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Showing posts from May, 2018

Thought you might be interested Thursday: The surprising solution to ocean plastic (David Katz)

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TA Tuesday (May 29, 2018)

Tools and Resources The four questions to ask when serving on a nonprofit board : "Directors need to probe, nudge, and prod to make sure the organization achieves its full potential." Does the sound of rain help you focus? Have it on whenever you want by listening to Raining.fm . Free. News from the Census Bureau : 2017 American Community Survey Data Release Schedule 2017 American Community Survey 1-year Estimates The 2017 American Community Survey (ACS) 1-year estimates will be released on Thursday, September 13, 2018. These data will be available for the nation, all states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, every congressional district, every metropolitan area, and all counties and places with populations of 65,000 or more. The 2017 ACS 1-year Public Use Microdata Sample (PUMS) files and 2017 ACS 1-year Supplemental Estimates will be released on Thursday, October 18, 2018. 2013-2017 American Community Survey 5-year Estimates The 2013-2017 ACS 5-year estimates w...

#NNK meetings, policy news (May 29, 2018)

Lancaster County The Town of Kilmarnock has a vacancy on the Planning Commission and is asking interested county residents to apply. Applicants should be qualified by knowledge and experience to make decisions on questions of town growth, comprehensive planning, ordinances, and development. The Kilmarnock Planning Commission meets on the second Monday of the month at 7pm. If you wish to serve your community by becoming a member, Click for the Board Committee Commission Application to the Town Hall, c/o Marshall A. Sebra, Planning Director, P.O. Box 1357, Kilmarnock, VA 22482, or by email: msebra@kilmarnockva.com. For more information, call 435-1552 ext.32. Applications can be found online at www.kilmarnockva.com or may be picked up at the Town Hall. The Lancaster County Board of Supervisors is holding a regular meeting Thursday, May 31 at 7:00 pm at the Lancaster County Administration Building. The agenda includes the regular public input session, presentation of resolutions, ...

Thought you might be interested Thursday: Don't ignore class when addressing racial gaps in intergenerational mobility

On CityObervatory 's must read list: Brookings' Don't ignore class when addressing racial gaps in intergenerational mobility . What Joe Cortright has to say about it in City Observatory's Week Observed: April 27, 2018 : Harvard's William Julius Wilson has a review and commentary of the latest Raj Chetty/Nate Hendren Equality of Opportunity Project research on the persistence of racial gaps in intergenerational economic mobility. He says the importance of this research can't be overstated, and that it should change our views of how the word works. Wilson stresses the finding that the presence of fathers (and not just one's own father) in a neighborhood seems to be strongly correlated with intergenerational mobility, especially for black boys. But the problem is that fewer than 5 percent of black children live in the kind of low poverty, father-rich neighborhoods that are associated with economic mobility. As a result, we need to pay much more attention to ...

TA Tuesday (May 22, 2018)

Tools and Resources Get free music for a link from Icons8 . Music is categorized three ways: theme, genre, and mood. Examples are fashion and nature (themes), acoustic and cinematic (genres), and dramatic and relaxed (moods). You get the picture. How to Fill a Column with Sequential Dates in Google Sheets was a savior. Have used the knowledge multiple times since learning. Innovation Capacity Diagnostic for Nonprofits (mentioned in a FastCo article below). 30 Brand New Design Tools. You'll find another free stock photo site and two new icon sets. At work How To Fix The Nonprofit World's "Innovation-Aspiration" Problem (Fast Company) Why Great Employees Quit -- Instead Of Admitting They're Unhappy (Forbes) Why Fair Scheduling Laws Will Be The New Minimum Wage Battle (Fast Company) Word Limits, Page Limits, and my secret super power reminds me of a prep school teacher who, in response to the question "How long should the paper be?" said ...

ACA is more costly to taxpayers than Medicaid

Steve Haner's Medicaid Can Cost Taxpayers Less than ACA Plans on Bacon's Rebellion is a good read. It begins: One of the interesting tidbits gleaned from a presentation last week on the Medicaid expansion debate was that with expansion perhaps 60,000 Virginians now enrolled in Affordable Care Act Public Exchange plans will qualify for and switch over to Medicaid. People who have low-enough incomes to qualify for Medicaid are also eligible for subsidies for an ACA exchange plan, so both programs are costing the taxpayers. A recent report indicated Medicaid is actually costing taxpayers less than ACA plans for that population. UnitedHealthcare Group's report noted – not a surprise – that Public Exchange coverage has proven to be more costly and less sustainable than envisioned (or promised). Since 2014 – the first year of Public Exchange coverage – the average annual unsubsidized premium for a benchmark silver plan has increased 88 percent for a 27-year-old and 76 perc...

Thought you might be interested Thursday: Barbara Ehrenreich questions our longevity obsession

TA Tuesday (May 15, 2018)

Tools and Resources What can your organization learn about communications and fundraising from the 2018 Global NGO Technology Report ? The authors write in 10 Most Effective Communication and Fundraising Tools, According to Nonprofits , report survey respondents were asked to rate the effectiveness of the most commonly used communication and fundraising tools. Their answers provide valuable insight into which tools NPOs, NGOs, and charities should prioritize in their communications and fundraising strategy. 10 Most Effective Tools 1) Email updates: 82% 2) Websites: 81% 3) Social media: 78% 4) Video: 72% 5) Email fundraising appeals: 64% 6) Print annual reports: 62% 7) Social media ads: 61% 8) Print fundraising appeals: 60% 9) Peer-to-peer fundraising: 56% 10) Print newsletters: 54% 4 Least Effective Tools 1) Text-to-give: 27% 2) Text messaging: 33% 3) Messaging apps: 35% 4) Search engine ads: 49% There is so much to learn from The Next Generation: of American Giving ...

