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ILI Weekly Updates |
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From ILI Project Coordinator Bob Kovar |
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Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ ILI staff finished up work on the upcoming set of SPRING! sessions that start next week with 8th grade. They should be terrific!
§ We heard from former ILI student Anne Johnson who has been traveling and studying all over the world since she left us a few years ago. During her study abroad last semester, she had an internship at the Beijing office of an int'l NGO called The Mountain Institute. They work in mountainous areas around the world doing economic development, cultural preservation and environmental protection work. Most of their money came from a 3 year US AID grant, but it runs out this spring. Because of this, her job with them was very fundraising focused, mostly English language editing of project proposals, project summaries and grants applications. In the last month of her internship, she helped edit a grant application that was ultimately submitted to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (see link below). We’re incredibly proud of Anne and always amazed to see how far she has taken her passion for social justice-she studied in Beijing and had an amazing time of it. Now, she is with a group that has gathered in Maastricht, Netherlands bringing their experiences from China, Spain, Namibia, Japan etc and are studying globalization. Specifically, they’re looking at things like global governance, human rights, multiculturalism and int'l justice. Pretty cool! http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/en/second_trustfund.html
§ We have quite a crew of students signed up for the annual ILI Service Learning Overnight set for this weekend: 9 students from LUHS, 1 8th grade student from MHLT, 6 8th grade students from AVW, and 11 8th grade students from LdF. The group will be volunteering at the Lakeland Loppett x-c ski race in Minocqua tomorrow feeding skiers and helping at the finish line with timing. They will spend the night in the lodge out in the school forest, Sunday morning playing at The Waters in Minocqua!
§ We were contacted this past week by Bryan Hoover from LdF Tribal Natural Resources-they are part of a group who working to organize and establish Lac du Flambeau lake associations that include both Tribal members and non-members as participants. They have asked us to help because of our experience of bringing folks together her in the area. We’re looking forward to helping in any way that we can!
§ We had a great conversation this week with a woman named Leslie Olson from The Refugee Housing Program of Mercy Housing (www.refugeehouse.org). They are a national organization that has been developing a community integration program designed to bring refugees and their neighbors together around shared concerns about safety and well-being in their neighborhoods. They have had a fair amount of success, especially given the difficulties of working with language barriers and deeply entrenched fears about others. She told us that in one 52 unit building, there were 32 languages spoken! They are currently in the process of developing a more expansive program, including a component that encourages participants to become leaders or “ambassadors” for positive social change. In their quest to find other effective models, they encountered our ILI website. Leslie will try to come and see what we do and hopefully we’ll be able to connect and get her here!
§ We finalized travel plans this week for the ILI staff and four LUHS ILI students who are going to Louisiana in March over spring break for a leadership camp. We will be flying out of Minneapolis-this is going to a great trip! All of our expenses are being paid by our host.
§ SAVE THE DATE: The next Lakeland Area Community Meeting is being held at the LdF Wellness Center on Tuesday March 11 from 5:30-8:00pm. LUHS new superintendent Todd Kleinhans will be attending to meet with our group and learn more about what we have been doing over the past 16 months. We’ll be sending an agenda out next week.
§ The BIG news this week is that we found out we received one of the national Center For Applied Prevention Technologies (CAPT) evaluation enhancement awards. This is a $30,000 grant, most of which will be going to our evaluation partner ACET, Inc. in Minneapolis. This is going to enable us to put together a very professional evaluation for our project and we’re really excited about getting started.
§ We submitted our full application to the Wisconsin Community Fund yesterday.
§ We completed a semi-annual report to the Ministry Health Care Foundation. We received a grant from them a year ago, in partnership with Howard Young Health Care. Howard Young has told us this week that they are willing once again to sponsor us with a letter of support so we will be applying again for funding. The Letter of Intent is due in a few weeks.
§ We received $50 this week from the Friends of ILI campaign-thank you to all!
§ ILI In the Media: There was nice photo last week of the Camp Jorn pre-schoolers playing in the igloo made by older ILI students during our recent sessions. Its nice to leave something behind that others can enjoy!
