from the Thomas Merton Center

Check out http://www.thomasmertoncenter.org/calendar for more information on these events and for a complete listing of other events this week/end.

9/23/2004 12:00 PM
Asia over Lunch: 2004
4130 Wesley W. Posvar Hall
9/23/2004 5:00 PM

"American Empire and Affluence: The Search for New American Values," by Dr. Robert Jensen
William Pitt Union, lower lounge, Fifth and Bigelow (Oakland)
9/23/2004 6:30 PM

Interfaith Listening Team - University Lecture Series "A Christian / Muslim Dialogue "
Adamson Auditorium in Baker Hall, Carnegie Mellon U (Oakland)
9/23/2004 7:00 PM

Tai Chi Chih
Franciscan Spirit & Life Center, 3605 McRoberts Rd.
9/23/2004 7:30 PM


Campaign 2004, Key Issues: The Economy and Foreign Policy
Carnegie Lecture Hall, Carnegie Library and Museum (Oakland)
9/23/2004 7:30 PM

"The Man Behind the Words" the 8th Anniversary of Pgh North Anti-Racism Coalition will focus on life of Frank Bolden
YWCA Center for Race Relations, 8500 Thompson Run Rd., (McCandless)
9/23/2004 8:00 PM

Off the Record IV: Talk Show Smackdown (Satirizing Pittsburgh for a Good Cause)
Byham Theater (downtown)
9/24/2004 12:00 AM

Andy Warhol Museum Showing of Images of Abu Ghraib Prison
Andy Warhol Museum, 117 Sandusky Street (North Side)
9/24/2004 1:00 PM

Interfaith Listening Team - Full day of video, prayers, dinner and program
Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church (Oakland)
9/24/2004 7:00 PM

"Women of the Word" book signing and social with evening reflection in the spirituality of art and poetry
Kearns Spirituality Center 9000 Babcock Blvd. (Allison Park)
9/24/2004 7:00 PM

Freeing Up the Praying Self Through Writing
Franciscan Spirit & Life Center, 3605 McRoberts Rd.
9/24/2004 10:00 PM

Midnight Espresso: Celebrating Creative Legends of the African Diaspora
Shadow Lounge, 5972 Baum Blvd. (East Liberty)

from the desk of Andrew Cheeseboro pt.2

here's some new information from the Pittsburgh chapter of the National Urban League, including the conference schedule. please contact Andrew acheeseboro@ulpgh.org for additional info...jim

Please forward this to your network of associates. The Urban League of Pittsburgh is having its Annual Meeting & Conference on Oct. 5 at Carnegie Mellon University.
My wife Patricia A. Cheeseboro, Cheeseboro Consulting Services, President & CEO & and Dara W. Allen, Executive Director of Youth Works and I will be on the Urban Reality radio program hosted by Esther Bush @ 9 am on Saturday. (24 September 2004)
The discussion will be about Communication Skills for African Americans. If you can, tune in and call in, if you have a question or comment.

Urban League of Pittsburgh Annual Meeting and Conference Schedule
Tuesday, October 5, 2004

8:00 a.m. – 8:40 a.m.
Registration and Continental Breakfast

8:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.
Session 1 Workshops

I. Communication Skills For African Americans:
Achieving Confidence, Credibility, and Composure

Communication is the key to career success, but communication is more than language. A new issue – avoidance of contemporarily inappropriate dress and behavior – is now being included in job training for success. The panel will discuss the new culture and why it is necessary to include these issues as well as technical skills as part of the employment training program.


II. You Can Afford the Future: The Rising Cost of Higher Education

The panel will explore public and private aid that will enable students to attend college and find better jobs despite the increasing costs of education. Discussion will also center on the continuing need for obtaining a degree in order to successfully enter the work force.

