IBSA, Inc., a nonprofit organization based in Topeka, Kansas has launched an online business directory that now helps the Kansas minority, women and disadvantaged business community gain better exposure and promotion via the Internet.

Senator Claire McCaskill 

McCaskill Hosts Free Small Business

Workshop in Lee’s Summit  

Workshop will focus on resources to help Missouri companies

do business with the government 

Small businesses are the engine of the American economy and are key to creating new jobs.  That’s why U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill is hosting a workshop to connect small businesses with resources and information about doing business with the local, state, and federal governments.  On Friday, March 5, McCaskill will host the first in a series of events in Lee’s Summit, putting local small businesses directly in touch with officials from a variety of government entities so they can learn more about how to compete for and win government contracts.   

Please visit McCaskill’s website at www.mccaskill.senate.gov for additional information about the workshop. 

The all-day event is free and open to all small business owners interested in providing services or products to the government.  McCaskill believes helping businesses and organizations learn how to access federal dollars through competitively-awarded contracts is an important step toward ensuring Missouri’s economic development.  At the workshop, representatives from federal, state, and local government agencies will present information through a number of presentation sessions, and business owners will also have the opportunity to talk individually with government officials.   

Doing Business with the Government Workshop  

WHEN:          Friday, March 5, 2010

      8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

         

WHERE:        Metropolitan Community College – Longview Community College 
Mel Aytes Education Center 
500 S.W. Longview Road 
Lee's Summit, Missouri 
                       

WHAT:          Workshop to provide small businesses with information and resources about doing business with local, state, and federal government agencies. 

WHO:             Invited presenters include representatives from the State of Missouri, the Missouri Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC), the General Services Administration (GSA), the Small Business Administration (SBA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Army Corps of Engineers, the Missouri Department of Transportation (MODOT), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Veteran’s Affairs (VA), Jackson County, the City of Kansas City, and the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD).  

HOW:             To sign up, please visit McCaskill’s  website at www.mccaskill.senate.gov or contact the Kansas City office at 816-421-1639.  Space is limited so participants are required to register in advance.

Remodel

Project Location: Overland Park, Kansas Contact: Darrin Hill Company: Crossland Construction PreBid Date: Not Furnished Bid Date: 03/10/2010 3:00 PM Bid Information: Crossland Construction announces its interest in taking bids for the following project: Wal Mart 1599-10 Remodel – Overland Park, KS. located at 11701 Metcalf Ave, Overland Park, Kansas. All bids must submitted to Darrin Hill at Crossland Construction no later than Wednesday March 10, 2010 at 3:00 PM. Bids may be faxed to the attention of Darrin Hill at 620-429-1412. Plan Type: Bond Prints

Public Notes:

Any questions regarding the specifications please contact the architect.

Launching Your Entrepreneurial Future

Explore the possibilities of starting your own business

It’s a New Year, time to start new ventures.

Is this the year for you to turn that hobby into a profitable business?

Before you step out, invest time and money only to discover that you didn't have all the tools you needed to be successful, take a test drive in this 3 hour course. 

Facilitated by Glenda Overstreet, Certified by Ewing Marion Kauffman for FirstStep Fasttrac, New Venture and Growth Venture Entrepreneurial Training Programs.

Call or email to register. Deadline March1 , 2010

Launching Your Entrepreneurial Future is a part of the FastTrac^® LaunchPad Program developed by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation

Through Launching Your Entrepreneurial Future you will:

*        Identify and release the fears associated with starting a business

*        Recognize business opportunities

*        Prepare to conduct market research

*        Assess networks and support system, including people and resources

 Thursday

March 4, 2010

6-9 p.m.

$50

As you can imagine, it would present fantastic opportunities to a community like Topeka! It could:

* Attract businesses to our community

* Improve the quality of life for our citizens

* Improve our schools, health care system and government agencies

This type of technology has the power to put Topeka on the global map!

How You Can Help:

1. Submit a nomination form here.

2. Join our Facebook Group here.

3. Record a video testimonial with WIBW (dates and locations to be announced).

4. Email your City Council person or County Commissioner urging them to submit a government nomination here.

5. Tell your friends — post it, blog it, tweet it, email it, YouTube it, say it — do whatever you can to help us get the word out!

Get Inspired!

Every day I can guarantee that you will be impacted in some way by social media, there will be experts telling you, you need a profile on social networks like Facebook, and that Twitter is the best thing since sliced bread was invented.

Hitachi Business and Communities Grants Program

The Hitachi Business and Communities Grants Program focuses on both the role of businesses and communities in addressing economic isolation and strengthening the field of corporate citizenship. The Foundation will identify suitable candidates for grants and invite proposals. Due to limited resources, they do not issue Requests for Proposals. Proposals may only be submitted at the Foundation's invitation. However they have a web-based system for inquiries from nonprofit organizations.
 
