Shared Effort Winter 2012

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In This Issue: Community Volunteers Launches Exciting New Partnership with Local Nonprofit 1-2 Miller ’77 Elected New PresidentSee Full Interview Inside! 3 Emerging Leaders Program Expands 4 PP55 Fellowship Interview Update 5-6 Who? What? Where? AlumniCorps Regional News & Updates 6 Thank You to our PP55 Alumni Donors 7 FEATURE STORY: Interview with Dana Dreibelbis ’78, plus more Volunteer Opportunities & Upcoming Events Inside! Volume 15, Number 1 Winter 2012 Community Volunteers has three new substantive volunteer opportunities with Westminster Community Life Center. The Center is now seeking alumni with experience in grant research, human resources and accounting. The Center serves to enrich the lives of neighborhood families in the greater Trenton area through supplemental educational services such as after school programming and early literacy intervention. Dana Dreibelbis ’78 (at right), who has been volunteering with the Center for several months, explains why he chose to get involved with this inspiring organization and how he plans to use his professional publishing skills to expand the capacity of the Center. Read more about Dana’s experience & NEW volunteer opportunities on page 7! How/why did you first get involved with Princeton AlumniCorps? What has kept you engaged over the years? About eight years ago, when I first be- gan working at Public Health Solutions, I was looking for smart, inexpensive help in the office. I went onto the University website, and that’s when I saw a refer- ence to Project 55 fellowships. The next thing I knew, Chet Safian ’55 and Steve Houck ’69 were on my doorstep telling me about PP55 and convincing me it would be a great match. I had already recruited two students at the time, and Chet offered to make them fellows. In addition, he convinced me that I should be a mentor. Part of what really sold me was when, the following year, I went through the whole PP55 process and was amazed at the candidates; they were well screened and well matched with my or- ganization’s needs. Later, I got involved with Jim Gregoire’s (’69) initiative to start public health fellowships. What is your background regarding nonprofits/volunteering? How have you demonstrated “Princeton in the Nation’s Service”? I have spent my entire career working in nonprofitsespecially in healthcarewhich was my major. Upon leaving Pub- lic Health Solutions I recently began ex- ploring my opportunities and realized there was a tremendous need for people adept at helping organizations to develop and implement strategies to deal with the changing landscape of healthcare regula- tions today. I am now working for two clients in that role. One is the National Family Planning & Reproductive Health Association, where I'm directing a pro- ject to provide their member organiza- tions with tools to survive and thrive as Interview with AlumniCorps’ New President Kathy Miller ’77 Emerging Leaders is Now Accepting 2012 Applications for NY & DC! ...continued on page 2

description

AlumniCorps Quarterly Newsletter

Transcript of Shared Effort Winter 2012

Page 1: Shared Effort Winter 2012

In This Issue:

Community Volunteers Launches Exciting New Partnership

with Local Nonprofit

1-2 Miller ’77 Elected New President—See Full Interview Inside!

3 Emerging Leaders Program Expands

4 PP55 Fellowship Interview Update

5-6 Who? What? Where? AlumniCorps Regional News & Updates

6 Thank You to our PP55 Alumni Donors

7 FEATURE STORY: Interview with Dana Dreibelbis ’78, plus more Volunteer Opportunities & Upcoming Events Inside!

Volume 15, Number 1 Winter 2012

Community Volunteers has three new

substantive volunteer opportunities with

Westminster Community Life Center.

The Center is now seeking alumni with

experience in grant research, human

resources and accounting. The Center

serves to enrich the lives of

neighborhood families in the greater

Trenton area through supplemental

educational services such as after school

programming and early literacy

intervention. Dana Dreibelbis ’78 (at

right), who has been volunteering with

the Center for several months, explains

why he chose to get involved with this

inspiring organization and how he plans

to use his professional publishing skills

to expand the capacity of the Center.

Read more about Dana’s experience &

NEW volunteer opportunities on page 7!

How/why did you first get involved

with Princeton AlumniCorps? What

has kept you engaged over the years?

