News and Advocacy Alerts

NSPN Offering Internship Opportunities

NSPN is now accepting resumes for two internship positions! You're invited to apply for an internship with Safe Place, a community-based program providing a safety net for all youth in crisis, and NSPN Membership, the leading membership association of youth and family service organizations with 40 years of training and technical assistance excellence.
 
Open internship positions include:

For more information on all internship positions or to submit your resume, please email [email protected].
 

Why National Service Corps is a Wise Investment of Taxpayer Funds

RHY and other young people served by agencies and programs across the nation will lose crucial sources of support if OMB cuts funding for National Service Programs like AmeriCorps. As experts in this field, we need to educate our elected officials and help them understand the real cost of these cuts. Here are some reasons to protect these programs:

  1. In strictly budgetary terms, at its current funding level, for every $1 we invest in the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), American taxpayers get $2.30 back in fiscal returns.[1]
  2. Federal spending through CNCS generates matching investment from other community sources.  That combined social investment yields an even greater return.  For every $1 in collective support, we net almost $4.[2] 
  3. And National Service Programs provide social benefits beyond those that can be monetized. 
    1. Participants get valuable work experience and access to educational opportunities. 
    2. Local programs benefit from volunteer contributions, increasing their capacity to serve community needs. 
    3. People and organizations who receive services benefit from that capacity in areas like poverty reduction, public safety, education, youth development, and disaster relief, among others. 
    4. Communities subsequently benefit from long term civic engagement and continued volunteering from participants initially engaged in national service programs.
  4. In fact, greater investment in National Service Programs would yield even higher rates of return.

Follow the links below to take action by sharing what you know with your elected officials.

Voice for Service: http://voicesforservice.org/call-congress-save-national-service/

Common Cause: http://act.commoncause.org/site/PageServer?pagename=sunlight_advocacy_list_page

Find a sample letter to congressional representatives here: http://bit.ly/2l8Tcn3


[1] Belfield, C.R. (2013). The Economic Value of National Service. Monograph, Voices for National Service and Civic Enterprises for the Franklin Project at The Aspen Institute.

[2] Belfield, C.R. (2013). The Economic Value of National Service. Monograph, Voices for National Service and Civic Enterprises for the Franklin Project at The Aspen Institute.

 

Make Some Noise for Youth Safety - NSP Week Thunderclap

Join the official NSP Week 2017 Thunderclap campaign to to make some noise about Safe Place and youth safety. Thunderclap is a tool that amplifies a message when you and your friends say it together. Think of it as an online flash mob. By joining the NSP Week Thunderclap, you and others will share the same message at the same time, generating a wave of awareness for Safe Place on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr that can’t be ignored.

Please join and share the NSP Week Thunderclap here: http://thndr.me/4Re0Nb

Once you've joined the official NSP Week Thunderclap, encourage friends, colleagues, and family members to join. Please consider using one of the following sample social media posts to increase support and awareness of Safe Place.

Facebook / Tumblr:
Join me in supporting #NSPWeek2017 and @Safe Place on @Thunderclap! Share the sign. Share the meaning. Together we can keep kids safe: http://thndr.me/4Re0Nb

Twitter:
I supported #NSPWeek2017 and @SafePlace on @ThunderclapIt. Will you? http://thndr.me/4Re0Nb

Please note: Thunderclap doesn't allow Facebook pages to support campaigns. If you'd like to participate in the NSP Week Thunderclap using an agency or corporate Facebook page, simply copy / paste the message below and schedule it to post on Monday, March 20 at 1:00 p.m. EST:

Thunderclap Message for Facebook Pages:
Help us raise awareness about #SafePlace. Share the sign. Share the meaning. Keep kids safe. #NSPWeek2017 http://thndr.me/yxZEpl.

 

Calling all Youth Advisory Boards for NSPN's NYABCC

Does your organization have a Youth Advisory Board? National Safe Place Network (NSPN) would like to help you extend your program by connecting your Youth Advisory Board with others from across the nation. While youth work to make a difference in local communities, this opportunity opens the door for muilt-board collaboration to make a national impact. Youth will be empowered to provide input in national campaigns (such as the National Human Trafficking Awareness Month campaign), help lead creative projects (such as website development and national publications), and more - all while strengthening their leadership and team building skills. The overall goal and vision of NSPN is to create a world where all youth are safe. In order to achieve this vision, the voices of youth must be heard. Their input is invaluable.

