Work, Economy and Organizations Commons^™

How To Attract Young Adults To Americorps Service, Rachel Goldstein

Capstone Collection

AmeriCorps offers a variety of options for US citizens to serve their country in a non-military fashion while providing an opportunity for skill development, career exploration, community service, and self-growth. In exchange for service, AmeriCorps provides a minimal living allowance and an education award. Even with these benefits geared towards young adults, few young adults choose to enter AmeriCorps service upon the completion of their undergraduate studies. This research sought to understand motivations for and against service in an attempt to inform and improve AmeriCorps current recruitment practices. To understand how AmeriCorps can attract more young adults, a qualitative research …

Factors In Refugee Resilience Building During Humanitarian Response, Rachel Starner

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If countries hosting refugees want to build resiliency and reduce dependency on foreign relief, humanitarian response and local development need to be addressed simultaneously, and collaboration at all levels of stakeholders needs to take place in planning and decision making. Additionally, innovation and strong leadership are strong factors in creating and leading new ideas as funding and world leadership dynamics change, especially with traditional leaders such as the US and the UN losing influence. Observations made at the Mahama Refugee Camp in Rwanda as well as existing document analysis reflect these traits by active efforts of camp administrators and humanitarian …

Effective General Entrepreneurial Learning Programs For Sme Development, Paul Kenneth Steele

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The principle objective of this paper is to reexamine the potential for impactful, general programs in education for Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) owners by assessing the success of a program called SME PRIME; conducted by AMIDEAST, Oman for six Omani entrepreneurs over a seven-month period.

General programs for entrepreneur education are produced and implemented the world over despite consistent assertions throughout academic literature that such programs are ineffective. Typical approaches to training program development and evaluation emphasize the critical role of training needs analysis. Training needs analysis is often an ignored step in the process of SME training program …

Policy Recommendations For Alleviating Homelessness In Chittenden County, Vermont, Brittany E. Nevins

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Chittenden County, Vermont is suffering from increasing homelessness and poverty among both individuals and families. Residents of Chittenden County face an urban rental vacancy rate of less than .5% in Burlington, VT where the majority of jobs are located and only a 3% vacancy in suburban towns. Residents face waiting lists for rental subsidies of up to 8 years, and decreasing access to services for working class populations who are facing rent to income ratios of nearly 70% and utility costs of 30% of their income. The market rent is increasing and the state budget faces deep cuts to services. …

Reexamining Cultural Orientation Provided To Newly Arrived Refugees, Sara E. Matchulat

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The provision of cultural orientation is one of many services required by the contract between resettlement agencies and the federal agencies overseeing refugee resettlement, the Cooperative Agreement. This paper explores World Relief in Moline, Illinois as a case study for how small resettlement agencies can provide meaningful and memorable cultural orientations. In order to accomplish this goal, this research utilizes the Empowerment Theory to explore how recently resettled refugees’ perceptions can be taken into consideration as orientation materials are examined. Research sought to compare Cooperative Agreement requirements to current orientation materials, interviewed service providers and recently resettled refugees, and utilized …

Transforming Lives And Communities: A Case Study On Building Partnerships In The Philippines Through Appreciative Inquiry, Rizalina L. Ababa

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The growing number of poor in the Philippines is alarming. Neither the national government nor any individual organization acting alone has been able to alleviate the rising percentage of poverty. With this prevalent need in the country, networks, alliances and partnerships among several organizations, including faith-based organizations, have been established to help respond to the needs of those living in poverty.

OM Philippines–Cebu Ministries, a faith-based Christian organization was started in 2001. It has worked specifically among the poor through children’s programs in partnership with local Protestant churches. Like many NGOs, OM Philippines has been exploring new strategies to expand …

The Campaign For Bias-Free Policing In Vermont: One State’S Resistance To The Localization Of Federal Immigration Agency, Amanda L. Park

Capstone Collection

There are roughly 1,500 immigrants from Mexico and Central America currently working on farms in Vermont, helping to sustain approximately half of all milk produced in the state. But the lack of adequate visa-to-work options leaves these individuals without proper documentation to be in the US. As such, they are vulnerable to exploitation by their employers, susceptible to harassment from the communities in which they live, and under constant threat of deportation by federal immigration agents. Now, the US Department of Homeland Security—in charge of domestic defense and immigration—is attempting to use local and state law enforcement officers in the …