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NCCAA Conference is October 28-30 |
The NCCAA virtual conference is upon us! Join us for a few days of professional panels, presentations and networking! Presentations and panels include topics like housing, social determinants of health, policy updates and more! This year we are also excited to have some special entertainment from a virtual magician and a live cooking demonstration you can follow along with. This two and a half day conference is both informative and refreshing! Participants will also receive a special conference package and a surprise in the mail, but you have to register by October 15th for it to arrive in time!
You can still register for the conference, so click that button below to sign up or check out our agenda to see what else we have planned.
We're excited to see you there!
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ROMA Pre-Conference
Are you a ROMA professional? Join us and the other ROMA professionals for our one day ROMA pre-conference on October 27th. You'll learn about the latest updates, connect with your peers and increase your ROMA prowess. See you there!
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Board Summit
Are you on a board? Ever have questions about what to do or how you can help your organization? Then this is the one day summit for you! Join us on October 27th to learn how to be a better board member while networking and connecting with other board members from across North Carolina. It's a learning and networking opportunity you'll want to take advantage of.
See you there!
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Returning Citizens and Voting |
Many returning citizens are able to vote but don't know that they can. Here are some quick tips on who with a criminal record can vote and where to find more information:
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In NC, voters in detention facilities may be eligible to vote if not currently serving a felony conviction. Voters who are charged with and/or convicted of a misdemeanor never lose the right to vote. More details here
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From a ruling last week, voters on probation with fines/fees as the sole reason for the felony probation, are now eligible to register to vote. Click here for state guidance on this ruling.
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With so much confusion about voting rights, including who is eligible, and some of the changing laws, You Can Vote is a reliable source for nonpartisan fact-based voting information. You Can Vote is available to offer voter services like voter registration forms, absentee ballot requests, and zoom trainings for staff to make sure everyone knows the facts. You Can Vote also will provide you material free of charge to make sure to hang up in your facility, on a community board, in the courthouse lobby, etc. Click here for our training resources.
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Case Management and Head Start Family Engagement Certifications |
Want to train your new staff members, or give your current staff a professional development opportunity? Our next certification cohorts are an excellent choice for professional development and training. They come highly rated by our past participants, are 100% online, last 8 weeks and come with a university-sealed certificate.
The Case Management certification starts October 12. Our next Head Start certification will begin in 2021. Learn more and register below!
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Success Story: Provided by Yadkin Valley Economic Development District, Inc. (YVEDDI)
We are so proud of all the success our agencies achieve! These stories have been collected, adapted, and edited for clarity.
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A young lady came into YVEDDI requesting help with a Domestic Violence Protection Order. Over the course of the last seven years she had been severely abused physically, emotionally, verbally and financially. She suffered from severe anxiety and the high levels of stress were causing hives. Her abuser made her believe she was having a mental break and got her addicted to prescription drugs. The YVEDDI staff helped her with the paperwork for the protection order, found her a shelter as close by as possible, and told her she would have to come back Monday to go before the Judge. The Magistrate granted her protection order and the Social Services caseworker took her along with law enforcement to retrieve their belongings. During the ongoing case, staff attended court with her, provided her with food and gas cards, and referred her to all additional services she qualified for. Since living in the shelter, she has enrolled her two small children in elementary and preschool, and she has gotten a full-time job along with a part-time seasonal job. She is in the process of finding a home that she can afford and a reliable vehicle. Since leaving her abuser, she always has a smile on her face.
This story represents one of thousands of customers enrolled in a program at their local community action agency. Community Action Works!
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Community Action News, Publications and Features |
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Blue Ridge Opportunity Commission was able to raise
$18, 219 by hosting their 39th annual Little Princess Pageant. Congratulations to the winners and BROC for the new funding.
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Charlotte Area Fund is now offering professional training courses in Fiber Optic Technician, Certified Premise Cabling Technician, and HVAC professional. These are great new opportunities for the Mecklenburg county residents. |
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Passage Home was featured in this news article about homelessness and the housing crisis. It shows all the great work they do to help families keep their homes. Great work Passage Home! |
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NCCARE360 is the first of its kind in our country, and we have the opportunity to be part of it! If your organization has not already registered with them, do that now! Be one of over 1,000 that are connecting to provide better case management to people in need. |
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Greene Lamp turned 55 years old in September. Happy birthday! We're proud to have you as part of our network. |
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"Avery County has reached an agreement with W.A.M.Y. Community Action for the nonprofit to administer $49,500 in funds the county received through the neighborhood revitalization program grant." We are excited about the new funds! Great work WAMY!
