White House.gov Blog Feed: The Partnerships Blog

Connecting Faith, Fatherhood, Youth Violence & Reentry

Eugene Schneeberg — Wed, 16 May 2012 16:17:53 +0000

The U.S. DOJ Center for Faith-Based & Neighborhood Partnerships was pleased to participate in the 2^nd Annual Summit on Preventing Youth Violence in Washington, D.C. as a part of the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention. The Forum is an effort to elevate youth and gang violence as issues of national significance, and to enhance the capacity of localities to more effectively prevent youth and gang violence. I was particularly excited this year that so many powerful national and local faith-based and non-profit leaders were able to participate including:

Lecrae Moore, Grammy Nominated Hip Hop artist
Pastor Keith Norman, First Baptist Church, Memphis, TN
Pastor Michael McBride, PICO National Network
James Rodriguez, President, Fathers & Families Coalition of America, Inc.
Deborah Aguilar, Founder, “A Time for Grieving”, Salinas, CA
Sue Badeau, Casey Family Programs

Lecrae Moore, Grammy Nominated Hip Hop artist shares at the 2012 Summit on Preventing Youth Violence May 16, 2012.

national and local faith-based and non-profit leaders participate at the National Forum on Youth Violence Prevention May 16, 2012.

Read about the 2012 Summit on Preventing Youth Violence

The next day the CFBNP worked with the White House Office of Public Engagement to recognize twelve leaders as Champions of Change for their work to prevent Youth Violence within their communities.

2012 Youth Violence Prevention Champions May 16, 2012.

Youth Violence prevention champions of change May 16, 2012.

Read about the White House Youth Violence Prevention Champions of Change

Lastly, the CFBNP recently held two very successful webinars on Faith and Community Based approaches to Reentry and Responsible Fatherhood Initiatives.

May 16, 2012.

Eugene Schneeberg is the Director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Justice.

Remembering My 5th Birthday

Carolyn Worthge — Tue, 01 May 2012 23:11:35 +0000

On my 5th birthday, I was surrounded by the love of my family, and of course, enjoyed a delicious home-made birthday cake made by my mother. Everyone came to celebrate my day, showering me with gifts (I’m told a Barbie play set was involved), to show me how important I was in their lives. While it was a big milestone for me, luckily I was a healthy child, and it was expected that I would reach the age of five. In my first five years of life, I was up to date on my vaccinations, always had access to clean water, and although mosquitoes loved to bite me, my parents did not have to fear that those mosquitoes would infect me with malaria.

For much of the world though, and particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, mosquitoes pose an ever-present threat to children’s lives, especially in those first five years. In the last year alone, we lost about 7 million children under the age of five, many from malaria.

When I traveled to Ghana in the summer of 2010, I had the misfortune of experiencing malaria firsthand. I met children who were full of joy one day, but lying in bed sick the next- their energy and health devastated by the disease. When I contracted the disease, I understood the extent of their sickness, falling into an extreme fatigue. Thankfully, I had easy access to treatment and recovered quickly, but I know this is not the case for many children and families. I can’t imagine the pain and difficulty so many mothers must experience on a daily basis, unable to provide their children with the life-saving resources needed to prevent and treat malaria.

In my work as a Faiths Act Fellow, I’ve seen the great value that the world’s major religions place on caring for those who are suffering, and ensuring a hope and a future for children everywhere. In my own tradition, the Bible tells a story of Jesus welcoming children when others pushed them away. As he says, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these” (Mark 10:14b). We are told that children are a reflection of God, and it is our faithful duty to nurture and care for them. Whether rich or poor, each child’s life has immense worth, and we must seize the opportunity now to end preventable child deaths.

We have the tools to prevent deaths from malaria, and together we can save half a million children’s lives each year. Through insecticide treated bednets, education programs, and other resources, we can make sure more children are able to live healthy, malaria-free lives. And that means more 5th birthdays.

Together we can support effective strategies to prevent childhood deaths and ensure that more children have the opportunity to survive beyond their 5th birthday. Upload a picture of your 5th birthday today, and share why you believe that Every Child Deserves a 5th Birthday!

Carolyn Worthge is a Faiths Act Fellow working at the ONE Campaign.

Understanding the Mortgage Servicing Settlement and the New FHA Streamline Refinance MIP: A HUD National Faith-Based & Neighborhood Partnerships Conference Call

Paula Lincoln — Tue, 01 May 2012 22:56:31 +0000

May 1, 2012.

There is a great deal of information available about the recent Mortgage Servicing Settlement and FHA Streamline Refinance MIP programs. The HUD Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships hosted a national conference call that explained both plans for faith leaders to share with the congregants and communities. The “Understanding the Mortgage Servicing Settlement and New FHA Streamline Refinance MIP” conference call was held April 18^th at 2:00 PM EST.

Callers learned about the Mortgage Servicing Settlement Agreement, the new FHA Streamline Refinance MIP options available to eligible homeowners, scam awareness and prevention efforts, and the importance of using HUD-approved Housing Counselors from senior HUD officials including HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. Faith and community leaders received information and resources useful to congregation and community members facing foreclosure and/or families who might qualify for compensation due to an improper foreclosure practices, mortgage principal reductions and refinancing of underwater homes available for eligible homeowners. The call was well received, with 780 faith-based and community leaders calling-in, and helped educate the community about ways to save their homes, while bringing hope to those facing foreclosure.

For more information about the Mortgage Service Settlement, please visit: www.nationalmortgagesettlement.com.

Paula Lincoln is the Director for theCenter for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development

Vote for Your Favorite Video Today!

Julie Curti — Tue, 01 May 2012 22:16:19 +0000

10 days left to vote for your favorite Communities on the Move video! May 1, 2012.

The public voting period for theCommunities on the MoveVideo Challenge is in full swing! Browse our video gallery and vote for your favorites daily until Friday, May 11^th. These videos showcase some of the innovative approaches community and faith-based groups are taking to encouraging healthier lifestyles for kids.

The Video Challenge encourages faith-based and neighborhood organizations to create one-to-three minute videos highlighting their work to make their communities places of wellness. Participants were invited to show how they are promoting healthy eating, physical activity, and access to healthy, affordable food for children. Your vote counts: winners will be invited to visit Washington, DC to share their videos with the First Lady at the White House!

The Challenge is part of Let's Move Faith and Communities, which engages congregations and neighborhood organizations in the effort to end childhood obesity within a generation.

Want to learn more about Let’s Move!and take action? Sign up here and join our movement!

Julie Curti, is the Assistant to the Director for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the United States Department of Agriculture

Moving Forward on Faith-based and Neighborhood Advisory Council Recommendations

Melissa Rogers — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 21:39:53 +0000

Today the White House is issuing guidance for implementation of President Obama’s Executive Order 13559 setting forth fundamental principles and policymaking criteria for the social service partnerships the government forms with religious and other neighborhood organizations. With this executive order, President Obama adopted many of the recommendations made by his first Advisory Council on Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

An extremely diverse group of leaders crafted these recommendations, including those representing the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America, the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty, the Incarnate Word Foundation, the Interfaith Alliance, the Institutional Religious Freedom Alliance, and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. While there are serious differences among these leaders on some church-state issues, the group was able to unite around a call for certain reforms of the partnerships the government forms with religious and secular nonprofits.

The White House report issued today provides agencies with additional guidance on how to implement these common-ground reforms. For example, pursuant to the Advisory Council's recommendations, the guidance directs agencies to ensure that:

Standards regarding the relationship between religion and government are monitored and enforced in ways that avoid excessive entanglement between religious bodies and governmental entities;
Decisions about federal grants are free from political interference or even the appearance of such interference and made on the basis of merit, not on the basis of the religious affiliation of a recipient organization or lack thereof;
Beneficiaries of federally funded social services may receive services from a nonreligious provider if they object to receiving services from a religious provider;
Providers are given detailed and practical guidance regarding the principle that any explicitly religious activities they offer must be clearly separated, in time or location, from programs that receive direct federal support; subsidized with purely private funds, and completely voluntary for social service beneficiaries;
Social service intermediaries that disburse federal funds are instructed about their special obligations, and recipients of subawards are made aware of the church-state standards that apply to their use of federal aid;
Plans are developed to train government employees and grant recipients on the church-state rules that apply to these partnerships; and
Regulations, guidance documents, and policies that have implications for faith-based and neighborhood organizations are posted online, along with lists of organizations receiving federal financial assistance.

As chair of the President's first Advisory Council, and a member of the Reform of the Office Taskforce, I would like to thank President Obama for embracing many of our recommendations and for this important step to implement them. The President’s charge to create this detailed report demonstrates his understanding of the fact that these issues require careful consideration as well as his appreciation for freedoms that are cherished by Americans of all faiths and none. As it forms partnerships to serve people in need, the government must respect church-state separation and religious liberty principles. I look forward to continuing to work with the administration and other stakeholders to meet those goals.

Melissa Rogers served as chair of President Obama’s first Advisory Council on Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships. She currently serves as director of the Center for Religion and Public Affairs at Wake Forest University Divinity School.

Creating Vital Partnerships

Clay Middleton — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 19:15:49 +0000

Members from Retired Military Officers Association learn about ways to partner with the White-House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships April 25, 2012.