About eight years ago, when I first be-

gan working at Public Health Solutions, I

was looking for smart, inexpensive help

in the office. I went onto the University

website, and that’s when I saw a refer-

ence to Project 55 fellowships. The next

thing I knew, Chet Safian ’55 and Steve

Houck ’69 were on my doorstep telling

me about PP55 and convincing me it

would be a great match. I had already

recruited two students at the time, and

Chet offered to make them fellows. In

addition, he convinced me that I should

be a mentor. Part of what really sold me

was when, the following year, I went

through the whole PP55 process and was

amazed at the candidates; they were well

screened and well matched with my or-

ganization’s needs. Later, I got involved

with Jim Gregoire’s (’69) initiative to

start public health fellowships.

What is your background regarding

nonprofits/volunteering? How have

you demonstrated “Princeton in the

Nation’s Service”?

I have spent my entire career working

in nonprofits—especially in healthcare—

which was my major. Upon leaving Pub-

lic Health Solutions I recently began ex-

ploring my opportunities and realized

there was a tremendous need for people

adept at helping organizations to develop

and implement strategies to deal with the

changing landscape of healthcare regula-

tions today. I am now working for two

clients in that role. One is the National

Family Planning & Reproductive Health

Association, where I'm directing a pro-

ject to provide their member organiza-

tions with tools to survive and thrive as

Interview with AlumniCorps’ New President Kathy Miller ’77

Emerging Leaders is Now Accepting 2012

Applications for NY & DC!

...continued on page 2

Page 2: Shared Effort Winter 2012

Page 2 Shared Effort

the world changes around them; fund-

ing which has traditionally come from

grants is now being transformed to

Medicaid/state sponsored insurance.

The second is a large NYC network of

ambulatory care sites where I will be

working with the leadership team to

improve their quality of service and

improve the health of the population

they care for by making better use of

technology and the patient information

it can provide.

What role do you think Alumni-

Corps plays in the broader

Princeton community and in com-

munities around the country?

AlumniCorps plays a key role in

bringing alumni together in the com-

mon pursuit of public interest opportu-

nities. This is important for several

reasons. First, when alumni are

brought together through a program,

connections are made, and amazing

partnerships and bonds are formed

which otherwise may not have been.

For instance, in Chicago, Paula Mor-

ency ’77 and Tom Allison ’66 have

recently begun

working together

on developing the

Community Volun-

teers program, and

have together dis-

covered common

interests and passions to channel into

their community. When alumni meet

other alumni in this way, it is really

compelling, and “Princeton in the Na-

tion’s Service…” is really brought to

life.

The other important aspect of

AlumniCorps’ work is intergenera-

tional as alumni of all ages can con-

nect to one another and to their com-

mon heritage as Princetonians. This is

exemplified within the Board and also

in the structure of AlumniCorps’ pro-

gramming (recent graduates are paired

with mentors of older classes, for ex-

ample). While the alumni community

is strong on its own, AlumniCorps

excels at leveraging initial alumni con-

nections into relationships that can

contribute meaningfully and effec-

tively to civic engagement, all the

while strengthening the bonds of the

alumni community in the process.

What do you see as some of the

challenges and opportunities you

will encounter in your upcoming

term as President? And what is your

hope for the future of Princeton

AlumniCorps?

I think the challenges and opportuni-

ties are very similar. We are really

striving to increase the engagement of

alumni from classes of the ’60’s,

’70’s, ’80’s, ’90’s, and ’00’s to create

a strong, alumni-driven organization

to include graduates of all ages. The

challenge is reach-

ing those alumni

who graduated be-

fore Princeton

AlumniCorps (then

Princeton Project

55) became an in-

stitution. Another

challenge is conveying the mission of

the organization and how it is relevant

for ’60’s and ’70’s graduates. We have

to be strategic in considering all the

ways they can participate that might

match up with their current passions,

interests, and desires.

Our opportunity lies in expanding

our outreach, involving more classes,

and helping to grow more programs.

