Women and Girls Foundation Advocacy Survey

The Women and Girls Foundation (WGF) is working to track the impact of the economic downturn on women and girl-serving agencies in Southwest Pennsylvania to position ourselves to better support agencies in their advocacy efforts in the coming months - especially in regards to the State Budget and the Economic Stimulus Package.
 
In an effort to better understand how agencies plan to advocate for increased public investments in their causes, and what help we could provide, we are asking that you take a few minutes to complete our survey, which should take no longer than 10-15 minutes of your time. Your insights will be instrumental in helping us understand how funding for services has been impacted and what policy advocacy opportunities you will be engaged in during March-April 2009 (related to the state budget and stimulus funds) and over the next 6 to 18 months which we might be able to help support. While WGF will not be in a position to award grant dollars until Q4 2009, we do have staff and technical capacities which we can lend to others in support of advocacy activities (such as grassroots advocacy support, attendance at legislator meetings, testimony at hearings, etc.).
 
To complete the survey, please follow this link.
 
To ensure that we have sufficient time to mobilize for the March and April Harrisburg hearings and meetings related to the state budget and the Pennsylvania aid package it is important that we hear from you as soon as possible. If you haven't done so already, please complete the survey by Friday, March 20, 2009. If you have any questions, please contact Adriana Dobrzycka, Program Officer, by phone (412-434-4883) or by e-mail (adriana@wgfpa.org). Thank you again for your feedback and support!

UCP Kids March Workshop and Ice Cream Social:
Get the Scoop!
Inclusive Education in Western Pennsylvania

High-quality inclusive education for students with all types of disabilities is happening throughout Western Pennsylvania. Right in our own backyard are numerous examples of visionary school districts and innovative IEP teams who sustain meaningful inclusive education for students from kindergarten through graduation.

Don't miss this exciting workshop to learn about the Pennsylvania Department of Education's new toolkit that guides IEP teams through steps toward successful inclusive education!  Join us for this Workshop and Ice Cream Social on March 23, 2009 from 6:00 - 9:00 pm, registration begins at 6:00 at the UCP Community Service Centre. Click here for more information.

Upcoming Trainings on Website Accessibility

FISA Foundation encourages all nonprofits to consider whether their programs and services are welcoming and accessible to people with disabilities. But people often think only about ramps and elevators while forgetting about website accessibility. FISA is proud to be partnering with the Bayer Center for Nonprofit Management to offer a series of three trainings in April (one on April 13 and the other two on April 21) on website accessibility.

So...could a young woman who is blind easily access your agency's website to learn about your programs?

If you don't know the answer, consider taking a class! Many of the same programming changes also make websites easier to use with cell phones and other mobile devices. Click here for more information.

Women and Girls Foundation Regional Change Agents

If we asked you to think big, to make some noise, to use your voice and talents to improve the lives of women and girls in your community - What would you do?  How would you want your life and your community to be different? What big changes would you make?

Engage in a bold and daring mission - right in your own backyard - to change your community. The Women & Girls Foundation is now recruiting applicants for a new program called Regional Change Agents­. IMAGINE what you could do if we gave you the tools and a team, to help you find - or create your own - solutions to make those big changes. Become a Change Agent - details and program application are available at www.wgfpa.org.

More about the program: Women & Girls Foundation Regional Change Agents is a new program serving Allegheny, Fayette, Greene and Washington counties.  Our goal is to train local women and girls to engage in civic advocacy in their own county. Small teams of adult and teen women will design, lead, and implement social change projects that tackle issues related to women & girls equality in their own community, and the broader region. WGF provides the tools and support teams need to find solutions to make change. Teen participants will also become social change philanthropists, awarding grant dollars to girl-led projects in their own community, while adult participants will receive negation training and the tools to train other women in the art of negotiation.

We welcome applicants of all backgrounds; however, there are three application requirements:

• Teen applicants must be in 8th through 11th grade for the 2009-2010 school year.
• Adult applicants must be employed by, or serve on the board of, a nonprofit organization in their county.
  
• All participants must reside in one of the five counties served by the Change Agents program: Allegheny, Fayette, Greene, Washington and Westmoreland.
  

