[Aphio-L] Fwd: Careers in Community Organizing for Social Justice for Alpha Phi Omega members at OU!

Laura Hopkins hopkins.laurac at gmail.com
Wed Apr 21 20:55:06 EDT 2010


---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: pg359606-forward <pattyguzowski at gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Apr 21, 2010 at 2:07 PM
Subject: Patricia - Careers in Community Organizing for Social Justice for
Alpha Phi Omega members at OU!
To: "Hopkins, Laura" <lh260406 at ohio.edu>




---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Hannah Wittmer <hannah at thedartcenter.org>
Date: Mon, Apr 19, 2010 at 2:42 PM
Subject: Patricia - Careers in Community Organizing for Social Justice for
Alpha Phi Omega members at OU!
To: pg359606 at ohio.edu


Dear Patricia,

I hope you are doing well.  My name is Hannah Wittmer and I'm a community
organizer with the Direct Action and Research Training (DART) Center.  I
noticed on the OU student activities website that you are associated with
Alpha Phi Omega, and I was hoping you may be able to help me identify
students who might be interested in learning more about a career in
community organizing. We will be visiting the OU campus on Wed., May 5 @ 7PM
in the Baker University Center, Rm 231 to talk about careers in community
organizing with DART.

As you may know, the DART Center has been conducting a paid training program
for those seeking a career in grassroots community organizing for the last
ten years, and has enabled dozens of people to launch permanent salaried
positions in the field.  You may also be familiar with our Columbus, OH
affiliate -- BREAD -- and their work to substantially lower payday lending
rates in Ohio.

This is an excellent opportunity for people interested in organizing at the
local level around common issues affecting low-moderate income communities
like affordable housing, immigrant rights, access to healthcare, quality
public education, youth services, crime, etc.  Let me know if you have any
direct referrals to certain students involved with Alpha Phi Omega. I would
be happy to provide a personal invitation to our Info Session by phone or
email to anyone that you know that has a particular interest in this area.
Though I have learned over the years that the personal invite seems to work
the best, I was also wondering if you could make an announcement during an
upcoming meeting or pass along an announcement to any relevant listservs.
I have provided a brief description below and a flyer attached for the DART
Center, and our efforts on campus. Please feel free to forward this
announcement to available listservs, fellow student group leaders, interns,
or to anyone you know that might be interested in pursuing grassroots
organizing as a career.

Thank you for your help, and please let me know about certain students you
could recommend.

(ANNOUNCEMENT BELOW)

Sincerely,

Hannah Wittmer
Community Organizing Recruiter
Direct Action and Research Training Center
(785) 841-2680
hannah at thedartcenter.org
www.thedartcenter.org

Message to forward to OU students and alums:

**************************************************
Careers in Community Organizing for Social Justice Available to OU students
and alums!

The Direct Action & Research Training (DART) Center will be on the OU campus
on Wed., May 5 @ 7PM in the Baker University Center, Rm 231 to discuss
careers in the field of community organizing with students interested in
empowering their communities and working for social change.

Please RSVP if you are interested by contacting Hannah Wittmer at
hannah at thedartcenter.org or calling 785.841.2680 with your name, phone #,
email address and school.

After years of research into best practices, experimentation, evaluation,
and refinement, the Organizers Institute has become THE elite field school
in the training of grassroots community organizers in the country.

DART is now accepting applications for the 2010 DART Organizers Institute,
the paid, four-month field school for people interested in launching a
career in community organizing. Participants will undergo a combined
classroom and field training covering such topics as:

* Entering a community
* Identifying and training local leaders
* Strategic planning and issue cutting
* Relationship and community building
* Direct Action on community issues
* Fundraising

The DART Center has built coalitions throughout the country that have won
important victories on a broad set of justice issues including:

* Education reform in low-performing public schools
* Job Training
* Drugs and Violence
* Criminal Recidivism
* Living Wage
* Neighborhood Revitalization
* Predatory Lending
* Affordable Housing, etc.

The DART Organizers Institute combines a 7-day classroom orientation with 15
weeks of infield training at a DART host organization. This is a paid
training program that includes: a $7,000 living stipend, transportation to
the classroom orientation and host city, and mileage reimbursement during
the infield training. Room, board, and tuition will also be paid by DART
during the 7-day classroom training. After successful completion of the
program, DART will work to place graduates into permanent full time salaried
positions ranging from ($32-35,000/year for Associate Organizers and
$35-40,000 for Lead Organizers starting salary + health & benefits). DART is
a 501(c)(3) organization, therefore, employees of the DART Network are
eligible for Public Service Loan Forgiveness under the recently enacted
College Cost Reduction and Access Act.  For more information on Public
Service Loan Forgiveness, visit www.ibrinfo.org.

Graduates from the four month DART Organizers Institute have gone onto
accept Executive Director and Associate Community Organizing positions
throughout the country.

The 7-day classroom orientation and 15-week infield training start in July
2010. Training locations will include placements in several states around
the country.

Although it may be helpful, no direct experience is necessary. Organizer
Trainees (OTs) hired to participate in the DART Organizers Institute must
demonstrate a desire to pursue community organizing as a long-term
professional career. A master's degree, JD, or similar life experience is
preferred though not necessary. Candidates must have a college degree or be
graduating prior to July 2010. Also, candidates must display a workmanlike
diligence, be driven to produce sustained results, have proven capacity to
build relationships of trust, create and execute a plan, act professionally,
feel comfortable working with religious institutions, be accountable and
willing to hold others accountable, demonstrate disciplined thought and
action, and work in a team setting.  OTs must also have access to a car
during their training and be flexible regarding relocation. Fluency in
Spanish/English is a plus and people of color are encouraged to apply.

Low and moderate income communities across the country are feeling the bite
of recession on issues like healthcare, education, employment, and housing.
At the same time, the field of community organizing has obtained more
legitimacy and interest than ever before given its recent profile in the
2008 presidential election.  Low and moderate income communities are in need
of passionate and talented individuals with the dedication and skills
necessary to transform communities.  Now is the time to stand up for social
and economic justice.

To find out more about DART or to apply, we encourage you to contact: Hannah
Wittmer, DART Network, 820 New York Street Lawrence, KS 66044 or by email:
hannah at thedartcenter.org. If you have any questions, please call: (785)
841-2680. Also, you can download applications or view profiles from previous
OTs at the DART website: www.thedartcenter.org.



-- 
Senior - Advertising Management
E.W. Scripps School of Journalism

Cell: (440)283-7776
Email: pattyguzowski at gmail.com



-- 
In LFS,
Laura Hopkins

Alpha Phi Omega - National Service Fraternity
President
440.223.8382
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