January 10, 2012 by Sandra Rogers.

 Dear Veterans,

View this link to find  great job resources at ClearanceJobs.com

Veteran Career Resources Roll-Up

Source: ClearanceJobs.com

Excerpt:

“Vets aren’t looking for a handout, they’re looking for an opportunity. Defense contractors largely know what a great option hiring a veteran can be – they come with valuable skills, experience and security clearances, often require little training and are eager to jump in, learn the ropes and get to work. Making the transition from service member to civilian isn’t without its struggles, however. And sometimes veterans have trouble navigating the transition. That’s why we’ve developed a host of online resources to help walk vets through some of the basics.  ” (Lyndi Kyzer)

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September 21, 2011 by Sandra Rogers.

Wired Campus - The Chronicle of Higher Education
By Josh Keller—”Most colleges are underprepared for the wave of veterans returning from wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the largest influx since after the Vietnam War. The same is true of many employers.

It’s not that the colleges and companies aren’t looking for veterans, says Gunnar Counselman, the founder and chief executive of Fidelis College. But they often do a poor job of understanding how to attract veterans and help them acclimate to civilian life once they return, he says.

Fidelis, a San Francisco-based startup, seeks to help military members graduate from college. The company’s students will take lower-division courses at an affiliated online college while on active duty and then transfer to a traditional university. When they graduate, Fidelis will place them with employers it knows are looking to hire veterans.

Colleges and the employers will pay Fidelis for its coaching services aimed at helping students make a successful transition. “It’s like a talent agency for the military,” says Mr. Counselman.”

Sandra’s Note:  This sounds wonderful!   Please share this news with veterans.

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August 21, 2011 by Broke_Intern.

by Linda McIntosh

On Thursday, August 25, the Mobile Chamber of Commerce is hosting the Mobile Business Expo where members can publicize their organizations. This free-to-the-public event will take place from 1:00 p.m. until 6:00 p.m. in the Mobile Convention Center Exhibit Hall. More than two hundred exhibitor booths will be set up, and BrokeButNotForLong will be among them in booth #128. In addition, we are very excited that Still Serving Veterans will be joining us.

Per their website, Still Serving Veterans was created in 2005 to help veterans, including wounded warriors, adjust to civilian life after serving their country. Many veterans return home from combat with severe disabilities and/or post-traumatic stress disorder. These veterans and their families may benefit from emotional and vocational counseling, but sometimes finding aid is difficult. Still Serving Veterans, based in Huntsville, Alabama, has stepped up to provide this assistance. Compassionate case workers assist Still Serving Veterans in accomplishing its mission: “To empower Veterans including wounded warriors, and their families, by helping them reintegrate into the workforce and community via counseling, coaching, guiding, job transition, and assistance in obtaining all Veterans Administration (VA) benefits to which they are entitled.” Still Serving Veterans knows what services are available and can show veterans how to apply for them.

BrokeButNotForLong is collaborating with Still Serving Veterans to encourage companies to hire veterans as well as to provide career coaching. Our  mutual goals for this event include:

* Advocate hiring veterans and persons with disabilities
* Inform businesses of tax incentives for hiring
* Educate businesses of the resources of SSV

Please join us at the Mobile Business Expo in booth #128. Remember, admission is free. Also, if you’d like to make a donation to help us assist veterans in their career search, please use the following link to donate at Razoo.com: Online fundraising for BROKEBUTNOTFORLONG INC.

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August 9, 2011 by Sandra Rogers.

Presidential Update for Companies Hiring Veterans: Obama’s proposed new “Returning Heroes Tax Credit” gives $2,400 to companies for each veteran they hire who has been unemployed for less than six months and $4,800 for those unemployed for half a year or more, administration officials said. And the existing “Wounded Warriors Tax Credit” — paid out for hiring wounded veterans — would be doubled to $9,600 for taking on someone unemployed for six months or longer.

Disabled Access Tax Incentives:  Small businesses are eligible for two tax incentives to help cover the cost of providing reasonable accommodations for employees or customers with disabilities, such as sign language interpreters, readers, materials in alternative format (Braille or large print), the purchase of adaptive equipment, the modification of existing equipment, or the removal of architectural barriers.  For more information about properly claiming this and other tax credits, refer to IRS Publication 334, Tax Guide For Small Business and Form 8826, Disabled Access Credit.

Work Opportunity Tax Credit Program (WOTC): This program encourages employers to hire targeted groups of job seekers by offering them a federal income tax credit. Targeted groups include: veterans, summer youth, Title IV-A recipients, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF), ex felons, SSI recipients, SNAP recipients (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), and Long-term Family Assistance recipients.  The WOTC can reduce an employer’s federal tax liability by up to $2,400 per new hire: http://www.doleta.gov/business/Incentives/opptax/.

