugees.  Since 1987, we have pushed for pro-immigrant policy, budget, and program initiatives at all levels of government.  Our current agenda includes: fighting for broad legalization and comprehensive immigration reform measures; increasing the availability of key integration services for immigrants, such as English language and literacy programs, legal services, and citizenship classes; combating discrimination and ensuring civil rights and workplace protections; and improving immigrants' access to quality health care, education, and safe and affordable housing.  We also sponsor a variety of trainings and leadership and organizational development initiatives.  These include a training institute that offers hundreds of workshops and seminars each year on immigration law and related topics; a fellows program to help immigrant leaders create more powerful and politically relevant organizations; and a range of civic and electoral participation programs that help to send hundreds of thousands of informed immigrant voters to the polls each year.

Responsibilities include:
§  Coordinating the non-partisan immigrant voter education and voter mobilization campaign of the NYIC and its member network.  Activities include voter education events, candidate forums, exit polls, materials development, large-scale Get-Out-the-Vote activities and other community outreach efforts;

§  Overseeing year-round efforts in partnership with NYIC member groups to expand immigrants' participation in New York's civic life and civic institutions;

§  Organizing press conferences and conducting on-going media outreach to mainstream and ethnic media to promote electoral and civic participation in immigrant communities;

§  Supervising the NYIC's New Citizen Voter Registration Project, which has registered over 225,000 new immigrant voters and supervising the Bilingual Poll Worker Recruitment Program, which recruits over 500 bilingual poll workers from immigrant communities every year;

§  Identifying, developing, and advocating for policy and procedural changes at the federal, state and city government levels to protect the rights and increase the participation of immigrant voters;

§  Developing and maintaining strong relationships with key immigrant community leaders and election reform leaders;

§  Working with NYIC staff and member groups on emerging issues and tasks as necessary to further the NYIC's goals and objectives.

Qualifications:
Bachelor's degree and five or more years experience working on immigrant community issues and/or civic participation initiatives.  Excellent interpersonal skills and written and oral communication skills. Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with multi-racial and multi-sector partners.  Experience in advocacy, community organizing and political work a plus.  Demonstrated ability to prioritize and handle multiple, complex tasks.  Bi/multilingual ability strongly preferred.

Salary:  Commensurate with experience, with excellent benefits package.

Deadline:   APPLY IMMEDIATELY, BUT NO LATER THAN NOVEMBER 30, 2005. 

Only those offered interviews will be contacted. 

To Apply:   NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE.  Mail, e-mail, or fax cover letter, resume, and salary history to:

Jackie Wong, Office Manager
The New York Immigration Coalition
275 Seventh Ave., 9th Floor
New York, NY 10001
Fax: 212.627.9314
E-mail:  jwong@thenyic.org
http://www.thenyic.org

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TIPS/RESOURCES

ONLINE: TAPPING THE POTENTIAL FOR NEW DONORS

More and more charities are offering donors the option of giving via the Internet. And more and more donors are taking them up on that offer.

In 2004, charitable giving in the U.S. reached $248 billion. Of that generosity, between $2 billion and $3 billion was raised online, according to industry estimates. Although this figure is a minor slice of the overall charitable giving pie, there is no ignoring the fact that online giving has increased by 63 percent from 2003 to 2004. And, a large portion of the charitable giving for relief efforts comes via the Internet as evidenced by hurricanes Rita and Wilma and the tsunami last winter.

To tap into this potential for new donors, your organization has to have the basics in place, according to Lenny Esposito, director of internet marketing at direct response marketing agency Grizzard in Atlanta. Here are five common problems seen in online fundraising efforts, according to Esposito:

* Not enough email addresses: Don't stop at the mailing address and telephone number. Be sure to include in every form your organization mails or posts online a request for a donor's email address.

* Your Web site isn"t donor-friendly: Take the time to make your organization's site organized and attractive; and don't forget to include the gift ask. As an added safeguard, have someone not affiliated with your organization attempt to make an Internet donation to see what changes, if any, need to be made.

