NEWSIN THE NEWS

I just came back from a celebration of the history of the 100 year old NAACP as published in Patricia Sullivan's new book, Lift Every Voice: The NAACP and The Making of the Civil Rights Movement  (2009, The New Press). Hosted by the Martha's Vineyard Museum, the event was moderated by former NEH Chair and now professor of US History at U Penn Sheldon Hackney. Author and professor of history at University of Southern Carolina Pat Sullivan spoke, followed by four selections from the amazing primary source documents in the book  read by Charlayne Hunter-Gault of NPR, one of two black students who integrated the University of Georgia in 1961; Clark Johnson, actor and director (Homicide; The Wire; Boycott), Margaret Burnham, the first African American woman to service in the Massachusetts judiciary in 1977 when she was appointed Associate Justice of the Boston Municipal Court, now a professor at Northeastern University Law School; and Charles Ogeltree, the Harvard Law Professor in the news most recently for his role in Gates Gate.  An exceptional group telling exceptional stories about the pioneers and unsung heros of the NAACP and the Civil Rights Movement,  offering personal commentary and moving testimony as they read and answered questions.

Many questions from the audience concerned the role of the NAACP today; the panelists uniformly agreed that while it's a milestone to have Barack Obama in the White House, there is a long way to go and that communities must act to work together and to put pressure on the government. Ogeltree said the work is just beginning; Hunter-Gault talked about a ground-up coalition of generations. "The job in enormous," she said, "and we need all hands on deck." 

The NAACP's deck is a great place to start to continue the social change brought about in their first hundred years. Their website lists the following current job openings:

• Administrative Coordinator
• Chief Financial Officer
• Director of Climate Gap Initiative
• Director of Criminal Justice Programs
• Director of Education
• Director – Foundation Relations
• Director of Health Programs
• Executive Assistant to the Executive Vice President
• Executive Assistant – Advocacy and Research
• Field Organizer
• General Counsel
• Manager Corporate Relations
• National Board Office Administrative Coordinator
• Web Programming Strategist

Just yesterday I was writing about how sometimes the most obvious interview questions are the toughest and that you really have to anticipate them and prepare answers. And this morning, one of the best examples of this came to light as Minnesota Senator Al Franken asked Sonia Sotomayor why she wanted the job she has been interviewing for--that of Supreme Court Justice (and the first Hispanic female justice at that.)

FRANKEN: Thank you, Judge Sotomayor, for your patience and your terrific answers. We've heard a lot about your thoughts on specific cases and on principles of jurisprudence. I'd like to ask a much more general question, and one that I think is a really good question in job interviews. And that is, "Why do you want to be a Supreme Court justice?"

SOTOMAYOR: You're going to hate me for taking a few minutes, but can I tell you a story?

FRANKEN: I would love it.

SOTOMAYOR: Because it will explain who I am and why.
When Senator Moynihan first told me that he would consider sending my name to Senator D'Amato for consideration as a district court judge, he asked me to keep it quiet for a little bit of time, and I asked permission to tell my mom and Omar. He said, "Sure."

So, they were visiting, and I told them, and mom was very, very excited. And she then said, "How much more money are you going to earn?" And I stopped and I said, "I'm going to take a big pay cut."
Then, she stopped and she stopped, and she said, "Are you going to do as much foreign travel as you do now," because I was flying all over the U.S. and abroad as part of my private practice work. And I said, "Probably not, because I'm going to live in a courthouse in Lower Manhattan near where I used to work as a Manhattan D.A."

Now, the pause was a little longer, and she said, "OK." Then, she said, "Now, all the fascinating clients that you work with," and you may have heard yesterday I had some fairly well known clients, "You're going to be able to go traveling with them and with the new people you meet, right?" And I said, "No. Most of them are going to come before me as litigants to the cases I'm hearing, and I can't become friends with them."

"Now the pause was really long, and she finally looked and she says, "Why do you want this job?" And Omar, who was sitting next to her, said, "Celina, you know your daughter"– this is in Spanish — "You know your daughter." This is in Spanish. "You know your daughter and her stuff with public service."

That really has always been the answer.

Given who I am, my love of the law, my sense of importance about the rule of law, how central it is to the functioning of our society, how it sets us apart, as many senators have noted, from the rest of the world, have always created a passion in me, and that passion led me to want to be a — a lawyer first and now to be a judge, because I can't think of any greater service that I can give to the country than to be permitted the privilege of being a justice of the Supreme Court.

FRANKEN: Thank you. Well, I, for one, have been very impressed with you, Judge. And I certainly intend to support your confirmation for the court.

What do you think of her answer? What I like is that she immediately launched in to a story--and as you may or may not know, I am obsessed with people packaging all their experience as little stories and anecdotes to share in an interview. But notice something else: she prefaced it with a joke, essentially asking permission to answer this way--and by doing this she headed off any speculation by Franken or the rest of the audience that she was sidestepping the question.  Go, Sonia!

I'm in Chicago doing a book signing tomorrow at the American Library Association (ALA) Conference. My mom, Joan Ress Reeves, a public library advocate from Providence, RI is here, too. She's not a librarian but rather a lay advocate, lobbying to keep public libraries open and able to serve their communities. (Boy, did we laugh growing up when she got mail addressed to "Joan Reeves, Regional Lay" or "Joan Reeves, National Lay." Did my dad really know what this was all about?)

Libraries were always the bees knees, but in this economy, it really pays to remember your local library.

