Amanda Spadaro Reporter @aspadaro845

TOWN OF WARWICK - Horses have their own way of talking back.

They can be stubborn, uncooperative or dismissive, just like people.

Thats why they are the perfect patient substitutes for first-year students at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine in Middletown who arelearning about bedside manner, according to Deirdre Hamling.

Hamling is theowner and operator of Raven Hill Farms on Glenmere Avenue, just outside the Village of Florida.

Horses are sensitive to their surroundings and respond immediately to the energy and emotions around them, Hamling said.

Her farm uses Equi-Power Solutions, a program for professional development she developed.

Through unmounted tasks, the horses teach students the importance of nonverbal communication and mindfulness to improve patient interactions.

A horse will size you up almost instantly and decide whether youre a leader or not, Hamling said.

When you lose your confidence, you lose your patient. All that translates into patient compliance and how well you do as a doctor."

This is the second year Touros medical students have been to Raven Hill, and its now mandatory for all first-year students, said Dr. Stephanie Zeszutek, course director for physical diagnosis at Touro.

During a recent session on the farm, a pair of students led a horse through an obstacle course while they balanced a ball on a spoon.

Its a metaphor: How do the doctors own emotions and anxieties, represented by the balancing ball, affect how successful they are with the patient?

Zeszutek said many students dont realize how nonverbal communication affects a doctors work with the patient: What message does their body language send? What energy are they casting through the office?

A student'sapproach may be too relaxed or too aggressive, Zeszutek said. The horses teach the students how to read the situation and respond appropriately.

Trent Williams, a first-year student from Washingtonville, said the program requires self-reflection that would be hard to replicate in a classroom.

The lesson he took home from the stables was that balance is key. Theres a sweet spot between being too laid-back or too aggressive that each horse - or patient - responds best to.

Ryan Colabella ofLong Island thought the horses did plenty of back-talking.

When we were having difficulty with getting them to do a task, it became more and more difficult, he said.

They sensed that we were either trying too hard or getting discouraged.

Chantell Melgarejo, a first-year student from Wellington, Fla., also had trouble getting the horses to follow her. It was quite a surprise for her, since she grew up working with horses.

It turned out that her proactive approach was too aggressive for the horses, she said.

To become a more effective doctor, she plans to develop her plans before jumping in with both feet.

Colabella said hehas a different problem: He doesnt think his approach proves that he is confident in his own abilities.

As a student, he sometimes feels awkward advising an older person on their health, he said.

Another student, Jayson Lowery, admitted his expectations for the class were initially low, but he quickly realized just how much the horses had to teach him.

You dont know how youre portrayed until you can see that from an animal that cant talk, Lowery said.

It was like looking into a mirror.

If you, as the physician, are apprehensive in approaching the patient or dont portray a sense of confidence, the patient is going to sense that immediately, and the horses do the same thing, he said.

Lowery stressed that osteopathic medicine focuses on a holistic approach. Part of that includes how well a doctor relates and connects with the patient.

Were not treating the disease, were treating the person, he said. Your attitude is going to affect how you treat that person.

aspadaro@th-record.com

See the rest here:
Horses stand in as 'patients' to help local med students boost their bedside skills - Times Herald-Record

Summer vacation is over, school has begun and soon the new 4-H year will start. What does school starting and 4-H have in common? Learning! Learn-by-doing is the 4-H slogan, and research shows that hands-on learning is the most effective way to learn. 4-H focuses on teaching new topics and life skills development in non-formal 4-H club settings, where meetings and activities result in a fun, fulfilling learning experience.

4-H members belong to clubs led by dedicated volunteers. Youth learn and grow in partnership with caring adults to develop the skills and confidence needed to become contributing, productive, self-directed members of society. By using the learn-by-doing approach, young people see how their actions make a difference in the lives of others and the world around them. No matter what 4-H project a youth is involved in, this model is applicable to all areas.

Hands-on learning used in 4-H follows the do-reflect-apply learning process by utilizing the five steps of the experiential learning model:

If you were at this years Douglas County Fair and visited the barns or the Exhibit Hall, you may have seen the finished products of projects that 4-H members worked on for months: raising animals, sewing, cooking, table setting and public speaking. All the youth incorporated hands-on learning and the experiential learning model, whether they were aware of it or not.