* Your fundraising efforts lack immediacy: Just as you would a direct mailing, personalize an email ask. Tailor it to current events, and to the donor.

* Clueless about online donor behavior: Figure out what gets results. Set up an infrastructure that will allow you to track your results, such as Web site click-throughs, so you will know what changes should be made.

* Fail to keep your donor's options open: Communicate with the donor in a variety of ways, and provide options for them to donate with ease.

(http://www.nptimes.com/enews/tips/onlinefund.html)

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CLEARINGHOUSE FOR NONPROFITS – IDEALIST.ORG

Idealist.org, a portal for anyone interested in nonprofit organizations and issues, nonprofit careers, and volunteering, provides numerous services to the global community in an effort to connect people, resources and nonprofits around the world. Idealist has become one of the most popular communities sof nonprofit and volunteering resources on the Web, with information provided by over 48,000 organizations in 165 countries, and thousands of users every day.

(http://Idealist.org)

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NEWS

November 24, 2005

NEW WAVE OF VIETNAMESE IMMIGRATION

Host: Sydnie Kohara
Reporters:  Jessica Smith

The U.S. and Vietnam have signed an agreement that will allow as many as ten thousand Vietnamese wartime employees of U.S. corporations or the military to move to the U.S. It may be the last wave of Vietnamese who were jailed or persecuted for helping the Americans during the Vietnam war.

(http://www.kqed.org/programs/program-landing.jsp?progID=RD37)

Listen:
(http://real.kqed.speedera.net/ramgen/real.kqed/radio/pacifictime/2005/11/2005-11-24b-pacifictime.rm)

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November 27, 2005

WESTCONN VIETNAM WEEK EXPLAINS CULTURAL TIES

By Robert Miller
The News-Times

Vietnamese master musician Pham Duc Thanh will perform in concert Saturday at Western Connecticut State University.

For a huge majority of Americans, Vietnam is a country that existed in their imaginations for a decade or so— the war years of the 1960s and 1970s.

But American exposure to Vietnamese culture stretches back to 1808, when President Thomas Jefferson met the Crown Prince of Vietnam.

"He discussed the possibility of growing Vietnamese rice in South Carolina,'' said Wynn Wilcox, assistant professor of history and non-western cultures at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury. "American trading ships visited Vietnam in the 1830s.''

In hopes of broadening appreciation of Vietnamese history — and the United States' involvement in that history — as well as the culture of present-day Vietnam, WestConn will sponsor "Vietnam Week" at the university, beginning Monday and ending next Sunday.

The week-long event is a collaboration between the university, the Smithsonian Institution Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, the Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, and the Connecticut Folklife Project.

It will include an exhibition, "Mekong Lifeways'' on the life of six communities in the Mekong Delta, a region where three different ethnic groups — the Viet, the Khmer and Cham — live together. The exhibit will be at WestConn's Warner Hall until Dec. 5. It will be open to the public weekdays from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Dr. Keith Taylor of Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., will give the keynote address on Friday, Dec. 2 at 7 p.m. in Alumni Hall. Taylor, chairman of Cornell's Asian Studies Department, will speak on "The Strange Intersection of American and Vietnamese History,'' discussing how Americans have devised their own narrative of the Vietnam War experience to explain their own history in the years that followed.

A two-day conference at Warner Hall will follow on Saturday and Sunday, to examine the question "Do American Historians Misunderstand Vietnam?'' Wilcox said that conference will look not only at the war, but the decades preceding and following it.

"We were involved in Vietnam before the French colonial experience,'' Wilcox said. "From 1941 to 1945, the people that most supported Ho Chi Minh was the American Office of Strategic Services, which was the precursor of the CIA. Ho would have never come to power without the OSS.''

The final highlight of the conference will be on Saturday, when Vietnamese master musician Pham Duc Thanh will give a concert at the WestConn Student Center Theater at 7 p.m. Thanh will play several instruments, including the Dan Bau, a one-stringed monochord; the Dan Nhi, a two-stringed fiddle; and the Dan Nguyet, a long-necked flute.