When looking for a group of dedicated individuals that are willing and able to provide assistance in the areas of employment, education, and wellness-- look no further than the Retired Military Officers Association (RMOA). Made up of military veterans who are now executives of successful small businesses, members of this organization are dedicated to serving and supporting veterans and military families.

I had the pleasure of speaking to this organization, informing them of ways to partner with the White-House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, its 13 Partnership Centers across government, Joining Forces, and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Members of RMOA were not only eager to learn more about these offices and initiatives, but by the end of our meeting the organization pledged to actively engage with our office.

Several of our Centers are looking to expand their reach with RMOA’s membership and affiliates. The Small Business Administration’s microloan program, the Department of Education’s Together for Tomorrow school improvement initiative, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s summer feeding program, and the Corporation for National and Community Service’s Corporate Mentoring Challenge are all areas where RMOA can partner with the White-House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

The members of RMOA are indeed proud citizens who have honorably served our nation. Their acute insight on business and communities has enabled them to mentor, employ, and help others. Engaging with RMOA will allow us to join forces in helping our veterans and military families through concrete service opportunities.

Clay Middleton is the Acting Director for the Center of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Corporation for National and Community Service, a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Bronze Star Medal recipient, and currently a Captain in the South Carolina Army National Guard as Bravo Co. 198th Signal Battalion Company Commander.

Todos en la Mesa: Making Room for Everyone at the Table

Roxana Ulloa Barillas — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 18:59:48 +0000

Roxana Ulloa Barillas, Deputy Director of the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Agriculture informs faith leaders of nutritious food options April 25, 2012.

During a recent visit to Southern California, I met with key partners in USDA’s efforts to address hunger and make nutritious food affordable and available, particularly in low-income communities.

More than one out of four Latino families in the United States is food insecure, and many do not know that CalFresh, the name for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in California, can help families put healthy food on the table. Latinos are now the fastest growing demographic group in the United States, and they face higher levels of both hunger and obesity. Since almost half of Los Angeles County’s population is Latino, I was excited to share our new La Mesa Completa Community Leaders Tool Kit with faith leaders from the Catholic and Evangelical communities, as well as with nutrition advocates from Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.

I participated in the White House Hispanic Community Action Summit, where I met Margarita Fernandez, a member of Patton Alianza Coalition. She reminded me that in spite of the multiple challenges facing Latinos in the United States, there also are great treasures in the community. As a volunteer member of a coalition that focuses on public safety concerns, she shared how nutrition needs in the community was also high on her list of priorities. So, she got her hands dirty – literally! – and decided to start a community garden. She even paid out of pocket to take classes at UC Davis Extension to become a Master Gardener. I was inspired by her commitment to bringing solutions to her community.

In San Bernardino, I met with leaders from Catholic Charities and the Diocese of San Bernardino/Riverside. Catholic Charities and our own Food and Nutrition Service Western Regional Office have convened a CalFresh Consortium, and they are making to ensure those eligible for SNAP are able to receive these benefits. We learned about the needs of many individuals in area parishes that are connected to Hispanic Ministry but not looped into USDA nutrition assistance programs. With all of us at the table, we look forward to tapping into such ministries as food pantries and citizenship classes as avenues for disseminating information about SNAP benefits.

Finally, I visited with Rev. Hong from Buddha’s Light International Association, a Let’s Move! partner interested in helping connect a farmer to local schools to promote access to fresh produce and provide cooking classes to food service staff and students. Together, we visited Helping Hands Pantry, where approximately 740 families a day receive USDA foods and fresh produce donated by area farmers. We talked about the possibility of adding SNAP application assistance to the pantry’s work to go even further to help eligible families put food on the table.

With communities working together, and USDA food assistance, we can do great things and make sure we have a mesa completa — a complete table with full plates and a place for everyone!

Roxana Ulloa Barillas is the Deputy Director for the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at United States Department of Agriculture

President Obama Welcomes Q to Washington

Michael Wear — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 17:21:58 +0000

Last week, evangelical leaders from churches, the non-profit sector, business, fashion and other sectors gathered in Washington for Q. They were welcomed to Washington by the President via a video message. In his remarks, the President thanked the leaders for their service to their communities, and talked about the role of government in supporting and supplementing their efforts.

You can watch the video and read the President’s remarks below.

Hello, Q. Welcome to Washington.

A few days ago, Christian leaders from across the country gathered for our third annual Easter Prayer Breakfast at the White House. Joel Hunter delivered a message about the meaning of the resurrection. Sara Groves led us in worship. Louie led us in prayer.

It was a time to reflect on what Christ did for us on the cross, and praise a God whose work in our midst didn’t culminate on the cross, but continues today.

That work can be found in our culture, our congregations, our missions, and our love for one another. It can be found in all of you who are doing your part around the world to address our most difficult challenges. God’s hand is moving through His people.

We’re seeing it in Portland, where congregations of believers are working with the local city government to serve the community together.

We’re seeing it on college campuses, where students have risen up through the Passion Conference to help end modern slavery.

In all these efforts, I want you to know that you have a partner in the White House.

My Administration is committed to meeting many of the same needs and addressing many of the same injustices that you are. Through our summer food program, we’re making sure kids in this country don’t go hungry. Through our budget, we’re focused on giving a hand to those who are suffering, at home and abroad.

But we also know that government isn’t the only answer. So many of the challenges we face are also problems of the heart, and without committed individuals, thriving families and strong institutions, any attempt to address them will be incomplete. We need all hands on deck.

So I want to thank Gabe and Rebekah Lyons and their team here at Q for bringing this important conversation to Washington. And thanks to all of you for your service to your communities, and the values you bring to the public square. The fact of Easter, and the reality of what God is doing in the world requires us to confront the opportunities and challenges of our age. I look forward to continuing to work with you towards restoration and justice.

God bless you.

Michael Wear serves as Executive Assistant to the Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Improving Health Outcomes through Community Partnership

Alexia Kelley, Heidi Christensen — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 19:10:48 +0000

Dora Barilla, Director of Community Health Development, Loma Linda University Medical Center, shares their health system’s vision of community health at February's Improving Health Outcomes convening at HHS. March 16, 2012.

At a mid-February convening at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, Improving Health Outcomes through Faith-Based and Community Partnerships: Best Practices from Health Systems in the Field, senior leaders from 29 different hospital systems from across the country gathered to share best practices, experiences and emerging models for engaging communities as partners in health.

This two-day event, following a first convening held September 20, was hosted by the HHS and White House Offices for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, with the support and cooperation of participating health systems. It was designed to tap the collective wisdom of innovators among health leaders addressing health disparities through community partnerships.

Participants shared an extraordinary exchange of ideas and their understanding of the complexities involved in delivering excellent care while serving to meet the community needs that affect better health outcomes. The agenda considered how to set the stage for strategic community assessment and asset mapping, and how those assessments and assets inform the investment of community benefit dollars. Participants also discussed how strong metrics for tracking data and evaluation can further support the case for community partnerships improving health outcomes.

Dr. Kimberlydawn Wisdom, Senior VP for Community Health Education and Wellness and Chief Wellness Officer, Henry Ford Health System, presents their health system’s unique practices working with community partners to increase better health outcomes. March 16, 2012.

Here are just a few of the exciting things participants shared during the meeting:

Dignity Health's partnership with the Calvert Foundation: a microfinancing partnership supporting healthier people, families, organizations and communities
Advocate Health Care’s Bethany Community Health Fund (Bethany Fund) to support existing community organizations as they build, promote and sustain healthy communities on the West Side of Chicago.
Henry Ford Health System’s Cost Savings/Cost Avoidance tool demonstrating the positive impact of faith community nurses on readmissions and chronic disease management.

The agenda and presentation materials can be found on the Methodist Healthcare Center for Excellence in Faith and Health’s website

New collaborations and conversations are already forming to advance the work of partnering with communities with a focus on health assets to reduce health disparities. The value in sharing and adapting best practices was illustrated when folks from IU Health related how they were able to move forward with plans for a $5 million new health center after presenting data based on new asset mapping techniques gleaned from an earlier conversation. The collaborative is “shifting the paradigm from return on investment to return on life,” according toDora Barilla, Director of the Loma Linda Community Health Development.

Send any comments or ideas to Partnerships @ hhs.gov and sign up for our newsletter at www.hhs.gov/partnerships.

Alexia Kelley is Director and Heidi Christensen is Associate Director for Community Engagement at the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services.

Muslim and Jewish Students Unite to Help Survivors

Terry Monrad — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 23:04:51 +0000

Bridges’ students install siding on one of the new homes being built for tornado survivors Photo by: Tim Burkitt-FEMA March 1, 2012. (by Tim Burkitt-FEMA)

Pratt City, AL: Rev. David L. Myers (blue jacket), director of the DHS Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, visits with Bridges- Ariel Ennis, executive board member; Chelsea Garbell, president; and Fatima Kutty, executive board member; at the Habitat for Humanity building site. Photo by: Tim Burkitt-FEMA March 1, 2012. (by FEMA photo-Tim Burkitt)

The recent deadly tornadoes that went through several Midwestern states in February and March serve as a reminder of the official beginning of tornado season.

