AJFCA Newsletter
In This Issue
ADVOCACY
AGENCY PROGRAMMING/OPERATIONS
AJFCA MEMBER BENEFITS
BOARD RESOURCES
COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT
SPONSORS
VOLUNTEERS
AJFCA Links
Agency Highlights

Project Empower Celebrates 2nd Anniversary

jcs baltimore
  
Jewish Community Services of Baltimore is proud to have been selected by the United States Department of Labor and IAJVS (International Association of Jewish Vocational Services) to be a partner in The Career Gateway.  The Career Gateway is a way to access a world of online resources, information, and supports that helps jobseekers be more successful in finding and securing employment.
career gateway
It includes career information, job leads, and links to training programs and job placement services, plus powerful tools to advance any job search.  Unlock the full potential at GatewayToCareers.com. 
Agency Highlights

JFCS Phoenix Select New Board Membersy

jfcs phoenix logo
  
The Governance Board of Jewish Family & Children's Service of Phoenix has announced the appointment of two new board members: Jay Fruchtman and Jeffrey Packer, D.O.

Jay, who resides in Scottsdale, AZ, has over twenty years of experience in the Financial Services industry, currently as a Senior Vice President at Bank of America. Jay is an active member of Congregation Or Chadash Men's Club, and has held previous Community Board roles with Big Brothers and Big Sisters, as well as Junior Achievement.

Jeffrey, a physician, resides in Paradise Valley, AZ. Originally from South New Jersey, he has specialized in Nephrology for over 33 years. Jeffrey is a current member of the Valley Beit Midrash Board of Trustees and the Innovating Worthy Projects Foundation Board of Directors. Continue reading here.
Calls & Webinars
Visit  AJFCA's Calendar
to learn more about free calls and webinars. For more information login to For Our Members on the AJFCA website, followed by Webinars. Contact Megan at 410-843-7327 with questions.

Long-Term Care Commission: Learn More about It and How You Can Engage
Aug., 13th, 2pm
REGISTER HERE
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Trends Worth Following: Tools for Advanced Social Media Users
Aug., 20th, 1pm ET
REGISTER HERE


New Health Insurance Marketplace Resources, Tour of the Newly Re-Launched HealthCare.gov and Q and A on the ACA
Aug., 20th, 2pm ET
REGISTER HERE
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Free and Low Cost Tools Every Organization Should Know About

Aug., 29th, 1pm ET
REGISTER HERE

Stay updated on AJFCA offerings, agency news & current trends . . .
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August 9, 2013 
About AJFCA | News
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Members | Jewish Connection
Annual Conference | Job Postings
  Young Girls
  
D'Var Torah

Lee I. Sherman
President/CEO 

Last weekend, I went to see the movie "The Attack." This is a film about love, loss, and tragedy. It was co-written and directed by Ziad Doveiri, a Lebanese filmmaker. The movie involves a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, and the well-respected Arab doctor who lives and practices inTel Aviv and has to try and comprehend how his wife could become a suicide bomber. The film raises more questions than it has answers as it presents the nuances of a complex issue that defies easy resolution. People who come from competing political and national perspectives may disagree with different portrayals and positions of the characters, but there is no questioning that the path to find justice is fraught with challenges and difficulties along the way.

This week's parashah, Shoftim, contains the famous line "Justice, justice shall you pursue." There is much commentary about why the word justice (tzedek) is repeated in this passage. Of course, there is a poetic sense of the repetition, but more than that, this "double justice" illuminates that it is not enough to seek a just end, but the end must be pursued through a just means. This is the underpinning of the ethical standards by which we accomplish a just result. We do not believe that the ends justify the means, but we do believe that applying ethics to a task will bring about a just result.

The intentional killing of children with a suicide bomb can never be justified. To do so is a distortion of the pursuit of justice. In the work that we do with our clients to address their complex issues, we understand that, no matter how challenging, the application of the twin principles of high ethical standards and a passion for justice will help us make the world a more just and righteous place for all.