Judith Cook Tucker, the co-founder of the Connecticut Folklife Project, publisher of the World Music Press and an instructor of world music at WestConn, said she was able to bring Thanh to WestConn when she learned about the sweep of the conference.

"Vietnamese music is so wonderful,'' Cook Tucker said. "Each instrument is so unique.''

"I'm hoping the Vietnamese-Americans in the Danbury area will attend,'' Cook Tucker said. "It's not often a master of Vietnamese music will come to Danbury. let alone Connecticut.''

"Vietnam Week'' will be at Western Connecticut State University in Danbury from Monday through Sunday. For more information, call Wynn Wilcox at (203) 837-8565 or the WestConn Office of Public Relations at (203) 837-8486.

Contact Robert Miller at bmiller@newstimes.com or at (203) 731-3345.

(http://news.newstimeslive.com/story.php?id=77107&category=Local)

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November 29, 2005

COWBOYS’ NGUYEN OUT FOR SEASON, CONSIDERING RETIREMENT

By Rick Herrin
Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Cowboys veteran linebacker Dat Nguyen has been placed on injured reserve and is out for the remainder of the season.

Bill Parcells made the announcement Monday at a news conference. Parcells said that Nguyen is considering retirement.

The seven-year veteran from Texas A&M has been bothered by a neck injury which has forced him to miss three games this season. His role has been limited since he returned from the injury.

(http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/sports/football/13276302.htm)

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November 29, 2005

PANEL TO DISCUSS FEASIBILITY OF ASIAN AMERICAN DIRECTOR

By Diana Mazzella
Alligator Writer

A panel discussion to be held tonight aims to educate UF students and faculty about why the university needs a director of Asian Pacific American Affairs.

Asian American Student Union President Sandy Chiu said a director would assist Asian American students by informing them about scholarships, putting together a mentor program like the ones other minority groups on campus have, and giving students a voice in the Office of Admissions and the university.

The discussion starts at 7 p.m. in the Reitz Union Rion Ballroom.

UF does not recruit for Asian American students in the way it does for Hispanic and Latino or black students, and a director could help to change this, Chiu said.

She added that the forum is to inform those in attendance of what is happening with the director and "how all students can benefit" from having one.

When people attend the forum, they "will show administration, faculty and other students the support or curiosity regarding this issue," Chiu said.

This will not be the first time this year students have brought this issue to the administration's attention.

During the first week of classes in the Fall semester, students from the Asian American Student Union and South Asian American Student Union assembled at a speech by Vice President for Student Affairs Patricia Telles-Irvin to express their concerns about the lack of a director.

That came a few days after the Dean of Students Office's announcement that a position was created for a director of multicultural and diversity affairs.

A graduate assistant position was also created for Asian Pacific American Affairs, but not the director position that some students had hoped for.

Kappa Phi Lambda and Delta Phi Omega sororities are hosting tonight's event with support from Asian American Heritage Kaleidoscope Month.

Coordinator for the event Thao Tran said it would not be a protest or rally, but an educational forum.

She said the event will benefit the whole student body.

Chiu said the forum will allow students to write down questions that a moderator will pose.

Panelists will include South Asian American Student Union President Preeti Sharma, past AASU President Linh Nguyen, professors Amy Ongiri and Malini Schueller and Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Affairs Director Tamara Cohen, said Kaleidoscope Month Event Coordinator Leo Esclamado.

The Dean of Students Office has appointed directors for black students, Hispanic students and students with disabilities as well.

The two professors were involved in a panel last year that focused on ethnic studies, Esclamado said.

He emphasized that the panel's purpose is not to blame the Dean of Students Office because it does not have a director for Asian American Students.

(http://www.alligator.org/pt2/051129asian.php)

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About NCVA
Founded in 1986, the National Congress of Vietnamese Americans is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit community advocacy organization working to advance the cause of Vietnamese Americans in a plural but united America – e pluribus unum – by participating actively and fully as civic minded citizens engaged in the areas of education, culture and civil liberties.

Copyright material is distributed without profit or payment for research and educational purposes only, in accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107