The Institute for the Study and Promotion of Race and Culture (ISPRC) is pleased to present the 13th annual Diversity Challenge: Intersections of Race, Culture, and Health or Mental Health. We seek proposals that focus on research, assessment, interventions, and health policies that move beyond merely comparing racial/ethnic groups to more fully considering the complexity of race and culture as effects on mental and physical health. We welcome proposals that address such issues across the lifespan and focus on specific age groups, such as children and adolescents and adults of all ages. Also, we encourage proposals outlining systemic approaches to these concerns, which may include preventive strategies, school interventions, and agency collaborations that focus on racial life experiences, such as racism and discrimination, and/or cultural attributes, such as resilience and health beliefs. Click here to submit your proposal. 

The Society for Social Work and Research (SSWR) announces its Eighteenth Annual Conference "Research for Social Change: Addressing Local and Global Challenges" which will convene in San Antonio, TX, January 15-19, 2014. You are invited to submit abstracts for one of the three types of presentations of original research: (1) oral paper presentations; (2) organized symposia; and (3) poster presentations. The conference will also include workshop and roundtable sessions for which you can submit abstracts. Abstract submissions will be handled through the SSWR/Confex online submission website. 

CALL FOR AUTHORS
Encyclopedia of Human Services and Diversity
Deadline: August 15, 2013
We are inviting academic editorial contributors to The Encyclopedia of Human Services and Diversity, a new 2-volume reference to be published by SAGE Publications. As a multi-contributor and interdisciplinary work, the Encyclopedia of Human Services and Diversity covers a wide range of disciplines within the human services field. The scope of this encyclopedia encompasses the association of diversity within the disciplines. The signed articles, with cross-references and Further Readings are accompanied by pedagogical elements, including a Reader's Guide, Chronology of human services and diversity, Resource Guide, Glossary, and thorough index. This comprehensive project will be published by SAGE Reference. The General Editor, who will be reviewing each submission to the encyclopedia, is Linwood H. Cousins, Ph.D., Western Michigan University. If you are interested in contributing to this cutting-edge reference, it is a unique opportunity to contribute to the contemporary literature, redefining sociological issues in today's terms. SAGE Publications offers an honorarium ranging from SAGE book credits for smaller articles up to a free set of the printed product for contributions totaling 10,000 words or more. The list of available articles is already prepared, and as a next step we will e-mail you the Article List (Excel file) from which you can select topics that best fit your expertise and interests. Additionally, Style and Submission Guidelines will be provided that detail article specifications. If you would like to contribute to building a truly outstanding reference with the Encyclopedia of Human Services and Diversity, please contact Michele Chase (humanservices@golsonmedia.com). Please provide your CV or a brief summary of your academic/publishing credentials in related disciplines. 

In this paper we will briefly review recent trends in employment outcomes for disadvantaged youth, focusing specifically on those who have become "disconnected" from school and the labor market, and why these trends have occurred. We then review a range of policy prescriptions that might improve those outcomes. These policies include: 1) Efforts to enhance education and employment outcomes, both among in-school youth who are at risk of dropping out and becoming disconnected as well as out-of-school youth who have already done so; 2) Policies to increase earnings and incent more labor force participation among youth, such as expanding the eligibility of childless adults (and especially non-custodial parents) for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC); and 3) Specific policies to reduce barriers to employment faced by ex-offenders and non-custodial parents (NCPs). We also consider policies that target the demand side of the labor market, in efforts to spur the willingness of employers to hire these young people and perhaps to improve the quality of jobs available to them. Click here to read more. 

Age and Lifecycle Patterns Driving U.S. Migration Shifts
K. Johnson, R. Winkler, L. Rogers
(Carsey Institute)
Migration-people moving between locations-is now driving much of the demographic change occurring in the United States. Over time, the ebb and flow of migration alters the size, age, and sex composition of local populations. The propensity to migrate varies by age, with young adults the most likely to migrate. Here we summarize new research using recently developed county-level age-specific net migration estimates that identify distinct migration signatures for urban and rural counties. Signatures are unique age-specific net migration patterns that can be used to classify county types. The data provide evidence of spatial clustering in the age-specific migration patterns in large geographically contiguous areas, such that migration patterns are changing the age structure of entire regions.1 Such migration patterns have important implications for people, institutions, and communities of both rural and urban America, as well as for the design of policies and practices that foster the development of sustainable communities. Click here to read the full report.