10:30 a.m. – Noon
Session 2 Workshops


III. Assault on Section 8 Housing Choice Program:
Proposed Cuts in Federal Housing Assistance

The current Administration’s FY 2005 HUD Budget calls for deep cuts in the Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher Program. The proposal would convert the design of the program to a block grant administered by Public Housing Agencies (PHAs). Advocates state that the block grant program allows PHAs to serve the poorest populations.
Opponents argue that the proposal provides incentives for PHAs to assist higher income families and 250,000 families would lose their Section 8 assistance. The panel will identify the pros and cons of the issue


IV. Cultivating Healthy Marriages in the African-American Community

Forty years ago, two parent households were the norm in African American Families. Today, more than half of all African American households are headed by a single parent. This workshop will examine the factors that resulted in this dramatic change, and some of the challenges that African American couples face. It will also discuss developing healthy family relationships and the importance of communication, conflict resolution, trust and love. The example of successful marriages will be demonstrated by invited couples of varying ages who discuss their successes, pitfalls and how to stay connected through various stages of their relationships.

V. Beyond Registration: Voting Smarter, Voting Stronger, Protecting The Voice of The Electorate

A disproportionate number of minority voters were systematically disenfranchised by a combination of illegal actions, inadequate voter education and poll worker training, and by faulty voting machines in the 2000 national election. In Philadelphia in 2003 voters in predominately minority communities went through an organized effort of intimidation. To combat these potential problems, the Urban League of Pittsburgh is focusing attention on strengthening political participation among African Americans. The Urban League Young Professionals of Pittsburgh is responding to this challenge by providing a closer look at the rights of the electorate and how to protect those rights.

12:15 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
STATE OF BLACK PITTSBURGH ADDRESS & LUNCHEON

Sincerely,

Andrew Cheeseboro

non profits quarterly

SEND TO FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES

Our mission is to provide nonprofit leaders a forum to exchange innovative ideas and informational resources so that you can more fully realize your organizations' missions. Help us to extend the conversation.

The ACLU and the Combined Federal Campaign, by Rick Cohen.
The new federal requirements for those participating in the Combined Federal Campaign may be just the tip of the iceberg in chilling nonprofit activities as the government foists its regulatory responsibilities on organizations as a condition for receiving funds. http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/section/541.html

The Perils of Speaking Out, by Kay Guinane.
Increasingly, partisan political considerations are taking precedence over free speech and equal treatment when it comes to a range of nonprofit activities, prompting nonprofits to fight back.http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/section/540.html


Please send this e-newsletter to friends and colleagues.
Add us to the "mailing address" (editorinchief@nonprofitquarterly.org) when you pass this along, this helps us evaluate how far the conversation has traveled.
NONPROFIT QUARTERLY CURRENT EDITION
Subscribe now at http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/subscribe

sign on the dotted lion...

NONPROFIT QUARTERLY E-NEWSLETTER
Featuring Innovative Thinking in the Nonprofit Sector

Rick Cohen of the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy has been
banging this drum for the last three months. "I think a lot of people don't
really look carefully at what they sign ... but they better start!" NCRP with a
lot of other organizations is protesting a requirement of the Combined Federal
Campaign that participants agree that they will not "knowingly" employ people
whose names appeared on a government anti-terrorism list. Rick writes "Although
there are hosts of government lists to check, the Office of Personnel Management
had promised that only three would be required, and despite the lists' mercurial
inconsistencies from day to day, also promised that it would give advance
warning of changes in the list contents." One of the required lists is 143 pages
long with thousands of names and aliases to check.

The ACLU first signed the agreement and then withdrew entirely from the campaign and is now considering its next steps, but many other leaders of organizations also signed the agreement without really thinking about what they were agreeing to. Some of them, embarrassingly, are also outspoken advocates against such government abrogations of civil liberties.

Cohen asks, "Is it that nonprofits have to sign and certify so god-awful
much that they assume that no one in government or elsewhere could possibly be
concerned, much less motivated to check on whether groups are actually doing as
they are told? That could be a fairly dangerous position."In any case, I have
attached a few articles from our upcoming issue on the changing relationship
between government and nonprofits that address this and related topics.

http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/section/541.html

http://www.nonprofitquarterly.org/section/540.html

from YouthNoise.com

What do you think, feel, or wish you hadn¹t?