Not all 4-H learning has to culminate in a project that is displayed at fair. 4-H offers a variety of hands-on lessons using a curriculum that is researched-based and can be used in a classroom or home-school setting. Some lessons and activities can be completed in thirty minutes or less. One such lesson is an environmental education and earth science lesson titled Edible Aquifer. This lesson can help a child explore their environment by making wise uses of natural resources. After a 20 to 30 minute activity, the child should be able to demonstrate how water and pollution can get into an aquifer. Not only is this lesson informative and hands-on, it is also edible, which is always a big plus with children.

What other topics are available for use from 4-H? Citizenship and civic education, communications and expressive arts, consumer and family science, healthy lifestyle education, personal development and leadership, plants and animals, science and technology are just some of the subjects that can be found in the 4-H curriculum.

If you are a student, parent, or teacher who is interested in learning what else 4-H can offer you, please contact the Douglas County OSU Extension Service for more information.

Teresa Middleton is the 4-H Program Coordinator at OSU Extension Service of Douglas County. Teresa can be reached by e-mail at teresa.middleton@oregonstate.edu or phone at 541-672-4461.

Read more from the original source:
Extension Spotlight: Learning by doing - NRToday.com

Regrets that married women have All Woman Monday, September 04, 2017 , BY PENDA HONEYGHAN

MANY women spend much of their childhood conjuring up ideas of a blissful marriage, and by extension a happy life ever after. What is equally true is that many, whether they are newly wed, celebrating double-figure anniversaries, or on the brink of divorce, at some point regret having been married for various reasons.

All Woman asked a few of its readers to share their marriage regrets:

Charmaine, married six years:

I regret giving up my financial independence. I enjoy taking care of the house and the kids, but I don't like having to report to my husband about all the money I spend or waiting for him to give me money. This is not how I planned my life, and so it's a sore point for me, because I miss the days when I earned and was able to get all I wanted without having to fill out a questionnaire first.

Rachelle, married 12 years:

I think that my deepest regret would be that I didn't take time to explore. I just left school and got married, because having grown up in a Christian home we were taught that before we become intimate we need to commit to each other. That one decision led to at least 10 years of misery.

Patricia, married 20 years:

I regret ever meeting my husband, which is the reason I am now working to undo that mistake in the best way that I can.

Michelle, married seven years:

I am sorry that I allowed him to reduce me to nothing. He may not hit me, but it would have been better if he did, because at least those scars would heal and fade over time. I am still working on getting out of it but some things still have me a little tied up. Thank God that I have my mother, and she is helping me to get out of it.

Amoy, married three years:

He is unsupportive of my plans for personal development.

Sharon, married 27 years:

I regret that I made sacrifices, including not having children, while my husband has done nothing but cheat. He has always lied to me, he has accused me of affairs and other things over the years, but I know it's just so he will feel less guilty.

Catherine, married three years:

I know I am expected to say that my husband is terrible, but honestly, he is a great person. I only regret being married because I miss being able to be selfish with my decisions and resources. I am an only child so I was used to it being just me.

Ava:

I regret getting married because my husband makes me feel like a sex object. I feel like I am just an accessory.

Link:
Regrets that married women have - Jamaica Observer

On June 24, 1717, the day that is considered the beginning of organized Freemasonry, four English Masonic lodges assembled in London to form a grand lodge. Twenty years later, the first Masonic lodge was founded in Hamburg. Over 500 are estimated to exist today, with over 15,000 members.

Much of the history and the inner system of what is today an international organization remains a secret. On the occasion of a central Freemason anniversary on September 1, Deutsche Welle talked to Matthias Phlmann, an expert on ideologies and religions.

DW: What was Freemasonry founded on?

Phlmann: Freemasons have always valued the principles of freedom, equality, fraternity, humanity, and tolerance. They participate in charity efforts, but those are carried out rather silently. Basically, Freemasonry represents the ideals of the Enlightenment.