With the addition of Emerging

Leaders and Community Volunteers,

AlumniCorps has created many more

outlets for alumni to get involved.

These two new programs enable us to

work not only with individual alumni

but also to partner with class service

projects that utilize AlumniCorps’

experience and skills. Through these

partnerships, we can help officers and

class members refine and implement

their visions.

My hope is that AlumniCorps would

become known in the alumni commu-

nity as an organization that provides

both individual alumni and class lead-

ership with opportunities to be effi-

ciently, effectively, and jointly

engaged in civic service.

Is there anything else you would like

to share as incoming President?

While we continually seek donations

to make our programs possible, and

ensure that AlumniCorps has a sound

financial base moving forward, our

primary goal is to engage alumni in

ways that incorporate their time and

talent. There are many ways an alum

can give to the organization: with their

time, their money, their potential con-

nections with other sources of funding,

volunteer opportunities, mentoring

opportunities, or opportunities to be

trainers for Emerging Leaders, etc.

There is a broad array of ways to be

involved and contribute to

AlumniCorps. While money is always

greatly appreciated, it is not the only

thing for which we are looking.

Interview with President Kathy Miller ’77, Cont’d. Kathy Miller ’77 graduated from Princeton with an independent major in

Healthcare Resource Allocation: The Economics and Politics of Healthcare. After

working full time for several years, she obtained a Master's in Urban Affairs and

Public Policy from the New School for Social Research as a NYC Mayor's Graduate

fellow. Kathy has been working in healthcare ever since, and is now running her own

independent healthcare consulting business. She has been a partner and mentor with

AlumniCorps for years, and was elected President of the Board in December.

“When alumni are brought together through a program, connections are made and amazing partnerships and bonds are formed which otherwise may not have been.”

Page 3: Shared Effort Winter 2012

Hollis Barber ’11

Aaron Buchman ’08

R. Gordon Douglas ’55

Naomi Gilens ’11

Kef Kasdin ’85

Stanley Katz h’21

William R. Leahy ’66

Shelia Mahoney s’55

Anne-Marie Maman ’84

Olympia Moy ’05

Paul Nehring ’10

Maria Orozco ’03

Benjamin Oseroff ’11

Alejandro Perez ’10

Sara Peters ’11

Katharine Press ’11

Elyse Powell ’11

Eloise Salmon ’07, Lead

Alumni Interviewer

Celine Satija ’11

Joseph Sengoba ’10

Stephanie Stern ’11

Jamie Sparano ’08

Scott Taylor ’75

Katie Thaeder ’09

Scott Welfel ’06

Bridget Wright ’11

Whitney Williams ’09, Lead

Alumni Interviewer

Nonprofit professionals working in New York along with

their peers in Washington, DC can now take advantage of

the hugely successful Emerging Leaders professional

development program, thanks to a very generous grant

from the Rita Allen Foundation. An expansive network of

nonprofit organizations and executives combined with an

innovative curriculum, Emerging Leaders uniquely

prepares organizations to address the growing leadership

gap in the sector, identified by many in the field, including

the Bridgespan Group.

Through highly effective, in-depth knowledge sharing,

peer community building, and skills improvement,

Emerging Leaders creates a cohort of aspiring nonprofit

executives early in their careers while they are still

committed to the sector. Current participants are thrilled

with the far-reaching impact of the program as it enables

them to accelerate their growth and contributions more

rigorously and quickly than they otherwise could.

Emerging Leader Kyndall Parker ’06 states, “The

lessons I've learned from Emerging Leaders have made

me a better manager, direct report, and peer and put

me in a position to have been recently promoted to

Senior Director of Operations.” The program runs for 8

full-day sessions over 8 consecutive months and is open to

all university graduates who meet the application criteria.

The application deadline is March 15th.

Please note that there is an application fee of $20. This fee is

waived for Princeton Project 55 Fellowship Program alumni.

The nominal participation fee of $350 for each applicant who is

accepted may be covered by employers.