LIFE - WHAT IS IT?
"What is your philosophy in your life?" http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l1

SEX LIFE POLL!
Who would you rather be in charge of your sex and reproductive life? http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l2

WISH YOU WERE INVISIBLE?
What is the most stupid, embarrassing, ridiculous thing you've ever done in yourlife? http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l3

MEL, BEN, BRITNEY, PARIS & GWYNETH
Do celebrities influence you? http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l4

EXCUSE ME, PRESIDENT BUSH
If you could ask George W. Bush one question... http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l5

IS THIS LAND IS YOUR LAND? Where you draw the line. http://www.youthnoise.com/n/n155l6

Brought to you by www.youthNOISE.com ...Your World. Your NOISE.

from the Thomas Merton Center

Here is this week's schedule of events. For more information about a particular event, simply click on the title of the event. A more complete listing can be found at www.thomasmertoncenter.org/calendar.

9/22/2004 12:00 PM
"Chinese-U.S. Transnational Adoption and the Construction of Asian Femininities" Women's Studies brown bag lunch
2201 Wesley W. Posvar Hall, U of Pittsburgh (Oakland)
9/22/2004 4:00 PM
"The Battle for Accountability in Election Systems" talk with David Dill
McConomy Auditorium at CMU (Oakland)
9/22/2004 6:00 PM
Citizens for Global Solutions board meeting
Friends Meeting, 4836 Ellsworth Ave.
9/22/2004 6:30 PM
"Twilight Retreat for Women"
Kearns Spirituality Center 9000 Babcock Blvd. (Allison Park)
9/22/2004 8:45 PM
Torture Victim-Carlos Mauricio and SOA Prisoner of Conscience-Fr. Joe Mulligan Speak in Pittsburgh!
Frick Fine Arts Building, room 125
9/23/2004 6:30 PM
Interfaith Listening Team - University Lecture Series "A Christian / Muslim Dialogue "
Adamson Auditorium in Baker Hall, Carnegie Mellon U (Oakland)
9/23/2004 7:00 PM
Tai Chi Chih
Franciscan Spirit & Life Center, 3605 McRoberts Rd.
9/23/2004 7:30 PM
K'vetsh, an all-queer, all-gender open mic cabaret
Modern Formations Gallery, 4919 Penn Ave. (Garfield)
9/23/2004 7:30 PM
Campaign 2004, Key Issues: The Economy and Foreign Policy
Carnegie Lecture Hall, Carnegie Library and Museum (Oakland)
9/23/2004 7:30 PM
"The Man Behind the Words" the 8th Anniversary of Pgh North Anti-Racism Coalition will focus on life of Frank Bolden
YWCA Center for Race Relations, 8500 Thompson Run Rd., (McCandless)
9/23/2004 8:00 PM
Off the Record IV: Talk Show Smackdown (Satirizing Pittsburgh for a Good Cause)
Byham Theater (downtown)
9/24/2004 1:00 PM
Interfaith Listening Team - Full day of video, prayers, dinner and program
Grace Memorial Presbyterian Church (Oakland)
9/24/2004 7:00 PM
"Women of the Word" book signing and social with evening reflection in the spirituality of art and poetry
Kearns Spirituality Center 9000 Babcock Blvd. (Allison Park)
9/24/2004 7:00 PM
Freeing Up the Praying Self Through Writing
Franciscan Spirit & Life Center, 3605 McRoberts Rd.
9/24/2004 10:00 PM
Midnight Espresso: Celebrating Creative Legends of the African Diaspora
Shadow Lounge, 5972 Baum Blvd. (East Liberty)
9/25/2004 12:00 AM
Keep Space for Peace Week
U.S. & Europe
9/25/2004 12:00 AM
Counter Rally Against NeoNazi's in Valley Forge PA (exact time TBA)
Valley Forge, PA
9/25/2004 10:00 AM
Haiti Solidarity Committee meeting
Thomas Merton Center, 5125 Penn Ave. (Garfield)
9/25/2004 11:00 AM
Interfaith Listening Team - community activities, dinner, prayers, "Working Together" Muslim/Christian dialogue
Islamic Center of Pittsburgh, 4100 Bigelow Blvd. (Oakland)
9/25/2004 12:00 PM
Regent Square Peace Vigil
corner of Forbes and Braddock
9/25/2004 12:00 PM
Beaver County Peace Links Weekly Saturday Peace Vigil
Beaver County Courthouse, 3rd Street (Beaver)
9/25/2004 12:00 PM
Alternative to Warfare Vigil
Unitarian Church, North Ave and Resaca (Northside)
9/25/2004 1:00 PM
Black Voices for Peace Anti-War Protest
Corner of Penn and Highland in East Liberty
9/25/2004 7:00 PM
Film screening of "Peaceable Kingdom"
Unitarian Universalist Church, 1240 Washington Rd (South Hills)
9/25/2004 7:00 PM
A Retrospect and Update of his filmmaking by Tony Buba
Homestead's Pumphouse (on Waterfront Dr., past Lowe's and the railbridge)
9/26/2004 9:30 AM
Interfaith Listening Team - Christian/Muslim adult Sunday school,
Cross Roads Presbyterian Church, 2310 Haymaker Rd (Monroeville)
9/26/2004 3:00 PM
Forum for Sharing Thoughts on Peace: "Are We Setting Ourselves Up for a Global Crisis?"
Kearns Spirituality Center, 9000 Babcock Blvd. (McCandless