The recent tornadoes also are a harsh reminder of April 2011, when at least 173 tornadoes, thunderstorms, and severe winds ripped through the south, killing more than 300 and causing widespread destruction throughout several states.

Recently 16 students – nine Jewish and seven Muslim -- from New York University assembled in Birmingham to lend their hands to recovery efforts.

The twisters leveled neighborhoods and left thousands homeless, with more than a million people without power. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said it was the worst tornado outbreak since 1974.

President Obama called the loss of life "heartbreaking," and promised survivors the full support of the federal government. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency provided federal disaster aid to Alabama and several other affected states.

The students from Bridges: Muslim Jewish Interfaith Dialogue at NYU, www.bridges.bronfmancenter.org, partnered with the New York-based Jewish Disaster Response Corps (JDRC) to participate in rebuilding efforts working with Habitat for Humanity. Accompanying the students were Imam Khalid Latif and Rabbi Yehuda Sarna.

The trip to Birmingham was Bridges’ service initiative as part of President Obama’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge.

Importance of Voluntary and Faith-based Organizations

Following any disaster, survivors depend on voluntary and faith-based organizations to assist in recovery efforts. “Rebuilding becomes the responsibility of the local community, which does not always have the financial needs to address concerns,” said Elie Lowenfeld, JDRC founder and director who also accompanied the students.

Chelsea Garbell, president of Bridges and a junior at NYU, said the main purpose of the trip was to facilitate religious dialogue. "When we engage in religious dialogue and service work, we strengthen relationships among ourselves, and through those relationships we are able to provide invaluable assistance to the communities we encounter." She added that while in some areas there is animosity between Muslims and Jews, “if we can learn from one another, and develop an understanding of our similarities and differences, we can stand together as human beings in an effort to better the world around us.”

Fatima Kutty, a Bridges executive board member who hopes to go to medical school after graduation, said she enjoys working in an interfaith environment, and through “amazing conversations,” she has learned a lot about the Jewish religion and its people. She added, “Once relationships are established people are less likely to discriminate.”

Lowenfeld said that the trip was a unique opportunity for members of NYU’s Muslim and Jewish communities to develop meaningful relationships with each other, as well as provide service and hope to disaster survivors.

According to Rev. David L. Myers, director of the DHS Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, the students’ work in assisting recovery efforts exemplify the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships’ goals of fostering interreligious dialogue and cooperation, while also advancing the whole community approach to emergency management.

For additional information, go to http://www.fema.gov/.

Terry Monrad is Executive Officer at the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security

Let's Move!: Faith and Community Groups Lead the Way!

Ari Schoenholtz — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 19:42:16 +0000

Faith and community groups are leading the way! That was the theme of First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech celebrating the second anniversary of Let’s Move! last weekend. The First Lady visited Northland, A Church Distributed in Longwood, Florida as part of her three-day anniversary tour celebrating the nationwide initiative she launched to end childhood obesity in a generation. At the event, the First Lady spoke to over 3,000 Let’s Move Faith and Communities supporters of diverse backgrounds, including congregants, community members, and leaders from 120 congregations and organizations in the Central Florida area, representing 15 different faiths and denominations. The First Lady was graciously welcomed by Dr. Joel Hunter, senior pastor of Northland, and Mrs. Becky Hunter.

The First Lady thanked everyone for the critical work faith-based and neighborhood organizations do to support the health of children in their communities. And to highlight the great work these groups are engaged in across the country, the First Lady announced the Communities on the Move video challenge, telling the crowd, “whatever you do, I want to know about it.” She invited national and local faith-based and community groups from all corners of the country to create inspiring videos about their efforts to reverse the trend of childhood obesity. The video challenge recognizes community efforts that promote healthy lifestyles for kids in three areas: by encouraging nutritious eating through USDA’s MyPlate icon, increasing physical activity, and ensuring access to healthy, affordable foods. Winners will be invited to Washington, D.C. for a Let’s Move! event where they will have a special opportunity to showcase their video.

“America’s faith communities play a crucial role in guiding and strengthening not only our spiritual health, but our emotional and physical health as well,” the First Lady said. “Over the past two years, I’ve been inspired by all of the faith leaders and congregations who have taken action to get active and eat healthier, and so we’re launching our Let’s Move! video contest to highlight some of the best examples. I know there’s so much incredible work being done – and I can’t wait to hear some of these stories first-hand at the White House.”

Be sure to check out more Let’s Move Faith and Communities success stories for additional ideas on getting active, healthy eating, and making healthy food affordable and accessible to your community. To sign up and join our network of supporters, please visit us online.

Ari Schoenholtz is a Program Analyst at the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

Join the (Job) Clubs!

Ben Seigel — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 20:08:50 +0000

During the past month, the Partnerships Center at the Department of Labor has taken their Job Clubs Initiative on the road, hosting regional events in Kansas City, Minneapolis, Phoenix, and Grand Rapids. The events promote the efforts of local faith and community-based employment support groups in getting Americans back to work. They also facilitate partnerships between these job clubs and public and private partners, such as the workforce investment system, community foundations, and employers.

In Kansas City, MO the DOL Center held the event at St. James United Methodist Church, the congregation of Representative Emanuel Cleaver II, where his son, Emanuel Cleaver III serves as senior pastor. The event brought together job club coordinators, faith leaders, nonprofits, government agencies, and employers from across the Kansas City, KC and MO metro region. The local Fox news station covered the event, which you can view here.

In Minneapolis, MN Deputy Secretary of Labor, Seth D. Harris, joined the DOL Partnerships Center at Temple Israel synagogue for an event that featured the work of seven congregation and nonprofit based job clubs in the Twin Cities metro area. Rev. Rodney Anderson, Senior Chaplain at Gustavus Adolphus College and long-time job club leader shared a tip that one of his job clubs has used: a “Book of Jobs” that catalogs all the employers and open job positions associated with members of the congregation. Deputy Secretary Harris, who was introduced by Representative Keith Ellison, delivered remarks to the assembled audience of more than 150 people about President Obama's new proposals for job training. You can view a slideshow of photos from the event visit here.

In Phoenix, job clubs from across the Valley of the Sun have been working especially hard to help the long-term unemployed grow their professional networks and get back into the workforce. The event held at North Phoenix Baptist Church featured the work of Career Connectors, a local nonprofit that holds job club events across the region, and Maricopa Workforce Connections, the local workforce agency that has developed model partnerships with job clubs and other faith-based and community institutions. View the slideshow here. Read a blog post from one of the Career Connectors job club members.

For more information on the DOL Partnerships Center Job Clubs Initiative visit www.dol.gov/jobclubs.

Ben Seigel serves as the Deputy Director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Labor.

Honoring Unsung Heroes During Black History Month

Joshua Dubois — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 15:28:59 +0000

During Black History Month, we pause to salute and reflect on the contributions African Americans have made to the rich fabric that makes up the United States. There are many untold stories that reveal the best of Americans who stepped up when duty called, broke color barriers, or quietly made their communities better one person at a time.

In tribute, President Obama recently invited six special senior citizens to visit the White House to honor as unsung heroes. These unsung heroes are individuals who strengthen their communities through extraordinary everyday acts of service done with reliability and commitment, but who seldom receive recognition.

Among those who visited with President Obama were pioneers in the struggle for racial equality, educators who changed their communities through the classroom, and people who believe that a lifetime serving others is a life well spent.

The honorees were:

Theodore Peters, one of the first African Americans to enter the U.S. Marines and train at Montford Point, NC, after the corps desegregation and a community leader in his South Side Chicago neighborhood.

Gladys Reid, a Cleveland, OH, volunteer who feeds the hungry twice a week and volunteers at local hospitals, often caring for patients who are 20 years her junior.

Velma Lois Jones, the first black classroom teacher elected to serve as president of the Tennessee Education Association and a local leader in the areas of civil rights, politics, community service, and education.

Columbus Preston Holmes, a former class valedictorian, World War II veteran, postmaster, sports commissioner, Selective Service board member, community leader, and active member of Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Mound Bayou, MS, since joining the church 84 years ago.

James “Alley Pat” Patrick, a member of the Tuskegee Airmen during World War II, radio and television broadcaster, and Atlanta bail bondsman who came to the aid of many jailed activists during the Civil Rights movement, including Martin Luther King Jr.

Marguirette Levere, a church missionary, volunteer, adviser, and role model to her rural Maryland community – roles she filled while tending to daughter Barbara, who has cerebral palsy and has been severely disabled since her birth 77 years ago. Remarkably, Marguirette doesn’t wear glasses or take any medicines at the age of 106.

Stories of African Americans like these honorees do not have a singular narrative, but most contain common threads of resilience and perseverance. These Americans are shining examples of a legacy that keeps our nation strong and makes our country great.

To learn more about these amazing individuals, check out the Root’s “Salute to Unsung Heroes”

See more coverage of the White House's celebration of Black History Month

USDA Sponsors Conference Call with Faith-based Community on Summer Food Service Program

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 16:55:36 +0000

Help Us Feed Kids During the Summer

Join the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) to learn more about how you can help feed children next summer and hear the benefits to being a part of the Summer Food Service Program!

