The Daily Tell

Though AIDS and HIV continue to be a problem for the African continent, recent grant announcements from the Bristol-Meyer Squibb Company hope to reduce its spread.

The company, along with the Bristol-Meyer Squibb Foundation, is giving $1.3 million in grants through its Secure the Future philanthropy program. The grants will go to support 14 community-based organizations in Africa that are providing support for those infected with HIV and AIDS.

A number of countries will receive help for the first time from the philanthropy program, including Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Liberia, Morocco, Niger and Togo. Countries that will be seeing additional help from the program include Mali, South Africa, and Zambia.

One example of a program that will be aided by the grants is an effort to establish more comprehensive HIV/AIDS care for children in three hospitals located in Morocco. The hospitals, which are located in Casablanca, Agadir and Marrakech, will train social workers and provide education, support and nutritional services to the families of children affected with HIV.

Along with the funding, the organizations will receive assistance through Secure the Future’s Technical Assistance Program. The program will deploy advisors to aid the programs provided with grant money to help with community organization, and will also provide experts specializing in the various aspects of caring for people infected with HIV and AIDS.

According to AVERT, a UK-based international HIV and AIDS charity, over 22 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS in Africa at the end of 2007. That represents a large percentage of the world’s HIV/AIDS population, as total number of people infected is estimated at 33 million.

The Secure the Future program was established 10 years ago and has provided over $150 million in funding to programs located in 20 countries in Africa.

The phrase "Let’s build something together" may be more than just a tagline for Lowe’s, as the store’s Charitable and Educational Foundation has given a $1 million grant to Rebuilding Together, a nonprofit organization dedicated to maintaining low income housing.

A majority of money from the grant will be used by Rebuilding Together to complete approximately 35 repair projects for low-income families that will center on installing energy efficient and "home accessibility components", according to the organization’s website.

"Working with organizations like Rebuilding Together allows us to give back to the communities where we do business," said Larry D. Stone, the chairman of the Lowe’s Charitable and Educational Foundation. "This partnership gives us the opportunity to continue to help people improve and maintain their homes, which is at the heart of our business. By making homes safer and more energy efficient, we are building a stronger foundation for the future of our communities."

The repairs projects will be completed on October 24, which is known as "Make a Difference Day" across the country. The day has also been distinguished as a Lowe’s Employee Volunteer Day, allowing the stores’ employees to assist in the projects as well.

The remaining money from the grant will be used to support Rebuilding Together’s AmeriCorps program, program development, and building at additional sites.

"We are so pleased to continue our impactful partnership with Lowe’s who are helping us make a significant difference in the lives of so many low-income Americans," said Gary A. Officer, the president and chief executive officer of Rebuilding Together

Lowe’s Charitable and Education Foundation was founded in 1957 and has contributed over $27.5 million to school and community organizations in both the United States and Canada. Rebuilding Together opened its national headquarters in 1988 and has helped construct over 100,000 homes in the U.S. with over 2.5 million volunteers.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has awarded a $41 million grant to Concern Worldwide to help improve the health of newborns, children, and their mothers in six different countries.

The grant, which will be bestowed to the organization over the course of five years, will help fund its initiative to improve conditions for child birthing while providing essential services that they may be lacking. The program will also include help and input from health workers and members of academia, the local community, the private sector and civil society.

The first two countries that the initiative will begin in will be Malawi, India and Sierra Leone where complications relating to child birth are common. According to Concern Worldwide’s website, one in every 18 women die during pregnancy or child birth in Malawi, while two-thirds of parent and their children lack needed health and nutrition services. In Sierra Leone, over 25 percent of children die before their fifth birthday.

The other three countries that will receive services from the grant will be determined at a later time.

"This project is all about discovering and testing new ideas. It requires good leadership, an extraordinary team, prudent risk taking, and a relentless commitment to improving the state of our world," said Tom Arnold, the CEO of Concern Worldwide. "That’s a cornerstone of our organization and that is why we exist. We’re delighted to have this opportunity."

Started in Biafra in 1968 as Africa Concern, Concern Worldwide now works to provide aid in 28 eight of the world’s poorest countries, according to its website.

The Bill and Melinda Foundation, which was founded in 1994 to address global health and community needs in the Pacific Northwest according to its website, was recently awarded the Indira Ghandi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development for its philanthropic work.

The Lumina Foundation for Education has presented over $18.3 million in grants to help expand Americans’ access to education and train them for success after completing high school.

Many of the 25 organizations awarded grants, which are spread across 10 U.S. states as well as Washington D.C. all fall into one of three of the foundation’s primary interests: Preparing students for success, supporting success, and enhancing productivity.