Freemasonry also promotes personal development, but reducing the whole idea to some kind of self-help training would upset many Freemasons.

Masonic temple in Brussels

The members are organized in "lodges." What are these?

In Freemasonry, a "lodge" has a literal meaning: It's a local club or community, a gathering place for men interested in personal development. It is an ethical brotherhood - a "workers' union," if you will - modeled on fraternities of medieval stonemasons and their symbolsand rituals.

In contrast to city guilds of that time, stonemasons had special privileges, such as freedom of travel. To preserve professional secrecy and prevent betrayal, passwords and secret handshakes were established that today's Freemasons still use.

Is that where the central symbols of Freemasonry - the square and compass, which form the typical Masonic logo - also come from?

Exactly. The compass represents the circle of fraternity, while the square stands for the proper conduct of each member.

Besides, there are symbols such as the water level, which stands for the idea that everybody is equal. At the center of every Masonic temple there are three pillars representing beauty, strength and wisdom. Freemasons call these the foundation of the temple of humanity, and each lodge is a place to practice and work on one's personal development.

You mentioned freedom, equality, fraternity, humanity, and tolerance as the core values of Freemasonry. Why dothey categorically exclude women, then?

In its classic form, Freemasonry is a male society, but there are women's lodges now too. At a women's grand lodge in Germany, women gather and performritual work. The reason for gender separation is that both sexes working together in a temple would change the inner life of a lodge.

A Grand Master's chair in the German Freemason Museum in Bayreuth

Rituals play a major role in Freemasonry. What is a Masonic meeting like?

They are basically solemn and festiveoccasions. Their form is established in discussion by certain lodge functionaries, usually the Grand Master and his wardens.

Read more:A leading figure in a shadowy organization of Italian Freemasons has passed away

Traditionally, the ritual system comprises three levels: apprentice, journeyman and master. Induction into a lodge, for instance, is called "initiation." Its idea is that "a blind man shall become seeing, which is how Freemasons distinguish their brothers from non-initiates. Belonging to a lodge means lifetime membership in a society, although it is possible to leave it at any time.

How can one become a Freemason?

The system of recruitment has changed in recent decades. Once it was only possible to join through a sponsor - a Freemason who approached a candidate, campaigned for him and vouched for his integrity.

Today, it's entirely different. At "guest receptions," interested people are invited to open seminars. In Switzerland, such evenings are sometimes even advertised in newspapers. In Germany, one can solicit for admission at such events. The application voted on.

A requirement is that one should be a free man - "free from addictions and dependencies," as Freemasons say - with a good reputation and a solid financial situation.

Dr. Matthias Phlmann

Does a secret society such as the Freemasons need publicity in the digital age?

I think Freemasons have always been surrounded and torn by both mystery and fame. After all, it is a discreet place, and certain secrets should not be leaked. As Freemasons say, the true secret lies in the experience of the rituals - and that is the ultimate secret that can not be betrayed.

Nevertheless, I have the feeling that more transparency is now allowed.

You're right. In recent years I've observed that people are much better informed. I think this a significant development. Some lodges participate in the "Day of Open Monuments" and open their doors during the "Long Night of Museums" in Berlin. And people are very interested and want to learn more.

I believe this interest comes from the fact that Freemasonry is an integral part of pop culture, which sees it, unfortunately, as a central place of crude conspiracy theories. So it's a welcome gesture for Freemasons to want to clear their image.

Freemasons do not see themselves as either a church or religion. I often ask myself whether there is something religious in their ideology. Such discussion, I think, must be conducted from within the Masonic community, and I'm eager to see the result.

Dr. Matthias Phlmann is a church councilor and commissioner for sect and ideology issues at the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Bavaria in Munich. He published a study "Freemasonry in Germany" in 2011.

Read this article:
Between secrecy and fame: 300 years of Freemasons - Deutsche Welle

In the wake of the Great Recession, Millennial women seem to be having a particularly tough time finding jobs. Although its been a decade since the start of the Recession, many young women are still feeling its effects.

According to a new analysis by the Institute for Womens Policy Research (IWPR), many young women (especially those ages 25 to 34), are experiencing unemployment at higher rates than in 2007.