USDA FNS 2012 Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) Introductory Webinar

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Summer Food Service Program can help to fill the summer meal gap for low-income children. Faith-based, community and private non-profit organizations can make a difference in the lives of hungry children by serving meals with SFSP, a federally funded program administered by states that reimburses organizations for meals served to children during the summer. USDA FNS will be providing webinar sessions, including an overview of the SFSP, resources and tools available to help get started with the SFSP, successful outreach practices and tips, and how to get involved.

Session Description: This webinar session is designed to provide a high level overview of the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). Following the overview of the SFSP, the session will cover resources and tools available to help get started with the SFSP, successful outreach practices and tips, next steps and how to get involved, and then the session will open for questions and answers with USDA FNS staff.

Wednesday, February 29, 2012: 2:00pm – 3:00pm Eastern Time

Especially for: Faith-Based Organizations

Registration Link: http://vovici.com/wsb.dll/s/17fb9g4d8da

Additional sessions:

Thursday, 2/23/12, 3:00pm – 4:00pm EST - Public Session

Thursday, 3/8/12, 3:00pm – 4:00pm EST - Public Session

Tuesday, 3/13/12, 11:00am - 12:00pm EST - Public Session

Wednesday, 3/21/12, 1:00pm – 2:00pm EST - Public Session

Tuesday, 3/27/12, 4:00pm – 5:00pm EST - Public Session

The Boys and Girls Clubs of Ada County in Boise, ID was a SFSP Story & Photo Contest Winner: "Food, Fun and Sun!" Clubs served lunch and snack daily to over 45 teens age 12-18 at two different sites.

USDA Commemorates the “New Year of the Trees”

Max Finberg — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 22:53:35 +0000

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary Natural Resources and Environment Harris Sherman (left), next to the freshly planted Dawn Redwood for the Celebration of Tu B’Shevat “The New Year of the Trees” event. February 8, 2012. (by Lance Cheung)

It is written in the Talmud – a central text of Judaism – that ‘just as my parents planted for me, so I will plant for my children.’ Here at USDA, we’re planting trees across the country and in Israel to bring the wide-ranging benefits of trees, both ecological and spiritual, to future generations.

Today, USDA Natural Resources and Environment Under Secretary Harris Sherman planted a tree next to the USDA’s Washington DC headquarters in commemoration of Tu B’Shevat, “The New Year of the Trees.” This event brought together the local Jewish community and government leaders alike to share their common bond of conserving our natural resources and leaving a healthier world for the next generation.

Also in attendance were Nancy Sutley, Chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, Terry Bellamy, Director of the District of Columbia Department of Transportation. Rabbi Levi Shemtov offered remarks, and students from Washington DC’s Jewish Primary Day School. The local school children were able to partake in the holiday and learn about the importance of urban trees

3rd Grade Class of the Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation’s Capitol sing “the Almond Tree is Blossoming” to the attendees, during the Celebration of Tu B’Shevat “The New Year of the Trees” event February 8, 2012. (by Lance Cheung)

After planting the dawn redwood, Sherman took the opportunity to highlight the importance of urban trees in both Israel and the United States. Sherman oversees the U.S. Forest Service, an agency that has more than a century of experience in managing America’s national forests and helping to sustain the nation’s forests for the benefit of generations to come. This week, other Obama Administration officials planted trees in Arizona , Colorado, and Israel as part of this commemoration.

USDA has been working with the Jewish National Fund (JNF) on many forest-related issues—for Israel and other parts of the Middle East face many similar challenges in that arena.

Ultimately, we must continue to work together to protect our urban green spaces for future generations. Our partnership with JNF has produced great results, and we look forward to working with them for many years to come.

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary Natural Resources and Environment Harris Sherman (left), District Department of Transportation Director Terry Bellamy (2nd from right), White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Nancy Sutley (right) begin to apply a layer of mulch to the freshly planted Dawn Redwood for the Celebration of Tu B’Shevat “The New Year of the Trees” event on the District of Columbia western lawn next to the USDA Headquarters, Whitten Building at 14th Street and Independence Ave SW, Washington, D.C. on Wednesday, February 8, 2012. February 8, 2012. (by Lance Cheung)

Max Finberg serves as Director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Conference Call for Faith-based and Non-Profit Organizations: the President's Budget Proposal

Michael Wear — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 16:54:22 +0000

On Thursday, February 16th at 2:30 p.m. EST, please join Joshua DuBois, Executive Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships; John Kelly, Senior Policy Advisor for the Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships; Jonathan Greenblatt, Director of the Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation; and Paul Monteiro, Associate Director in the Office of Public Engagement for a conference call to discuss President Obama’s Fiscal Year 2013 Budget. This call will highlight the Obama Administration’s budget priorities and provide an opportunity for you to ask questions.

WHAT: White House Budget Update

WHEN: Thursday, February 16^th

Start Time: 2:30 p.m. EST

Dial In: (866) 259-1024
Passcode Title: White House Budget Update

This call is off the record and not for press purposes. Please RSVP here to join us and learn more.

Michael Wear serves as Executive Assistant to the Executive Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

First Lady Michelle Obama's Let's Move Faith and Communities

Max Finberg — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 23:33:05 +0000

Today, First Lady Michelle Obama announced the Communities on the Move video challenge! Your faith-based or community group is invited to create an inspiring video about your efforts to reverse the trend of childhood obesity. The challenge recognizes community efforts that promote healthy lifestyles for kids in three areas: by encouraging nutritious eating through USDA’s MyPlate icon, increasing physical activity, and by ensuring access to healthy, affordable foods.

“America’s faith communities play a crucial role in guiding and strengthening not only our spiritual health, but our emotional and physical health as well,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “Over the past two years, I’ve been inspired by all of the faith leaders and congregations who have taken action to get active and eat healthier, and so we’re launching our Let’s Move! video contest to highlight some of the best examples. I know there’s so much incredible work being done – and I can’t wait to hear some of these stories first-hand at the White House.”

The video challenge is an opportunity share your community’s story or to inspire your community to begin writing one! Tell us about how you are empowering families, congregations, and communities to make better choices to improve the health of our nation’s children. Winners will be invited to Washington, D.C. for a Let’s Move! event where they will have a special opportunity to showcase their video.

Students at Mt. Carmel-Holy Rosary promote health living. February 11, 2012.

To help you get started, we’ve put together a MyPlate Community Toolkit that has simple messages you can communicate to energize your community and organize others to join you. It’s also filled with stories of how people across the country have been moving towards a healthier future.

For example, despite limited resources and budget constraints, Mt. Carmel-Holy Rosary School is teaching students about healthy eating through MyPlate. Under the instruction of a registered dietitian, Mt. Carmel-Holy Rosary has turned in-class nutrition lessons into a school musical! Just a few years ago, this small Catholic school in East Harlem nearly closed due to declining enrollment and inadequate funding, but its principal led a community-wide effort to revitalize the school by recruiting high caliber teachers, developing a plethora of enrichment programs, and creating a positive, family-oriented school culture.The school is now an exemplary educational institution championing a school wellness in exciting, creative ways.

Be sure to check out more Let’s Move Faith and Communities success stories for how for more ideas on getting active, healthy eating, and making healthy food affordable and accessible to your community. The Communities on the Move video challenge is a part of Let’s Move Faith and Communities, launched by First Lady Michelle Obama to engage faith-based and community organizations in Let’s Move! to raise a healthier generation of kids. To sign up for our network of supporters, visit us online.

More from the Let's Move tour:

Max Finberg serves as Director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the U.S. Department of Agriculture

In the State of the Union, It’s About Values

Joshua DuBois — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:19:25 +0000

President Barack Obama delivers the State of the Union address in the House Chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., Jan. 24, 2012. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)

There was a lot for the faith community in President Obama’s State of the Union speech last night, a lot that spoke to our values. See some of my favorite passages below, and check out the entire speech at http://www.whitehouse.gov/state-of-the-union-2012

--Joshua

Values in the economy

“An economy built to last, where hard work pays off, and responsibility is rewarded.”
“[T]he basic American promise that if you worked hard, you could do well enough to raise a family, own a home, send your kids to college, and put a little away for retirement.”
“In 2008, the house of cards collapsed. We learned that mortgages had been sold to people who couldn't afford or understand them. Banks had made huge bets and bonuses with other people's money. Regulators had looked the other way, or didn't have the authority to stop the bad behavior. It was wrong.”
“Jackie Bray is a single mom from North Carolina who was laid off from her job as a mechanic. Then Siemens opened a gas turbine factory in Charlotte, and formed a partnership with Central Piedmont Community College. The company helped the college design courses in laser and robotics training. It paid Jackie's tuition, then hired her to help operate their plant. I want every American looking for work to have the same opportunity as Jackie did. Join me in a national commitment to train two million Americans with skills that will lead directly to a job.”

Values in education

“A great teacher can offer an escape from poverty to the child who dreams beyond his circumstance. Every person in this chamber can point to a teacher who changed the trajectory of their lives. Most teachers work tirelessly, with modest pay, sometimes digging into their own pocket for school supplies - just to make a difference.”
“Teachers matter. So instead of bashing them, or defending the status quo, let's offer schools a deal. Give them the resources to keep good teachers on the job, and reward the best ones. In return, grant schools flexibility: To teach with creativity and passion; to stop teaching to the test; and to replace teachers who just aren't helping kids learn.”