Some of the groups include Business Innovation Factory, a Providence, Rhode Island group granted $280,000 to monitor student experiences in higher education; Capitol Beat in Raleigh, North Carolina, which was given $10,000 to educate journalists on a national level who cover state governments about finance and productivity matters that influence college access and academic success; and CEOs for Cities in Chicago, Illinois, which was given $240,000 to learn new ways to reduce students’ college costs without sacrificing the quality of education.

Additionally, some groups that fall outside of the three primary interests include The Greenwich Roundtable, Inc. in Cos Cob, Connecticut that was awarded $49,000 to develop and spread an "alternative investment curriculum guide for foundations’ chief investment officers," as well as at $10,000 donation for general operating support to Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, a city beautification organization.

"Lumina’s mission is directed toward a single, overarching big goal- to increase the percentage of Americans with high-quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by the year 2025," said Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the foundation.

The Lumina Foundation for Education is a private Indianapolis-based organization that seeks to increase entrance to post-secondary education in the United States with the goal of increasing the percentage of Americans who attain "high-quality degrees and credentials" to 60 percent by 2025 by addressing " issues that affect access and educational attainment among all students, particularly underserved student groups, including adult learners," according to their website.

As it turns out, providing communication tools to those in need makes an organization that much more noble.

Because of its act of philanthropy in collecting hundreds of mobile phones for victims of domestic violence, the Georgia chapter of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) was recently given a Verizon Wireless HopeLine Law Enforcement Partnership Award.

As a result of the Georgia chapter getting the award, Verizon Wireless will donate $2,500 to the Savannah Area Family Emergency (SAFE) Shelter. The organization provides a number of services, including providing shelter to women and children who are victims of domestic violence. SAFE Shelter also provides education for victims and the public and gives support to legislation with an aim to reduce domestic violence.

The phone collection in Georgia was part of a nationwide effort by NOBLE to collect cell phones, and involved a partnership between members of NOBLE, law enforcement agencies and the public at large. The Georgia chapter was given the award at NOBLE’s yearly conference.

"Our partnership with Verizon Wireless and our nationwide phone collection drive enabled us to help place valuable wireless phones in victims’ hands, phones they can use to contact law enforcement or domestic violence hotlines in emergency situations," Joseph A. McMillan, national president of NOBLE, said.

According to the Georgia Commission on Family Violence, there were 76,078 crisis calls made to the state’s certified domestic violence agencies in 2008. The commission also reported that in 2007 Georgia law enforcement officials responded to 64,464 domestic violence incidents.

The HopeLine program was created in 1995 and accepts used cell phones and accessories, which are refurbished and sold. Proceeds from the HopeLine program are used to give phones and grants to shelters and nonprofit organizations.

A number of organizations are going to get a philanthropic boost thanks to grants awarded by the Health Trust.

The recently-announced grants total $3.24 million and will go to a number of projects in Santa Clara and Northern San Benito counties in California. The goal of the grants is to help raise the health of communities, which is the major goal of the trust.

"I am so pleased we continue to support this essential work to improve the health of our community, especially in these tough economic times," Frederick J. Ferrer, CEO of the Health Trust, said.

The grants were divided into three categories – healthy aging, healthy communities and healthy living.

Grants toward healthy aging focus on programs that help seniors in communities served. One such grant came in the form of $50,000 to the Alzheimer’s Activity Center’s Caregiver Wellness Program. The program focuses on caregivers who are over 50 years old, and gives them aid by providing workshops and support groups.

Healthy communities grants focus on the community as a whole, which includes people who may be in difficult economic or social situations. InnVision’s Healthcare for the Homeless Program was one of the projects that received grant money, which totaled $50,000. The grant money will be used to expand the program and further integrate its activities, which include education and wellness activities.

Reducing and avoiding obesity is the focus of healthy living grants, with programs stressing exercise and nutrition. The Palo Alto Medical Foundation’s Youth Health Risk Assessment received $39,600 in grant funds, which it will use to further its technology-based wellness programs. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 17.6% of children aged 12 to 19 were found to be obese in a survey conducted between 2003 and 2006.

Along with online features, the program makes use of cell phones through Vive, a private hosting service. The program has also collaborated with the Health Trust’s Youth Advisory Board.

Since it started in 1996, the Health Trust has given more than $100 million in order to better the lives of people in the communities it serves.

The United States is facing a severe nursing shortage, as a growing amount of older nurses preparing to retire are finding less qualified nurses to replace them. This shortage dangerously intersects with the aging of the baby boomer population, which will put an enormous strain on the country’s health care system.

More than half of the nation’s nurses say they are planning to retire in the next 15 or 20 years, while the number of full-time nurses is expected to decrease to half a million by 2025, studies say.

To help solve this problem, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation teamed up with the Lewin Group to publish a report titled Wisdom at Work: Retaining Experienced Nurses.

