Part-Time Service-Learning Instructor Learning for Social Impact(r)

Harlem Educational Activities Fund, Inc. (HEAF)
Part-Time Service-Learning Instructor Learning for Social Impact(r)

HEAF is a comprehensive supplemental education and youth development organization that works to help motivated students develop the intellectual curiosity, academic ability, social values and personal resiliency they need to ensure success in school, career and life. The Service-Learning Instructor will lead classes and support student-led research projects on New Orleans. The Service-Learning Instructor reports directly to the College Quest Program Coordinator.

Program Description:
* January 2008 – May 2009
* Thursdays, 4:30 pm – 7:00pm
Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
* Conduct lessons on the history of Louisiana, New Orleans and the aftermath of hurricane Katrina
* Develop and document curriculum and lesson plans
* Guide student group research projects
* Assist staff with related service-learning activities
* Escort and chaperone students on class related field trips
* Document and communicate student academic progress
* Complete and submit required documentation

Job Requirements
* M.A. in Social Studies, History, Cultural Studies, Education or related field.
* Knowledge of the history and current events of Louisiana and New Orleans.
* 2-3 years of classroom teaching experience, certified teachers preferred.
* Strong organizational, computer, and interpersonal skills.
* Willingness to learn and collaborate with HEAF staff and colleagues.
* Strong work ethic and professional values.
* Willingness to promote HEAF educational and youth development philosophy.

Salary: $38 per hour for instruction and $15 per hour for curriculum preparation

To apply: Send cover letter, resume and three references to College Quest Program Coordinator at mmiles@heaf.org (Contact via email ONLY). Send a cover letter in the body of the message and attach your resume in MS Word or Adobe PDF format (no ZIP files please).

Merle McGee –Vice President of Programs
Harlem Educational Activities Fund, Inc.
2090 7th Avenue, 10th Floor
New York, NY 10027
212-663-9732 ext 13/212-663-9736 (fax)
 mmcgee@heaf.org visit our website www.heaf.org

 

FEDS SLAM SHARPTON ON ELEX $$

FEDS SLAM SHARPTON ON ELEX $$

By CHUCK BENNETT

November 15, 2008 —

The Rev. Al Sharpton must pay nearly $500,000 in fines for financing his quixotic 2004 presidential run with illegal contributions, the Federal Election Commission has ruled.

Sharpton aides blasted the ruling as a "gross violation" of his rights yesterday and vowed to appeal the decision that concluded he broke a slew of campaign-finance laws when he sought the Democratic nomination for president four years ago.

An exhaustive audit of Sharpton’s American Express charges between 2002 and 2004 – a time when he lived lavishly in top hotels while crisscrossing the country – found a hodgepodge of sloppy record-keeping and dubious expenses.

Investigators say Sharpton jumbled personal expenses with his private businesses, his National Action Network and his Sharpton 2004 campaign in violation of strict campaign-finance rules – a civil infraction.

"Virtually no effort appears to have been made by Sharpton 2004, the Candidate, NAN or Rev-Als Production Inc. to keep any sort of detailed records demonstrating what payments paid for which travel, which trips were for multiple purposes, or which legs of multipurpose trips included campaign activity at those stops," the investigators wrote.

In all, he owes $497,803, the FEC ruled.

"It is the opinion of the audit staff that the candidate used funds raised by NAN to promote his presidential campaign," they said.

Sharpton – who settled with the IRS earlier this year over millions in back taxes – had long feuded with the FEC since it demanded in 2004 that he return $100,000 in federal matching funds for his presidential campaign.

Auditors said the amount of improper financing could be as high as $735,314, but because of shoddy records, they could substantiate only $486,803.

"A comparison of Sharpton 2004’s reported activity to bank records revealed that receipts and disbursements, as well as ending cash on hand, had been materially misstated in calendar year 2004," the auditors wrote.

They further wrote, "This review was hindered because documentation was incomplete."

Auditors further cited a birthday party Sharpton threw for himself in 2004 with NAN paying for the entertainment and Sharpton 2004 covering the cost of the venue.

Ironically, Sharpton said because of the years-long audit, his American Express bill was never paid.

chuck.bennett@nypost.com

2 Held in Election Night Beating of Black Youth

2 Held in Election Night Beating of Black Youth

By CHRISTINE HAUSER and ANN FARMER

Alie Kamara, a black Staten Island teenager, watched the results of the Nov. 4 election at a friend’s house. Soon after Barack Obama was declared the winner, he walked home alone to his house in the Stapleton neighborhood.

On the way, as he recounted on Saturday, a dark car pulled up alongside him on Vanderbilt Avenue . Two men jumped out and started to chase him. Two others followed shortly afterward.

“They said ‘Obama!’ ” Alie, 17, told reporters in the driveway of his house on Pine Place, recalling that the men were carrying bats. When the men caught up with him they beat him on the leg and head, he said. “I was bleeding by my head.”

He said the men wore hooded sweatshirts, but he could see that they were white. They continued to hit him, he said, until another car appeared. Then they left. The attackers made no other comments besides the initial shouting of the president-elect’s name.