Values in immigration

“Let's also remember that hundreds of thousands of talented, hardworking students in this country face another challenge: The fact that they aren't yet American citizens. Many were brought here as small children, are American through and through, yet they live every day with the threat of deportation. Others came more recently, to study business and science and engineering, but as soon as they get their degree, we send them home to invent new products and create new jobs somewhere else. That doesn't make sense.”
“The opponents of action are out of excuses. We should be working on comprehensive immigration reform right now. But if election-year politics keeps Congress from acting on a comprehensive plan, let's at least agree to stop expelling responsible young people who want to staff our labs, start new businesses, and defend this country. Send me a law that gives them the chance to earn their citizenship. I will sign it right away.”

Values in environment stewardship

“When Bryan Ritterby was laid off from his job making furniture, he said he worried that at 55, no one would give him a second chance. But he found work at Energetx, a wind turbine manufacturer in Michigan. Before the recession, the factory only made luxury yachts. Today, it's hiring workers like Bryan, who said, "I'm proud to be working in the industry of the future."
“Our experience with shale gas shows us that the payoffs on these public investments don't always come right away. Some technologies don't pan out; some companies fail. But I will not walk away from the promise of clean energy. I will not walk away from workers like Bryan.”
“There is no question that some regulations are outdated, unnecessary, or too costly. In fact, I've approved fewer regulations in the first three years of my presidency than my Republican predecessor did in his. I've ordered every federal agency to eliminate rules that don't make sense. We've already announced over 500 reforms, and just a fraction of them will save business and citizens more than $10 billion over the next five years.
“I'm confident a farmer can contain a milk spill without a federal agency looking over his shoulder. But I will not back down from making sure an oil company can contain the kind of oil spill we saw in the Gulf two years ago. I will not back down from protecting our kids from mercury pollution, or making sure that our food is safe and our water is clean.”

Values on Wall Street

“Let's never forget: Millions of Americans who work hard and play by the rules every day deserve a Government and a financial system that do the same. It's time to apply the same rules from top to bottom: No bailouts, no handouts, and no copouts. An America built to last insists on responsibility from everybody.”
“And I will not go back to the days when Wall Street was allowed to play by its own set of rules.”
“So if you're a big bank or financial institution, you are no longer allowed to make risky bets with your customers' deposit…Today, American consumers finally have a watchdog in Richard Cordray with one job: To look out for them…We will also establish a Financial Crimes Unit of highly trained investigators to crack down on large-scale fraud and protect people's investments…And tonight, I am asking my Attorney General to create a special unit of federal prosecutors and leading state attorneys general to expand our investigations into the abusive lending and packaging of risky mortgages that led to the housing crisis. This new unit will hold accountable those who broke the law, speed assistance to homeowners, and help turn the page on an era of recklessness that hurt so many Americans.”

Values of fiscal responsibility and responsible governing

“I'm a Democrat. But I believe what Republican Abraham Lincoln believed: That Government should do for people only what they cannot do better by themselves, and no more. That's why my education reform offers more competition, and more control for schools and States. That's why we're getting rid of regulations that don't work. That's why our health care law relies on a reformed private market, not a Government program.”
“A return to the American values of fair play and shared responsibility will help us protect our people and our economy. But it should also guide us as we look to pay down our debt and invest in our future.”
“When it comes to the deficit, we've already agreed to more than $2 trillion in cuts and savings. But we need to do more, and that means making choices. Right now, we're poised to spend nearly $1 trillion more on what was supposed to be a temporary tax break for the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans. Right now, because of loopholes and shelters in the tax code, a quarter of all millionaires pay lower tax rates than millions of middle-class households. Right now, Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary.”
“Do we want to keep these tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans? Or do we want to keep our investments in everything else - like education and medical research; a strong military and care for our veterans? Because if we're serious about paying down our debt, we can't do both.”
“The American people know what the right choice is. So do I. As I told the Speaker this summer, I'm prepared to make more reforms that rein in the long term costs of Medicare and Medicaid, and strengthen Social Security, so long as those programs remain a guarantee of security for seniors.”
“But in return, we need to change our tax code so that people like me, and an awful lot of Members of Congress, pay our fair share of taxes. Tax reform should follow the Buffett rule: If you make more than $1 million a year, you should not pay less than 30 percent in taxes. And my Republican friend Tom Coburn is right: Washington should stop subsidizing millionaires. In fact, if you're earning a million dollars a year, you shouldn't get special tax subsidies or deductions. On the other hand, if you make under $250,000 a year, like 98 percent of American families, your taxes shouldn't go up. You're the ones struggling with rising costs and stagnant wages. You're the ones who need relief. “
“We don't begrudge financial success in this country. We admire it. When Americans talk about folks like me paying my fair share of taxes, it's not because they envy the rich. It's because they understand that when I get tax breaks I don't need and the country can't afford, it either adds to the deficit, or somebody else has to make up the difference - like a senior on a fixed income; or a student trying to get through school; or a family trying to make ends meet. That's not right. Americans know it's not right. They know that this generation's success is only possible because past generations felt a responsibility to each other, and to their country's future, and they know our way of life will only endure if we feel that same sense of shared responsibility. That's how we'll reduce our deficit. That's an America built to last.”

Values in foreign policy

“And while it is ultimately up to the people of the region to decide their fate, we will advocate for those values that have served our own country so well. We will stand against violence and intimidation. We will stand for the rights and dignity of all human beings - men and women; Christians, Muslims, and Jews. We will support policies that lead to strong and stable democracies and open markets, because tyranny is no match for liberty.”

Concluding with values

“Which brings me back to where I began. Those of us who've been sent here to serve can learn from the service of our troops. When you put on that uniform, it doesn't matter if you're black or white; Asian or Latino; conservative or liberal; rich or poor; gay or straight. When you're marching into battle, you look out for the person next to you, or the mission fails. When you're in the thick of the fight, you rise or fall as one unit, serving one Nation, leaving no one behind.

“One of my proudest possessions is the flag that the SEAL Team took with them on the mission to get bin Laden. On it are each of their names. Some may be Democrats. Some may be Republicans. But that doesn't matter. Just like it didn't matter that day in the Situation Room, when I sat next to Bob Gates - a man who was George Bush's defense secretary; and Hillary Clinton, a woman who ran against me for president.

“All that mattered that day was the mission. No one thought about politics. No one thought about themselves. One of the young men involved in the raid later told me that he didn't deserve credit for the mission. It only succeeded, he said, because every single member of that unit did their job - the pilot who landed the helicopter that spun out of control; the translator who kept others from entering the compound; the troops who separated the women and children from the fight; the SEALs who charged up the stairs. More than that, the mission only succeeded because every member of that unit trusted each other - because you can't charge up those stairs, into darkness and danger, unless you know that there's someone behind you, watching your back.

“So it is with America. Each time I look at that flag, I'm reminded that our destiny is stitched together like those fifty stars and those thirteen stripes. No one built this country on their own. This Nation is great because we built it together. This Nation is great because we worked as a team. This Nation is great because we get each other's backs. And if we hold fast to that truth, in this moment of trial, there is no challenge too great; no mission too hard. As long as we're joined in common purpose, as long as we maintain our common resolve, our journey moves forward, our future is hopeful, and the state of our Union will always be strong.

Thank you, God bless you, and may God bless the United States of America.”

Joshua DuBois serves as Special Assistant to President Obama and Executive Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

On Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, Honoring "Drum Majors for Service"

Joshua DuBois — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:29:03 +0000

Each day in cities and towns across our country, countless Americans are living out Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s legacy through their service to others. In his famous speech on The Drum Major Instinct, Dr. King said that it isn't "a desire to be out front, a desire to lead the parade, a desire to be first" that should define greatness, but rather, "everybody can be great...because everybody can serve."

On this Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and throughout the year, we are proud that the Obama Administration's Corporation for National and Community Service in conjunction with TheRoot.com will be highlighting "Drum Majors for Service," volunteers who perform extraordinary everyday acts of service, but who seldom receive recognition. This is an exciting new way to honor those who are living out Dr. King's legacy each day of their lives.

Today, TheRoot.com is highlighting 88 year-old retired Chicago transit worker and ex-Marine Theodore Peters, a true Drum Major for Service. Check it out here, and keep checking back for more stories of Drum Majors for Service.

Joshua DuBois serves as Special Assistant to the President and Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Health Care Conference Calls Changing Lives, Engaging Thousands

Mara Vanderslice — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:55:41 +0000

For people like Sam, the HHS Partnership Center’s conference calls on the health care reform law, have helped connect them to affordable, quality health care coverage despite unemployment and a major pre-existing condition. In May, Sam was unemployed, could not afford health insurance and then experienced a massive heart attack. He survived his heart attack but now has a significant pre-existing condition that insurance companies either refuse to cover or cover at a very high cost.

Sam was on one of the interactive conference calls sponsored by the U.S. Health and Human Services Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships where he learned about the Pre-Existing Condition Insurance Plan, PCIP. He learned that he was eligible for affordable health care coverage that will cover all of his medical needs, including his pre-existing cardiac care. He went to http://www.pcip.gov for more information and now has the health care coverage he needs.

in 2012, the Center for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships will continue its series of interactive conference calls for faith and community leaders explaining the benefits and provisions of the new health care law. Over 800 people registered for a call on the Affordable Care Act and Behavioral Health. The call was so popular, it is being held again in early February. To date, more than 5,000 faith and community leaders have participated in the HHS Partnership Center’s conference call series.