Shabbat Shalom.
ADVOCACY
CMS Releases Final Rule, Including Provisions on Eligibility cms
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' (CMS) new final rule finalizes Medicaid eligibility provisions; finalizes changes related to electronic Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) eligibility notices and delegation of appeals; modernizes and streamlines existing Medicaid eligibility rules; revises CHIP rules relating to the substitution of coverage to improve the coordination of CHIP coverage with other coverage; and amends requirements for benchmark and benchmark-equivalent benefit packages consistent with sections 1937 of the Social Security Act to ensure that these benefit packages include essential health benefits and meet certain other minimum standards.
Older Adult Programs and Sequestration - How are you affected?  ajfca logo-resized
The AJFCA Legislative Task Force needs your help to make a compelling case to Congress about how sequestration cuts are hurting older adult programs. Please complete this brief survey about the Older Americans Act and sequestration by Friday, August 30th. Please let us know about your agency's use of OAA dollars and how sequestration may be affecting you. If you have any questions, please contact Shelley Rood. Thank you in advance.
AGENCY PROGRAMMING/OPERATIONS
Is It Charity or Is It Community? huffington post
We like to think that charity is a uniquely -- or at least, an especially -- American tradition. The French historian, Alexis de Tocqueville, gave this notion credibility in the early 19th century when he referred to American's propensity to form voluntary associations of all kinds, including charitable. Read the rest of President/CEO of the National Human Services Assembly, Irv Katz's blog here.
Torn Between Two Causes?
Fears have been expressed about an association's ability to advocate for more than one cause, one disease state, one group of people struggling or in recovery. Most recently such fears were voiced when The National Council for Behavioral Health announced a strategic alliance of the State Associations for Addiction Services, the Legal Action Center, and the National Council for Behavioral Health. Continue reading here.
Measure for Measure: The Nonprofit Impact Conversation Continues nonprofit quarterly
So the conversation continues about how the nonprofit sector can best tell its stories and demonstrate its impact. Back in June, it was big news-in NPQ and elsewhere-when the "overhead myth" was debunked and the conversation at long last began to shift away from measuring impact by calculating the ratio of dollars spent on programs versus those spent on management and fundraising. Continue reading here.
AJFCA MEMBER BENEFITS
Getting the Right People on the Bus
AJFCA is pleased to announce that Getting the Right People on the Bus, a 2013 Annual Conference presentation has been rescheduled. If you signed up for the original webinar, there is not need to sign up again. An email has been sent to you with the updated access information.

Getting the Right People on the Bus
Executives must regularly struggle with "getting the right people on the bus." This presentation will discuss how to identify key competencies for any role in the organization, and how to implement a process to assess current, or acquire new talent in relation to those competencies, rather than one's "gut." While we will focus on positions at the executive level, this is a process that works across the entire organization. This workshop will use a case example and lessons learned from that.

Tuesday, August 20th - 2pm ET (60 minutes)
Presenters:  Perry Ohren, CEO - JFS Detroit
                   Nancy Glasberg, Human Resources - JFCS Philadelphia
Domestic Violence Programs Summary Report ajfca logo-resized
A Domestic Violence Programs Summary Report was recently published based on a survey sent out to the AJFCA network. Many thanks to those who completed the survey and to JCFS Chicago for compiling the results. Several agencies have requested that the survey be reopened. If you have not filled out the survey please do so by today, Friday, August 9th. An updated report will be made available shortly after. If there is an individual at your agency who'd like to be added to the Domestic Violence Professionals Practice Group please email their name, title, agency and email address to Megan.
BOARD RESOURCES
How to Evaluate and Strengthen Your Board of Directors ejewish philanthropy
The hallmark of the third sector and its agencies is a strong, viable, committed, and passionate base of volunteer leadership. Continue reading here.
COMMUNICATIONS & DEVELOPMENT
Donor Retention: What Do We Know & What Can We Do about It? NPQ
In the twelve years since the first academic article on the topic of donor retention was published, the state of knowledge has changed very little. Academic researchers continue to emphasize motives for giving rather than the determinants of switching or lapse, and even practitioner interest in the topic has been scant. The emphasis remains firmly on donor acquisition, with donor retention coming in a very poor second. Read more here.
Why You Must Stop Ignoring Social network for good
This week, Pew Research Center's Internet & American Life Project released their latest findings on social media adoption. Even if you're a socially savvy fundraiser, you'll find these stats interesting. If you're still skeptical about social media, this is a wake-up call. Continue reading here.
How Do We Attract, Develop and Retain the Fundraising Leaders of the Future? guardian
In the recent debate at the Institute of Fundraising's national convention, 'How do we attract, develop and retain the fundraising leaders of the future?' fundraisers got some top tips from experts on stepping up to a director of fundraising role. Continue reading here.
SPONSORS
Data Driven - Path Focused:  Transform How You Manage Cases, Track Clients and Improve Outcomes with FAMCare Pathways Global Vision Tech
Today agencies are struggling with more clients entering the system and less funding available to provide adequate services for all. In order to be truly effective - technology tools need to help caseworkers streamline case management, not hamper their productivity. Agencies need better data collection tools, faster access to information and solid reporting to keep their funders happy and caseworker morale high. In this 60 minute webinar discover why FAMCare Pathways is transforming how agencies track their programs and services; allowing them to be more productive and accountable than ever before.

Data Driven - Path Focused:  Transform How You Manage Cases, Track Clients and Improve Outcomes with FAMCare Pathways
Thursday, August 22nd, 2pm ET
What's Jewish About Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer? sharsheret
Join Sharsheret's Clinical Supervisor Shera Dubitsky and Link Program Coordinator Adina Fleischmann for a 60-minute webinar,"What's Jewish About Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer?" Learn about the unique issues of Jewish women and families facing breast cancer and ovarian cancer, how your organization can offer cancer support at no cost, and how Sharsheret helps. 

What's Jewish About Breast Cancer and Ovarian Cancer?
Tuesday, October 22nd, 1pm ET
VOLUNTEERS
Safeguarding Volunteers With Effective Risk Management  risk wordle
Among the lingering effects nonprofit organizations face from the economic downturn is a growing reliance on their volunteers, and a corresponding need to help protect volunteers from the effects of accidents, injuries, or other unplanned incidents. Continue reading here.
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