The Business and Work Program reflects our new strategic plan adopted by the Board in November 2008. This program focuses on building an authentic integration of business actions and societal wellbeing in North America. The Foundation will identify suitable candidates for grants and invite proposals.
 
Their strategy focuses on discovering and expanding business practices that create tangible and enduring economic opportunities for low-wealth Americans, their families, and their communities.

Their approach to advancing the fields of corporate social responsibility, or CSR, and corporate citizenship is to discover business policies and practices that both strengthen the business bottom-line and support low-income workers. This learning takes a three-pronged approach: identifying and working closely with business trailblazers; establishing sustained relationships with a few carefully selected communities ready and able to drive change; and developing standards or benchmarks that help define and reward their efforts.

On January 12, the Employment and Training Administration hosted a Webinar entitled:

Youth Entrepreneurship as a Tool in the Workforce Development System.  This webinar described and demonstrated best practices in entrepreneurship education for young people (ages 11-22) from low-income communities. Speakers sparked discussion with webinar participants about how these practices have been implemented in specific workforce development settings, how they are assessed and evaluated, how they are revised as a result of “real world” experience and evaluation, and how they might best be deployed in new settings. Speakers and audience member suggested ways in which entrepreneurship as taught and learned in school settings can be better connected with workforce development initiatives occurring in other settings—to create a unified and mutually reinforcing delivery system to upskill our young people and connect them fully to good job opportunities.  You must be a registered user of Workforce3One to listen to and view Webinars.  To register to view the archived Webinar, visit: http://www.workforce3one.org/. 

On January 22, the Employment and Training Administration hosted a Webinar entitled:

Youth Entrepreneurship as a Tool in the Workforce Development Kit.  This Webinar helped familiarize participants with the proven effectiveness of entrepreneurship education as a means to engage young people from low-income communities, and with entrepreneurship education’s demonstrable academic and workplace-readiness outcomes. 

On January 12 and 13, the Employment and Training Administration’s (ETA) Office of Apprenticeship held two “Creating Good Jobs through Registered Apprenticeship” listening sessions. These events brought together leadership from a wide range of employers, industry associations and national labor organizations to get their views on pre-apprenticeship, Registered Apprenticeship, and partnerships among apprenticeship programs, educators, and the workforce system. The 21st Century Apprenticeship Community of Practice (CoP) Web site features more information about what Registered Apprenticeship’s valued stakeholders and ETA leadership had to say. A summary report of the events is available on the CoP at:http://21stcenturyapprenticeship.workforce3one.org/.  

UNEMPLOYMENT AND JOB CREATION

The Challenge of the Green Economy

in the Urban Core Community

The World wants Black America to project success, but what we are really seeing every day is fewer Jobs and more Despair!

 
                 Economic                       Community                Human Resource
                 Development —————– Development ————-  Development
                   (defined)                         (defined)                     (defined)
 
 
                                  HUD – COPC Theory Based Modeling
                                    UMKC – Bloch School of Business

####

WHERE:  Reardon Center 520 Minnesota, KCK  

WHEN:  4:00 pm Saturday, January 9^th, 2010

For details See www.breakingthesilence.us  

CJOnline.com -

As I wrote this, Lazone Grays was in Zimbabwe, sitting on a panel with world-affecting decisions being made. — SHANNEN REAVES, Topeka …

In order to succeed and combat the competitive online world, you need to maintain a good reputation online. A good reputation does not only require a good website design but a lot more to build confidence, to grow sales and ultimately leads to better revenues and higher profitability.

Harvard University Announcement

Harvard University announced over the weekend that from now on undergraduate students from low-income families will pay no tuition.  In making the announcement, Harvard's president Lawrence H. Summers said, "When only ten percent of the students in elite higher education come from families in the lower half of the income distribution, we are not doing enough.  We are not doing enough in bringing elite higher education to the lower half of the income distribution." 

To find out more about Harvard offering free tuition for families making less than $60,000 a year, visit Harvard's financial aid website at: http://www.fao.fas.harvard.edu  or call the school's financial aid office at  (617) 495-1581.
 
SEND TO SOMEONE WHETHER THEY CAN USE OR NOT.  THEY JUST MIGHT KNOW SOMEONE WHO CAN.

KANSAS CITY WIZARDS STADIUM PROJECT – KANSAS CITY, KANSAS

Ladies and Gentlemen:

BID DOCUMENTS

: K.C. Blueprint Company is printing documents for this Project. The Project Bid Manual,

the Bidding Documents, the Drawings, Specifications, Addenda and other Contract

www.kcblueprint.com. Once at the KC Blueprint website, each bidder should

double click to the K.C. Blueprint Company’s “online plan room” and then logon to

BIDDING QUESTIONS:

All scope questions should be directed to Josh Wetzel at 816-886-4594.