You can join the calls too! To register for these calls, click on the links below. Please join us so that you can share the new health care information with members of your congregation and community!

Lines are opened for questions at the end of every call, giving listeners calling in from across the United States a unique opportunity to interact directly with HHS staff and ask questions they may have about the Affordable Care Act.

On January 19, the Center will also host a live, interactive tour of HealthCare.gov. The tour will highlight the site’s many resources to help people take control of their health, access affordable health care coverage in their communities, and understand how the law is being implemented in different states.

To learn more about future interactive conference calls on the Affordable Care Act, sign up for the HHS Partnership Center newsletter at www.hhs.gov/partnerships.

In January and February, conference calls will take place on:

January 19, 3:00 pm EST–Tour of HealthCare.gov

January 24, 2:00 pm EST– ACA 101 (in Spanish)

January 31, 12:30 pm EST– ACA 101

February 2, 12:30 pm EST– ACA and Behavioral Health

February 28, 2:00 pm EST– ACA 101 (in Spanish)

We hope that you will join us on our interactive conference calls on the new health care law. If you have questions about the calls or comments, please email ACA101@hhs.gov.

Mara Vanderslice serves as Director of the Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the Department of Health and Human Services.

In Case You Missed It: 2.5 Million More Young Adults Now Have Health Insurance

Mara Vanderslice — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 21:26:14 +0000

We are thrilled to report that the CDC released data last month showing that 2.5 million more young adults now have health insurance coverage thanks to health reform. In September 2010, an Affordable Care Act policy went into effect allowing young adults to stay on their parents' insurance plans through age 26.

“Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, 2.5 million more young adults don’t have to live with the fear and uncertainty of going without health insurance,” said Secretary Kathleen Sebelius. “Moms and dads around the country can breathe a little easier knowing their children are covered.” Check out this HHS press release for more details.

“The data announced today show that, because of the health care law, there is a continued and consistent pattern of improved health coverage among young adults,” said Sherry Glied, Ph.D., HHS Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation. “The Affordable Care Act has helped literally millions of young adults get the health insurance they need so they can begin their careers with the peace of mind that they’re covered.” You can find out more here on this CDC fact sheet.

As we celebrate the great news about 2.5 million more young adults receiving health coverage, we also want to lift up important changes to labor laws that will protect health care workers.

In 2007, then-Senator Obama spent a day working with Pauline Beck, a home health worker. The day crystallized the President’s dedication to improving the work life of health workers. Last month, Pauline stood with President Obama at the White House as he proposed changes to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which, if passed by Congress, will improve work life and pay for healthcare workers like her.

Mara Vanderslice serves as Director of the Department of Health and Human Services' Partnerships Center.

The DREAM Sabbath: Faith and Neighborhood-Based Partnerships and Immigration Reform

Joshua DuBois — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 20:02:54 +0000

Last December, after a disappointing vote on the DREAM Act, President Obama stated, “I am persistent. If I believe in something strongly, I stay on it. And I believe strongly in this.” A year later, his commitment to the DREAM Act still stands. For this reason, our Administration continues to work with faith and community leaders, students, and advocacy groups to spread awareness on the importance of the DREAM Act and continue the conversation on fixing our broken immigration system.

One of the many groups working to advance immigration reform has been the Interfaith Immigration Coalition. Through an initiative titled the DREAM Sabbath, interfaith groups held events all over the country, highlighting stories of DREAM students and facilitating conversations between communities on the importance of the DREAM Act.

In their DREAM Sabbath Scrapbook, a report highlighting all the DREAM Sabbath events, media clips, and pictures, the initiative is described as, “a time when faith and action came together…”

The DREAM Act would allow young people who were brought to the U.S. through no fault of their own and grew up as Americans an opportunity to earn a legal status if they meet numerous requirements, including attending college or serving in the military. As the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reported, the DREAM Act would cut the deficit by $1.4 billion over the next 10 years, and in these economic times, this is more meaningful than ever before.

Over 500 services were held by a variety of organizations and denominations in cities from coast to coast and the conversations that occurred helped “build stronger relationships with immigrant communities” and congregations. As the report so eloquently states,

“The power of DREAM Sabbath was not just limited to the services that happened during the fall of 2011 though. The power of DREAM Sabbath is still developing as the relationships between congregations and DREAM Act students are deepened, the thousands of congregants who are educated and will take action show their support, and the teams of faith communities working together to ensure that their members of congress stand as champions of immigrants’ rights to ensure that the DREAM Act is passed.”

As President Obama has said, it’s going to take talking to the American people and relating the stories of DREAM students, their struggles, their successes, and the economic benefits they bring to our country, to get the DREAM Act and larger comprehensive immigration reform through Congress. Through initiatives like the DREAM Sabbath, we can continue building community relationships and working together in a cohesive effort to make the DREAM Act a reality.

Let’s Move Faith and Communities Looks to 2012

Alexia Kelley — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:12:21 +0000

Let's Move Faith and Communities meeting participants including Barbara Baylor and Rev. Dr. Michael Murphy (United Church of Christ), Rev. Dr. Deborah Patterson and Stephen Patterson (Northwest Parish Nurse Ministries), Paul Chapman (4-H Youth Development Organization), Gary Oppenheimer (AmpleHarvest.org), Elder Ted Wilson and Mrs. Wilson (Seventh-Day Adventists), and Dr. Carroll Baltimore (Progressive National Baptists) share their experiences leading wellness initiatives in their congregations and communities. December 9, 2011.

Over the past year, faith-based and community organizations have been on the move ramping up their efforts to make their communities healthier through First Lady Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move Faith and Communities challenges issued in November 2010. Over the year they hosted an additional 1,100 summer food service sites, where they served meals to low-income kids who otherwise wouldn’t have received those meals once school let out. Their communities collectively walked 2.85 million miles. They brought produce close to home, contributing to more than 8,500 gardens, farmers markets, and food pantries, where folks could access fresh fruits and vegetables. And they joined communities across the country in earning 1.7 million Presidential Active Lifestyle Awards (PALA) through the PALA Challenge.

To celebrate the year’s accomplishments and look ahead to 2012, the Office of the First Lady and the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships hosted a group of faith and community leaders for a Let’s Move Faith and Communities consultation in December. We wanted to learn from each other’s experiences and brainstorm how we can work together in the coming year to build wellness into communities for the long term.

And learn we did! Elder Ted Wilson of the Seventh Day Adventists told us how his denomination is integrating nutrition and physical activity into everyday life through Adventists InStep for Life. He said, “We need to make physical activity a basic part of a healthy lifestyle. Physical and spiritual health are tied together in a very dynamic way.” Steve Becker from the Jewish Community Centers Association shared his organization’s plan to use the CATCH curriculum in their early childhood education to ensure children build a holistic foundation for a healthy life. Denise Hunter, First Lady of First African Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles and President of FAME’s corporate ministries, shared the success of Let’s Move LA in inspiring her community: “One of the hallmarks of a good leader is that you build good leaders from the people around you. Collectively we can do so much together. We don’t need to be superman; we need to empower people.”

Jocelyn Frye, Deputy Assistant to the President and Director of Policy and Special Projects for the First Lady, shared in the enthusiasm in the room: “A lot of what we need is to stretch beyond the walls of our organizations and get into the hearts of our communities.” As Let’s Move Faith and Communities starts its second year in 2012, that’s exactly what we’ll be working to do with our partners across the country.

Abed Ayoub, CEO of Islamic Relief USA, shares reflections on health and wellness for the group, including First Lady Denise Hunter and Rev. John Hunter (First African Methodist Episcopal Church), Sharon Gleason (Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital), Sylvia Acevedo (Advancing America), Anna Maria Chávez (Girl Scouts of the USA), Antonio Boyd (Hope worldwide), and Angel Gutierrez (Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago). December 9, 2011.

Alexia Kelley serves as Deputy Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

2011 Connecting Communities for the Common Good Tour Concludes in Chicago with 700 Faith and Community Leaders

Alexia Kelley — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 22:47:52 +0000

Chicago City Year members participate in conference, helping to make it a success for everyone. December 6, 2011.

Last week, faith and community leaders from Chicago and across the region participated in the final 2011 stop on the White House Connecting Communities for the Common Good regional tour. The interactive conference was co-hosted by the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnershipsand the Office of Mayor Rahm Emanuel, and numerous Agency Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnership Centers.

Faith and community gathered at the University of Illinois at Chicago-UIC Forum and were welcomed by Joshua DuBois, Director of the White House Office, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Congressman Danny Davis, Congressman Bobby Rush, and Deputy Governor Cristal Thomas.

“This notion of change through faith and community partnerships is rooted in President Obama’s DNA, and rooted in the DNA of this city,” noted Joshua DuBois as he opened the conference. “As many of you know and in fact saw firsthand, this President began his career in public life working with churches on the South Side to help families who were struggling. So he knows full well that in order to serve the least, the last, and the lost in our country and our world, we have to partner with faith and community organizations…and that is what President Obama’s Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships is all about.”