Are You Really Registered to Vote?
Think you're registered to vote? You may be wrong! Recently, MoveOn checked public voter files in some key states, and found up to 30% of MoveOn members were not registered.
Although almost all of us think we are registered, there are lots of things that can happen in the process. Luckily, there's a simple solution to this problem: Register.
Make sure you're not turned away from the voting booth on Nov. 2, by registering now.
It takes less than five minutes.
http://www.yourvotematters.org/vote/index.cfm?ms=NLV001

CUCKOO FOR COCOA ADS
Matt Taibbi, AlterNet
A much-lauded ad campaign uses a new bag of tricks to shill its product, Snickers.
Too bad that bag of tricks is just innovative visual spectacle obscuring child labor issues and non-Fair Trade chocolate.
http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/19953/

The death penalty deserves to be an issue this election season
It hasn't yet emerged as an issue in the presidential race, but the number of wrongly convicted people freed from death row continues to expose flaws in the way justice is carried out. Last week, the non-profit Death Penalty Information Center released a report on the number of exonerations, and found more than 100 people freed from wrongful conviction since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. (http://www.motherjones.com/news/blog/2004/09/MB_2004_39.html#1

from the desk of Selena Butler

"You cannot make yourself feel something you do not feel, but you can make
yourself do right in spite of your feelings."
- Pearl S. Buck

Subject: Rap Sheet Workshop 9-29-04
BRIDGING THE GAP - MOVING BEYOND YOUR CRIMINAL RECORD
A Workshop for Ex-OffendersWednesday, September 29 from 1 to 4:30 p.m.

• Lunch at 1 p.m.
• Workshop begins at 1:30 p.m.
• McKeesport Career Link 345 Fifth Avenue in McKeesport

Topics Include:

• Getting A Copy of Your Rap Sheet
• Expungement Procedures
• Correcting Your Rap Sheet
• Discussing Your Criminal Record with Employers
• Understanding Child Support Issues
• Talking With Other Ex-Offenders

REGISTER- CALL THE MVI WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT TEAM BY

• MONDAY, SEPT. 27AT 412-464-4000, EXT 4001

Selena Butler, Case Manager/Workforce Development Specialist/GCDF

Mon Valley Initiative 303-305 E. Eighth Avenue

Homestead, PA 15120 412-464-4000, Ext. 4023412-464-1750 (fax)

whatta ya mean, there's no jobs!