Contract questions should be directed to Josh Jones at 816-283-0555.

BIDS DUE: December 18th, 2009 @ 2:00 PM CDST

TURNER CONSTRUCTION CO.

2345 Grand, Suite 1000

ttention: Josh Jones

Fax bids will be accepted at 816.283.0558.

The Gates Millennium Scholars 2010 Nomination Process has launched. The submission deadline is January 11, 2010 (11:59 p.m. EST).

Click here to access the GMS Scholarship application.

Students are eligible to be considered for a GMS scholarship if they:

• Are African American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian and Pacific Islander American, or Hispanic American;
• Are a citizen/legal permanent resident or nationals of the United States;
• Have attained a cumulative GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale (un-weighted);
• Will be enrolling for the first-time at a U.S. accredited* college or university as a full-time, degree-seeking, first-year student in the fall of 2010; or GED
• Have demonstrated leadership abilities through participation in community service, extracurricular or other activities;
• Meet the Federal Pell Grant* eligibility criteria; and
• Have all three forms (Nominee Personal Information Form completed by the student, Nominator Form completed by an educator familiar with the student’s academic record and a Recommender Form completed by a person familiar with the student’s leadership and community service) submitted by the deadline.

In order to be

eligible to be considered for the GMS scholarship, all three forms must be submitted by the deadline.

1. Nominee Form (student application)
2. Nominator Form
3. Recommender Form

This holiday season, did you know there are alternative ways to support your favorite community charities? Consider visiting iShoptoGive when shopping online this year and throughout the years, and you can choose to support nationally recognized nonprofit organizations or those that work in your own community. We also encourage other nonprofits to consider signing up with iShoptoGive to begin taking advantage of this unique online opportunity to meet your constituents, congregation or membership base at another level of giving. Let's face, many of us, our friends and family will make online purchases for ourselves or someone eles within a one-year timespan. Why not check out the site right now to consider giving or joining?

 

                                                       www.ishoptogive.com

- Happy Holidays -

         

    

 

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS TO BECOMING A VENDOR?

1. Vendor receives on-line product exposure.
2. Vendor has access to a sophisticated web store and back office that allows them to track sales, view accounts and track inventory, to name a few.
3. Vendor has a complete sales force marketing and directing customers to their products.
4. All vendors have the satisfaction of knowing that they are playing a significant role in helping others.  Together we can create US jobs, help feed the poor, heal the sick and change the world.

Become a Non-Profit | Become a contributing company

 

iShop To Give, Inc. (iShop) is a webstore that sells a variety of goods and services.  iShop gives a portion of each sale back to the non-profit of the customer's choice.  iShop's web store is an innovative and complex program that manages sales and inventory and automatically calculates and records relevant information from our vendors.

–
IBSA, Inc.
(913) 735-4272 KC Metro
(785) 422-0761 Topeka Office

The first step toward success is taken when you refuse to be a captive of the environment in which you first find yourself.  -Mark Caine-

Funding Opportunities 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Invites Applications for Offender Reentry Grant Program.  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment is accepting applications for fiscal year 2010 grants for the Offender Reentry Program.  The program is designed to expand and/or enhance substance abuse treatment and related recovery and reentry services to sentenced juvenile and adult offenders returning to the community from incarceration for criminal/juvenile offenses. Applicants are expected to form stakeholder partnerships that will plan, develop and provide a transition from incarceration to community-based substance abuse treatment and related reentry services for the populations of focus. To obtain additional information, visit: http://www07.grants.gov/search/search.do?&mode=VIEW&flag2006=false&oppId=50070.

Starbucks Foundation Invites Applications for its Shared Planet Youth Action Grants.  The Starbucks Foundation will accept applications for its Shared Planet Youth Action Grants from organizations that provide young people (ages 6-24) a continuum of services in social entrepreneurship; and young people developing creative approaches that address pressing concerns.  Eligible applicants must be tax-exempt, nonprofit organizations as defined under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.  Applicants outside the United States must be charitable in purpose and identified as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or the equivalent of a tax-exempt nonprofit organization.  To obtain additional information and applications, visit: http://www.starbucksfoundation.org/index.cfm?objectid=BE688C92-1D09-317F-BBA1CDA8E271C9CB.  Deadline: Open.

Amtrak looking for primes and subs to help it meet its 25% SBE and 10% DBE goals on ARRA projects. Please forward to potential interested firms.