#NNK meetings, policy news, part II (May 14, 2018)

Correction: The Northumberland Board of Supervisors work session on the FY 2019 budget has been rescheduled to Monday, May 21 at 6:00 pm in the old county courthouse in the supes' meeting room. The public may attend but may not participate. (2018 update) Northern Neck Hazard Mitigation Plan Lancaster: New voting equipment funded, but not available; budget hearing set ( Rappahannock Record ) White Stone: White Stone sets hearing on proposed $163,590 budget ( Rappahannock Record )

#NNK meetings, policy news (May 14, 2018)

Lancaster County The Lancaster County Planning Commission meets Tuesday, May 15 at 7:00 pm at the Lancaster County Administration Building (8311 Mary Ball Rd, Lancaster, in the Board Meeting Room). The agenda includes a discussion about updates to the FYs 2019-23 Capital Improvement Budget. The Lancaster County Historic Resources Commission meets Monday, May 14 at 10:00 am at the Lancaster County Administration Building (8311 Mary Ball Rd, Lancaster, in the Board Meeting Room). New officers will be elected and the commission will begin review of Article 10 (Historic Resources) of the Lancaster County Zoning Ordinance. Reminder: Lancaster County household hazardous and electronics waste collection Saturday, May 19 from 9:00 am to 2:00 pm at the Kilmarnock Refuse Site (320 White Pine Dr, off Irvington Rd, Kilmarnock). Download the flyer (PDF). More information is available by contacting the Northern Neck Soil & Water Conservation District, (804) 313-9102 ext. 105 or the La...

Thought you might be interested Thursday: behavioral science is a public policy game changer

Too often, good public policies and practices do not result in the expected results. Program participants goals are not met. People cycle on and off of programs such as Medicaid and SNAP. In some cases, legislators are quick to eliminate presumably needed programs because results are not delivered. Some municipalities have turned to behavioral science to improve outcomes and results. Fast Company's Ben Paynter describes what New York City, Chicago, and other cities have learned in These Citywide Behavioral Science Experiments Are Paying Off . Paynter also links to two incredibly useful documents, Behavioral Design Teams: A Model for Integrating Behavioral Design in City Government and the associated tip guide. The latter "clearly enumerates five ways to get started and continue success." Bravo. Take a few minutes to read this important piece and consider how your organization can start down the path of making tweaks to improve participation and results. You won't...

#NNK meetings, policy news, part II (May 9, 2018)

Lancaster County Irvington accepts planners' resignations ( Rappahannock Record ) Lancaster school board adjusts budget ( Rappahannock Record ) Incumbents dominate town elections ( Rappahannock Record ) Richmond County Richmond County, recycle tires Saturday, May 12, 8:00 am to 1:00 pm at Indianfield Convenience Center, 135 Recycling Rd, Warsaw. The 411: Only tractor trailer size or smaller tires accepted. All tires must be CLEAN and free of mud, trash, or debris! Open to residential, business, and farm operations in Richmond County. NO commercial tire companies please! In other news, Election Results For Warsaw And Tappahannock ( MiddleneckNews ) Westmoreland County Montross water bills to rise ( Westmoreland News ) Cross-county A continuing crisis around the Northern Neck ( Northumberland Echo )

TA Tuesday (May 8, 2018)

Tools and Resources Need to share a generate a share-this-on Twitter/Facebook/Google+ link? Try Share Link Generator and SEO Century's Share Link Generator which can generate links for LinkedIn and Pinterst, too. Code Beautify 's generator creates links for even more platforms (see image to the right). Did you know there are a bunch of ways to embed Tweets? Check out Twitter Publish . If you need to sign people up to volunteer or perform various tasks, try out VolunteerSignup and TimeToSignUp . TED Topics is a useful way to navigate this massive site. Scroll through the alphabetically arranged topics until you find one you like. The Business Case for Racial Equity: A Strategy for Growth (PDF) highlights the business case for racial equity — stressing the importance of racial equity as both an imperative for social justice and a strategy for economic growth. As advancing racial equity requires the work of many stakeholders, they hope that the information in this report ...

#NNK meetings, policy news (May 7, 2018)

Lancaster County The Lancaster County Board of Supervisors is holding a work session on the proposed FY 2019 Lancaster County Operating Budget Tuesday, May 8 at 6:00 pm at the Lancaster County Administration Building (8311 Mary Ball Rd, Lancaster, in the Board Meeting Room). Department heads and organizations requesting funding are not required to attend this budget work session. The session is open to the public. Northumberland County Check out the Northumberland Schools Wind Project portal. You'll find generation data, the current status, current conditions, and project specs. You can also down the data as a CSV. The Northumberland County School Board meets Monday, May 14 from 6:00-9:00 pm at Northumberland High School in the auditorium. Northumberland County Public Schools has a number of job openings . The most recent postings include Elementary School Library Media Specialist, Middle School Boys Basketball Coach for Winter 2018, Middle School Soccer Coach for Fall 20...