Winter 2012 Page 3

More than 140 candidates were

interviewed for Project 55 fellowships this

year between January 5 and 17. We would

like to extend our gratitude to all of our

alumni interviewers for coming to

Princeton and sharing their enthusiasm

and experience with applicants.

We would like to extend a special thank

you to former PP55 fellows Eloise

Salmon ’07 and Whitney Williams ’09.

Eloise and Whitney learned the details of

all of our partner organizations and

locations to serve as lead interviewers.

They each directed seven interviews a day

for three consecutive days and their active

role greatly contributed to the interview

process this year.

In addition to Eloise and Whitney, 24

alumni and volunteers participated in

interviews this year, including four Board

members, seven former fellows, and ten

current fellows.

Emerging Leaders Program Expands Beyond Washington, DC to New York with Hopes of

Growing to Other Locations

For more information about Emerging Leaders

or to apply, visit www.AlumniCorps.org.

Have questions?

Contact [email protected]

Fellowship Applicant Interviews

Thank You, Interviewers!

Page 4: Shared Effort Winter 2012

Boston hopes to grow its

Princeton AlumniCorps base

next year and recruited five

organizations to submit

positions this fall, reports

Lizzie Harvey ’06. Many

thanks are due to Tom Flynn

p’10 and the rest of the Boston

Steering Committee for their

continued recruitment efforts.

Current and past fellows joined

with Harvard Center for the Public

Interest Fellows to celebrate the

holidays at Russell House Tavern in

Harvard Square in December. This

past January, the Boston program held

a seminar on sustainability and is

looking forward to upcoming seminars

on medicine and education.

The Chicago PP55 fellows continue

to collaborate with fellows from the

University of Chicago and

Northwestern University in their

weekly seminar series. Recent

seminars included a conversation with

Mildred Wiley and Howard “Nat”

Piggee ’96 at Bethel New Life, a

community development organization

on Chicago’s West Side, where

Kathleen Connor ’11 is currently a

fellow. Another seminar was led by

David Kay at METROsquash, an

organization that uses squash to draw

Chicago public school students into

experiences that broaden their

educational, cultural, and community

service horizons. METROsquash has

hosted many PP55 fellows, including

current fellow Jackie Moss ’11. PP55

fellows were joined by Northwestern

and University of Chicago fellows for

a holiday gathering in December, and

are looking forward to more

gatherings in the coming months.

Board members Paula Morency ’77

and Tom Allison ’66 are leading the

effort to build out Community

Volunteers in Chicago. Stay tuned!

“The Connecticut branch of

AlumniCorps and the PP55

Fellowship Program has been blessed

with outstanding fellows again this

year,” writes Harry Berkowitz ’55.

Julia Kearney ’11 and Michael

Belmont ’11 are at the Norwalk

Community Health Center, where they

have been immersed in every aspect of

the Center and are playing an integral

role in its functioning. Tiffany Lee

’11, at Housing Development Fund,

has likewise reported she is deeply

involved in the organization, and is

enjoying her fellowship. The fellows

continue to travel to New York to join

the New York AlumniCorps family in

their monthly seminars. Fellows have

enjoyed meals with Harry, who

continues to support the Connecticut

AlumniCorps community with his

good spirit and great energy.

Connecticut is looking forward to

hosting fellows again at the Norwalk

Community Health Center and the

Housing Development Fund in the

coming year, in addition to other new

partnerships with local organizations.

Kristen Smith ’03 reports that the

year continues to go well for the New

York AlumniCorps family. The annual

Career/Networking Night took place at

the home of Laurie & Arthur

Malman ’64 on Wednesday,

December 7th. Facilitators included

Paul Nehring ’10, Jess Jardine ’10

and Andrew Goldstein ’06.

Chet Safian ’55 & Jenny

Safian s’55 hosted a holiday

celebration at their beautiful

home on December 13th.

The NY program kicked off

the New Year on January 12th

with a trek uptown to the

Hispanic Society of America

for a seminar on the arts.

