ARC Member Profile: Steven Berti, ACCESS

Steven Berti started as an AmeriCorps Recovery member in 2009 for ACCESS in Dearborn, Michigan.  Steve graduated from Western Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with an emphasis on Human Resources Management.  He is quiet but very smart and highly motivated.

Steven has had the wonderful opportunity to help many people within the surrounding community since he has become the Volunteer Coordinator.  Steve has helped people in various ways, including helping students gain credit for school, helping people gain experience for  future endeavors, and helping people to gain a sense of pride within their community.  He has assisted a lot of people and he has really enhanced the volunteer program.

The AmeriCorps Recovery Member program has been a huge help for Steven as well.  He was able to help out the surrounding community while gaining experience after he graduated from college.  Steve recommends the Arab American Resource Corps program to everyone who wants to get involved with their community and gain valuable experience.

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NNAAC Member Profile: Arab American Family Services,

Arab American Family Services (AAFS), founded in 2001, provides caring, compassionate, multilingual assistance to south suburban “Chicagoland” residents. AAFS offers support in the areas of public benefits, immigration, domestic violence, mental health, and elderly services. It also sponsors outreach programs to build healthier families and communities. As a locally focused, nonpolitical and nonreligious agency, AAFS works to build bridges of respect and understanding between Arab American and mainstream American cultures. By helping local neighbors overcome personal crises, strengthen their families, and live healthier, more successful lives, AAFS is making a profound and positive impact in its community.  

AAFS was established in 2001 by Nareman Taha and Itedal Shalabi, two women who witnessed the dire need for a social service agency that would advocate and address the issues and concerns of the Arab American community. With hard work and dedication, they took their idea from conception to the reality of AAFS today. It has 25 employees and volunteers working daily; they own the building where many services take place; and AAFS is a well-respected services provider.

AAFS is currently putting the final touches on a back to school drive to distribute full backpacks to 116 area children.  A growing initiative is their work on the prevention of domestic violence in the community.   AAFS meets with local police departments; sponsors an October walk to bring awareness, hosts a monthly women’s discussion group, provides rights education and quarterly financial literacy workshops for women.

AAFS filled eight slots for Summer VISTA Associates. These individuals are providing important services, including basic casework, health education program development, and background work for BIA accreditation.  AAFS is also providing low-income energy assistance sponsored by the Cook County Economic Development Association.  A relatively new program is elderly clubs, one each for men and women.  This is popular with new immigrants who speak limited English. On the civic engagement side, AAFS sponsors an Arab Americans in public office luncheon in April.

For more information, visit www.arabamericanfamilyservices.org. Check out the Sponsors and Partners pages of the website to see a good approach to acknowledging support that also enhances AAFS’ credibility.

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Resource Roundup

CompassPoint Nonprofit Services – The Arab American Cultural and Community Center amd Somali Community Services have used this San Francisco-based nonprofit management support organization with a national reputation.  One of its products is BoardCafe, regular articles on issues related to the board of directors.  The Articles and Research sections of the website are very good and the site is searchable by topic. Check it out at www.compasspoint.org.

Blue Avocado – This is a relatively light-hearted approach to providing nonprofit resources.  There are games, but there are also many serious articles such as Five Internal Controls for the Very Small Nonprofit.  Check the Ask Rita in HR section for answers to questions like Can Employees Smoke Medical Marijuana at Work?  www.blueavocado.org

Many NNAAC member organizations, including AAAN in Chicago, have referenced material from The Development Plan by Linda Lysakowski – This book is part of the Nonprofit Essentials series from the Association of Fundraising Professionals (AFP).  It was published by John Wiley and Sons in 2007 and is available from Amazon for $33.35 plus shipping.  You can even get a Kindle edition. The book provides excellent advice and tools to help your organization create a development plan.  AFP is a great resource for volunteers to join your board or fund development committee.  It may even have a member who would help research or write proposals on a volunteer basis.  AFP also is a source of experienced and ethical consultants. You can find local chapters through its national site here.

ARC Member Profile: Mae Ramadan

Mae Ramadan began her adventure as an AmeriCorps Recovery member for American Mideast Leadership Network (AMLN) in the Astoria, Queens, neighborhood in New York City in 2009.

A graduate from Rutgers University with a bachelor’s degree in political science and a master’s of science in global affairs, Mae is an energetic, highly motivated young woman who has been working tirelessly to promote the goals and objectives of AMLN.

Since she became the Employment Services Coordinator, Mae has helped dozens of Arab American men and women find jobs that allow them to support themselves and their families. Mae cannot go into a store or restaurant in the Arab section of Astoria without being greeted by someone she has helped. Mae has also played a pivotal role on the team working to develop the AMLN Grassroots Diplomacy Program, which brings college students from the United States and the Arab world together during an exchange program each year.

Mae has shown her dedication and commitment to serving the Arab American community by frequently traveling from New Jersey to New York to volunteer her time. Mae has provided AMLN with hundreds of hours of hard work that have been greatly appreciated, and she is recognized as a true leader of the organization’s team.

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NNAAC Member Profile: Somali Community Services

Somali Community Services (SCS) of San Jose, California, is NNAAC’s newest member, joining the Network in March of this year. Established in 2005, SCS focuses its work on after-school programming for young people, case management and helping bridge relationships between the Somali community and local schools.