The VA Training Program allows eligible disabled veterans to receive training or work experience at the VA.  Please visit the Office of Personnel Management’s (OPM) Web site for more information:   http://www.opm.gov/veterans.

Resources for Employment & Disability Information Network (READi-Net) helps employers with the following employment needs regarding persons with disabilities: recruiting services, financial incentives, disability management, employer training, ADA resources, electronic recruiting, and technical assistance.  Therefore, contact your local Alabama Department of Rehabilitative Services (ADRS) representative at 205-290-4457 or www.rehab.alabama.gov/employers.  READi-Net is affiliated with the National Employment Team (NET). Contact them to find out the name of your state disability office.

Troops to Teachers: Our new http://www.jobs2teach.doded.mil Schools can register to gain access to the Troops to Teachers database to search for recruiting new teachers and learn about the tax incentives for hiring veterans.

Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act: Did you get your tax credit if you hired an unemployed worker last year?  Employers who hired unemployed workers from February 3, 2010 to January 1, 2011 qualified for a 6.2 % payroll tax incentive, in effect exempting therm from their share of Social Security taxes on wages paid to those workers after March 18, 2010.  The employer and employee’s shares of Medicare taxes would also still apply to those wages.  In addition, for each worker retained for at least a year, businesses may claim an additional general business tax credit, up to $1000 per worker, when they file their 2011 income tax returns.

Federal Bonding Program:  This program provides fidelity bonding insurance coverage to individuals with criminal histories and other high-risk job applicants who are qualified, but fail to get jobs because regular commercial bonding is denied due to their backgrounds.  The US Department of Labor (DOL) created this program to guarantee the job honesty of at-risk job seekers.  Federal financing of Fidelity Bond insurance, issued free-of-charge to employers, enables the delivery of bonding services as a unique job placement tool. Contact your State Employment Service for the for issuance of a federal bond from the DOL.

*****Sierra Group Foundation Project shows specific tax incentives per state: http://employmentincentives.com/state_incentives/state_incentives_intro.htm#fl

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August 2, 2011 by Sandra Rogers.

AW2 Community Support Network

This site has the most extensive outreach program for veterans that I’ve seen yet.  Here’s a little about what the site offers:

AW2 Community Support Network
Career Training or Education, Human Resources Support, and Employment Opportunities

Each organization listed in the AW2 Community Support Network offers services that are either covered by insurance or free to AW2 Soldiers, Veterans, and their Families. AW2 Soldiers, Veterans, and Families are encouraged to contact these organizations directly for more information about the services they offer.

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September 17, 2010 by Sandra Rogers.

Executive Summary: The DOL VETS needs your assistance to enroll 300 Veterans ages 20-24 in new one-year, all-expense paid Demonstration Project with ETA’s Job Corp that provides training, a credential or certificate, stipend, housing, meals, employment and post-employment support!

Veterans’ Employment and Training Service VETS - VETS / Job Corps Training

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September 11, 2010 by Sandra Rogers.

(Note: This essay was previously published in the Havana Herald in 2008.  I took these photos at the make-shift memorial of ground zero in New York City.)

I had just pulled up to school in East Los Angeles when I heard the radio announcement about the attack on the World Trade Center.  Within seconds, I realized that my nephew who worked there might have lost his life.  I went to sign-in at the office and ended up crying.  The assistant principal pulled me into her office and explained that her daughter was at the Pentagon, and that it had been hit, as well.  She appeared calm and professional as always and told me to make a decision on whether to go home or stay and teach.  I did not have a family of my own at that time, so I decided to teach my first grade students.

There was a rumor around school that more planes were headed to Los Angeles.  The planes that hit the World Trade Center were outbound flights for LAX.  Our large inner city school was located directly below the heavy incoming flight pattern for LAX.  In fact, when the government cleared the skies of all planes, walking across the school yard became surreal with the silence.  In times of natural disasters or emergencies, teachers become the wards of the students until their parents pick them up.  I went to teach class and to defend my students and school from harm.

The rumor was so believable given the day’s events that our principal went missing and was later reported to have locked herself in a closet.  Nevertheless, school functioned without her.  A few parents came to pick up their children.  I remember starting the day off by showing a map of the United States to my class.  I wanted them to understand how far away the attacks had occurred in order for them to feel less anxious.  They had many misconceptions of what was going on fueled by the fact that they were limited English speakers.  For example, they thought the continuous instant replay on television that morning of the second plane going into the tower was actually many planes not just one.  I speak Spanish and was able to translate the basic information on the attacks.

