Murfreesboro, TN - Special Kids has been selected as a finalist in the State Farm Youth Advisory Board Cause An Effect program and has a chance to win $25,000. Over 3,000 applications were submitted to the board that narrowed the list to 100 finalists. The winners will be chosen by the community via voting on Facebook. The top 40 organizations will each be awarded $25,000 to apply towards their cause. Any Facebook user can vote up to 10 times per day from now until May 17.
http://www.facebook.com/statefarm/app_376288832400015?app_data=Camp-Ability
Nashville, TN – Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development Commissioner Karla Davis is announcing a $3,448,259 National Emergency Grant to serve about 850 of the 1,983 total workers affected by the closure of the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company located in Union City, Tennessee. The grant will be used toward skills training and reemployment services for displaced workers.
Goodyear workers were approved in April for assistance under the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) program for companies affected by foreign trade. TAA offers a variety of benefits and services to support workers in their search for reemployment including job training, job search and relocation allowances, income support, and assistance with healthcare premium costs.
“Clearly this grant is great news for the displaced workers at Goodyear,” said Commissioner Davis. “With the dual support provided under Trade Adjustment Assistance and this National Emergency Grant, these individuals will have a full range of assistance in order to get back to work.”
Services are provided through the Tennessee Career Center system. All workers covered in the grant are eligible to receive services including job placement, career counseling, and remedial training in an adult education classroom. Occupational skills training can also be approved based on a client’s interests and the likelihood of training leading to employment.
Seventy of the 850 affected workers were leased workers from Hamilton Ryker, located in Martin, Tennessee. Hamilton Ryker, a provider of consulting, human resources, and management services, provided staffing to the Goodyear facility, such as administrative support, lab technicians, tire processors, as well as some professional personnel.
Spouses of affected workers may also take advantage of the services provided under the National Emergency Grant.
Murfreesboro, TN - Special Kids announced today that it received a $6,200 grant from the Richard Siegel Foundation to help fund its summer day camp for children with special needs.
Special Kids Camp Ability will use the grant to offset the weekly fees for participants in its camp in Murfreesboro, TN. The Richard Siegel Foundation has enabled the local nonprofit to hold Camp Ability since its beginning in 2007.
“The Richard Siegel Foundation is truly impacting the community by enabling us to serve so many families,” said Brandon Deal, Director of Special Kids Camp Ability. “It would not be possible for us to provide the much needed services to so many without the financial support of this foundation.”
Special Kids Camp Ability is a Christian summer day camp for children with special needs between the ages of 6-21. The day camp focuses on abilities rather than disabilities during its eight week session from June to July each year. Camp Ability provides an opportunity for children with special needs to participate in structured recreation activities in a safe, Christian environment.
Camp Ability strives to promote each child’s self-esteem, social skills, and body image by providing a setting for positive social interaction that increases and enhances daily living skills. Camp Ability also provides programming that will help children be better prepared for school and every day activities.
Mr. Richard Siegel’s desire was for programs receiving grants from the Foundation to promote high moral and ethical standards and to be available to all children regardless of race, religion or national origin. The goals of the Richard Siegel Foundation are to improve the overall quality of public education in the City of Murfreesboro and to promote the development of young people and families through recreation in Rutherford County.
Special Kids is a Christian, nonprofit organization located in Murfreesboro, TN, that gives therapeutic rehabilitation and professional nursing services to children with special needs. Since 1998, Special Kids has served over 2,200 families from 11 counties in middle Tennessee. For more information on Special Kids, please visit specialkidstn.com or call 615.893.4892.
MTSU has applied for and received a Hazard Mitigation Grant from the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency, which will provide funds to survey buildings, identify potential hazards and develop strategies to counter identified hazards.
The MTSU Hazard Mitigation Plan will allow the University to apply for grant funds from both TEMA and the Federal Emergency Management Agency for projects to implement the plan.
An essential component in the planning process is community involvement, so members of the MTSU campus and surrounding community are being invited to a public-information session and presentation of the final draft of the plan. This session will be held on Wednesday, July 27, from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. in Room 475 of the James E. Walker Library on campus.