How does this work? NSPN will host a call for all participating Youth Advisory Boards. During the call, the project description will be shared. Youth will share initial thoughts and ideas about the project while discussing the scope of their involvement. They will also receive suggested action steps, the deadline, and schedule the follow-up call. Once the call is complete, the board can continue meeting to determine the planning process. During this discussion, youth will determine their schedule and identify teams or specific roles and responsibilities. Ideally, they will work together to fullfil their project duties and prepare their presentation for the next call. During the next call, each Advisory Board will share their findings and present their recommendations or task with others. NSPN will then take the recommendations and efforts from all Advisory Boards and work to incorporate these into various national initiatives.

How to join: Sign your Youth Advisory Board up by contacting NSPN's Communications Department at [email protected]. There will be an initial call with staff leads / board coordinators during the first week in February. The call time will be determined by those who sign up. The NSPN Communications Department can't wait to work with you to enhance the lives of youth across the nation.

 

National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month

January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, also known as National Human Trafficking Awareness MonthWe encourage you to join us throughout the month as we come together to raise awareness of human trafficking and combine our efforts to prevent it. 

We have an action-packed month filled with a variety of activities including webinars, blogs, social media outreach, and other educational and awareness-building activities. These activities were planned to make it easy for YOU to learn more about human trafficking and make a difference. Learn more, share the resources with others, take action if you suspect trafficking, and celebrate the survivors of this terrible crime.

About Human Trafficking

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) defines “severe forms of human trafficking” as, "The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for:

  • Sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is inducted by force, fraud, and coercion, or in which the person inducted to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age; or,
  • Labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, and coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery."

Trafficking in persons, or human trafficking, is a widespread form of modern-day slavery. It's a crime that involves the exploitation of a person for the purpose of compelled labor or a commercial sex act through the use of force, fraud, or coercion. If a person younger than 18 is inducted to perform a commercial sex act, it is considered a crime regardless of whether there is any force, fraud, or coercion. Human traffickers target all populations around the world and in our own neighborhoods: women, men, youth, children, citizens, non-citizens, English speakers, non-English speakers. Some groups, such as runaway and homeless youth, native individuals, domestic violence victims, and LGBTQ population are particularly vulnerable to human trafficking. Victims are recruited and lured by traffickers with the false promise of a better life, love, and job opportunities. Later, traffickers use violence, threats, and manipulation to controls their victims. Homeless youth who are forced to trade sexual acts with an adult in exchange of something of value (i.e. shelter, food) are considered victims of domestic sex trafficking.

Human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal enterprise of this century, growing from a nine billion to a 32 billion dollar global industry in a little over a decade. There is no typical trafficker, and it has been shown that traffickers can be parents or other close family members, family friends, boyfriends/girlfriends, employers, smugglers or strangers.  Traffickers can be part of an organized enterprise or can work alone. Street gangs, for example, are known to traffic minors into the drug and sex markets. Don’t ignore the facts. Slavery exists and we can work together to end it.

Get Involved

Are you “aware” of how much raising awareness makes a difference? It’s not uncommon to hear someone ask “How does raising awareness actually help make a difference?”  Unfortunately, some people choose to ignore awareness campaign efforts because they believe they are not making a difference. If you’ve heard this question – or even asked it yourself – try breaking the term “raising awareness” down.

Raising – to increase the amount, level, or strength of.
Awareness – knowledge or perception of a situation or fact.

Raising awareness increases the amount of knowledge you have about a specific topic such as human trafficking, therefore increasing the efforts to put an end to it. It’s up to you - and all of us - to work together to end human trafficking. Consider the cost of your decision. 

Ready to start making a difference now? Spread the word. Let others know what you're learning about each week during the month. If you're using social media, feel free to use the hashtag #EndHumanTrafficking.

Sample Social Media Posts:

Facebook:
While slavery is often considered to be a thing of the past, we know that millions of men, women and children are trafficked in the U.S. and other countries around the world. Traffickers use force, fraud or coercion to lure victims into labor or commercial sexual exploitation. January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, a time to share information about slavery and human trafficking in order to effect change that will ultimately #EndHumanTrafficking. 

Twitter:
It’s National Slavery & Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Learn how you can get involved in the fight to #EndHumanTrafficking 

 

 

 View 2016 NSHTPM Campaign Resources View 2018 NSHTPM Campaign Resources

 

 

 

 

 
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