Do you know someone who needs a job?

Please have them apply at the community-based Gregg Services office nearest
to them: Greensburg, Cranberry, Canonsburg, or Downtown Pittsburgh.
We are continuously recruiting for all types of jobs, the
ones listed below and various clerical, professional, light industrial,
customer service, skilled trades, and other commercial
positions.
Please [forward this info] and help to stimulate our region's economy.

GREGG SERVICES/INDUSTRIAL EMPLOYEES

Internal Position, 412-702-9000x218, 412-702-9011 fax,
shannong@greggservices.com

Greensburg, 724-853-7710, 724-853-7720 fax, Katie Lakatosh,
katie.lakatosh@greggservices.com

Cranberry, 724-776-0400, 724-776-4477 fax, Joanne Rieger,
jrieger@greggservices.com

Canonsburg, 724-873-0990, 724-873-0993 fax,Cindy Smith,
csmith@greggservices.com

Downtown Pittsburgh, 412-642-7422, 412-208-9011 fax, Mary Lou Wetzel,
mwetzel@greggservices.com

GREGG PROTECTION SERVICES
412-702-9000 x208, 412-702-9011fax,
mwasilak@greggservices.com

does this sound familiar...yet?

Russia’s Quagmire
On ending the standoff in Chechnya
Rajan Menon

"The estimate of Chechen deaths ranges from 20,000 to 100,000 for the first war and 14,000 to 80,000 for the second; the lower figures are favored by Moscow, the higher ones by Western governments and Russian human-rights organizations. If the latter are right, roughly 15 percent of Chechnya’s civilian population has died since the first Russian invasion.

More than 300,000 Chechens have become refugees in Chechnya’s interior. About as many have escaped Chechnya; most are in Ingushetia, which, by the end of 1999, hosted more than 200,000 Chechen refugees. Most have been taken in by Ingush families, while roughly 77,000 live in tent colonies and rail carriages.

A generation of Chechens is growing into adulthood in these camps, where food and medicine are scarce and disease and despair rampant. Still, the refugees cling to these shabby havens despite efforts from Moscow to pressure them to return by threatening arrest and withholding basic necessities and humanitarian aid. They
stay because at home, in addition to war and ruins, they would face insults, abduction, torture, rape, and extortion by Russian soldiers or the even crueler
kontraktniki, mercenaries drawn to Chechnya by attractive wages. (more...)

a little sleight of hand

THE RAID ON MEDICARE--Kelly Hearn, AlterNet
The real cost of the Medicare prescription drug bill is finally emerging:
The drug industry gets more than $100 billion in profits, while seniors
and taxpayers get the tab. http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/19904/

JOURNALISM UNDER FIRE--Bill Moyers
"I believe democracy requires 'a sacred contract' between journalists and those who put their trust in us to tell them what we can about how the world really works."
http://www.alternet.org/mediaculture/19918/TAKING

BACK THE YOUTH VOTE--Jane Eisner, AlterNet
The nation has always been brilliant at granting the right to vote, and then making it difficult to actually accomplish.
http://www.alternet.org/election04/19926/

MISSING: A MEDIA FOCUS ON THE SUPREME COURT--Norman Solomon, AlterNet
Little attention has focused on a matter of profound importance: The U.S. Supreme Court's three potential vacancies.
http://www.alternet.org/columnists/story/19916/

more of the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild Youth offerings

Enrollment for Autumn 2004 Apprenticeship Training program
Runs 3- 5 p.m., Monday, September 20- Friday, September 24.
Come early in the week to reserve a spot in the classes you want most.
See our Youth Programs page for course descriptions and schedule.
Call ext. 165 for details.