Distinguished panelists

included Marcus Burke ’69,

Mark Rossier and James Martin

(former Princeton dance teacher).

Marcus Burke, the Senior Curator at

the Hispanic Society of America, also

gave a tour of this hidden gem in

Washington Heights. This seminar

was organized with the help of Judy

Hole Suratt s’55.

On Wednesday, February 29th, Prep

for Prep will host a seminar on

‘Sustainable Food and Public Health’

featuring Dr. Gordon Douglas ’55,

Mia McDonald and Matt Rice.

On March 27th, at the Whitney

Museum, fellows will be receiving a

behind the scenes look at the museum

and its Biennial Exhibition due to the

hard work and planning of Scott

Taylor ’75 and NY Seminar

Committee Co-Chairs Katie Ko ’09

and Reilly Kiernan ’10.

Emerging Leaders will host its first

cohort in New York this year!

Applications are now available online.

Princeton AlumniCorps Regional Updates

Boston

Chicago

Connecticut

New York

Page 4 Shared Effort

Steve Pearson ’09, Celine Satija ’11, Lyuba

Docheva ’11, Carolyn Birbiglia ’11, and Elyse

Powell ’11 at the New York Holiday Party

Page 5: Shared Effort Winter 2012

Washington, DC

Philadelphia

San Francisco Bay Area

Winter 2012 Page 5

Current fellow Joseph Sengoba ’10

is working to organize a forum

focusing on Philadelphia's criminal

justice system in the Spring, inspired

by the New York seminar at District

Attorney’s Office of New York, which

he attended. According to Carol

Rosenfeld ’05, the Philadelphia

fellows attended an amazing forum on

education reform at the beginning of

November, which was organized by

former PP55 fellow and Philadelphia

area committee member Katie

Thaeder ’09. February's seminar will

focus on using social media for social

change, and the group is also looking

forward to attending the Princeton

Global NetNight in March to practice

networking skills.

The Philadelphia area is thrilled that

they’re on track to once again double

the fellowship program for the coming

2012 - 2013 fellowship year. They are

continuing to recruit partner

organizations through the Spring

round - please email Carol Rosenfeld

’05 at [email protected] if

you know of any organizations in

Philadelphia that would benefit from

hosting a fellow.

Community Volunteers has launched

in Mercer County. Please view page 7

for a list of upcoming events!

Julie Rubinger ’09 writes that the

Bay Area fellows are doing well. After

a career mixer hosted by the Harvard

CPIC program in October, Julie

reached out to members of the local

AlumniCorps community to

participate in a November seminar on

education. Entitled "The Future of K-

12 Education in America", panelists

included April Chou ’96 of KIPP Bay

Area, Andrew Garland ’01 of The

New Teacher Project, Derek Mitchell

of Partners in School Innovation, and

Kit Tollerson ’08 of Rocketship Education. The panelists

discussed the challenges of closing the

achievement gap, and how individuals

and organizations are developing

innovative solutions to improve public

education.

In early December, Chet Safian ’55

visited the Bay Area and met with all

of the fellows in the Marina district.

Chet recounted some wonderful stories

about the history of Project 55 and the

importance of public service. The

fellows celebrated the holidays with

other fellows from Stanford and

Harvard, at Yerba Buena Gardens in

downtown San Francisco.

Emily Silk ’10 and Sara Thardock

’11 report that the seminar series is

well under way in Washington, DC.

After taking part in an interactive

office dynamics seminar led by

Charity Fesler ’01 and Lisa Lazarus

’02 in December, fellows enjoyed a

January seminar about post-fellowship

plans: "Planning Your Next Move",

led by professional career coach and

talent recruiter Katie McNerney and

DC Area Committee Chair Ari

Altman ’97. Next up? A highly

anticipated discussion of

environmental policy, hosted by

Justin Smith ’90 at the Department of

Justice!

The DC region has also hosted a

number of more informal events:

December saw fellows, committee

members, and mentors gathered at the

home of Kathleen McCleery ’75 &

Bob Martinez ’75 for a holiday dinner

featuring delicious homemade soups

and equally enjoyable conversation.