"While the overall unemployment rate for American workers is now lower than it was just prior to the Great Recession, Millennial women, especially Millennial women of color, have still not fully recovered from the recession," said IWPR Senior Research Scientist Dr. Chandra Childers.

The analysis found that young Black womens unemployment rates were higher in 2016 than young White womens unemployment rates were at their peak in 2010 (8.8 percent compared to 7.7 percent).

"These are women who were just entering the workforce or early in their careers when the recession hit, and the ensuing high unemployment paused the development of their skills and work experience, Childers said.

A separate report, titled The lost generation: recession graduates and labor market slack, says Millennials in general are struggling to get jobs.

"Data on youth unemployment rates show a sharp rise during and after the 2008-09 recession both on an absolute and relative basis," wrote Spencer Hill, economist at Goldman Sachs.

Currently, Millennial unemployment rates stand at more than double the national average (12.7 percent compared to 5 percent as of September 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics).

"While youth underperformance is typical of recessions, the effects of the most recent downturn appeared larger and more long-lasting than average," Hill added.

In addition to stalled development of job-related skills, the trend may be driven by the generations high expectations for the type of job they hope to land. Millennials tend to look for dream jobs that afford them work-life balance, with flexibility, breaks and time to focus on personal development.

Statistics support the idea that Millennials are an overconfident bunch. But for those lacking experience, this quality may shrink the pool of potential jobs. It could also make the idea ofcontinuing to live with mom and dad sound like a more appealing option than trudging onward with the job search.

The high price of a college education might also be making it more difficult for Millennials to enter the job market. On the heels of the 2008 economic crash, Millennials may find it more difficult than ever to scrape together the funds to obtain a college degree and find an entry point into the job market.

Follow this link:
Young women are still struggling to get jobs - ConsumerAffairs

Another school year begins and Latinos across the country are entering college in record numbers. Your first days in college will certainly produce anxiety, excitement and lots of questions. Below are some thoughts and practical advice for college students from Latino professors who have "been there, done that" when it comes to education.

College is a critical time for self-exploration and personal development. You may be looking at a long list of requirements and be asked early on to figure out what your major will be.

As youre dealing with this pressure, remember to also think about you. What do you love to do best? What are you most passionate about? What makes you want to get out of bed every morning (or most every morning!)? What makes you happy?

Believe it or not, your classes can help you figure that out; choose classes carefully so that you approach not only core requirements but classes that can help you choose a major with these questions in mind. Talk to your advisors. Do a little research; look at course syllabi and check out what students are reading. And talk to your peers about the kinds of courses and professors that had the biggest impact on them and why.

Angelica Maria Bernal, University of Massachusetts

Then, as you are more immersed in a major that is a good fit, think about how to take that major to the next level: what extra-curriculars, internships, community service and study abroad opportunities can help you to better develop your passions?

Think beyond your classes: maybe you can approach a professor to help them with their research, attend a talk on campus (or other nearby campuses) that sounds interesting, or reach out to fellow students to organize something new.

Students of color face a great deal of pressure, including financial pressure. Advice like this might seem like a luxury, but it doesnt have to be. Oftentimes, the most successful individuals are the ones who turned their passions into careers. It takes a lot of work and personal initiative, but its not out of reach. Use your academic experience to the fullest to help you better develop yourself!

Anglica Maria Bernal is an Assistant Professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst in the Department of Political Science, and Director of the Academic Fellows Program.

Culture shock is what many first-generation students experience as they acclimate to a university system that is set up for white and affluent students to succeed. You can overcome this by maintaining connections to home and community. The greatest asset you possess is your own cultural knowledge and finding a tribe on campus that values its imperative.

Many first-generation students often find themselves feeling guilt over the financial and social obligations to the family versus their individual schooling. Women have the added pressure of confronting gendered expectations with parents, such as when making decisions about moving away from home.

Glenda Flores, Steve Zylius / UCI Steve Zylius / UCI

Remember, you are a student first and the best way to give back to your family for their sacrifices in the long run is by obtaining your degree and career.