In the classroom, we discussed what was going on in New York.  Unfortunately, some of my students had seen graphic images of people jumping to their deaths on the Spanish news channel, Telemundo, that morning.  It was extremely difficult not to cry in front of them.  I had to be strong, so that they could feel safe.  I didn’t tell them about the rumors nor explain what an attack of this magnitude would mean to our country and the world.  East Los Angeles is a tough neighborhood.  Its teachers are prepared for earthquakes, lock downs, and multiple casualties.  As a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, I have more survival skills than the average person; however, I didn’t know how to prepare for war.

Students were actually allowed outside for recess, and I headed to the teachers’ break room to make a few calls to learn about my nephew’s whereabouts. Teachers were watching the latest news on the attacks on a TV someone had brought into the room.  I learned that my nephew was alive because he went to work late.  Later I found out that  he was just getting out of a cab when the first plane hit.  He fled Manhattan on foot along with the mass exodus through the ashes.  He escaped physical harm but bears the burden of witnessing a heinous crime against humanity.

The day after 9-11, the Los Angeles Times printed images of people jumping out of the Twin Towers.  The images on television news coverage kept me in tears for weeks, as more information was given about the attacks.  It sent me into a depression for several months.  The summer after 9-11, I visited my nephew who lives in New York and saw Ground Zero.  The make-shift memorial remained with faded images of the missing.  Fresh notes were messages to those who were missed on their birthdays or anniversaries.  I photographed the memorial to share with future students in my classroom.

In retrospect, I realized that my family’s story created a hypotenuse that connected some of us to the targeted areas.  The hypotenuse of 9-11 began from the targeted areas and ran across the nation and the world.  Later on I learned that another nephew was a first responder to the attack on the Pentagon.  He was a National Guardsman from Alabama who was being trained in Washington for special duty at the Walter Reed Army Hospital.  His duty that day was to place the injured into three areas: the dead, the dying, and those that would survive.  He had not seen war until that day.  My deepest sympathy to all the individuals affected on that day, and my heart-felt gratitude to all of the first responders and unsung heroes.

Sandra Annette Rogers

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February 6, 2010 by Sandra Rogers.

Greetings and welcome to the newly designed blog!  I incorporated components of universal design to provide accessibility for the reading of this blog.  For example, all postings (and our Web site pages) now have the text-to-speech boxes available at the bottom of each blog.  In addition, I selected a new setting with simple white background, black font with a little color for accents.  My intent is to get my message across to persons with visual impairment, as well as the general public.

Furthermore, visitors can subscribe to receive the RSS, a plain document without visuals.  The one music video in the side bar of Celia Cruz has subtitles in English and Spanish, but our videos on the Web site don’t have closed captions since they are from YouTube.  I’ll need to pay for their site licenses to show the professional videos.  We haven’t received any donations, as of yet, so I’ll make that one of our fundraising goals.

I’m currently redesigning our Web site to meet the universal design requirements.  BrokeButNotForLong.org already has large font without frivolous formatting, clear and concise headings and subheadings, and consistent page design.  However, I learned from the Web Accessibility in Mind (AIM) standards that every  non-text image should have the description in text, as well.   Therefore I’ll need to edit for accessibility for visitors with readers to hear everything on our site.

I’m currently taking an adaptive technology course online and learned about the free  Microsoft Office accessibility tools.  I learned how to enlarge the font on my computer screen and it really helps me see things better.  There’s also a PDF on tools to use on Internet Explorer 8: Accessibility in Internet Explorer 8.

My last posting described another accessibility tool, the camera mouse: http://www.cameramouse.org/  The free download is worth investigating for anyone who needs assistance with mobility. It helps those without the use of their hands but who can move their heads to direct the cursor on the computer via the camera mouse.  I found it via a tweet on twitter from the @PVA (Paralyzed Veterans of America).  The full articles is posted on our previous blog.  Moreover, I’m following several veteran blogs and government twitter accounts to find more resources to incorporate.

I created a Twitter account for our organization and used our organization’s acronym @Sandra_BBNFL; this stands for BrokeButNotForLong, Inc.  Please send us your suggestions on how to make our site more accessible to everyone by leaving a comment or sending a tweet.  I hope you like the new design.  I want to apologize to all the Internet Explorer users, as the January blog posts went missing!  They’re currently reprinted on the main pages of the blog, at the top right hand corner.

Sandra Annette Rogers,

The Broke Blog

sandra@brokebutnotforlong.org

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