Fellows also recently convened at

happy hour event planned by the three

newest additions to the DC area

committee: current fellows Carol

Dreibelbis ’11, Rachel Sverdlove

’11, and Sarah Twardock ’11. They

are now looking forward to a busy

spring—beginning in February, when

Kathleen McCleery ’75 will host

fellows at PBS NewsHour, where she

is Deputy Executive Producer.

AlumniCorps looks forward to

celebrating the inaugural year of

Emerging Leaders following the final

session on March 13th. We are

grateful to all of the individuals and

organizations whose ongoing support

has contributed to the great success of

the program. Nonprofit professionals

in Washington, DC who meet the

application criteria are encouraged to

apply now for the second year of the

program which will begin this

June. Please see page 3 for more

details!

Princeton

Hear PP55 Fellows’

Stories from Around

the Nation!

Visit:

pp55fellows.blogspot.com

Fellows gather at a seminar in Washington, DC

Page 6: Shared Effort Winter 2012

In July 2011, Princeton AlumniCorps launched a peer-led campaign to encourage and recognize gifts from

alumni of the Project 55 Fellowship Program. Since then, more than 120 alumni have stepped up, donating a

total of more than $23,000 as of February 10, 2012. Show your support by joining the campaign today!

Thank You to our PP55 Alumni Donors!

Page 6 Shared Effort

Champions ($2,500.00 + )

Rebecca E. Deaton '91 & Jadran Lee

Jeremy M. Getson '94 & Lisa B. Getson '93

Melissa F. Mazin '91

Patrons ($1,000.00 + )

Margaret M. Crotty '94

Andrew Garland ’01 & Anne Gordon ’01

Lindsay M. Wall '02 & Jeremy Wall '02

Stewards ($500.00 + )

Paul Gazzerro, III '92

William A. Jordan, Jr. '95

Jocelyn A. Luongo '01

William E. Pugh '96 & Molly Pugh '98

Scott E. Regenbogen '97

Julie R. Wingerter '92 & Seth Lieberman

Activists ($250.00 + )

Michael J. Bocian '95

Jennifer L. Carpenter '96

Matthew Ferguson '96 & Kelli Garcia '96

Charity Fesler '01

Celine Gounder '97

Jennifer Z. Johnson '97

Leslie P. Kernisan '97

Katie E. Ko '09

Kevin H. Moriarty '99

Olympia Moy '05

Maria O. Orozco '03

Elizabeth Perriello Rice '90

Jessica Rosenbaum '92

Engaged Citizens ($150.00 + )

Katherine S. Canning '97

Cynthia M. Chin '93

Stephanie Freeth '97 & Timothy Freeth '95

Andrew Goldstein '06

Katherine Hande Smith '02

Matthew T. Henshon ’91

Darlington P. Hicks '94

Kirsten O. Hull '99

Jessica D. Johnson '98

Aparna Miano '91

Kelly A. Moriarty '97 & Jeffrey Moriarty

Robin D. Olsen '00

Anna Maria Ortiz '95

Kevin Reich '00

Arti Sheth '08

R. Justin Smith '90

David J. Strozzi '99

Lindsay L. Warner '01

Supporters ($50.00 + )