Libraries provide amazing resources to non-profits and job-hunters alike. Many non-profits obviously cannot afford to have private libraries the way many corporate firms do, and although so much information is available on line, your local library can be a great source for periodicals and books you may not be able to access. Good librarians are phenomenal guides to whatever you're looking for.

For job-hunters, you should know that many libraries have extensive career offerings. In addition to offering computer usage, many libraries have career centers, offer resume and cover letter advice, and often bring in experts to talk on a variety of career-related topics.

Libraries in New York State, for example, offers these services (not in every location, unfortunately):

• Specialized web resources developed by libraries and links to job search web resources
• Information on career development
• Education and training
• Résumé assistance and other job hunt strategies
• Workforce development services (Literacy instruction, GED assistance, citizenship information and referral)

In February, New York State did a poll and found that 80% of libraries in the state had helped someone job-hunt in the previous three months. Unfortunately, much funding for libraries is being cut.

"As the state faces its most difficult economic crisis in decades, public library usage has rapidly increased, particularly with people seeking help in finding employment," said Michael Borges, NYLA's Executive Director. "Libraries provide people not only with help in finding jobs, but also with accessing public assistance programs, with basic computer training, with résumé building and career development."

"When the neediest among us are looking for help, now is not the time to be cutting the very services and assistance New Yorkers rely on the most" Borges said. "When folks lose jobs or cut back on spending for fear of losing their jobs, people turn to libraries for free internet access and books, cds, videos and literacy programs for their families. Libraries have become part of society's safety net for the neediest in our communities."

Check out this short video from TODAY on ways libraries can serve you--and the challenges libraries are facing along with their patrons in this economy.

Why not plan a trip to your local library this weekend or this week? You may be surprised at what you'll find!

Charity Navigator, which calls itself "America's Premier Charity Evaluator," awarded the urban peace corps City Year  their coveted 4-star rating for sound fiscal management. The announcement reads:

 As the nonprofit sector continues to grow at an unprecedented pace, savvy donors are demanding more accountability, transparency and quantifiable results from the charities they choose to support with their hard-earned dollars. In this competitive philanthropic marketplace, Charity Navigator, America's premier charity evaluator, highlights the fine work of efficient charities such as your own, and provides donors with essential information needed to give them greater confidence in the charitable choices they make.

Based on the most recent financial information available, we have calculated a new rating for your organization. We are proud to announce City Year has earned our fifth consecutive 4-star rating for its ability to efficiently manage and grow its finances. Only 4% of the charities we rate have received at least 5 consecutive 4-star evaluations, indicating that City Year consistently executes its mission in a fiscally responsible way, and outperforms most other charities in America. This “exceptional” designation from Charity Navigator differentiates City Year from its peers and demonstrates to the public it is worthy of their trust.

 

Not only was I delighted to see that City Year, one of my favorites, had earned this rating--but I was fascinated to learn about Charity Navigator. Founded in 2002, its goal is to help people evaluate charities. Their website, named one of the top 50 websites in 2006, has a great mix of tips, articles, top ten lists, and other great resources in the public and charitable arenas. 

 

 

Some weekend reading for you if you're job-hunting. Of course if you're looking for a job and not working, sometimes it may feel like there's no difference between a weekend and any other day.

PREPARATION GIVES NEW GRADS EDGE appeared in Greenville On-Line this week and while it's pitched to recent grads, the advice is applicable across the boards and for job-hunters in the public sector. I was thrilled that the reporter included Jobs.Change.Org as part of my bio although I would have liked a more specific description than "job-bank" (for those interested in  public sector jobs, for example) but I'm glad it's there in any case!

A note of hope, and again, this goes for job-hunters of all ages, since I want everyone to feel valuable, not vulnerable:

Reeves said students must first understand and emphasize their value instead of focusing on feelings of vulnerability – even in the midst of a recession.

“If you can convince an employer that you have the skills to do the job that needs to get done and perhaps do some of the work that was being done by a senior, expensive employee who may have gotten laid off, then you're golden,” Reeves said. “But you do need to do a huge amount of research to understand the needs of the employer and to tailor all of your materials to that particular job.”

Read the rest of the article here--it covers everything from mindset to what to wear to the interview to the professional communication tools you need. Have a good weekend!

Are we ready for millions of points of light? Is there such a thing as too many points of light or stars in cyberspace where the public interest is concerned? Check out allforgood.org, an alpha site from Google using open-source technology to publish volunteer opportunities across the country. You can read more about it in the Chronicle of Philanthropy or read what Arianna Huffington and Craig Newmark of Craigslist who are supporting this effort have to say. An early account referred to the effort as a “Craigslist for service.”

All For Good will be showcased at the National Conference on Volunteering and Service that will be sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service and the Points of Light Institute in San Francisco later this month.

The site has created controversy in the non-profit community, as some organizations feel pressure to jump on the bandwagon in this early but untested phase. Inspired by Obama’s call to service, the project is not officially linked with the administration or serve.gov although there is discussion about how best to work together.

All For Good is supposed to be not really a destination site but an application that organizations across the country can use and tailor to their own needs. Some feel that there are already similar applications and that All For Good is adding another component to an already splintered sector.

What do you think? 

(Thanks to  my friend Lori Goldstein in Chicago for sending me the Chronicle of Philanthropy article; she's the one who sent me the jobs.change.org opportunity in the first place!)