A New Look at School-Day Programs
Artists in Schools
Artists-in-Schools work collaboratively with classroom teachers to plan and implement arts experiences that support the accomplishment of Learning Standards across content areas. Development of school based learning partnerships takes place throughout the school year. These residencies bring an artist/educator to a school from one to three days each week and last from one week to an entire semester. MCG artists add educational value to the school by working as a collaborative partner to...
enhance the environment through the creation of artworks;
create partnerships that cross academic disciplines and link the schoolwith the community;
emphasize teamwork among students;
support academic concepts with creative and practical problem solving; and,
increase awareness of future educational and career opportunities.

High school teachers who need more information about applying for a school-based residency can contact Curriculum Coordinator, Laura McManus.

A Day at the Guild!
School Day Visits encourage high school students to explore the creative process while developing critical and analytical thinking skills. Experiences range from thematically based, hands-on skill building projects… to student-centered investigative discussions…to something in between.
School Day Visits are offered free of charge to Pittsburgh Public School teachers and students. Transportation is also provided free of charge. Depending on length of visit, lunch may also be provided. School Day Visits can be tailored to meet your curriculum needs and time constraints.
Activities are offered in three categories:
Studio Experiences, Gallery Experiences and Site Visits with Demonstrations.

To schedule a School Day Visit, contact Julie McKay@ 412-322-1773, ext. 301.

Art Explorers
Pittsburgh's Public Middle Schools participate in arts-integrated curriculum using MCG Arts exhibtions as a departure point. Art Explorers investigate the world of creative careers through problem based learning.
Gallery discussions include technical considerations in the creation of the artwork, the artist's influences and unique point of view and critical analysis of the work. By engaging students in a dialogue about contextual information relevant to the artwork, students are introduced to interdisciplinary learning and transfer of knowledge.
Exhibition Guides directly related to artwork hanging in the MCG galleries also provide teachers with an additional resource to help make the links between the arts, academic content areas and career exploration.
Hands-on learning experiences in each of the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild's three art studios – ceramics, digital arts and photography complete the visit to MCG. Projects reinforce contextual and technical concepts discussed during the gallery component through the creation of individual and collaborative artworks.
In some instances, project activities continue in the students' classrooms through follow-up lessons provided by MCG staff. Studio based projects, including follow-up activities, challenge students to consider career options in which the studio's specific skill content could be applied. Art Explorers is generously supported with a grant from the Eden Hall Foundation.
For more information, middle school teachers can contact Rebecca Peifer.

Arts and Career Exploration (ACE)
Arts Career Exploration (ACE), a newly established Middle School initiative of Manchester Craftsmen's Guild and the Pittsburgh Board of Education, is designed to inspire middle school students to pursue academic achievement by infusing curriculum with arts and career exploration experiences. Through the generous support of the Department of Education and the Eden Hall Foundation, ACE Places include Columbus, Knoxville, Reizenstein and The Options Center Middle Schools and their communities. An ACE Place is committed to…
using the arts as a catalyst for learning.
creating a community environment of support.
seeking parental involvement as a key to academic success
embrace the potential of every student to succeed.

For more information, middle school teachers can contact Rebecca Peifer.

violence-proofing our young'ns!

Raising a Nonviolent Child
Six core strengths every child needs to be humane and to protect herself from violence.
By Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D.; Introduction by Lisa Feder-Feitel

When Kids Can't Relate

Tough Questions for Difficult Times

School shootings and the graphic violence we all see in the media change the way adults and children view the world -- from bright and full of promise to a dark and potentially dangerous place. Even at the tender age of two, a child may experience a bully's threat or imitate his favorite cartoon character and tackle a friend in the playground. Exposure to violence can change the way children feel, act, and behave. Yet some children are more resistant than others and a rare few are immune. (more...)

news from the far east

Japan: Private vs. Public Nursery Schools
The nursery my son goes is a kuritsu (public as opposed to private), and we cannot thank enough to the teachers there to support our child-rearing. The other day I was asked to answer some questionnaire from a local representative (ku-gikai-giin), then realized that the Tokyo government has this policy to scrap all the public nurseries and have them all run by private entities in the near future. Read more...