Jacob P. Arechiga '05

Elizabeth M. Arnold '98

Morey Barnes Yost '00

Maria E. Beylin '07

Linda Boachie-Ansah '02

Sandra Bruno '04

Cristina Ritchie Cooper '96

Anastasia Crosswhite ’94

Andres D. Diamond-Ortiz '05

Justin N. Elga '00

Meghan Fehlig Mitman '02

Dylan B. Fitz '05

Jeffrey T. Gaffney '01

Jessica Gamboa '10

Rebecca Garr Whitaker '06

Dunrie A. Greiling '92

Nora Gross '08

Louis A. Jacobson '92

Benet J. Kearney '05

Anne G. LaLonde '90

Lisa F. Lazarus '02

Kristopher Lazzaretti '06

Carol Lee '03

Aiala Levy '07

Kathleen J. Liu

William D. Maeck '89

Michael D. Malecek '09

Jonathan C. Marks ’05

Ann E. McGowan '92

Kristen Molloy '08

Larkin M. Morton '02

Antoinette Seaberry '05

Patrick M. Murphy '93

Paul Nehring '10

Alejandro Perez '10

Katharine Press ’11

Asha Rangappa '96

Tim Reidy '97 & Kim Reidy '97

Michael Rosskamm '02

Misha B. Simmonds '97

Shannon Donnelly Simmons '03

Lucia Smith '04

Marlorie P. Stinfil '95

Katie M. Thaeder '09

Anna M. Varghese '01

Kristin L. Vassallo '97

Allison C. Wales '97

Gillian M. Webster '96

Fellows (up to $50 )

Jennifer Albinson '05

Anonymous

Michelle Arader ’10

Margaret Arbuthnot '07

Audrey L. Austin '01

Kathryn T. Bailey '10

Hollis Barber ’11

Sloan Bermann '02

Courtney E. Brein '08

Emily Chiswick-Patterson '05

Laura Collins '99

Erin E. Ebbel '06

Laura B. Eichhorn '02

Kathryn Fiorella '06

Jennifer H. Furbert ’92

Mark S. Gaioni '09

Sarah E. Hendricks '00

Felix Huang '07

Reilly Kiernan '10

Clare E. Levy Clarke ’01

John H. Lurz, III '03

Pope McCorkle, IV '09

Wendy L. McGoodwin '93

Michael Noveck '08

Samuel Page '10

Anupama Pattabiraman ’10

Lauren Peccoralo ’01

Lori Piranian Mulcare '06

Christine Prifti '10

Jayme L. Ranalli '08

Elizabeth C. Rosen ’10

Julie Rubinger '09

Eloise C. Salmon '07

Joseph A. Sengoba '10

Page 7: Shared Effort Winter 2012

...Continued from page 1

What motivated you to get involved

with the Westminster Community

Life Center?

With the youngest of my children in

college, it was time for me to allocate

my time in new ways. My goal was to

put my Christian faith into action in a

local service program. Westminster

Presbyterian Church (WPC), home of

the Westminster Community Life

Center, appealed to me with its

longstanding record of leadership and

outreach. Westminster is in an area of

Trenton which faces a variety of

challenges, including high crime rates,

drug dealing, a low number of two-

parent home settings, and extremely

high drop-out rates in schools.

Can you describe the Center and

your responsibilities there?

My work at Westminster

Community Life Center has a variety

of aspects. Being self-employed, I am

able to carve out time to volunteer

there after school on Wednesdays to

provide homework assistance, reading

enrichment activities, and assist with a

food service. Kids who may not

otherwise have a substantial dinner are

fed a nutritious, hot meal.

The Center also has teen-level

outreach programs, which offer a safe

environment, coaching in life-skills,

and SAT college preparation.

How are you using your career

experience in publishing to help

meet key needs of the organization?

The Center’s students produce

writings and artwork that is collected

as a bound package. The middle

school students are producing a

multimedia CD to promote

constructive living and discourage

drug use and gang membership, and

the high school students are working

on an HIV prevention project.

I am planning to help expand the

scope of their publishing efforts

through a new initiative. The current

state of digital publishing (high quality

production with very low costs to

produce and distribute) enables us to

produce small books and multimedia

products of professional quality. Many

if not all of these can be sold via

channels such as Amazon. Irrespective

of what may happen on the 'sales'

front, all of the participants in this

process will be honing skills that could

lead to jobs in the publishing/media

marketplace, and career paths that are

important for the long-term health of

Trenton.

Why should Princetonians take

action through Community

Volunteers?