The report detailed case studies, research projects and best practices designed to help "keep more veteran nurses at patient bedsides," including compensation packages that reward seniority and longevity, benefits that cater to older employees (such as phased retirement options), flexible work arrangements and opportunities to transfer to less demanding roles, and corporate cultures that value experience.

The seven case studies exemplify how focusing on morale and productivity can decrease the turnover rates among experienced nurses in healthcare organizations across the country.

"We know that there is no quick fix to the crisis in health care," said Susan B. Hassmiller, senior advisor for nursing at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "But the approaches explored in our ‘Wisdom at Work’ initiative are pieces of a larger puzzle that will help health care organizations keep experienced nurses from walking out the door – and taking their expertise with them – just when we need them most."

There are currently 2.5 million nurses across the country, making them the largest segment of the healthcare workforce, said the Institute of Medicine.

Russell Crowe’s upcoming role as Robin Hood may be rubbing off on him, as the Oscar-winning actor recently made a surprise donation after stopping in at a UK cancer research shop.

The 45-year-old actor made the donation of £1,000 (approximately $1,600) to the shop after eating at a café next door to it.

"He just came into the shop and the lady at the till was serving someone else at the till. "She didn’t recognize him. He asked if we took donations and she told him that we do in the back of the shop," manager Julia Deane told the BBC of the encounter. "She gave him the book to fill in his name and he wrote Russell Crowe."

The donation was the latest good deed reportedly done by Crowe, who has been known to sometimes have a contentious attitude and was recently rumored to be at odds with director Ridley Scott in recent months while filming an adaptation of Robin Hood in the UK that is due out in 2010.

During the production of Robin Hood, Crowe gave boom mic operator Denise Yarde money to purchase a new car after commenting to the actor when she heard him make a remark about her car catching on fire while she was driving to work, according to Yahoo Movie News UK.

The star also recently left a tip of approximately $980 on a bill of about $393 at a Welsh pub he and some friends had dinner at during filming as well.

Crowe has received nominations for the Best Actor Academy Award three times, winning the award in 2000 for his role in Gladiator.

The Greater Milwaukee Foundation has apportioned $135,000 to help establish a central access system to help identify openings and create referrals for local homeless shelters.

The allotment of funds is part of a $150,000 grant to the foundation’s Basic Needs Fund, which was created in 2008 "to help local nonprofits meet basic food and shelter needs during the economic downturn," according to the foundation site.

The $135,000 will go to 211/IMPACT, an community organization that will work with Cathedral Center, a Milwaukee-based homeless shelter, to compile a database for homeless shelter staffs to utilize when looking for openings at local shelters and provide case management services to help families stay in their homes. The remaining $15,000 will be used to tend to a potential increase in demand for some local shelters during the summer months.

Overall, the money was allocated as part of more than $4 million in grants recently approved by board of The Greater Milwaukee Foundation, which was founded in 1915 and consists of more than 1,000 individual charities created by donors. The foundation primarily serves people living in Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee and Washington counties.

In addition to funding the homeless shelter central access system, the foundation also allocated funding to over fifteen other community projects as part of the Basic Needs Fund. City Year, a Boston-based program giving young adults a year of service time in a city environment, received $100,000 grant over the course of three years to start a Milwaukee chapter of the program.

Sixteenth Street Community Health Center also received $100,000 over two years to help restore the Kinnickinnic River corridor, while United Way of Greater Milwaukee’s Teen Pregnancy Prevention fund received $75,000 to support their efforts.

President Barack Obama is pushing his $5 billion "Race to the Top" fund to states as a method to adjust many aspects of the nation’s school systems.

Citing other countries that currently "out-educate" the United States and will eventually "out-compete" Americans for jobs in the future, Obama proposed his funding, which will award states who effectively make changes to their system to improve the education to its children.

"Not every state will win, and not every school district will be happy with the results," said Obama of the funding, according to the Associated Press. "But America’s children, America’s economy, America itself will be better for it."

The Race to the Top Fund is a $5 billion competitive grant that was part of the economic stimulus law passed in February. It is intended to "encourage and reward States that are creating the conditions for education innovation and reform; implementing ambitious plans in the four education reform areas described in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009," according to Ed.gov.

The site also adds that states receiving portions from the fund will have to accomplish certain goals, such as closing student’s achievement gaps and improving high school graduation rates to make sure that students can succeed in college and their career.

Certain criteria that must be met by states wishing to qualify for the fund – it does not support linking student data to teacher evaluations, but rather test scores as part of any bonus pay to teachers – have been met by criticism by teachers unions. However seven states – including Tennessee, Rhode Island, Indiana, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Colorado and Illinois – have already made changes to some of the restrictions for their charter school in order for them to qualify for the funding, the AP added.