The police said on Saturday that two 18-year-old men were arrested on Friday for the beating. The men, Ralph Nicoletti, of 35 Wadsworth Avenue, and Bryan Garaventa, of 169 Maryland Avenue, face charges of hate-crime assault and criminal possession of a weapon, according to the police.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE [NYT]

MTA OFFICE BLOAT

MTA OFFICE BLOAT By JAMES FANELLI and SUSAN EDELMAN ord=1226932465; adid=”"; hfpg=”"; drStr = document.referrer.toString(); popup = (drStr.match(“www.yahoo.com”) ? “0″ : “1″); document.write(”); November 16, 2008 — The MTA is weighed down with managers, marketing types and p.r. staffers – fat the agency should trim before it slashes service, hikes fares or creates new bridge tolls, state auditors told The Post. The agency has a growing roster of 70,000 employees – including thousands of redundant and nonessential positions – and is still slated to hire hundreds more, the auditors found. MTA records show 288 New York City Transit employees in “corporate communications,” 70 Long Island Rail Road staffers in “market development and public affairs,” and 52 at MTA headquarters in “corporate and community affairs.” Nearly two-thirds of the MTA’s current $10.9 billion budget covers salaries, fringe benefits and pension contributions, according to an analysis by state Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli’s office. Its latest report, completed in September, found that the MTA: * Increased staffing by 6,436 since 2005, including 3,400 workers from private bus lines it took over and 373 employees in central administration. * Added 568 employees in “managerial, supervisory, professional, technical and clerical” jobs since 2007 – and budgeted the hiring of 818 more by the end of this year. None of these are rank-and-file jobs like drivers and repairmen. * Plans to cut 351 maintenance workers, but only 59 administrators. It also vows to ax another 103 employees by the end of 2009, but hasn’t said which. “There are opportunities for efficiencies that have not been realized,” DiNapoli told The Post. “That needs to be the first step before the riding public is asked to bear a greater burden.” MTA CEO Elliot Sander warned last week of “draconian” cuts and massive fare hikes – as high as 30 percent. Meanwhile, a state commission is considering proposing tolls on the city’s East River bridges as a way to bail out the MTA, The Post reported last week. On Thursday, Sander will give the MTA board his plan to close budget gaps of $1.2 billion next year and up to $2 billion in 2012. The top-heavy agency is chopping too low, DiNapoli said. “The first step should be wringing out all the excess expenses – starting with the administrative overhead,” he said. Despite calls for such cuts from the state Comptroller’s Office since 2004, the MTA has dragged its feet on eliminating duplication among its seven divisions. The MTA has agreed it can save money by streamlining. The agency is spending $210 million to create a “business service center” that would consolidate payroll and finance divisions. But the MTA won’t see bottom-line savings from that effort at least until 2012 – too long to wait, DiNapoli said. “We’d like them to show more urgency. They should have a more aggressive timetable to implement what they have to do,” he said. MTA spokesman Aaron Donovan defended the “marketing and public relations” staff identified by the auditors, saying the workers perform vital tasks. He confirmed 288 “corporate communications” positions at NYC Transit, but said only 259 are filled. Those workers include customer-service representatives who answer telephones and e-mails and MetroCard salespeople who travel in vans. Others run reduced-fare programs for the elderly and students; create and distribute pamphlets, schedules and maps; produce service notices; write press releases and newsletters; and advertise promotions. Donovan defended the rising staff count, saying it has not kept pace with ridership, which has doubled in the past 12 years. jfanelli@nypost.com

FREEBIES !

Here is the link to the new page of freebies (Monday 17th November), kindly provided by our friends over at Freebiemaster.

I hope you like the new format, where you can ’mouse over’ the links and see a ’snapshot’ of the actual offer page!

Visit: http://www.thefreebiegroup.com/page40.php

Café Jazz

Café Jazz

date:

Thursday, November 20, 2008 time:8:00 PM

venue:

Manhattan School Of Music address:120 Claremont Avenue

 New York, NY 10027

 View map from:Manhattan School Of Music

Jazz by candlelight showcasing Manhattan School of Music student jazz combos. Complimentary snacks and beverages. Please note the later start time for Café Jazz in the Ades Performance Space.

Location: The Alan M. and Joan Taub Ades Performance Space.

Price: No Tickets Required.

Contact: Concert Office 917-493-4428.

City Warns Of Scams At Unemployment Agencies

City Warns Of Scams At Unemployment Agencies

By: Molly Kroon

The city announced Wednesday a crackdown of the city’s unemployment agencies, following an investigation that showed many are taking advantage of the very people who need their help the most. NY1’s Molly Kroon filed the following report.

A video shot recently shot by an undercover agent from the city’s Department of Consumer Affairs shows a unemployment agency person demanding that someone looking for employment pay $40 for the service.

But according to the law, an agency has to get someone a job before it gets paid.

“There are no fees. No application fee. No background check fee. All of those things are illegal,” said Jonathan Mintz, the commissioner of the Department of Consumer Affairs. “Anything like this should be a red flag.”

Wednesday the city announced the results of an 18-month long investigation, and found roughly half of the agencies investigated were breaking the law by not only charging illegal fees, but also making clients sign contracts in a language they do not understand. The investigation uncovered that some agencies were asking for these fees, and then never following through with jobs.

“If they’re asking for money up front, they don’t expect to see you again,” said Mintz. “They’re not going to get you a job, never were going to get you a job, will probably tell you to come back tomorrow and then they tell you to come back next week.”

The city’s closed one agency and temporarily shut down two others, including the Latinos Employment Agency in Queens. Nearly 160 other agencies have settled with the city and paid back nearly a quarter of a million dollars, part of which went to the victims.

“There’s nothing wrong with employment agencies,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “You want them to find jobs and earn fees. If the employment agencies go out of business, that’s not good for anybody. We just want to make sure they comply with the law.”

The city warns people looking for jobs from an employment agency to:

� Only use a licensed employment agency
� Avoid agencies that “guarantee” jobs
� Get a job description in writing
� Know your fee and refund rights
� Get contracts negotiated in a language be written in also in that language

According to the DCA, those who think they have been deceived should call 311

COURTESY OF: NY1.COM