Please share this information with your networks and help us recruit a diverse and engaged group of women and teens for this exciting new program. If you have questions, please contact Tara Simmons, WGF Director of Community Initiatives, at 412-258-2568 or tara@wgfpa.org.

• Depression
• Suicide risk
• Anxiety
• Alcohol and other drug/substance abuse
• Social phobia
• Panic disorder
• Obsessive compulsive disorder

• An estimated 750,000 teens in the United States suffer from depression.
• Suicide is the third leading cause of teenage death.
• Only 1/3 of teens at risk and 1/5 with mental illness receive treatment.

• Screening is always voluntary and written parental and adolescent consent are required.
• Screening may be as simple as a 15-20 minute computer-based interview with minimal follow-up.
• Based on those results, approximately one-third of the teens will be asked to participate in a longer interview with a Masters Level Clinician. Approximately half of those will need further referral information.
• Confidentiality is safeguarded and the information is not part of a student's permanent record.
• Due to generous grants Outreach is able to provide TeenScreen as a free service to the teen and their family.
  

Annual Cocktails and Cuisine Event

Save the date for the annual Cocktails and Cuisine Event for Women in Crisis. The unique after work grazing event of fabulous food and libations benefits Crisis Center North. The event will be held Thursday, May 7, 2009 from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. at the Woodlands in Bradford Woods. The evening features The Second Annual Caesar Salad Taste Off; Pittsburgh's Hottest Soulful Vocalist, Jessica Lee; a great silent auction; and over two-dozen food, wine and beer purveyors to sample. Tickets are $60 per person or $75 VIP, which includes premier parking. For more information or sponsorship opportunities, please call 412-364-6728 x15 or visit www.crisiscenternorth.org.

Join POWER in Celebrating POWER PROMISES ~
A Night of Hope!
 

The 2009 POWER PROMISES ~ A Night of Hope benefit is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 21, at Heinz Field in the West Club Lounge.  One of Pittsburgh's premier fundraising events, POWER PROMISES will feature graduates of the organization's gender-responsive alcohol and drug treatment programs whose stories of recovery are a testament to their courage.  The event, hosted by Honorary Chair Roger Scarlett-Smith, President, GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare North America, will include dinner, auctions and raffles and live entertainment by local musician Etta Cox.  The evening will also include the presentation of the Window of Hope Award; this year's honoree is Dr. Morton "Moe" Coleman, Director Emeritus of the University of Pittsburgh's Institute of Politics.  For the sixth consecutive year, KDKA-TV's Brenda Waters will emcee the event.   
 
All proceeds will benefit POWER (Pennsylvania Organization for Women in Early Recovery), a local non-profit organization that provides gender-responsive, quality treatment and support services for women who are changing their lives through recovery from addiction to alcohol and other drugs. 
 
Individual reservations are available from POWER for $100 each; patron reservations are $150.  Tables of eight seats are available for $750 (a $50 discount); patron tables of eight seats are available for $1,100 (a $100 discount). 
 
To reserve your seat or learn more about sponsorship and donation opportunities, please contact Emily Stimmel at 412.243.7535, ext. 223 or estimmel@power-recovery.com, or visit www.power-recovery.com.


Become a fan of POWER on Facebook and follow  "POWERRecovery" on Twitter to stay up-to-date on the latest news and success stories!

Calling All Pittsburgh Women Leaders:

Coro Pittsburgh has just announced the dates for the thirteenth cycle of Women in Leadership (WIL)! 

 
WIL is a three-month, part-time evening program beginning Sept. 12, 2009. 

• Experience leadership with a group of peers
• Work with Personal Coach to create a Personal Strategic Plan
• Create Group Project
• Network with and interview local leaders               

Apply by July 31, 2009 for WIL XIII. Visit http://pittsburgh.coro.org/wil or contact mmckeehen@coro.org for more info.