Jacobs Project Management Company (Jacobs) is seeking qualified design/build firms interested in participating in Amtrak’s nationwide projects funded through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). Capital grants have been awarded to construct, renovate, repair and/or upgrade properties for Amtrak and other railroad owners throughout the United States. 

In support of Small Business (SB) and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE), Amtrak has set an ARRA goal to achieve via prime or subcontract opportunities, twenty-five percent with Small Businesses and ten percent with Disadvantaged Business Enterprises. 

Design/Builders will be responsible for completing the design (currently at 30 percent) and to construct, renovate, repair and/or upgrade the facilities through turnover. All improvements must be completed by February 17, 2011. 

SB and DBE firms with core competency and relevant design/build experience are invited to submit to Jacobs, the first of a two tier prequalification requirement consisting of, a brief statement of their capabilities in any of the following areas; 
Mobility/ADA; 
Facility; 
Security and Life Safety; 
Platform Lighting, (MA and RI only); 
Fall Protection; or, 
Track Work. 

If interested, submit a brief prequalification capability statement, including contact information, and interest as a prime or subcontractor, not to exceed 5 Megabytes, via USPS or e-mail to: 

Ms. Dorothy Thom 
Program Support Manager 
Jacobs Project Management Co. 
Three Tower Bridge 
Two Ash Street 
Conshohocken, PA 19428 
dorothy.thom@jacobs.com 

Based on this information, Jacobs will determine which firms will be included in the 2nd tier prequalification. If your company is selected, Jacobs will send you prerequisite forms for completion. Jacobs will then determine, based on the prequalification information, which firms will be invited to propose on these projects, some of which may be designated as a Small Business Set-Aside opportunity. Please note that if awarded, the Design/Builder will be required to enroll into the Jacobs Contractor Controlled Insurance Program (CCIP). 

Statements of capability from firms interested in Subcontract opportunities only will be provided to prime contractor proposors for their consideration. 

For more information on specific project opportunities, please visit Amtrak’s web site at http://procurement.amtrak.com => “SB/DBE” tab.

Please respond to
SBA Press Office <press_office@SBA.GOV>

***********************************************
U.S. Small Business Administration

– News Release –

***********************************************
Release Date:  November 10, 2009
Contact:  Dennis Byrne (202) 205-6567
Release Number: 09-77
Internet Address: http://www.sba.gov/news

SBA, Six Universities to Offer Business Training
For Iraq/Afghanistan Disabled Vets

SBA Adds New Training Tools to Increase Opportunities for Vets

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Small Business Administration today announced a
three-year agreement to expand and deliver entrepreneurship training for
service-disabled veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. 

The agreement with SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development will
support the expansion of the year-long Entrepreneurship Bootcamp for
Veterans with Disabilities (EBV).  The expansion of this innovative management
training and mentorship program will maximize small business programs for
veterans, service-disabled veterans, reserve-component members, and their
dependents or survivors.

Additionally, this week SBA launched a new online contracting tutorial on
www.sba.gov, as part of its ongoing efforts to expand services to veterans
and service-disabled veterans. Veterans and military spouses who own small
businesses can utilize this free online course to learn how to identify and take
advantage of federal contracting opportunities.

“At this important time, with veterans returning from foreign soil in increasing
numbers, we at the SBA are working to ensure they have the resources to
successfully start and run their small businesses.  As a result of the leadership
skills they develop during their service, veterans over-index in entrepreneurial
activities,” SBA Administrator Karen G. Mills said today.  “Our commitment is to
honor that service by helping our nation’s veterans – especially those who
return home with disabilities – fulfill the American Dream.  Initiatives like the
Entrepreneurship Bootcamp and our online training courses give veteran
business owners the tools they need to grow, be competitive, and create
jobs.”

Working with Syracuse University’s Whitman School of Management, the
University of Connecticut School of Business, Mays Business School at Texas
A&M, UCLA Anderson School of Management, Florida State University’s College
of Business, and the Krannert School of Management at Purdue University,
SBA’s grant and other assistance will significantly expand the reach and impact
of the EBV initiative and help maximize economic opportunities for U.S.
veterans with disabilities.                                                             

The expansion of SBA’s entrepreneurship training initiatives builds on SBA’s
support for veterans through its Patriot Express loan program.  In less than
two-and-a -half year’s time, this pilot loan initiative has supported nearly $400
million in loans to more than 4,700 veterans and spouses looking to establish or
expand their small businesses.  As a result of the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act, which raised loan guarantees to 90 percent and temporarily
eliminated fees, the number of Patriot Express loans increased by more than 20
percent this year over 2008. Local SBA district offices have a listing of Patriot
Express lenders in their areas.  Details on the initiative can be found at
www.sba.gov/patriotexpress.

To learn more about additional opportunities for veterans available through the
SBA, please visit www.sba.gov.