On the classroom front, here's a good tip. While taking pictures of the lecture slides may seem like a time-saving strategy, nothing helps you retain information more and perform better academically than putting pen to paper. Take notes. Studies confirm this!

Then, rewrite or read your notes right after class. A general rule of thumb is twelve hours of work for every four-unit course per week. This includes reading the material, making outlines of the readings, study groups, and writing out your lecture notes, to name a few.

Glenda M. Flores is Associate Professor of Chicano/Latino Studies & Director of Undergraduate Studies at UC Irvine.

To grab your dreams you have to dig deep and be honest with yourself. Know your strengths and more importantly, understand your weaknesses. To be successful, you have to face these fears and weaknesses head on.

Plan ahead, organize yourself, and establish short and long-term goals using a career development plan.

Edward D. Vargas, Arizona State University

College wont be easy, but we are here to help along the way. So reach out and make sure you develop relationships with mentors and folks who truly care about your well being.

You must also invest in yourself. So, keep yourself healthy by taking care of your body and your mental health.

Remember, this is your life. So dont only reach for your dreams, grab them!

Edward D. Vargas is an Assistant Professor in the School of Transborder Studies at Arizona State University.

If you are among the first in your family to attend a college or university, one of the few people from your high school to pursue higher education, or on a campus thats not particularly diverse, you may feel like youve been admitted to college against the odds.

For some, this is accompanied by a feeling that you dont belong at your institution and a crushing pressure to succeed for your family, friends, and comunidad.

Amada Armenta, University of Pennsylvania

Since Latinos are generally underrepresented in American colleges and universities, your achievements are remarkable and noteworthy. On the other hand, Latinos and other minority students have been going to college and succeeding for generations.

While you may be blazing a trail for your family, you are absolutely not alone. Being the exceptional chosen one is really stressful!

So here's some good advice. Give yourself permission to be yourself.

Amada Armenta is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at the University of Pennsylvania.

Read the original here:
Hello, College. Latino Professors Share Some Great Advice - NBCNews.com

Summer break has been extended for San Juan Island School District students.

Just a day after the first day of the new school year, on Friday, Sept. 1, the districts teachers went on strike and school was closed.

We are at an impasse with the district negotiating team, said Amy Hull, president of the districts teachers union, called the San Juan Education Association. We need to attract and retain quality teachers mainly because the students are so important to us.

At 8 a.m., Sept. 1, roughly 20 SJISD teachers marched from the Friday Harbor Elementary School to Spring Street. They carried signs asking for fair wages and intermittently chanted What do we want? A fair contract. When do we want it? Now. According to Hull, this is the first teachers strike in district history.

The teachers contracts ended on the first day of the new school year, Thursday, Aug. 31. The union convened after school, said Hull, and 97 percent of the 55 union teachers voted to strike. According to a press release, posted to the associations Facebook page that evening, 97 percent also voted no confidence in School Superintendent Danna Diaz, who is the chief negotiator between the district and board.

Diaz doesnt trust or respect us as education professionals, said Hull in the press release, which also stated that educators feel [Diaz] treats teachers like they are replaceable.

The district was notified of the strike at roughly 6 p.m., Aug. 31, according to SJISD Business Manager Jose Domenech. District officials posted a message on the website and notified parents and students of the closure for the day.

Domenech previously told the Journal that staff is the largest expenditure in the district, and last year, about 80 percent of funds was spent on them.

This is a very difficult situation for our entire community, said SJISD Superintendent Danna Diaz in the SJISD message. The District is committed to resolving this situation as quickly as possible. Strikes do end, and at that time we will work together again on our shared mission of educating students.

According to Hull, the San Juan Education Association met with the districts negotiating team six times since June. Specifics of negotiations cant be discussed, she explained, but teachers are requesting a salary raise and additional training to increase personal development. They are also requesting the inclusion of special education needs in contracts to alleviate those educators caseloads.

Micheal Biggers, a Friday Harbor Elementary teacher for 14 years, said teachers, from the similarly sized district of Coupeville on Fidalgo Island, recently received a 5 percent salary increase. He added that the SJISD board once used Coupeville as an example to limit wages when those teachers made less than SJISD educators.

Now, were using them as the example, said Biggers.