Mayor Emanuel noted that “so much of this city’s and country’s strength comes from the strength of its faiths. More than that, it comes from our ability to work together for the common good.” He continued, “by working together, by deepening our understanding of our common values and common destination, we can make this country a better place.”

Small Business Administration Deputy Administrator Marie Johns delivered keynote remarks on economic development and entrepreneurism, and then moderated a panel of Chicago area faith and community leaders who shared best practices in community economic development.

Diverse faith, community and nonprofit leaders and federal officials were joined by state and local elected representatives in conversations on how government on all levels can partner with nonprofit organizations to strengthen communities. Workshops focused on jobs, economic development, health care, Let’s Move, hunger, small businesses, veterans, disaster preparedness, housing, energy efficiency, and more. Follow-on sessions included a training on Job Clubs/Employment ministries, an SBA-hosted roundtable on Youth Entrepreneurship, and nonprofit capacity- building trainings on housing, and substance abuse prevention partnerships.

Conference participants listen to Chicago faith and community leaders discuss best practices in community economic development. December 6, 2011.

By working and learning from faith and community leaders in their own hometowns through the Connecting Communities for the Common Good 2011 conversations, The White House and its 13 Federal Partnership Centersfrom across the Obama Administration are coming alongside organizations doing critical work in communities around the country.

Alexia Kelley is Deputy Director and Senior Policy Advisor at the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Celebrate the Drum Majors for Service in Your Community

John Kelly — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 21:05:13 +0000

Community volunteers who deserve a nomination for the Drum Major for Service award.

On the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day of Service this January, President Obama will recognize unsung heroes around the country who have answered the call to service. Inspired by Dr. King’s historic speech on the Drum Major Instinct, the MLK Drum Majors for Service program—facilitated by the White House and the Corporation for National and Community Service—welcomes the nomination of people in organizations and businesses who are serving their communities, often without recognition.

This program is very simple and an exciting way for you to honor individuals within your organization – whether a business, congregation, nonprofit or community group – who are doing great work serving others, often without recognition. Here’s how it works: identify “Drum Majors for Service” who are making a difference in your organization. Then, visit our website and order them a Drum Major award, pin, and letter from the President (paying a nominal fee for printing and shipping). Finally, honor them with the Drum Major for Service award on Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday (January 16th), or other days throughout the year. Remember to tell us about your award recipients by emailing stories and pictures to MLKDay@cns.gov. We look forward to hearing about all the amazing work going on across the country that live out each and every day Dr. King’s vision of service.

Recently, President Obama helped to dedicate the new memorial on the National Mall honoring the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King urged all of us to live our lives in a just, moral, loving and generous fashion. He asked us to harness human nature for good. In this season of giving, it is Dr. King’s admonition of being “first in generosity” that I want to highlight.

In Los Angeles, CA, Wallace Ussery, who has a lifelong history of service to his church and the community at-large, has been first in generosity. Now in his 70s, Mr. Ussery continues to give generously of his time and talent. One of his most notable activities has been the mentoring and care of a young homeless man. Providing shelter and clothes and assisting him with finding and receiving medical care and social services, Mr. Ussery has made a tremendous impact on this young man’s life. Many other young men in the community tell stories of how Mr. Ussery has assisted them in times of need. Consistently providing support for those who are less fortunate than himself, Mr. Ussery is a constant inspiration to those around him, and he’s certainly a “Drum Major for Service.”

Most of us don’t have to look far for the same sorts of people in our own communities. Just like Mr. Ussery, they see a need and go about quietly meeting it. They are the glue that holds the after-school program together, or creates the system for getting elderly citizens to appointments, or mows the lawn of the deployed soldier or countless other acts of service that make your community stronger.

A Drum Major for Service provides a guiding word to our young people.

In this season of giving - and giving thanks, I hope you will take a moment to notice those outstanding people and plan to say a special thank you to the important individuals who are the drum majors in your community. Honor your community’s special “drum majors for service” with a President’s Volunteer Service Award and present it in honor of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. federal holiday and national day of service.

In this time of great economic challenges, the President has called for all Americans to come together and contribute to addressing pressing needs. There are many volunteers – unsung heroes – who are answering that call and expanding economic opportunity in their community every day. Recognize your community’s “drum majors for service” on this upcoming MLK Day of Service, and members of your community will be inspired by the example they set and motivated to take action.

To learn more about and order the Drum Major for Service award click here, and then let us know about the Drum Majors in your community. Email us at mlkday@cns.gov.

Drum Majors for Service step up when disaster strikes.

John Kelly is Senior Policy Advisor of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Fall Semester Begins in Campuses with President’s Interfaith & Community Service Campus Challenge

Michael Wear — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 22:46:40 +0000

Students gathered to rebuild their community as a part of the President’s Interfaith and Community Service Campus Challenge (by University of Alabama at Birmingham)

Fall semester marks the beginning of the academic year with new professors, courses, and textbooks. This year, fall semester brought a new addition to campuses around the country: The President’s Interfaith & Community Service Campus Challenge.

This spring, over 270 public and private colleges and universities as well as community colleges and theological schools signed up to participate in the Challenge, which is sponsored by the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships in collaboration with the Department of Education and the Corporation for National and Community Service. Participating schools committed to engage students of diverse set of religious and non-religious backgrounds in interfaith service initiatives to impact their communities and build relationships across differences.

Four students from the University of Alabama at Birmingham are carrying sheetrock in their effort to rebuild tornado-ravaged Birmingham

The participants of this Challenge are already stepping up to the President’s call for service in inspiring ways. In the aftermath of a devastating tornado, Alabamians have been focusing on disaster relief efforts in Birmingham. Contributing to that common cause, students from different faith traditions in the University of Alabama at Birmingham are lending their hearts and hands through their official partnership with some of the metropolitan service organizations. Additionally, students from Soka Shining Spirits, Campus Crusade for Christ, and the Muslim Student Association with other groups in the campus are leading yearlong training seminars alongside monthly service projects. Some of these projects include organizing a Hunger Banquet, cross-city day of service, and joint collaboration with the Alabama Poverty Project. The students are also participating in an interfaith dialogue series called “Free Food for Thought” to promote interfaith cooperation.

Clusters of local campuses participating in this Challenge are also collaborating to address problems facing their community. The Western New York region has been home to many immigrants, from the days of the Erie Canal till today. Erie Community College, along with Buffalo State College, Canisius College and Daemen College, Houghton College, Niagara University and SUNY- Buffalo launched an initiative called “Making Buffalo Home” as a part of The President’s Interfaith & Community Service Campus Challenge. These schools have dedicated a year to meeting many of the needs of refugees, including housing, health, and education. A Research Symposium on refugee community challenges and a capstone Diversity Festival is planned for May,2012.

Campuses from diverse geographic regions are working on this initiative to alleviate some of the pressing problems in their communities. At Claremont Lincoln University, students are working with Rock Hill Farms, a drug and gang rehabilitation programs located near Bakersfield, CA. Through their service, students are helping to build their local community and spread the word about educational opportunities.

Among the campuses addressing educational opportunity and domestic poverty is University of Michigan- Dearborn. This campus of 10,000 students launched an Interfaith Service Corps program along with institutional partners and student organizations. In late spring, the Dearborn campus will organize its first state-wide Interfaith Conference.

The fruitful collaboration of students of diverse backgrounds as a part of President’s Challenge are advancing the work of the common good and securing a future free of ignorance and intolerance. Through impactful programs such as these, we see how the citizens of this country are truly creating a better future.

Michael Wear serves as Executive Assistant to the Executive DIrector of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Forging Ahead with International Adoption

Jonathan Amgott — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:26:12 +0000

On Monday, November 28, The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships held an event to observe and celebrate National Adoption Month. This event featured senior Administration officials, Members of Congress and outside experts. You can read more about the event here. Also, you can view the President’s National Adoption Month proclamation here.

Supporting international adoption was the theme of our first panel during Monday’s National Adoption Month event at the White House. International adoption has touched the lives of thousands of American families. In 2010 alone, the adoptions of over 9,300 children from more than 100 countries were finalized. Appropriately, this panel was rooted in the understanding that while there were big issues to discuss, at the end of the day international adoption is deeply personal and profound for many Americans, including those who served as panelists.

Kathleen Strottman, Executive Director of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, was the first expert to speak. Kathleen discussed an exciting initiative called The Way Forward Project, a yearlong convening of government officials and civil society experts to study adoption in six African countries. Supported by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the CCAI initiative produced several adoption lessons applicable to other countries as well. Among these, child welfare systems should evaluate the full range of adoptive family options, including kinship and international adoption. Kathleen also suggested that efforts should be made to cultivate societal responsibility for all children, gather data on the number of children in foster care, and broaden children’s legal eligibility for adoption.

The Obama Administration is making its own concerted effort to address children’s needs abroad. Under PL 109-95, Robert Clay, Deputy Assistant Administrator at the USAID Bureau for Global Health, coordinates the work of seven agencies—State, Labor, Agriculture, Defense, Health and Human Services, USAID, and Peace Corps—which each play a role in protecting orphans and vulnerable children around the world. During our panel, Robert spoke about the evidence-based summit on December 12-13 which will better inform U.S. Government efforts to protect children outside family care. Among summit organizers is the State Department Office of Children’s Issues, under the leadership of Ambassador Susan Jacobs. As Special Advisor for Children’s Issues, Ambassador Jacobs discussed her efforts to promote common standards for intercountry adoption by implementing the Hague Adoption Convention.

