We are currently seeking someone to fill our Information Technology Director position who meets the following requirements:

• Open to anyone (you do not have to be Vietnamese or involved with VSA) between the ages of 16-26
• Knowledge of HTML, PHP, CSS, WordPress, FTP, MySQL, JavaScript, Google Docs
• Available to work up to 10 hours per week remotely

This is an unpaid, internship position. There are three terms for this internship: Fall Semester, Spring Semester, and Summer. During the Spring Semester, the position also entails being the IT Director for the VIA-1 (Vietnamese Interacting as One) Conference.

To apply, fill out the application here and email résumé and portfolio (examples of websites, coding, etc.) to staff@uvsamidwest.org. Feel free to send any questions or concerns to the same email address.

Once your application, résumé, and portfolio have been reviewed, a test will be sent to complete for skill level assessment. Following the test will be a phone interview with the staff of UVSA Midwest.

Hello UVSA Midwest Family!

Thank you again for those who were able to make it out to the the 9th Annual Vietnamese Interacting as One (VIA-1) Conference at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign this past March. New friendships were formed, existing bonds were strengthened, leaders were inspired, talents were showcased, and we all came together for the common goal of inspiring, motivating, and taking the next step in leading our generation to success.

One of the most important events that happened at this year’s VIA-1 Conference was the election of new State Representatives for UVSA Midwest. Not only are these the faces of each state and the VSAs within the state, but these individuals are important aspects of our organization and play a crucial role in our successes. On behalf of the UVSA Midwest eboard, it is with my great pleasure to officially announce the new State Representatives for the 2011-2013 term.

Illinois > Neda Huynh (neda.huynh@uvsamidwest.org)
Indiana > Hung Ly (hung.ly@uvsamidwest.org)
Iowa > Lynn Nguyen (lynn.nguyen@uvsamidwest.org)
Ohio > Jen Nguyen (jen.nguyen@uvsamidwest.org)
Michigan > Jeremiah Song (jeremiah.song@uvsamidwest.org)
Minnesota > Dan Doan (dan.doan@uvsamidwest.org)
Wisconsin > Jessica Phan (jessica.phan@uvsamidwest.org)

Please welcome these special individuals to the UVSA Midwest family!

Also, I would like to announce that UVSA Midwest has official 501(c)(3) status! We are now officially recognized as a nonprofit organization. Thank for you for all those who helped to make this possible.

On the final note, I would just like to remind everyone that we always have volunteer positions available if you would like to take part of UVSA Midwest and see how things are run and how everything works. A reminder that next year, for the 10th Annual VIA-1 Conference, we will be electing new executive board members. For more information, please read more here: http://uvsamidwest.org/about/elections/.

If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to contact us at: staff@uvsamidwest.org.

Jacklin Nguyen
Internal Vice President
UVSA Midwest
http://www.uvsamidwest.org

Imagine a community where adults and youth make personal and social responsibility a priority, where people use their unique skills and talents to make their community a better place, where creative solutions, positive actions and kind words are the catalyst for change. The Vietnamese Culture and Science Association (VCSA) would like to invite you to share in a special vision for our community development.

The commitment to lifelong learning, achievement, and improvement usually begins at an early age. Young people who have accepted leadership roles in their organization or community and demonstrated an early commitment to others should be encouraged and supported in their development. With the rising of Vietnamese-American population in North America and the emerging of many youth-led community organizations, there is a growing demand to have a positive environment where young community activists can sharpen their leadership skills, network with their peers, and share their experiences over the years of community involvement. With that in mind, since 1998, VCSA has organized the annual Youth Leadership Development Camp, namely Len Duong Camp (or “Embark on a Journey”).

The camp program is carefully designed to empower young Vietnamese-Americans to become effective leaders in their respective organizations through leadership education and hands-on experience. Each year, Len Duong Camp provides approximately 250-300 young people with the opportunity to develop their leadership skills in a camp setting. Participants are exposed to the concepts, elements, and process of leadership, learn to recognize group dynamics and to understand its effects on the leadership process, and enhance their powers of analysis relating to critical thinking, problem solving, decision-making, and conflict resolution.

In community service organizations, collaborations are frequent and essential for the success of delivering the desired impacts. Indeed, the Len Duong Camp project involved collaborations and partnerships between VCSA and many other community-based groups, educational institutions, small businesses, and corporations. We are especially fortunate to receive support from LEAP (Leadership for Asian Pacific, Inc.) for providing leadership development workshops and seminars at the camp since 2003.

In the past ten years, Len Duong Camp has served over 2,000 young community activists and students. In this unique environment, campers have sharpened their leadership skills and realized their potential as future leaders. They return each year more motivated, more equipped for and committed to community involvement. Based on the feedback we have received from campers and on tracking actual campers’ community involvement, the impact of these camps has been one of the biggest success stories in the Vietnamese American community.

VCSA has fully committed its support and resources to this strategic project. A staff of 40 volunteers contributes approximately 6,000 hours of service to Len Duong Camp project each year. This project has proven successful in the past years.

Our Goal:
The goal of VCSA’s Youth Leadership development camp is to develop future leaders for Asian-American communities, specially focusing on Vietnamese-Americans.

