Monthly Archives: November 2008

11.14.08
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David Eisner Says Farewell

headshot_ceo_01_thumbDavid Eisner steps down as the CEO of the Corporation for National and Community Service.

(The Corporation is an independent organization established by the federal government that provides funds and accountability for AmeriCorps programs throughout the country.)

You can read his biography on the CNCS web site. And the transcript of the speech he delivered yesterday at Georgetown, “From Dropouts to Downturns — Why Service is America’s Solution.”

This letter was posted yesterday as a “thank you and farewell.”

Dear National Service Colleagues,

It feels strange to be stepping down as CEO of the Corporation at this time in the national service movement – like jumping off a train just as it is picking up speed! As I leave, I want to share just how much the work you all do has meant to me, how grateful I am to have had the privilege to represent you, and how confident I am about the future for the agency and for national service and volunteering in America.

As a result of our work together, today national service has improved more lives, grown stronger and more secure, expanded its base of bipartisan support, and built a culture of impact and accountability in a way that offers a solid foundation for continued growth. At the core of this movement are the citizens of America; individuals who are ready and willing to stand up and say “I care” when provided with the opportunity and the tools to do so. You are the leaders of this “I care” movement. As I mentioned in a speech to a group of idealistic Georgetown University students this morning, for five years I have traveled across the country with a mixture of awe and admiration at seeing how your work is saving lives, ensuring futures, defeating despair and restoring hope for Americans who have no other place to turn. Thank you for what you do and for letting me share a role in this amazing work.

Before I close, I want to share a few things about the individuals I leave behind at the Corporation for National and Community Service. The staff at the Corporation, both in headquarters in Washington, DC and across the country, are a top notch group of professionals who care more passionately about your success and the mission of national service than I could have ever believed possible before joining the Corporation myself. I am also indebted to Steve Goldsmith who chairs what may be the strongest and most effectively bipartisan board in Washington, DC, for his leadership, wisdom and support. Finally, I am grateful that Nicky Goren, my current Chief of Staff, will take over as Acting CEO with my departure. In Nicky you have an effective and experienced leader and champion for volunteering and national service.

If you would like to remain in touch with me, please feel free to contact my terrific assistant, Vickie Perry, for my personal email address. I will remain a cheerleader and champion for your work, and look forward to our paths crossing again.

Thank you,

David Eisner

11.13.08
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Teach For India, Teach For All – Wendy Kopp’s Vision Gone Global

Modeled after the success of Teach For America, Teach For India aims to stamp out inequities in India’s schools by recruiting top college grads to teach in its poorest schools for two years.

Initiated in 2007, about 100 TFI Fellows will serve starting next fall in Mumbai and Pune and conduct classes in English. TFI Fellows will earn a competitive starting teachers salary, and receive compensation for housing banner_apply and transportation.

Struggling students will have access to some of the country’s brightest young leaders. While TFI Fellows will be trained and challenged. They will carry with them the experiences in the classroom far into their careers, whatever path they take.

As in the United States, India’s educational system has some stark statistics:

  • According to India’s 2001 Census, only 61% of the country’s population is literate. For women, the literacy rate is even lower than the national average, at 48%.
  • There are currently 7,500,000 children out of school in India.
  • Out of every 100 children in India, 15 will never attend school. Of those who attend school, 50% will drop out before Class V.

Reading through the web site of Teach For India (TFI) reminds me of reading the Teach For America (TFA) web site — similar vision, similar model, similar theory of change. To solve the problems of under-qualified teachers and outdated teaching methodology, India looked to Teach For America as a successful model. But India wasn’t the only country asking TFA for advice; apparently many other countries were. From the TFI web site:

In 2007, a new organization called Teach For All was created to support entrepreneurs in other countries who were pursuing the development of the Teach For America model locally. Teach For All was launched at the Clinton Global Initiative in September of 2007. Although a significant resource for Teach For India, Teach For All is a separately incorporated, funded, and staffed organization that is being incubated within Teach For America.

A “global network of independent social enterprises,” Teach For All-affiliated programs are operating or developing in ten nations, including the Latvia, Australia, Germany, and the United Kingdom.

map_4Note that like TFA, these other programs seem to be recruiting their own best and brightest (i.e. they are not overseas service opportunities for U.S. citizens—see Peace Corps, Jesuit Volunteers International, VSO Canada, and Atlas Service Corps —just a sampling of opportunities if you are from the United States and are eager to serve abroad).

