Bitter cold. No one is abroad.

I have been looking everywhere for you.

If you don’t believe me, 

Look at my footprints in the snow.

–(anonymous, translated from the Chinese by Kenneth Rexroth) 

**

My dog and I leave two sets of footprints. Together we are a lyric poem, the dog with a temple in her mind–incense, tall windows; and the man with his capacity for being lost. What are we looking for? A house, a door, a familiar street…Other times it’s peace of mind we’re after. Two sets of prints. One creature. 

"You know how the NFL has been so concerned about concussions and head injuries and has made an effort ‒ some might even call it an overzealous effort ‒ to limit players' risk to head injuries?

Not everyone shares the league's concern. Some players, in fact, when they know a guy has had head injuries, will make it a point to inflict even more damage to that fellow's head."

See full story: yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/giants-knew-kyle-williams-had-concussion-problems-targeted-183400986.html

The local weatherman calls the conditions “silvery skies” and why not if it gets people out the door? In fact it’s grey as my uncle’s undershirt; grey as a circus donkey; grey as John Paul Sartre’s bathrobe. “Silvery skies” is the true representation of the weight of your shell. I think you know what I’m talking about. Bring on the leafless trees. We have all the light we need. 

**

Watching the president’s speech last night was so demoralizing. Where was the discussion of a middle east peace process? The environment? It’s clear that the GOP has stolen the lexicon–it’s wrapped in a rug in the trunk of a Lexus.

** 

Today in my lyric poetry class I’m talking about Gregory Orr’s work. This makes me happy. There’s a pearl in a dream. We can touch it. We can hold it in our hands long after we’ve awakened. We have all the light we need.  

** 

Gregory Orr:

On the side of a bleak hill

we build our hut; windowless,

but filled with light.

"DURING THE last days of his presidency, John F. Kennedy had a number of concerns on his mind. In tapes being released today by the Kennedy Library, we hear, for example, the president focus on his reelection and issues of economic inequality. What can we do, he asks his political advisers, to make voters “decide that they want to vote for us, Democrats? What is it we have to sell ’em? We hope we have to sell them prosperity, but for the average guy the prosperity is nil. He’s not unprosperous, but he’s not very prosperous. He’s not . . . very well-off. And the people who really are well-off hate our guts.’’ As questions about growing social inequity increasingly dominate our current political dialogue, it may be instructive to look back at how these issues played out a half century ago."

See Tom Putnam's full OpEd in today's Boston Globe.

012 Student Summer Programs at DOL

What:  The Department of Labor’s Student Summer Programs provide current students with experiential work experience as an integral part of the student’s course of study.  To ensure a productive experience for both the student intern or volunteer and the sponsoring agency, the Agency promotes an educational environment for the benefit of the student by offering substantive and developmental work, close and constant supervision and feedback, and sets clear expectations regarding the desired outcomes of the student’s internship or volunteer service.  The goal is to have at least 100 student summer interns and volunteers housed in the National Office and at least 80 student interns and volunteers in the regions during the 6-10 week summer program.
Website: www.dol.gov

Deadline: Students must submit all application materials (resume, cover letter, and short writing sample) to students@dol.gov by COB on April 6, 2012.
Who can apply:  Candidates must be U.S. citizens currently enrolled in an accredited educational institution.    

Workforce Recruitment Program for College Students with Disabilities (WRP)
What: The WRP is a recruitment and referral program that connects federal and private sector employers nationwide with highly motivated college students and recent graduates with disabilities who are eager to prove their abilities in the workplace through summer or permanent jobs.
Website: https://wrp.gov 
Deadline: Interviews are conducted in the fall semester at participating campuses and the database is published each December. For the 2013 WRP release, interviews will be held in the fall of 2012.

Who can apply: Candidates must be U.S. citizens. In addition, candidates must be current, full-time undergraduate or graduate students with a disability, or have graduated within one year of the release of the database.

Pathways Programs for Students and Recent Graduates
What: The Pathways Programs are three clear program paths tailored to recruit, hire, develop, and retain students and recent graduates. It lays the groundwork to improve recruiting efforts; offers clear paths to Federal internships for students from high school through post-graduate school and to careers for recent graduates; and provides meaningful training and career development opportunities for individuals who are at the beginning of their Federal careers. The three program paths included in its framework are: an Internship Program, a Recent Graduates Program, and a reinvigorated Presidential Management Fellows (PMF) Program.  
Website: http://www.opm.gov/HiringReform/pathways/ and http://www.usajobs.gov/studentjobs 
Deadline: Varies by Federal agency
Who can apply: Programs will be launched in the spring of 2012. All the eligibility requirements will be provided on the websites above once the program regulations are implemented.