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Saturday March 1, 2008: LUHS ILI Overnight-Winter Park
o Sunday, March 2, 2008: LUHS ILI Overnight-LUHS school forest
o Monday, March 3, 2008: Group #1 8th grade ILI session. 9am-2pm. Camp Jorn.
o Tuesday, March 4, 2008: Group #2 8th grade ILI session. 9am-2pm. Camp Jorn.
o Wednesday March 5, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Junior/Senior. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday March 5, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
o Thursday, March 6, 2008: Group #3 8th grade ILI session. 9am-2pm. Camp Jorn.
o Friday, March 7, 2008: Group #4 8th grade ILI session. 9am-2pm. Camp Jorn.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: See you all next week!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $381892 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR MORE INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please check the ILI website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ A very special Good Luck this weekend to Ernie St. Germaine-he is skiing in his 35th Birkiebeiner!! He is one of only three founders left skiing the race and is a true legend in the x-c ski world for skiing every one of these tough races. It is an amazing accomplishment-go Ernie go!
§ The BIG news this week is that we found out from LdF Tribal Education Director Jeaninne Bruguier that ILI has made the first cut for the Harvard School “Honoring Our Nations” award that the Tribe has nominated us for! We have some more submission requirements but we’re really excited about this possibility-we’ll keep you posted!
§ ILI staff helped out last Saturday at the Winter Fun Day hosted by the LdF WITCAPP Coalition in Lac du Flambeau. There were 200+ kids there! A great success-this group is really doing some wonderful things planning activities for youth. The huge turnout tells us that we could probably be doing these kinds of things with youth every weekend if we could!
§ ILI staff has met with the LUHS ILI students going to Louisiana in March and their parents to discuss plans and logistics. This is really an exciting opportunity for our staff and students. We’re in the process of finalizing all the details for air travel and getting to and from whatever airport we can fly in and out of.
§ On Monday night, we presented ILI to the Lac du Flambeau Improvement Association at their monthly dinner. It was a really nice evening and we received $220 in donations at the end of the presentation-thank you to all who attended and gave us their generous support!
§ ILI staff has been busy recruiting LUHS and 8th grade ILI students for our annual Service Overnight set for next weekend. Each year ILI students and staff volunteer for the annual Lakeland Loppett Ski Race at Minocqua Winter Park. Students help with serving skiers on the race course and with timing at the finish line. After the race is over, we all go to the LUHS school forest for an overnight in the Winter Lodge. Sunday morning we take the students out for a nice breakfast and then over to the Waters for some fun in the waterpark. Staff has sent home permission forms with all students who are interested.
§ SAVE THE DATE: The next Lakeland Area Community Meeting is being held at the LdF Wellness Center on Tuesday March 11 from 5:30-8:00pm. LUHS new superintendent Todd Kleinhans will be attending to meet with our group and learn more about what we have been doing over the past 16 months. We’ll be sending an agenda out next week.
§ We were notified this week that our Letter on Intent to the Wisconsin Community Fund was accepted. We now have to submit a full application by next Friday.
§ We were notified this week that we have been declined by Jimmy Buffet’s “Singing For Change Foundation” as their funds are all being spent in the gulf coast to help storm ravaged areas down there.
§ We received $25 this week from the Friends of ILI campaign-thank you to all!
§ ILI In the Media: nothing to report this week.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Wednesday February 27, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Freshman/Sophomore. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday February 27, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: matt will be contacting everyone about our volunteer needs for the next set of sessions that start the week after next.
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $381841 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR MORE INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please check the ILI website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Intercultural Leadership Initiative
2007-2008
Weekly Update
Friday February 15, 2008
Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ We had a great set of 4th grade sessions this week! We’ve heard that some 4th graders were wondering why they did not get to do some of the cool things the 5th graders did last week-so its good to know that the 5th grade students came back to school talking so positively about their sessions last week! We sequence our activities for students so there is always something more for students to look forward to next year-next year the 4th graders will be doing many of the same things as 5th graders did this year.
§ ILI staff will be meeting with the LUHS ILI students going to Louisiana in March and their parents tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 10am at GLITC to discuss plans and logistics. This is really an exciting opportunity for our staff and students.
§ There’s a new website started by a former LUHS student from Lac du Flambeau, Reuben Garcia who now lives in Milwaukee that is worth checking out: www.bestamericanindianvideos.com. Lots of information on there, we especially like the YouTube-like videos-its really informative their tagline is "Empowering A Culture" passing down cultural teachings and giving exposure to upcoming American Indian Educaters, celeberties, filmakers and leaders. You can go there and learn a dozen or more American Indian languages, learn multiple American Indian crafts, watch and listen to an Elders story of long ago or catch an American Indian athlete, Musician or Comedian that you might never have had the chance to see. Pretty cool! Reuben’s email is marketing@bestamericanindianvideos.com or he can also be reached by phone (715)614-7237
§ We encourage you to check out info on this years Wisconsin Education Association annual conference this year's WIEA conference, being held in Madison on April 6, 7 and 8. The information is also available on the website: www.wiea.org.