The SJISD Board will hold a closed meeting about the strike at 1 p.m., with a public meeting to discuss their decisions at 2 p.m. at the Friday Harbor High School library. Check the Journal for updates.

Staff photo/Hayley Day San Juan Island School District teachers march up Argyle Avenue to Spring Street on Sept. 1.

Staff photo/Hayley Day Teachers picket in front of Wells Fargo on the corner of Spring Street and Argyle Avenue on Sept. 1.

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San Juan Island School District teachers strike - Journal of the San Juan Islands

A ribbon cutting ceremony yesterday marked the official opening of the Residences at Career Gateway, a 58-unit affordable housing development on the South Side.

Residents have already moved into the 14 townhomes on the site, while the 44 apartments in the main building will start filling up this weekend.Amenities include a fitness center, a community room with a kitchen, an outdoor playground, and a childrens obstacle course.

Pricing for the apartments starts at $650 per month, with all units reserved for households at or below 60 percent of the area median income.

The project, which was first proposed nearly three years ago, is the result of a partnership between the non-profit organization Community Development for All People (CDFAP) and Cleveland-based developer NRP Group. It sits at the corner of Heyl Avenue and East Whittier Street, on the former site of Heyl Avenue Elementary School.

CDFAP is working to coordinate the many partners who will provide programming for the buildings 2,400 square foot Career Gateway Training Center. Nationwide Childrens Hospital, Goodwill Columbus, Columbus City Schools and Dress for Success are among the organizations that will provide on-site job and personal development training available to residents of the new development as well as the surrounding community.

Opening the Residences at Career Gateway is a significant next step forward in the journey to ensure the South Side remains a vibrant mixed income community with sufficient high quality affordable housing, said Reverend John Edgar, CDFAP Executive Director, in a statement. The on-site job training facilities offer wonderful opportunities for community residents to develop their job readiness skills and complete programs that connect them to full time positions with South Side employers.

For more information, see http://www.residencesatcareergateway.com.

Continued here:
New Housing Development, Workforce Training Center Opens on South Side - columbusunderground

New York The Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Ms. Virginia Gamba, released today her annual report to the General Assembly. The 16-page document outlines immediate priorities as well as a longer-term vision for improving the protection of children affected by armed conflict, with a reflection on the achievements of the children and armed conflict agenda over the past two decades.

The UN engagement with governments and armed groups has enabled positive achievement over the past two decades benefiting children affected by conflict; but lasting wars and complex conflicts could reverse the positive gains, as we keep seeing occurrences of all six grave violations including re-recruitment of freed children, abduction, sexual violence and killing and maiming, highlights Ms. Gamba.

Covering the period from August 2016 to July 2017, the report also depicts emerging issues and challenges including alarmingly high numbers of attacks on schools and protected personnel and cases of military use of schools. With over 245 million children estimated to be living in conflict zones, a whole generation is at risk of missing out on education due to the effects of conflict, with dramatic consequences for the personal development of children but also for long term peace and security.

The Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict also condemns the increasing politicization of the provision of humanitarian access for aid delivery, even when it is intended for children. Besiegement as a method of warfare has dramatic consequences, especially for children. In 2016, 994 incidents of denial of humanitarian access were verified by the United Nations, almost half of them in South Sudan; in Syria, nearly 650,000 people have been deprived from food and life-saving items like medicine; this is unacceptable, Ms. Gamba adds.

The report thus highlights the necessity of depoliticizing the delivery of humanitarian aid to children and of protecting education in situations of armed conflict, including through the deterrence of the military use of schools and the endorsement of the Safe Schools Declaration. Other recommendations include the necessary political, technical and financial support to reintegration programmes for children formerly associated with armed forces or armed groups, giving special attention to the needs of girls, and enhancing legal protection frameworks.

20 Years of Work for Children Affected by Armed Conflict

The report also provides an opportunity to reflect on the achievements of the mandate since its inception 20 years ago, and the Special Representative looks forward to building on the gains made since to end and prevent grave violations against children in conflict. Among the accomplishments, the report underlines the signature of 28 action plans by parties to conflict; the delisting of nine parties to conflict; and the success of the Campaign Children, Not Soldiers as a catalyst for strengthening the overall child protection architecture.