11.13.08
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GOOD Sheet on National Service

Have you seen this new series of sheets GOOD magazine has beengoodsheet_010_natlservice_em2 producing this year? They are folded up sheets of newsprint dedicated to a single topic. One I saw before the election was dedicated to close races — the kind where every vote counts.

This week’s is on service:

President Kennedy famously declared during his inauguration speech that we should ask ourselves what we can do for our country. National service takes many forms—from Americans deployed overseas to senior citizens teaching a new generation how to read. Now that the election is over, let’s continue the spirit of civic engagement. Find out what you can do for your country.

GOOD Magazine is a smart magazine (they assume you are smart, too — what a relief) that donates your magazine subscription fee to a nonprofit. Browse other GOOD Sheets.

11.13.08
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AmeriCorps*VISTAs Blog on Grad School for Idealist.org

A former AmeriCorps*VISTA Leader and a current AmeriCorps*VISTA participate in Idealist.org’s Grad School Blog Project

Officially launched this week, a network of 12 bloggers — students, seekers, and admissions staff — are blogging about grad school. The project is a part of Idealist’s Public Service Graduate Education Resource Center.

Vanessa Mason is a prospective public health student and is a current AmeriCorps*VISTA member servingvanessa-mason with a refugee-focused nonprofit in Houston. She blogged about the relationship between refugees and public health this week as part of the refugee-themed Bloggers United day:

…Since I have started working as an AmeriCorps VISTA for the Partnership for the Advancement and Immersion of Refugees, this has taken on a newfound importance for me to raise awareness about the challenges that refugees face. This cause is particularly personal after meeting some of the children that have been directly affected by the escalating crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Violence in recent weeks has escalated to an untenable level. While violence is an obvious contributor to the high mortality rates, the majority of deaths are caused by preventable and treatable diseases. (Read more…)

Vanessa blogs at Subject to Change. You can also follow her on Twitter.

Eileen Gallagher is a Masters candidate at Brandeis Heller School for Social Policy and Management. After graduating from college, she served as a VISTA on campus, “working with students to plan service events, running a tutoring program in local elementary schools and functioning as part of the college’s student affairs staff.”

Originally interested in higher ed administration, her experience in VISTA shifted her career goals.

She says, “I knew that I loved the community that I had built ineileen-gallagher small-town Meadville and the way that I saw people banding together to create change. I wanted to study ways to use the resources that a community has to create change.”

So, she says:

“I narrowed my interests to the fields of community development, nonprofit management or business. I decided that a business degree would allow me to gain the management and technical skills that I was interested in, as well as experience in leadership and organizational behavior. I looked specifically for programs that had coursework or a concentration in community development or socially responsible business.  I also examined the list of schools that match the AmeriCorps education award.

This list is precisely how I found Brandeis’ Heller School, where I am currently enrolled in the Master of Business Administration program.  When I looked at the website for this program, I saw that Heller’s motto is ‘Managing for a Social Mission.’  I was hooked!  This seemed like the perfect fit for my interests and ambitions.”

Eileen blogs for Social Impact MBA.

Read more about the Grad School Blog Project. Find more grad school bloggers and check out Idealist’s Public Service Graduate Education Resource Center. Apply to be part of the project—we are especially looking for bloggers in the fields of journalism, public interest law, public policy and administration, international affairs, and theology. The Project would also love to hear from more men!

11.12.08
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Kenneth Cole launches AWEARNESS book

Designer and activist Kenneth Cole launches a book today that tells stories of how to and where to make a difference.

awearness_bookAs part of the AWEARNESS Initiative, Kenneth Cole today launched the book AWEARNESS: Inspiring Stories about How to Make a Difference.

Contributors include a slew of celebrities and community leaders like Robert Redford, Rachael Ray, and Michael Bloomberg.

Kenneth Cole sponsored the Service Nation Summit in September. Cole will make a joint appearance in Boston Nov. 20 with Service Nation founder & City Year co-founder, Alan Khezei.

Also check out Cole’s AWEARNESS blog.