§ We found out this week that the WIEA Board has nominated ILI for a Wisconsin Top Rural Development Initiative Award! We’re extremely honored to be nominated by this distinguished group for this award which recognizes projects that demonstrate leadership, community service and involvement and consistency of community involvement. Chi miigwetch to our friends on the WIEA board!
§ Some of your volunteers might be interested in signing up for our 2008 intensive (70 hour) literacy training course, offered at Nicolet from June 16-27. Attached is a brochure describing the course, which would be excellent for a parent/tutor who is working with children and youth who lack literacy skills. We do offer scholarships for trainees.
See training brochure attached as a PDF file: Literacy 2008 Brochure
§ We completed another grant application this week for the Peace Development Fund.
§ We’ve started work on an application for the Staples Foundation due next week.
§ We received $50 this week from the Friends of ILI campaign-thank you to all!
§ ILI In the Media: nothing to report this week.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Wednesday February 20, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Junior/Senior. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday February 20, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: thanks again to our volunteers who cooked more pizza’s this week!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $381597 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR
MORE
INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please
check the ILI
website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
2007-2008
Weekly Update
Friday February 8, 2008
Weekly Update
Friday February 8, 2008
Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ We had some terrific sessions this week for our 5th graders and will continue with the same theme next week for 4th grade. Special thanks again this week to the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Wisconsin DNR for coming to share their stories and skills with our 5th graders-it was a great experience. It’s a great learning opportunity when students experience different cultural practices, laws, rights and enforcement issues. It makes the discussion of these issues very positive!
§ We hosted the 12th Lakeland Area Community Meeting this past week on Tuesday night. Minutes of the meeting have been emailed out.
§ ILI staff continued working on the 4th grade sessions for next week.
§ We completed two grant applications this week: The Wisconsin Community Fund and The First Nations Native Youth Fund.
§ We’ve started work on an application for the Peace Development Fund due next week.
§ We received $150 from the Boulder Junction Lions Club this week. They have been a longtime supporter of ILI and we thank them for their continued support!
§ We received $580 this week from the Friends of ILI campaign-thank you to all!
§ ILI In the Media: nothing to report this week.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Monday February 11: LdF/AVW 4th Grade session. Camp Jorn. 9am-2pm.
o Tuesday February 12: LdF/NLES 4th grade session. Camp Jorn. 9am-2pm.
o Wednesday February 13, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Junior/Senior. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday February 13, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
o Thursday February 14: LdF/MHLT 4th grade session. Camp Jorn. 9am-2pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: thanks again to our volunteers who cooked more pizza’s this week! We’ve nearly worn out the stoves at Camp Jorn!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $381547 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR MORE INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please check the ILI website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Intercultural Leadership Initiative
2007-2008
Weekly Update
Friday January 25, 2008
Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ ILI staff has worked this week finalizing plans for the sessions the next few weeks. We’re looking forward to our pilot partnership with GLIFWC and the WI DNR on Monday and Tuesday next week. If you have the time, please come by Camp Jorn and see what we are doing-it should be very interesting!
§ On Monday, Dr. Peggy McIntosh from Wellesley College was in our area to discuss her work on White Privilege over the past 25 years. She is a distinguished professor and respected around the globe for her work. She began her visit with a lecture at Nicolet College in Rhinelander Monday at 12:30. After her lecture, ILI staff had an opportunity to sit and talk with her about our project here. Ernie and Peggy worked out their co-presentation planned for Monday night. Their presentation was at 7pm at the Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship (NUUF)-attended by some 175 people from all across the area and as far away as Minneapolis. Everyone really loved the presentation and there was some great conversation occurring there. One of the very special parts of the whole thing was that we talked about some volatile issues in a very respectful and positive way. It was the Social Justice Committee of the NUUF that organized this whole experience and we are all very grateful for their efforts. On Tuesday, Lakeland Union High School invited Peggy and Ernie to present over the lunch period for LUHS administration and staff. LUHS administration provided for paid subs so their teachers could attend. There were at least 40 people in attendance and it was really well received. Thanks to everyone for making this discussion possible-our whole community responded in a wonderful way!
§ On Monday night there was another special event going as well. LUHS had their annual openhouse for incoming 8th grade students and their parents (Monday was LdF/NLES). LUHS students act as mentors/guides for small groups of students and families and they did a terrific job of working together to help all who attended find their way around the school and learn about all the good things LUHS has to offer new students. This is a great transitional opportunity for all 8th grade students and their families.
§ On Thursday we presented ILI to the Vilas County Family Resource Coalition. This is a great group that does many good things for youth and families across the county.
§ The LdF HOPE Group is sponsoring a Friday Fun Night Sledding/Movie/Board Games night, Friday night at the LdF Indian Bowl. 5:00-9:00. For more details contact Please contact: Jeannie Wolfe @ 588-1216, Kevin Graveen @ 892-7643 Sue Vasquez @ 588-1517 or Duane Chapman @ 614-9999
§ We completed the Singing For Change Foundation letter of intent this week and sent that in.
§ When Dr. McIntosh came here, her usual lecture fee is $5000. She wanted to split that fee with Ernie. She donated her $2500 to her foundation The SEED Project, and Ernie donated his share to ILI! A huge thank you to both of them for their caring, giving generosity!
§ We received $500 from the Community Church of Boulder Junction this week. They are a continuing donor to ILI and we are extremely grateful for their generous support-thank you!
§ We received $300 this week from the United Methodist Church of the Pines. We’re so glad that they have chosen to continue their support for ILI-thank you to all!
§ ILI In the Media: There was a nice article in Tuesday’s Lakeland Times about a recent 8th grade ILI session. It was the set of sessions that we were discussion False Evidence Appearing Real (F.E.A.R.). Just to clarify, we don’t focus on fear, it is the acronym and the meaning of the words in that acronym that we focus on. We want to help students gain the skills needed to make informed decisions in their lives, not decisions based on fear. We believe that when students develop these skills they become strong, well adjusted community members who will help lead us to peaceful solutions in all conflict.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Monday January 28: LdF/AVW/MHLT 6th Grade session. Camp Jorn. 9am-2pm.
o Tuesday January 29: LdF/NLES 6th grade session. Camp Jorn. 9am-2pm.
o Wednesday January 30, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Junior/Senior. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday January 30, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition: Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: Thank you to all the ILI volunteers who are also very involved with the Social Justice Committee of the NUUF for bringing Dr. McIntosh to Lakeland area this week!!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $380707 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR MORE INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please check the ILI website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Intercultural Leadership Initiative
2007-2008
Weekly Update
Friday January 18, 2008
Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ The email that I inadvertently sent out last Friday has caused quite a stir to say the least. Today’s edition of the Lakeland Times http://www.lakelandtimes.com/main.asp?SectionID=9&SubSectionID=9&ArticleID=7256 has a long story about all this. There are a few things I need to respond to in order to clarify things so they are not misinterpreted. I did not send “multiple copies” of the email to the Lakeland Times-that implies that I was making some effort to get them this information. The only time I make an effort to contact the Times is when I am inviting them to come and cover the many positive things we do in ILI (student sessions, community meetings). There are a few folks from the Lakeland Times that are on several of our lists, so what they received was one email sent to multiple people. I hit the send button once. Having thought about this a lot the past week I have a few thoughts for you to consider. We have long said that what happens inside LUHS is a reflection of the larger community. Are there issues that need to be addressed inside the walls of Lakeland? Yes definitely. Are there issues that need to be addressed in our communities and other schools? Yes definitely. If there is a "toxic" atmosphere at LUHS it is only because one exists in the larger community. Trying to advocate for positive change within that reality is incredibly difficult. I'm learning that many folks seem "comfortable" in their anger and negativity and as a result honestly may not know how to resolve conflict in a positive manner. The part that keeps me awake at night is that as we adults squabble and position ourselves, another child quietly disappears from our radar and slips into the despair that keeps the whole cycle alive and thriving. We’re trying to help the community not lose its focus. ILI staff is committed to facilitating peaceful change through all of our sessions and community meetings. It is not easy, but we are persistent on behalf of the many children and families we serve. We won’t buy-in to the negative stuff-it is just too time consuming. We spend many long hours working on the positive things we can offer to students and adults. We’re not saying we have the answers, we’re saying that the answers lie within our collective experience and we need to dialogue and value all the voices in the community to allow true consensus to emerge. This process is hard, even painful at times. However, by allowing it to occur, there is a healing that is taking place, one that hasn’t really happened before and it is bringing people together in historic fashion. We should not fear the facts or people’s opinions or deny information; we should embrace all of it and then use our experiences and resources to improve the situation. There are MANY great things going on in all of our communities and schools to improve life for all children-there’s just no reliable way to learn about them. The only reliable way you can count on is to become involved yourself and offer your voice and gifts to the mix.
§ We facilitated 7th grade sessions all week at Camp Jorn. This was really an excellent week, we just can’t say enough positive things about the students who always come together in a spirit of friendship, learning and fun.
§ We continued working on planning the 6th grade sessions on January 28-29. We are very excited about partnering with Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission and the Wisconsin DNR to facilitate these sessions. The sessions will be hands-on opportunities for students to learn about the partnership that has been developed between GLIFWC and the DNR as a positive example of government-to-government efforts. Students will learn about how both organizations manage natural resources, the laws they enforce and how they work together to protect natural resources for all Wisconsinites. They will also be participating in various outdoor activities-should be a great couple of days!
§ We heard from Kathy Wolf this week, director of the Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention Resources. They are developing statewide DPI training modules that highlight examples of Case Studies of communities that have effectively used data in prevention planning and are interested in using ILI as one such case study. This would be a nice honor!
§ The Wisconsin Community Fund in Madison is highlighting ILI in an article to be released in the near future. WCF funds many social justice programs throughout Wisconsin and has been a longtime supporter of ILI.
§ The LdF HOPE Group is sponsoring a Friday Night Open Gym night, tonight at the LdF Public School. 6:30-8:30 for youngest to 7th graders. 8:30-10:30 8th-12th graders. This group is doing really positive things in the LdF community and we encourage you to go with your students-a great event!
§ New Article Offers Suggestions for Involving Parents of Older Students
While parents' involvement in their children's education tends to decrease in the middle and high school years, it is still a powerful predictor of academic achievement, college enrollment, and other positive outcomes for young people. A new article from the Harvard Family Research Project offers recommendations for school principals and superintendents on maintaining and increasing levels of parent involvement, and discusses the changing nature of that involvement as students get older.
Read the full article at:
http://www.gse.harvard.edu/hfrp/content/projects/fine/resources/research/nassp.pdf
§ We completed the Honor The Earth application this week and sent that in.
§ We received $500 from the Lac du Flambeau Housing Authority this week. They are a new donor to ILI and we are extremely grateful for their generous support-thank you!
§ We received $100 this week from the Minocqua Lions Club. We’re so glad that they have chosen to continue their support for ILI-thank you to all!
§ We received $1150 this week from the Friends of ILI membership drive-thank you everybody for your support!
§ ILI In the Media: see above.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Monday January 21: A Celebration of Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.: Peggy McIntosh and Ernie St. Germaine talk about White Privilege at Northwoods Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. Peggy Lane Woodruff. 7pm.
o Wednesday January 23, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Freshman/sophomore. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday January 23, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers: Thank you to all the volunteers who helped serve food this week!!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: We had to make an additional adjustment this week to our year-end ILI 2007 program budget: we had to pay LUHS nearly $5000 for the After School Learning Center teacher expenses for the 2006-07 school year. So out total raised monies will reflect this added expense. Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $377407 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR
MORE
INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please
check the ILI
website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Top of PageHere’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ This has been one of the best weeks ever for ILI sessions-we have finally found some really creative ways to bring the “real issues” into our discussions. ILI staff has done a really great job of doing this in a nurturing, safe and fun way. The best part has been seeing how enthusiastically the students have participated and been engaged.
§ On Monday, we talked with Joe Corbine, home school coordinator for Bad River Tribe at Ashland High School. It was interesting to hear many similar issues and problems for American Indian students there. We have been asked to present ILI there a few times over the years and we invited Joe to come down here to observe our sessions and talk about how we can help each other. There is a group of teachers at Ashland High School who took it upon themselves to form a community task force with Bad River Tribal members and others to try and address needs and issues-a really positive idea!
§ On Tuesday we gave a presentation and requested funds at the Lac du Flambeau Chippewa Housing Board of Directors meeting.
§ ILI staff met on Wednesday to continue planning for 7th grade sessions next week.