Presidential Management Fellows Program

What: The Presidential Management Fellows Program is the flagship leadership program for advanced degree candidates and is designed to develop potential government leaders. It also seeks to encourage lasting careers and dedication to public service and government.

Website: http://www.pmf.gov/

Deadline: Applications for the 2012 cycle were completed in September 2011 through usajobs.gov website. For the 2013 program, applications will be accepted in September 2012.

Who can apply: US citizens or in rare cases, non-US citizens appointed by Federal agencies or who will earn citizenship by fellowship completion. Applicant must be enrolled in a graduate degree program within one year of applying and complete their degree by August 31st in the year their fellowship begins.

United States Department of Agriculture Summer Internship Program
What: Student employees gain valuable professional experience as an assistant in scientific, professional, technical, and/or administrative areas. The "Student Internship Program" could be a paid or unpaid internship. The internship opportunity gives students insight into considering a future career with USDA. Annually USDA employs thousands of students nationwide throughout our 7 Mission Areas, 17 agencies and 14 offices. 
Website: http://www.dm.usda.gov/employ/SIPIntro.htm
Who can apply: Students aged 16 or older in high schools, community colleges, 4 year colleges/universities, trade schools, career/ technical education programs, graduate programs and other qualifying educational institutions and programs, as determined by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) are all qualified to apply. 

More Great Links

1.     Federal Internship Directory

This directory lists internship opportunities in many federal agencies

http://www.osec.doc.gov/ocr/2011/InternshipDirectory/Internship%20Directory%202011.pdf

1. USAJobs
   Most federal vacancies are advertised on the USAJOBS Web site found at www.usajobs.gov.This is the Federal government’s official site for job information and includes over 16,000 job postings. Through this site, you can search for openings in a particular field, city, or agency, or all three
2. Disability.gov 
   This website, managed by the Department of Labor, lists many employment resources. https://www.disability.gov/employment/finding_a_job/places_to_search_for_a_job
3. Learn about Schedule A
   Schedule A is an excepted service hiring authority available to federal agencies to hire and/or to promote individuals with disabilities by avoiding the traditional, and sometimes lengthy, competitive hiring process. You are eligible for a Schedule A appointment if you are a person with a severe physical or mental disability, and meet the qualifications of the job in question. http://golearn.gov/HiringReform/applicant/hpd.htm

What: President Obama has challenged Presidential Personnel to build an administration that reflects America. We work with all cabinet agencies to find qualified candidates for political appointments that can drive the kind of creativity, innovation and change that President Obama has brought to Washington. The President sees the disability community as part of our talent pool and we hope to give interested candidates a sense of what we do in PPO and offer tangible tips of how you can put your best foot forward in pursuit of a potential appointment.

Who can apply: Anyone

Website: https://app2.whitehouse.gov/ppo/

Email: presidentialpersonneloffice@who.eop.gov subject line: Public Engagement Call

Beauty is a Verb was just named a Notable Book for 2012 by the ALA–American Library Association. The only other poetry book on the list of 25 Notable Books was John Ashbery's translation of Rimbaud's Illuminations. I want to congratulate the editors, Sheila Black and Mike Northern and all the remarkable poets with disabilities whose work has made this such a memorable book.

(Asbury Park Press)
January 20, 2012

TRENTON, NEW JERSEY– [Excerpt provided by Inclusion Daily Express] State Senate President Stephen M. Sweeney said Thursday he'll introduce a bill that would prevent hospitals from discriminating against developmentally disabled people who need organ transplants.

His action came after a South Jersey family allegedly was told their 3-year-old daughter would not be eligible for a kidney transplant at a Philadelphia hospital because of her disability.

Joe and Chrissy Rivera of Stratford plan to meet next week with officials at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, where a physician allegedly ruled out a transplant for the girl. Their daughter, Amelia, has a genetic defect that can cause mental and physical disabilities.

In a statement, Sweeney said people with developmental disabilities "should not be treated as second-class citizens. Their disabilities do not make them any less human or worthy of respect and common decency."

In his statement, Sweeney noted the issue is a personal one for him. His daughter, Lauren, has Down syndrome.

Entire article:
Bill targets bias in transplant decisions
http://tinyurl.com/7bp345t
Related:
Sweeney wants to prevent hospitals from denying organ transplants to the disabled (Star-Ledger)
http://tinyurl.com/6wugm28
Young Girl Being Denied Transplant Because Her "Retardation" Doesn't Make Her "Worthy" (Not Dead Yet)
http://tinyurl.com/84g84n5