The MTSU Hazard Mitigation Committee will be present and includes representatives from the University’s Environmental Health and Safety Committee; the City of Murfreesboro’s fire, electric, and water and sewer departments; Rutherford County Emergency Management; Hastings Architecture; and MTSU Campus Planning.
For more information, contact Gerald Caudill at 615-898-2754.
Nissan director of supply chain management, Ricky Knight (center), presented Lee Rennick, Business Education Partnership Foundation executive director (right), with a $50,000 check at the BEP/Nissan Teacher Mini-Grant awards breakfast on January 28th. The funding provides grants up to $500 for teachers to use in innovative classroom projects in Rutherford County and Murfreesboro City Schools. Nissan has sponsored the program since 1990, and it is administered by the BEP. Pictured with Knight and Rennick, are Don Odom, Rutherford County assistant superintendant for curriculum and instruction (left) and Dr. Linda Gilbert, Murfreesboro City Schools director.
Murfreesboro, TN - Local non-profit, Special Kids, recently received a grant for $27,250 from The Baptist Healing Trust for its summer day camp, Camp Ability, which serves children with special needs in middle Tennessee.
The grant funding allows Camp Ability to serve 40 children between the ages of 6-21 years in the months of June and July this year. The summer day camp helps children with special needs work towards the goals of greater self-esteem, increased levels of physical activity, and life skills development.
“The Baptist Healing Trust has played a substantial role in the success of Camp Ability,” said Jan Parker, Special Kids Director of Foundation Investments. “With their partnership, Special Kids has been blessed to provide this vital service to children with special needs since 2007.”
The Baptist Healing Trust awarded funds totaling over $1.6 million recently to 54 local non-profits for a variety of health related projects, according to Present & CEO Cathy Self. The mission of the Baptist Healing Trust is to be a caring ministry devoted to healing with love in the Christian tradition.
Recipients of the contributions include non-profit organizations from all over middle Tennessee working to help create access to quality, compassionate health services for the community’s most vulnerable. This year’s grants bring the collective grant making of the Baptist Healing Trust to over $50 million since 2002. The Baptist Healing Trust was created when Baptist Hospital in Nashville sold to St. Thomas Health Services, a ministry of Ascension Health in St. Louis, Missouri.
Special Kids is a Christian-based therapeutic rehabilitation and professional nursing services facility in Middle Tennessee, providing medical and rehabilitative services for children with special needs. Since 1998, Special Kids has served more than 2,000 families in 11 counties. For more information on Special Kids, please visit specialkidstn.com or call 615.893.4892.
The Long-Term Disaster Recovery Organization (LDRO) recently received a grant for $34,500 from the Tennessee Emergency Response Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee. The grant, which was given to local organizations due to their being knowledgeable about the current and continuing needs of its neighbors, was awarded to assist victims who have still have needs as a result of the May 2010 flood. The funds will be applied in Rutherford County ($31,500) and Cannon County ($3,000) only.
“By securing this grant, we will be able to help our friends and neighbors who are still rebuilding and recovering from recent flood damage,” said County Commissioner Robert Stevens, chair of the LDRO. “I am very excited about this opportunity for the LDRO to make a difference in our community.”
Stevens said that residents in Rutherford and Cannon Counties may apply to receive assistance by accessing the “Contact Us” link found on the organization’s website, which is www.ldro.org.
The LDRO formed in May 2010 as a result of the flooding in Middle Tennessee. The organization’s formation was instigated by the United Way of Rutherford and Cannon Counties. While many organizations were able to assist in the immediate-response phase of the flooding, the LDRO focuses on assisting those who have long-term needs. The LDRO continues to work in partnership with the local United Way and functions as a consortium of local volunteer organizations, governmental agencies, and others with an interest in disaster relief.
The mission of the LDRO is to serve Rutherford and Cannon Counties with a comprehensive disaster relief and organizational plan that functions as a conduit for disbursing information to disaster victims and concerned citizens; as a financial clearinghouse that is dedicated to spending any and all monetary donations for the benefit of Rutherford and Cannon Counties; and as a resource to coordinate volunteer opportunities.
Those interested in learning more about the LDRO should contact (615) 653-4902 or visit www.ldro.org. Donations may be sent to P.O. Box 1525, Murfreesboro, TN 37133.