Of all the children in need of adoption, kids with HIV/AIDS can have an especially tough time finding families. Carolyn Twietmeyer is a Chicago-area mother of fourteen, including seven adopted children, two of whom have HIV/AIDS. As she discussed on our panel, Carolyn founded Project HOPEFUL to encourage others to adopt children with the disease and to correct misconceptions which may deter potential adoptive parents.

When it comes to providing families for children, many faith-based organizations are leading the way. At Patch Our Planet, Steve Gillis connects faith leaders with the resources they need to get involved in international adoption. Steve spoke about the ways his organization works with busy church staff to design a strategic adoption/foster care plan unique to their congregation.

We were proud to host such an exciting sample of those working hard on an issue that is so personal for so many Americans. Stay tuned for more details from our National Adoption Month event later this week.

Jonathan Amgott is an Intern at the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

Tips for Congregations and Communities on World AIDS Day Activities

Alexia Kelley — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 17:34:05 +0000

Today, President Obama marked World AIDS Day by speaking at ONE Campaign and (RED)’s Beginning of the End of AIDS event at George Washington University. You can watch the event here: YouTube.com/TheONECampaign. In July 2010, the President called us to action:

Right now, we are experiencing a domestic epidemic that demands a renewed commitment, increased public attention, and leadership…To accomplish these goals we must undertake a more coordinated national response to the epidemic. The Federal Government can’t do this alone, nor should it. Success will require the commitment of governments at all levels, businesses, faith communities, philanthropy, the scientific and medical communities, educational institutions, people living with HIV, and others…

– President Barack Obama

On the occasion of World AIDS Day 2011, we invite faith-based and community organizations across the United States to consider how you might engage your members–or share with others your best practices- today and throughout the year to support those with HIV/AIDS and help achieve an AIDS-free generation.

Our nation’s churches, temples, mosques, synagogues and community organizations are uniquely positioned to contribute to the national effort to reverse the course of the HIV epidemic in America. Reaching our goals of ending stigma against AIDS; making sure everyone who is HIV+, knows it; getting everyone who needs it treatment; and all the other goals the President put forth in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy require everyone to work together. These are not the kinds of goals government can achieve alone!

For World AIDS Day 2011, the Obama Administration is promoting the theme “Leading with Science, Uniting for Action.” The theme reflects the Federal government's commitment to move toward the goal of an AIDS-free generation, both in the U.S. and around the world.

Making an AIDS-free America will depend on the American people!

There are many options for faith communities interested in joining in the observation of World AIDS Day 2011. We know communities who have held meetings to remind people to be tested. Some have offered testing. Others hold support groups for people with HIV. The truth is, anything you do to increase awareness has the potential to keep someone HIV-free, and to connect people with HIV to early treatment. As each community has unique needs, we invite you to be engaged in what ever way you feel is the most beneficial and respectful.

Encourage congregants to learn their HIV status so that, if infected, they can take advantage of life-saving treatments. Such efforts will help identify some of the more than 230,000 Americans living with HIV who are unaware of their infection. Early diagnosis is essential to enhancing and extending the lives of those with HIV. It also reduces the likelihood that one will infect others. You can also help individuals find HIV testing and other services near you by using the HIV/AIDS Prevention & Service Providers Locator (shown below). Simply enter a Zip Code and a list of HIV testing sites and other HIV-related services is returned, complete with a map to help figure out how to get there. Does your organization have a website or blog? Embed this widget in your blog so that readers can always locate these services via your site.
Work to reduce stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS.The ongoing stigma associated with HIV disease—and the behaviors that can lead to infection—continue to interfere with our efforts, as a nation, to end this illness. Fear of discrimination causes some Americans to avoid learning their HIV status, disclosing their status, or accessing needed medical care or other supportive services. Faith leaders are especially well positioned to deliver messages of understanding and non-judgmental support that can serve as constructive examples to others in the community.
Plan a local event.The World AIDS Day event planning guide can help you get started. You can customize and use these World AIDS Day posters and add the World AIDS Day logo to your websites. Help your congregants learn about HIV by sharing these fact sheets. Join the World AIDS Day conversation on Twitter: use the hashtag #WAD2011 to find and share local events. Learn about additional World AIDS Day resources. There are also other Awareness days that might be appropriate for your congregation.

To see some quick facts about HIV/AIDS in the United States click here: White House Office of HIV/AIDS Policy. Here are just a few:

HIV/AIDS is a crisis in the United States:

Over one million people are currently living with HIV/AIDS in the U.S.;
It is estimated that every 9 ½ minutes someone in the U.S is infected with HIV/AIDS;
Of those infected, approximately 21 percent (one in five) are unaware of their infection;
America's poorest urban neighborhoods HIV prevalence was more than 4 times the national average.
In the United States most new HIV infections occur among African American young people, ages 13-19 accounting for 68% of new AIDS cases among teens in the U.S.

For more ideas on how faith communities can initiate, or enhance existing, HIV/AIDS activities or programs, please read:

United in Battling HIV/AIDS: A Guide to Understanding How Faith Communities Can Make a Difference (from the National Alliance of State and Territorial AIDS Directors)
Partnerships for the Common Good: A Partnership Guide for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Organizations (from the White House Office for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, p. 32)
Also, read more about efforts of the Centers for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships to support the National HIV/AIDS Strategy.

December 1, 2011.

Alexia Kelley serves as Deputy Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

National Adoption Month at the White House

Michael Wear — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 00:03:58 +0000

Kathleen Strottman, Executive Director of the Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute, presents on international adoption issues alongside other panelists at a White House event to commemorate National Adoption Month. November 28, 2011.

Yesterday, The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships hosted an event to observe and celebrate National Adoption Month. We’ve had a lot to celebrate since National Adoption Month last year regarding adoption and child welfare. For the second time in this Administration, the President signed into law another extension of the Adoption Tax Credit. The President also signed into law legislation passed by Congress to improve and innovate foster care and child welfare services, as well as legislation to improve international adoption. The event featured senior Administration officials and congressional leaders, including: Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Administrator Lisa Jackson, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Rep. Karen Bass, Commissioner Bryan Samuels, Amb. Susan Jacobs, and USAID Deputy Administrator Robert Clay. In attendance were adoption and child welfare experts and advocates, service providers and faith leaders. This event was an important continuation of the President’s leadership on the issues of adoption and child welfare.

Joshua DuBois, Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships, welcomed participants with the President’s ongoing support of adoption and the notion that every child deserves a family. As this event was first and foremost about celebrating the positive impact adoption has had for so many Americans, it was appropriate to begin with EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson as our opening speaker. An adoptee herself, Administrator Jackson is now making a positive and powerful difference in the lives of children and families as the senior Administration official working on environmental issues.

We were also proud that Secretary Kathleen Sebelius could join us, continuing her annual tradition of partnering with our office during National Adoption Month. Secretary Sebelius discussed the Administration’s initiatives to promote adoption by extending, increasing, and making refundable the Adoption Tax Credit and by supporting the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act, which the President signed this fall. Commissioner Bryan Samuels, who assists Secretary Sebelius as head of the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, spoke about his office’s efforts to reduce long-term foster care in favor of permanent families for children.

Among our partners on the Hill, Senator Amy Klobuchar discussed her sponsorship of the International Adoption Simplification Act. There are families that were formed, siblings that were able to stay together, because of this legislation that President Obama was proud to sign into law in November 2010. Representative Karen Bass also delivered remarks describing her legislative leadership on adoption and foster care issues, which includes her key involvement in the Child and Family Services Improvement and Innovation Act and her role as co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on Adoption and Congressional Caucus on Foster Care.

Our discussion throughout the afternoon centered on three issue areas: international adoption, infant adoption, and foster care adoption. Ambassador Susan Jacobs, Special Advisor for Children’s Issues at the State Department, and USAID Deputy Administrator Robert Clay joined other international adoption panelists focusing on public and private efforts to facilitate intercountry adoptions. Infant adoption experts then discussed their efforts to destigmatize adoption, and ensure it is a viable option for pregnant women. To close our afternoon, foster care panelists dispelled the myth of ‘unadoptable’ children and described initiatives to find families for teenagers and for youth with special needs.

We thank all involved in the discussion on Monday for their work on this important issue, and we will delve into the information shared at the event in a series of blogs posts throughout the week.

Michael Wear serves as Executive Assistant to the Executive Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.

White House to Host National Adoption Month Event

Michael Wear — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 15:35:23 +0000

Today, The White House will be hosting an event to observe and celebrate National Adoption Month. This event will feature senior Administration officials, members of the President’s Cabinet, adoption and child welfare experts and advocates, and religious leaders.

We will feature information provided at this event on our blog throughout the week—including expert advice on how YOU can support adoption in your community.

Additionally, a portion of today’s event will be available for livestreaming at www.whitehouse.gov/live beginning at 11:30 AM.

We are proud to join so many organizations and families across the country to celebrate adoption.

Michael Wear serves as Executive Assistant to the Executive Director of The White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships.