The Fall Common Ground U has been scheduled. Track 1 will be Tuesdays, October 6,13 and 20 from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm at St. Anthony on the Lake in Pewaukee. Track 2 will be held Saturdays, November 7 and 14 from 8:15 am to 1:00 pm at Greater New Birth Church in Milwaukee. Application
The next Delegates’ Action will be held Tuesday, September 15 at Mount Mary College from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm.
On June 12 INVESTORS.com had an article regarding the difficulties of creating a Health Care Co-op - article.
Common Ground has begun a Friends of Common Ground Campaign in order to raise $300,000 over the next three years to hire 1 1/2 new organizers to staff Common Ground. A Friends Committee of 7 leaders are conducting 50-60 individual visits with potential contributors to the Campaign. If you would like to contribute, contact Bob Connolly at 414-272-0101 or Email or fill out this form (click on the word form) and mail it to the address indicated at the bottom.
On Monday, May 18, upwards of 40 Common Ground members gathered at Greater New Birth Church for another Amani Neighborhood Walk. Small teams received their street assignments and then walked door-to-door to canvass residents about the problems caused by the presence of nearby boarded-up and abandoned homes.
Other neighborhood issues also emerged from the conversations (traffic patterns, problem corner stores, drug use and distribution), and they are currently being researched by the Greater New Birth/Immanuel Presbyterian Action Team. In an effort to create relationships and develop strategies to solve these problems, team members continue to meet with Common Council members, community leaders, assitance organizations, and police officials.
The next Youth Jobs Meeting will be Monday, June 22 at 12:00 noon at St. James Episcopal Church.
The Youth Jobs Issue Campaign and The City of Milwaukee’s Earn & Learn Partnership
At Common Ground we believe that improving job opportunities for Milwaukee youth will improve the economic and social well-being of the area. Given the current crisis it is even more critical that opportunities are provided to our youth so they may participate in the economic recovery. On behalf of Milwaukee youth, Common Ground is asking Milwaukee area businesses and foundations to participate in this program by providing jobs and/or by making grants to assure that Earn and Learn has adequate resources.
Provide a Job and Transform a Life
The City of Milwaukee’s Earn & Learn Summer Job Program provides opportunities for qualified high school students to gain valuable workplace experience, and puts a few dollars in some empty pockets. By breaking the cycle of joblessness and exposing young adults to the culture of work, Earn & Learn:
- Lays the foundation for a trained workforce
- Provides job readiness skills
- Offers real work experiences and a variety of career possibilities
- Allows experienced employees to participate in positive change in their community
The Greater Milwaukee Committee and Southeastern Wisconsin Common Ground, a broad-based citizen organization, have supported the expansion of the Earn & Learn program and are now helping to recruit businesses and area foundations involvement. The goal of this effort is to increase the number of summer jobs from about 1300 last summer to 3000 in the summer of 2009.
Earn & Learn Program Information
Earn & Learn is a collaborative partnership of the Milwaukee Area Workforce Investment Board (MAWIB), the City of Milwaukee, businesses, and community based organizations. Its mission is to assist young people from Milwaukee to make a successful transition from adolescence to productive adulthood. The MAWIB staff works with employers to place students in meaningful work and ensures the program’s effectiveness.
All youth participating in private sector Earn and Learn jobs have at least one previous job experience and receive job readiness training prior to starting the job. MAWIB staff provides support and service for the employer throughout the duration of the youth’s employment. At the end of their job, students go through an evaluation that determines what they have learned and what they need to do to improve their work perfomance.
Participating employers are asked to provide summer jobs which:
- Provide student workers with a written job description
- Provide at least 20 hours of work per week for a minimum of seven weeks
- Pay at least minimum wage
- Are located in the Milwaukee County area for youth accessibility to the job location
After positions are posted MAWIB staff will assess the request, prescreen applicants and then recommend one or more youth that meet employer requirements to fill the position.
More Information on the Earn & Learn Program
City offers Options for Jobless Teens - December 2008: http://www.jsonline.com/business/36770639.html
Editorial: Work for Kids - The Milwaukee Common Council should boost funding for the Summer Jobs Initiative to provide more opportunities for youth. - November 2008: http://www.jsonline.com/news/opinion/34054794.html
Hope in the Lives of Young People: 1500 gain experience through Earn and Learn - July 2008: http://www.jsonline.com/news/29411434.html
Youth to Get a Slice of the Pie: Palermo Villa a Leader in City’s Summer Jobs Program - April 2008: http://www.jsonline.com/business/29588764.html
Open Letter from Earn & Learn Co-Chairs Mayor Tom Barrett and Giacomo Fallucca, President/CEO of Palermo’s Pizza - March 2008: http://www.mkedcd.org/earnlearn/pdf/Letter031408.pdf
The mayor talks about the importance of the Youth Jobs program in his February 13th E-Newsletter: http://www.city.milwaukee.gov/thebarrettreportarchives/Feb.06.09NewsFromTheMayor.htm
Earn & Learn Website at www.earnandlearnmke.com
Contact Information
Interested businesses can attain more information about the program and post a youth job opportunity by contacting:
Bill Malone, Youth Jobs Coordinator, via phone 414.286.5894 Email
Or Common Ground Issue Campaign Leaders:
- Debra Schneider: 414-550-2167 or Email
- Denise Fried: 414-333-0709 or Email
On June 8 Common Ground will be holding a Delegates’ Assembly at Mount Mary College from 7 to 8:30 pm in the North Dining Room (enter the college off of 92nd street south of Burleigh.)
We are asking that all organizations have their entire Core Team attend. We will walk through an example of how to develop an issue campaign and give the Core Teams a chance to meet with other Core Teams to share ideas.
Please mark your calendars for this important date.
On May 13, 2009 students & their families, volunteers and board members celebrated the pilot program for OnRamp.
OnRamp is a program in Milwaukee, WI where minority students are exposed to the creative/design industry through working with design professionals and visiting various related locations.
The program was originated by Hanson Dodge Creative’s involvement with Common Ground.
In the pilot program, 13 students from Community High School worked with 9 Milwaukee-area design professionals to design a line of t-shirts. These shirts will be available for purchase after mid-July to fund future programs.
More information, including how individuals can get involved in future programs, as well as photos from the program, can be found here.
We need at least 40 volunteers for the Amani Neighborhood Walk scheduled on Monday evening, May 18, 2009. We will be asking neighborhood residents for any information they have regarding nearby abandoned homes and boarded up houses.
Please contact Carol Treadwell email to indicate your willingness to help.
Thank you!