NASHVILLE, TN – Governor Phil Bredesen and Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development Commissioner James Neeley have awarded $510,751 in job training grants to 26 companies across the state. Incumbent Worker Training grants assist employers with upgrading skills and avoiding layoffs for their employees.
"Job training to upgrade the skills of Tennessee’s workers is one of the best things we can do for our economy," said Governor Bredesen. "Now more than ever, it is important to continue training our workforce to keep employees and companies competitive."
"The Incumbent Worker Grants help companies invest in the future of their workers," said Commissioner Neeley. "Over the past five years, training grants have totaled more than $15 million to assist more than 49,000 employees."
The Incumbent Worker program has been structured to be flexible to meet the business's training objectives. The business may use public, private, or its own in-house training provider based on the nature of the training. The following criteria must be met to qualify for the Incumbent Worker Training Program. Employers must be in operation in Tennessee for at least one year prior to application date. Employers must have at least five full-time employees, demonstrate financial viability and be current on all state tax obligations. Funding priority is given to businesses whose grant proposals represent a significant layoff avoidance strategy and represent a significant upgrade of skills.
The Incumbent Worker Training Program is funded by the Federal Workforce Investment Act (WIA) and administered by the Workforce Development division within the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development, the Local Workforce Investment Area (LWIA contact), and the local career center.
Follow the link below for a list of companies receiving Incumbent Worker Training Grants
http://www.tn.gov/labor-wfd/news/November2010JobTrainingAwards.html.
The Tennessee Arts Commission has announced that guidelines and applications are now available online (www.arts.state.tn.us) for several Fiscal Year 2012 grant categories (fiscal year begins July 1, 2011 and ends June 30, 2012). Applications will be accepted online through the Commission’s eGrant system. Grant categories include: Arts Access (AA); Arts Education (Artist-in-Residence, Community Learning, funds for At-Risk Youth and Teacher Training); Arts project Support (APS); Cultural Education Partnership (CEP); Major Cultural Institution (MCI); and Partnership Support (PS).
Each year the Commission conducts competitive grant making activities, open to nonprofit, chartered in Tennessee organizations and entities of government who present and produce arts events and activities. In general, all grants must be matched by the recipient (one dollar matched by one private-sector dollar). Applications are reviewed and evaluated by citizen advisory panels or out-of-state evaluators.
Applications must bed submitted by a specific deadline. Deadlines are:
January 3, 2011 Cultural Education Partnership
Major Cultural Institution
January 10, 2011 Arts Education
(Artist-in-Residence, Community Learning, Funds for
At-Risk Youth and Teacher Training)
January 18, 2011 Arts Access (Conference Deadline: January 14, 2011)
Arts Project Support
Partnership Support
Rural Arts Project Support
For more information contact Rod Reiner at (615) 741-2093 or email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Applications and guidelines are available on the Commission’s Web Site: www.arts.state.tn.us
United Way Competes for $25,000 in Funding
There are five days remaining to vote for the United Way of Rutherford and Cannon Counties in the Pepsi Refresh Everything grant program. The organization is contending for a $25,000 grant from Pepsi that, if received, would be awarded to United Way’s partner agencies for the 2011 Day of Action.
Pepsi will award 32 grants totaling $1.3 million during the month of October, and grant recipients are determined by a public vote that will conclude on October 31st. The web address to vote for United Way in this process is http://www.refresheverything.com/uwrcc and voters may vote up to once per day per e-mail address.
The most recent Day of Action on May 21st, 2010, consisted of more than 260 volunteers at 25 sites and included projects such as landscaping, painting, installing new lockers, and repairing playground equipment.
Only about 50% of United Way’s partner agencies were able to participate in this year’s Day of Action, many of those agencies stating that they simply could not afford the materials required to complete their projects.
The Day of Action involves volunteers from companies, organizations, schools, and the community and allows the opportunity for not only the agencies and schools to receive needed services, but to allow community members to further develop relationships with and witness first-hand the needs involved with those agencies.
For more information about United Way or the Pepsi Refresh Everything program, please visit www.uwrutherford.org.