Many people talk about wanting to

make a difference but do not know

where to go or what to do. By aligning

with a reputable organization with a

proven track record, one has the

chance to be of service and learn more

about various issues. In my case that

has meant a greater understanding of

the direct and indirect effects of urban

problems, including the complexities

and impact of racism, and the

difficulties faced by youth in building

positive lives while being confronted

with obstacles such as joblessness and

gangs.

What do you enjoy most about your

volunteer work?

For me, the best part about this kind

of volunteering is that I have the

opportunity to serve in both concrete

and personal ways. I have been able to

live out my faith in a positive,

meaningful way while interacting with

others. The relationships I am building

with the staff, students, and parents,

along with the supportive schools and

community—all these relationships

and interactions make my volunteer

experience worthwhile.

Exciting New Partnership with Local Nonprofit: An Interview with Dana Dreibelbis ’78

Winter 2012 Page 7

Become a Community Volunteer

Westminster Community Life Center

enriches the lives of neighborhood

families through supplemental

educational services such as after

school programming and early literacy

intervention.

Open Positions:

Fiscal Support Specialist Human Resource Strategist Grant Research Specialist

Location: Greater Trenton Area, NJ

Majority of volunteer work can be done remotely

Living With Purpose

10:30 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.

March 2, 2012 Suzanne Patterson Building

45 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ

Awaken Your Inner Activist

Are you looking for meaningful ways

to channel your talents?

Hear from three extraordinary people living their

dreams while solving tough social problems through

an “encore career.” Learn about their life-changing

projects and discover ways to pursue your own

passions and make a difference in the community.

Hosted by the Princeton Senior Resource Center

in partnership with Princeton AlumniCorps and

VolunteerConnect.

Volunteer Opportunities & Upcoming Events

NetNight

7 p.m. - 9 p.m.

March 14, 2012 Princeton AlumniCorps

12 Stockton Street, Princeton, NJ

Define Your Professional Brand &

Expand Your Personal Network

Princeton regional associations world-wide will

host in-person networking events for alumni

interested in defining their personal and

professional brand, refining their online presence

and reconnecting with fellow Tigers. Learn about

substantive volunteer opportunities for alumni

interested in using their professional skills to help

nonprofits with critical capacity building needs.

Hosted by the Princeton Area Alumni Association

and Princeton AlumniCorps.

Page 8: Shared Effort Winter 2012

PRINCETON ALUMNICORPS

12 Stockton Street

Princeton, NJ 08540-6813

ADDRESS SERVICE REQUESTED

“You will be saying that shared effort to solve our problems is not a hopeless venture” — John Gardner

Princeton AlumniCorps Board of Directors

John H. Fish ’55, Chairman

Kathryn A. Miller ’77, President

Jessica D. Johnson ’98, Secretary

Charles F. Mapes, Jr. ’55, Treasurer

Thomas D. Allison ’66

Illa Brown ’76

Margaret Crotty ’94

Andrew Goldstein ’06

James A. Gregoire ’69

Stanley N. Katz h’21

William R. Leahy Jr. ’66

James D. Lynn ’55

Kathleen McCleery ’75

W. Arthur McKee ’90

Dominic F. Michel ’70

Paula Morency ’77

Ralph Nader ’55

Janice Nittoli *85

Alejandro Perez ’10

Anthony Quainton ’55

Michael D. Robbins ’55

Margarita Rosa, Esq. ’74

Marsha Rosenthal ’76

Warner V. Slack ’55

Leesy Taggart ’78

Scott Taylor ’75

Richard E. Thompson ’55

Richard O. Walker ’73

Lindsay Wall ’02

R. Kenly Webster ’55

Princeton AlumniCorps Staff

Kathleen E. Reilly, Executive Director

Rachel Benevento, Program Manager, Community Volunteers & Emerging Leaders

Carrie Diaz-Littauer, Office Administrator

Sara McCord, Princeton Project 55 Fellowship Program Manager

Arti Sheth ’08, Development Officer

Please visit us at www.alumnicorps.org

Nonprofit org.

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PAID

Princeton, NJ

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If you would like to receive Shared

Effort electronically, please email

us at [email protected]