Our Objectives:

• Increase by 10 percent the number of campers who will be taking active leadership role after the camp (as measured by the number of youths who will become officers of their respective organizations after attending the camp)
• Increase volunteerism by 20 percent (as measured by the number of youths involved in community activities after the camp)
• Build a network where young people can share experiences and ideas
• Encourage friendship and open possibilities for the future collaboration of Vietnamese-American youth-led organizations across the nation in community projects
• Build cultural heritage awareness to bridge the generation gap in the Vietnamese-American community; increase by 15 percent the number of campers who become more committed to learn about their roots and their cultural heritage.

Our Target Groups

• Young community leaders or young professional already involved in community projects.
• Leaders of other youth-led organizations with a strong interest in community involvement.
• Vietnamese American Student Association officers for all U.S. and Canada universities.

Measure Of Success

• Request evaluations from campers and post the results on our Web site
• Count the number of campers who become officers in their local community organizations after the camp.
• Track the number of campers involved with community work and see an increased by 15 percent (i.e. 15 percent of campers after the camp are inspired to become leaders or active members in an organization); gather first-hand accounts.
• Encourage campers to help organize the next camp Len Duong.

More information can be found here.

Purpose: To cultivate future leadership for the Asian Pacific American (APA) community by providing opportunities to work in the public sector and learn about issues affecting APAs. Based in the nation’s capital, interns will build relationships, engage in weekly discussions on APA issues, go on legislative visits and participate in OCA’s National Convention in New York on August 4-7.

All are welcome to apply. Students of Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, South Asian, and Southeast Asian descent are highly encouraged to apply.

Deadline: All materials must be received by Monday, April 4th at 11:30 pm EST.
Stipend: $2,500 for 10 weeks of full time work
Requirements:
1. Undergraduate student (Minimum age of 18. Seniors are eligible)
2. U.S. Citizen or Permanent Resident
3. Demonstrated interest in APA issues
4. Excellent written and oral communication skills
5. Commitment to work 10 weeks in Washington DC within the period of June 6 – August 19
6. Completed Application Package including:
- Completed Application Form
- Résumé
- Unofficial academic transcript
- Exactly two letters of reference
- One-page essay (12 pt, single-spaced, 500 words maximum) addressing the following: How will OCA’s summer internship benefit you and your community?

Procedure
1. Submit entire application package by deadline
2. Applications will be reviewed by a committee
3. Personal or telephone interview will be scheduled
4. Accepted interns will be notified by April 29. A firm commitment will be required at that time to secure placement.

Online, early and complete application submission is highly encouraged. Visit www.ocanational.org for more information, please refer to our Internship FAQ page or email internship@ocanational.org.

If you’re interested in learning more about the election process, go here. To learn more about the CoSR, please read this.

SEARAC held two leadership and advocacy trainings in the summer of 2010 in Washington, DC and Long Beach, CA. Each training brought together dozens of community leaders who spent two intensive days focusing on specific policy issues and strategizing for an advocacy meeting. Participants then spent the last day visiting the offices of elected officials with their well-honed messages. Participants learned about and advocated on issues in immigration, education and health policy. Check it out for yourself!

To view an agenda from last year’s training, click here, then check out the videos below to hear what last year’s participants had to say about the training.

SEARAC is pleased to announce its Thirteenth Annual Southeast Asian American Leadership & Advocacy Training. This year, SEARAC will be convening in two strategic locations:

- New Orleans, LA: May 22-24, 2011
- Washington, DC: July 24-26, 2011

For more information and to apply online, click here.

- The application deadline for the New Orleans, LA training is March 20, 2011.
- The application deadline for the Washington, DC training is May 1, 2011.

Please contact Riamsalio Phetchareun at riamsalio@searac.org or (202) 667-4690 with any additional questions.

Leadership and Advocacy Training (LAT)

VIET Fellows is looking for mature, motivated, and inspiring people to be a part of the Class of 2011.

The Vietnam Involvement and Engagement Tour (VIET) is a multifaceted effort to invest in the leadership of young Vietnamese Americans in order to improve the quality of life of communities in the US and Vietnam. The VIET Fellows program is an example of how to engage Vietnamese Americans in civic participation and their drive to give back to the community.

As a VIET Fellow, you will:

• Learn about issues affecting Vietnamese Americans,
• Explore environmental and health disparities in Vietnam,
• & Become a leader in your community.

Applications are due Thursday, March 31. For more info, visit VIET Fellows

The contest will begin accepting submissions starting Tuesday, March 1 and will conclude on May 15. Open to all writers of Asian descent living in the United States and Canada. Please visit: Hyphen Magazine or AAWW for more information.

We ask that you be familiar with the following:
• General website management – FTP, domain renewal, web hosting
• PHP
• MySQL
• HTML & CSS
• Familiarity with WordPress and Google Apps are pluses
• Training will be provided, but you must have some experience with the above items already.

The IT Chairperson’s duties will include the follow:
• Maintaining the UVSA-MW and VIA-1 websites (not necessarily content, but making sure everything functions)
• Conducting online registration for our events
• Managing our Google Apps account

Download the application and email it to us at staff@uvsamidwest.org.

Deadline for application: September 15, 2010 at 11:59 PM Central.