§ On Thursday, Bob was at the GLITC Board of Directors meeting in Lac du Flambeau to present ILI and PAC. The GLITC Board of Directors is comprised of the Tribal Chairs from 10 Tribes in Wisconsin and 1 in Michigan. After the presentation, there was much interest in ILI particularly from the Oneida, Forest County Potawatomi and Mole lake Nations. We’ll be doing some work in the future in those areas.
§ We finished working on two funding requests: Native Youth Camp (a camp for high school youth over spring break in Louisiana) and the Honoring Our Nations Application.
§ Next week we’ll be working on Honor the Earth and General Mills applications (due Jan 15).
§ We received $1000 from Woodruff Ace Hardware. They have extremely philanthropic in the community over the years and we are extremely grateful for their continued support!
§ We received $500 from the St. Matthias Thrift Shop-they give out generous gifts like this quarterly to many needy groups and organizations around the Lakeland Community. Thank you to them!
§ ILI In the Media: Nothing this week.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Monday January 14, 2008: 7th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Tuesday January 15, 2008: 7th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Wednesday January 16, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Junior/Senior. 9:45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday January 16, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
o Thursday January 17, 2008: 7th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Friday January 18, 2008: 7th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers:
§ Thank you to all the volunteers who helped serve food this week!!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: We had to make an additional adjustment this week to our year-end ILI 2007 program budget: we had to pay LUHS nearly $5000 for the After School Learning Center teacher expenses for the 2006-07 school year. So out total raised monies will reflect this added expense. Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $375606.56 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR
MORE
INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please
check the ILI
website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative
Intercultural Leadership Initiative
2007-2008
Weekly Update
Friday January 4, 2008
Hope all of you had a great holiday! Here’s what has been going on in ILI this week-
§ Our apologies if any of you had issues trying to email us over the holiday break-there was some issue with our email system that returned all emails for a few days. It’s now cleared up-thanks for your patience! If you have any more problems please call us so we know-thanks!
§ The “Winter Fun Day” at the Indian Bowl in Lac du Flambeau on Thursday December 27 hosted by the LdF WITCAPP Coalition was a great success! There were LOADS of kids sledding, getting rides behind a 4-wheeler, playing games and eating some great food. Congrats to all the wonderful volunteers who made it such a fun day for everyone!
§ ILI staff met Thursday and Friday to finish planning for the start of the next set of sessions that begin on Monday.
§ We are working on three funding requests: Honor the Earth (due Jan 15), Ringing Rocks Foundation (Feb 1), and Jimmy Buffet’s Foundation.
§ Over the holiday break we received $5000 from the Howard Young Foundation. They have been one of our longest and most generous supporters over the years and we are extremely grateful for their continued support!
§ We received $1000 from the Community Presbyterian Church of Lac du Flambeau-they have also been extremely generous and supportive over the years and we thank them as well!
§ We received $2349 over the break from Friends of ILI-thank so much everybody for your wonderful support!
§ ILI In the Media: Nothing this week.
§ Upcoming ILI sessions and events:
o Monday January 7, 2008: 8th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Tuesday January 8, 2008: 8th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Wednesday January 9, 2008: LUHS Activity Period. Freshman/sophomore. 9”45am-10:15am. Multi-purpose Room LUHS.
o Wednesday January 9, 2008: LUHS After School Leadership. ILI Office. 3:45-5:45pm.
o Thursday January 10, 2008: 8th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
o Friday January 11, 2008: 8th grade Group #1 Session #2. Camp Jorn-9am-2pm.
§ ILI/LUHS Transition:
Next meeting scheduled for March 26, 2007 at 4:00pm. LUHS school conference room.
§ ILI Volunteers:
§ Looking forward to seeing you all over the next few weeks at our sessions!
§ ILI Annual Fundraising: ILI currently runs on a 2-year budget cycle. We have a two-year budget in order to keep our focus on the importance of sustaining our project beyond one year at a time. We have had to readjust our two year budget due mainly to an increase in fees charged to ILI at GLITC. We have had some adjustments of staff this year which has included a large increase in health care cost to the program. Also, the indirect costs rate (now 36.4% of ILI salaries and fringe) has increased substantially this year. Our restructured two year budget is now $406720. Thanks to your support we have currently raised $378674.56 of our two year $406720 budget. So we have our work cut-out before June 30!
§ FOR MORE INFORMATION and the latest session calendar please check the ILI website at www.ilileadership.org.
Bob Kovar, Project
Director
Intercultural Leadership
Initiative