• Raise the profile of your organization through a detailed profile in the Annual Resource Directory of Girl-serving organizations
• Post and promote your events on the Girls Coalition website
• Reach Girls Coalition members with eblasts about your organization's monthly events and special opportunities
• Learn about the latest information, resources, and trends about girls
• Receive advanced notice for all Girls Coalition professional development and educational events
• Connect and collaborate with a network of like-minded agencies and individuals on projects and amplify the regional profile of girls and girls' issues

Amazing Girl Lauren

Call for Amazing Girl Nominations

The Girls Coalition of Southwestern Pennsylvania is always accepting nominations for "Amazing Girls" to be featured in our newsletter. We have established broad criteria to consider when submitting an "Amazing Girl." We are interested in showcasing girls who demonstrate the following characteristics: leadership; commitment and willingness to work hard; perseverance; the drive to excel despite challenge; and creativity. The purpose of this feature is to hear about girls who may be "truly amazing" but have not yet been recognized. Please share your recommendations, and we can all see how she shines!

Send us an email about an Amazing Girl you think we should profile.

Member Profile:Victim Outreach Intervention Center (VOICe)

VOICe, located in Butler County, is the result of the 2000 merger between Center on Rape and Assault and Volunteers Against Abuse Center. This merger has exemplified how two similar and like minded agencies can come together and form a complete array of services for victims of domestic violence, rape, sexual assault, simple or aggravated assault, child sexual assault, adult survivors of sexual abuse or incest, sexual harassment, attempted homicides or families of homicide victims, terrorist threats, burglary and robbery. VOICe serves both children and adult victims. Service offerings include individual and group counseling, a 24 hours Crisis Hotline, emergency shelter, supportive housing, transitional housing, medical advocacy and a unique civil legal service where an attorney and paralegal is on staff to help clients. VOICe also provides education and outreach to inform the community about the issues involving the complex nature of domestic violence, sexual assault and violent crimes. Additionally it offers batterer intervention. 
 
Executive Director, Elizabeth Clark-Smith, describes the rural nature of Butler County and the fact that there is no bus service available to its residents. In response, VOICe has located service sites in Cranberry, Slippery Rock, Saxonburg, and Butler. VOICe is committed to working collaboratively with other community organizations and services providers and sits on the boards of two state wide organizations, Coalition against Domestic Violence and Coalition against Rape. 
 
VOICe works in a caring and holistic way with their clients to bring about social change and provide survivors of abuse and violence with the ability to take control of their lives. Its holistic service approach nurtures and guides clients to obtain self sufficiency and heal from the wounds of abuse.

For more information, visit the VOICe website.

Member Profile: Womansplace

The vision of Womansplace is to end domestic violence through crisis intervention, prevention education and direct services. Our mission is to support individuals and families exposed to relationship abuse by providing shelter, legal and medical advocacy and options counseling. Womansplace seeks to increase victim safety and empower these individuals to begin again. 

Womansplace has been a catalyst for changing the lives of victims of domestic violence for thirty-three years. Fifty-one communities within Southern Allegheny County, Pennsylvania recognize the comprehensive services Womansplace provides as a necessary resource for victims.   
 
Womansplace is a member of the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Domestic Violence (PCADV). PCADV is a private non-profit organization with a statewide network of 62 domestic violence programs across the Commonwealth. Womansplace is required to meet PCADV standards and is monitored on a bi-annual basis. Womansplace is currently held in the highest regard by PCADV.
 
With that being said, Womansplace is pleased to announce that because of their commitment to outstanding management, the organization was recently named finalist for the 2008 Alfred W. Wishart, Jr. Award for Excellence in Nonprofit Management.

According to Fran Trimpey, Development Coordinator of Womansplace, "Being recognized was an energizing experience and we are very proud of our accomplishments. However, we realize that to truly live in a world where domestic violence does not exist, we have many barriers to overcome in breaking the cycle of violence; one of which is to continue to enrich our programs and services in the best interest of those we serve, victims of domestic violence and their children."
 
"Please review our annual report. We are certain that you will be pleased with our abilities to sustain our current services offered to victims and, through collaboration and partnerships, design and implement additional programs that will have a tremendous positive impact on the entire community."  
 
Womansplace looks forward to sharing information and resources and collaborating with the Girls Coalition membership to bring light to the issues surrounding women and girls.

Volunteer Advocacy Training

• Sending out a mass email
• Mailing interested family and friends
• Hanging posters in your local community centers, work place or place of worship
• Asking your church or synagogue to put the training dates in their weekly/monthly mailings or worship bulletin
• Announcing the training opportunity at any community groups or functions you may be attending
• Advertising it in your work or community group newsletter

Job Opportunity: North Hills Youth Ministry Counseling Center