| NJC 2009 Scheduled for January 25-29, 2009 |
| NOLSW Returns to Circus Circus for Next National Meeting |
On March 11, 2008, the National Executive Board of NOLSW voted to schedule the next National Joint Council meeting for January 25 - 29, 2009. The NEB voted to add an additional day to the schedule, making NJC 2009 a four-day event. Previous NJC's were held over three days. The decision to add a fourth day was made in response to suggestions from participants at previous NJC's who expressed their desire to have more workshop opportunities, and to spread out the agenda to avoid having such a heavy workload on the first day. The new schedule which is being prepared will afford more opportunities for rest and relaxation as well as adding at least two more rounds of workshops.
The NEB also voted to return to Circus Circus Hotel in Las Vegas for NJC 2009. The recommendation to return to Circus Circus was made by the NJC Site Selection Committee, which considered several locations around the country, and found that Circus Circus offered the best value and facilities for the money. The Site Selection Committee also took into consideration that renovations are currently underway at the property, and all rooms in the West Tower to be renovated by September of this year. Circus Circus has been the site of the past four NJC's. It is a union-organized hotel at the north end of the Las Vegas strip, and is known for offering some of the most affordable rooms among the Las Vegas hotels. Circus Circus also has a progressive history. It provided free meals on a daily basis to striking union members at the nearby Frontier Hotel & Casino during their long strike.
Adding a fourth day to the schedule will increase the cost of the meeting, but the room rate negotiated by NOLSW will be the same as in 2007 ($41.95 per night) for rooms in the Skyrise Tower, and $46.95 per night for the newly renovated rooms in the West Tower.
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| Circus Circus - Site of NJC 2009 |
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| Newly renovated king room in West Tower |
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| Gordon Deane Elected NOLSW President |
Gordon Deane, long-time Organizer and number-cruncher on the staff of NOLSW, has been elected President of NOLSW. The results of the recent national election were announced by the Election Committee on October 29. Gordon ran unopposed for the office of President, and succeeds Ellen Wallace in that position, who served for six years. Gordon lives in West Sand Lake, NY, and has been on the staff of NOLSW since March of 1988. |
| New National Executive Council Elected - Mixture of New and Returning |
The new National Excecutive Council will see most national and regional officers returning, but it also includes some new faces. The following are the members of the NEC for the term of 2007-2010:
National Vice President: Robert Garza (TX) new
National Human Services VP: Vicki Roebuck (IL) returning
Financial Secretary/Treasurer: Robert T. (Tim) Yeager (IL) returning
Recording Secretary: Karen Rosenberg (RI) new
Northeast VP: David Podell (NJ) new
Southeast VP: Jeff Segal (KY) returning
Midwest VP: Mary Ellen Nose (OH) returning
Southwest VP: Pat Richmond (CO) returning
West VP: Laurel Blankinship (CA) returning
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| Congress Sends Loan Forgiveness Bill to President |
The COLLEGE
COST REDUCTION AND
ACCESS ACT of 2007, H.R. 2669 (the William D. Ford Loan Forgiveness Program) passed the
House and Senate on September 7 and was sent to the President on September
19. The President is expected to sign it into law. The
bill contains provisions for a Federal loan forgiveness program for legal services attorneys and other public
service employees.
Highlights of the loan
forgiveness program (Section 401):
* The
program cancels the remaining loan balance (interest and principal) on eligible
federal direct loans for any borrower who is employed in a public
service job and who was employed in a public service job when each
of 120 monthly loan payments were made.
* Eligible
federal loans are: Federal Direct Stafford Loan, Federal Direct PLUS Loan, or Federal Direct Unsubsidized
Stafford Loan, or a Federal Direct Consolidation Loan.
* Public
service jobs include "legal advocacy in low-income communities
at a nonprofit organization."
* The
program will be administered by the Department of Education.
*
Payments on eligible Federal loans made after October 1, 2007, count
toward the program. |
| Meet Region 9A Director Bob Madore |
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| Bob Madore |
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On June 14, 2006, at the UAW’s 34th Constitutional Convention in Las Vegas, Robert “Bob” Madore was elected Director of UAW Region 9A (NOLSW's home region), accepting the torch from out-going Regional Director, Phil Wheeler. Bob’s roots are in the Union. He first joined the UAW in 1964 as a machinist at Emhart Manufacturing in Windsor, CT, and then rose from the rank and file, serving in various local leadership roles, before joining the staff of the International Union in 1989 and eventually becoming the assistant regional director under Phil Wheeler.
Bob has also been active in the community, serving on the Board of the Teachers Credit Union, the North Central CT Health Maintenance Organization and the Kaiser HMO Feasibility Study Committee; and c
hairing the UAW Political Action Council. He is a longtime member of his Democratic Town Committee and has been a delegate to numerous state and national Democratic conventions. Bob has big plans for organizing, education and leadership development initiatives in Region 9A.
On the organizing front, Bob sees Region 9A’s greatest future expansion n the Technical and Office Professional Sector (of which NOLSW is a part) and in Puerto Rico. During his nearly 20 years’ organizing in Puerto Rico, Bob has watched the UAW’s membership there grow from 900 to over 20,000. He is clearly moved when describing the impact that the UAW has had on the lives of our members there. The UAW’s longstanding commitment to organizing and political action in Puerto Rico has earned it respect and affection. He explains, “if they invite you into their home, you are a part of their family. We have been invited into their home.” Education and leadership development are critical and interrelated components in 9A's future. Bob believes the future of the UAW depends in part on our continued ability to attract, inspire and nurture youthful activists. He intends to do this by working closely with the local unions to invite broader member participation in the affairs of the Union, by bringing labor education programs into the secondary schools and colleges, and by encouraging a greater UAW presence in community events.
NOLSW should plan on playing an active role in the Region. Bob notes that NOLSW has always had a special relationship with the UAW and especially Region 9A, partly because the work of our members is so closely aligned with the mission of the UAW. He has worked closely with former longtime NOLSW President Dwight Loines (now Region 9A’s Political Director) and with current NOLSW President, Ellen Wallace, whom Bob praises for her vigorous representation of NOLSW and for “pushing the envelope” in her pursuit of legal services funding. He expects the UAW to remain strongly committed to our Local. Summing up his vision, Bob says that he is committed to a Union that is inclusive and open to criticism, suggestions and ideas because “everyone has to be part of this if we are going to move forward.”
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