All eight countries that were initially part of the Children, Not Soldiers campaign have signed an action plan with the United Nations and thousands of children have been released and reintegrated. Chad has met the benchmarks set out in its action plan on the recruitment and use of children. Solid progress has been observed in the Democratic Republic of Congo, although other violations remain of concern in the country, including cases of rape and other forms of sexual violence and killing and maiming.

In addition, the engagement by the United Nations with non-State armed groups has resulted in the signing of two new action plans to end and prevent the recruitment and use of children during the reporting period; in Sudan with the Sudan Peoples Liberation Movement-North (SPLM/N) and in Mali with the Coordination des Mouvements de lAzawad (CMA).

Sadly, ongoing crisis have hampered the progress in implementing action plans in Somalia, South Sudan and Yemen. Reflecting on more recent trends, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General is very concerned at the many violations attributed to non-State actors in general, and violent extremists in particular, and notes a rise in the use of children and their abduction by these groups.

Building on lessons-learned, a new campaign to increase public awareness on the six grave violations is currently under development. The Special Representative also intends to engage additional actors and enhance engagement with its current partners, including UN agencies, international, sub-regional and regional organizations, as well as civil society, to pursuing best practices in strengthening the protection of children affected by armed conflict.

Read the full report of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict to the General Assembly.

Read more from the original source:
Progress Achieved to Protect Children in Past 20 Years Threatened by Ongoing Crisis - ReliefWeb

Ive talked before about some of the amazing community partners we have come in to contact with in the year since I started working at Bona Vista. Ive applauded the Kokomo Police Department for talking to our preschool about Stranger Danger, Rhum Academy for coming to talk to the kids about music, the Kokomo-Howard County Public Library that reads to the students on a regular basis, FCA/UAW 685 that brought the Easter bunny (and snacks!) for the kiddos to enjoy, and the Kokomo Fire Department Local Union 376 and Walgreens for giving us a Santa Claus experience like none other!

And, that list doesnt include the many people who support our adult programs! There are so many, and Im not trying to single anyone out. But, what I do want to do is make it clear that without these types of partnerships, Bona Vista would not be able to offer all of the amazing opportunities we offer for the children and adults alike!

Thats where you come in, Howard County! Do you have a group or organization that likes to help local nonprofits? We would love to partner with you. Whether its your group hosting a food drive to help supplement the budgets of our group homes or maybe you could collect school or art supplies for the teachers/kiddos in our preschool program. We would even take hygiene/cleaning supply items for our Early Head Start closet for families to utilize. The list could go on and on, but we want you to expand your horizons and go with your gut.

You might be thinking, But I dont have anything to offer. You would be so surprised! A couple weeks ago we met a farmer (shout out to Daryl and Rachel Maple) who donated 70 dozen ears of corn. What could we possibly do with all of that? We split it up between our eight group homes, gave some to our preschool parents, shared some with our Day Services programs where it was used as crafts and a teaching tool. We also met up with our friend Andy Baker from AndyMark who donated more than 140 yellow, plastic balls to us. Again, not sure what we would do with those? We are using them in our early childhood programs, therapies, and even making crafts out of some.

We also have some specific programs set up for our staff in the coming weeks where people from the community are coming in to do a lunchtime yoga, a class on essential oils, and even teaching us how to make sushi! Sometimes professional development also needs to be personal development because life can be hard. Our jobs can be hard. And everyone needs an hour now and again to take care of themselves or learn something new. Maybe thats where you come in. Perhaps you have a specific skill set that would benefit the staff at Bona Vista Programs whether professional or personal!

We dont see limits. We dont want you to see limits. What we see are possibilities. We dont just make lemonade out of lemons. We add some sugar, shake it up and make some magic out of what might seem ordinary. So, try me.

Call 765-457-8273, e-mail (abrantley@bonavista.org), or stop by 1220 E. Laguna St. and tell me your idea. The more community partners, the merrier we all are!

Read more from the original source:
Bona Vista has great partners - Kokomo Perspective