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Southeastern Community Action Partnership (formerly Southeastern Community and Family Services Inc) hosted a virtual town hall event to help families learn how to fill out the 2020 census. Attendees with children also received a book bag. |
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The network was featured in a series of articles from WRAL! This one is on the work we do to improve social determinants of health. Patsy Davis from Mountain Projects has this excellent quote. "'We see a lot of folks living in inadequate housing. Unfortunately, in many parts of North Carolina, we don't have an adequate supply of affordable housing and rentals,' said Davis. 'If a person cannot keep heat in their home or their home is not safe and sanitary — that's a foundation for their social determinants of health to be at risk. Especially for children; there are lots of studies that talk about how adequate housing helps a child be successful.'"
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The NCCAA has partnered with the NC Head Start Association and I Love Choice FM radio to do a weekly radio talk show covering the issues Community Action agencies address and face. You can listen to the Listen Up NC radio shows on our Facebook page or on our YouTube! Feel free to share these on your platforms.
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*Social determinants of health is a new buzz word within social services. Social determinants represent factors of our physical, emotional and social environment that have key impacts on our health. In fact, 80% of our health outcomes are determined by where we live, work and play. For more than 50 years, community action agencies have provided a variety of programs and services which improve social determinants of health for low-income citizens. Each month, we will highlight a Community Action Agency and their work to improve the living conditions and environments of
low-income citizens.
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Social Determinants of Health*: Making Every Home a Little Safer |
This month's feature is Johnston-Lee-Harnett Community Action. Johnston-Lee-Harnett Community Action is one of our agencies that provides weatherization and home safety updates to North Carolinians. This work helps create safer homes, which can help reduce medical bills, accidents and safety risks.
Recently they helped "Chloe” and “Ethan”, senior citizens in Harnett county. They were struggling to get in and out of their old bathtub safely. The Healthy Homes Initiative Funds paid to have their old bathtub replaced with a tile shower. “It’s so much safer for me and my husband to get in the shower now with my bad leg and his bad hip. This is more of a blessing than you could ever imagine.” Read more success stories from our agencies here
Great work, Johnston-Lee-Harnett Community Action! Thanks for helping your clients have a safe home! And thanks to BlueCross BlueShield of North Carolina for investing in our communities!
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Shout out and Congratulations!...... Anastasiya Sushyk, who has joined the NCCAA team as an Account and Grant Manager!
Anastasiya is originally from Eastern Europe, and lived in New York City before moving to Raleigh. She worked at the NCCAA as an intern for almost two years while she as earning her degree. She graduated from NCSU with a Bachelor's of Science in Accounting with a Financial Analysis Concentration in 2017. She is excited to be part of the NCCAA team again.
We are so thrilled to have your as part of our network, Anastasiya! And we look forward to your contributions to the NC Community Action network!
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Miss any of the webinars in our series? Email us at [email protected] to get the recording! Recordings are available at no cost to NCCAA members. |
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We provide training on demand based on your specific needs and goals. Whether you want training on ROMA, marketing, human resources, board training, strategic planning, or special topics like secondary trauma and motivational interviewing.
Request a training by emailing [email protected] and tell us what you're looking for!
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Ribbon of Hope offers one-time grants of $25,000 to nonprofit projects furthering science, health and education. These funds should be used to develop a new initiative or grow and expand and/or enhance an existing program. Proposals will be considered that address critical community needs that have been identified through comprehensive needs assessment activities and demonstrate their sustainability after grant funds are expended.
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Grants can be used for general organizational support or funding for specific projects. Priority is given to applicants that address funding priorities from a holistic perspective, operate with clearly defined objectives and viable plans to achieve them, demonstrate strong community ties and operate at the community level, and promote positive change through both the projects and their implementation process.
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Ben and Jerry’s is offering a one-year grant for up to $25,000 to organizations with budgets under $500,000. Ben and Jerry’s has priority strategies that need to be included. If you’re agency aligns with their theory of change, people most affected by a problem are in the best position to determine the solutions, consider this funding opportunity.
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This grant is for Economic Development projects in the areas of Economic Investment and Job Creation, Workforce Preparedness and Education, Agriculture, and Community Vitality. Although applications are accepted from across the state funded projects must benefit tobacco-dependent, economically distressed, and/or rural communities.
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Due date: October 31
The Lawrence Foundation typically gives grants between $5,000-$10,000. Past organizations that have been funded address the following areas of interest: environment, human services, and disaster relief. If you miss the October 31 deadline you can shoot for April 30 next year.
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October
November
Got thoughts, articles, ideas, suggestions for OUR newsletter? We'd love to hear them. Please take a minute to share - send to [email protected]. Thank you!
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