SCS’s mission is to enhance the quality of life of low-income individuals residing in Santa Clara County. Its primary goal is to provide client services that assist refugees in adjusting to American norms and their new community with the least possible erosion of their family and cultural well-being. SCS’s funding is a strategic mix of government, foundation and individual support.

Plans for the next few years include:

• Responding to the social, cultural, health and education needs of the East African refugee and immigrant community;
• Promoting communications and understanding between East African refugees and Americans; and
• Assisting East Africans with the adjustment process.

SCS is already involved in a wide range of NNAAC activities. Executive Director Ahmed Heban(pictured above) participated in the 2009 NNAAC National Conference, and looks forward to attending this year’s event in New Jersey. SCS also participated in this year’s Arab American Service Day, serving food to the local homeless population. Most recently, staff was able to attend the Case Management workshop held in Dearborn, Michigan (see story).

According to Mr. Heban, “Being part of the NNAAC network will help Somali Community Services achieve our goal of becoming a very significant resource for the Somali community and beyond.”

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June Case Management Workshop is a Success

On June 9 and 10, 13 case managers from eight NNAAC member organizations met in Dearborn for in-depth training on improving case management practices. Topics included intake, assessment, service plan design, cultivating resource relationships, advocacy, program evaluation, and special aspects related to domestic violence victims.

Amne Talab and Brigitte Fawaz-Anouti from ACCESS Social Services played a major role in planning the two-day workshop as well as being trainers. Other trainers were Brett Seabury from the University of Michigan School of Social Work, and Huda Lutfi, case manager from the ACCESS Victims of Crime program.

Participants shared best practices from their organizations, identified changes they wanted to make “back home” and planned to continue to network with one another.

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Resource Roundup

Nonprofit Finance Fund – www.nonprofitfinancefund.org. NFF provides loans and good advice related to finance issues and space issues, including buying, accepting donations, renovating and moving. It has excellent pieces on coping with the recession, including: Questions to Consider in a Financial Crisis, Tips on Navigating the Financial Crisis, and Guide to Navigating Changing Times. BoardSource – www.boardsource.org. It is a truism that in the long run, a nonprofit is only as strong as its board of directors. This is the resource for building and training an effective board, including the working relationship between the staff and the board. Leading Change by John P. Kotter, Harvard Business School Press, 1996. Don’t let the publication date or business reference fool you. This is a good basic guide for nonprofit leaders on how to get the whole team on board with a process to make change happen in an organization. The NNAAC library has a copy.

The 8 Online Fundraising Changes You Must Make in 2010 – a free downloadable publication for Network for Good. Download the e-book here. Go to www.networkforgood.org and check out the Learning Center tab for lots of good fundraising and marketing information for free.

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Save the date! 9th Annual NNAAC Conference is Sept. 24-25, 2010, in Newark

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A Note from New NNAAC Director Nadia Tonova

As many of you know, beginning June 1, 2010, I came on board as NNAAC’s new director. I served as the Advocacy & Policy Supervisor with NNAAC for the past four years, and I have focused this month on transitioning into my new role, which has been going very smoothly thanks to all of your support!

As I embark on this new role with the Network, it is important to me to share my vision with you so that we can move forward together. First and foremost, I strongly believe that NNAAC is here to serve its member organizations. The mission of NNAAC is the development of Arab American community-based nonprofit organizations that understand and meet the needs and represent the concerns of Arab Americans at the local level and collectively address these issues on the national level. We cannot fulfill this important mission without listening to the needs of member organizations. By building strong local organizations, we will have the tools and resources necessary to come together at the national level and lift up the entire Arab American community!

Furthermore, I believe that NNAAC is headed in exciting new directions. We are at a crossroads; NNAAC has come so far since its inception in 2004, but there are even more exciting things on the horizon! We are establishing three new initiatives for the Network: Youth Leadership Development, Cultural Outreach, and a national Domestic Violence program. In the fall of 2010, we’ll be launching a NNAAC webinar series available to all members that will offer exciting, ongoing training opportunities. We are striving to strengthen and expand grant and scholarship opportunities offered to NNAAC members. Our Advocacy & Civic Engagement program is gearing up to engage Arab Americans in the 2010 elections. And our Arab American Resources Corps will once again be bringing AmeriCorps members together in January 2011 for a comprehensive training to kick off their year of service.

This year’s Annual NNAAC Conference, scheduled for September 24-25 on Rutgers campus in Newark, New Jersey, is shaping up to be the strongest yet! Centered around the theme Learn, Adapt, Succeed, we are offering high-quality workshops on everything from fundraising to developing new young leaders, a policy forum to discuss key issues facing Arab Americans, ample opportunities to network with Arab Americans from across the county, and exciting keynote speakers who are sure to inspire and leave you with new ideas to take back home. I hope to see you there!

As you can see, this is a very exciting time for NNAAC! Looking forward, I am thrilled for the opportunity to work with you as we continue to grow and strengthen the Network. Together we will take NNAAC to the next level!

Sincerely,
Nadia Tonova
Director of NNAAC

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