Antioch University Los Angeles (AULA) is proud to be once again part of the Los Angeles PRIDE Parade taking place on Sunday, June 9, 2013. Marking its fifth year of participation, AULA will be celebrating its ongoing commitment to diversity and acceptance with its parade theme, “Acceptance. NO EXCEPTION.”

We are proud to be an LGBT-affirmative campus in which faculty, staff, students, and alumni work tirelessly to affect social, economic, and environmental change. AULA’s Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Studies program offers a minor concentration in LGBT/Queer Studies. AULA was the first in the nation to have an LGBT Specialization within a graduate psychology program, offering comprehensive theoretical and practical preparation for students training to become licensed Marriage and Family Therapists. Students in the LGBT Specialization additionally learn how to provide effective, affirmative mental healthcare to LGBT clients.

Just like the parade motto, “Acceptance. NO EXCEPTION,” AULA enthusiastically invites all AULA community members and friends to join us in walking the parade route and celebrating the diversity and acceptance that lies at the core of our values. If you can’t walk in the parade but want to help, you can join us for pre-parade or post-parade duties. To register to participate in the parade, visit www.AntiochLA.edu/PrideVolunteer. For participating, you will receive an “Acceptance. NO EXCEPTION” t-shirt. The PRIDE Parade is always one of the most fun events of the year.

For more information about the 2013 PRIDE Parade and celebration, please visit http://lapride.org.

So come out, bring your friends, and join the fun. At AULA, everyone is welcome. Everyone is accepted. No exception.

Antioch University is accredited by the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools (NCA), which is the non-governmental body that grants accreditation. The HLC is the branch of the NCA that accredits colleges and universities. In determining whether a school has earned accreditation, the HLC “seeks a culture of aspiration and continual improvement rather than satisfaction of minimum requirements.”

The HLC bases accreditation on institutional self-evaluation. To that end, Antioch University has undertaken a massive institutional evaluation process, which resulted in a self-study report demonstrating how the University meets or exceeds all of the criteria and specific components and sub-components of the HLC. Thousands of documents were gathered and analyzed, providing concrete evidence of everything from the transparency of campus policies to the effectiveness of various teaching methodologies. The evaluation was overseen by Antioch University’s Steering Committee, which includes a dozen faculty and staff members from all Antioch University campuses as well as the system office.

The HLC site visit team will spend the day meeting with President Tex Boggs, the Campus Self Study Committee, Provost Luis Pedraja, CFO David Houser, members of our Board, staff, faculty, students, alumni, and community leaders. We look forward this important visit.

Nomination for the Abramson-Muscarolas Scholarship in Nonprofit Management is open to employees and volunteers in nonprofit organizations serving the Greater Los Angeles Metropolitan Area and classified by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service under Section 501(c) of the I.R.S. code as a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization.

Qualified nominees will have an undergraduate degree from an accredited institution, will have been active in the nonprofit sector for a minimum of two years, will have demonstrated a strong commitment to the nonprofit sector, and will show significant leadership potential within their nonprofit organizations and / or the broader nonprofit sector.

The scholarship is being made possible by a generous gift from AULA Board of Trustee member Grant Abramson and his wife Miriam Muscarolas, who established the Grant Abramson and Miriam Muscarolas Scholarship Fund at AULA in 2012.

“We are pleased to support individuals who are committed to serving in the nonprofit sector, who possess strong leadership potential, and who have chosen to further their education in service to building organizations devoted to improving the lives of others,” Abramson said.

Applicants for the scholarship must be nominated by the Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer of the nonprofit organization where they are employed or volunteer.   Applicants who serve as Executive Director or Chief Executive Officer of a nonprofit organization must be nominated by the Chair of that organization’s Board of Directors/Trustees. Nominators may submit as many nominations as desired. However, a separate nomination must be submitted for each nominee. Nominations and corresponding admissions and scholarship applications must be received by July 15, 2013, to be considered. For more information on the scholarship visit here.

Book Exchange by the Numbers:

• Members of the AULA community donated 2,632 books
• The AULA Bookstore donated 4,493 books
• AULA students, faculty, and staff added  3,632 to their libraries
• Over 600 books were picked up by students and donated to senior centers, domestic violence shelters, public schools and community centers throughout Los Angeles, including the Alexandria House, Colors, and the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center
• 2100 books were donated to Better World Books
• 162 textbooks were donated to Next First Generation to support first generation college students in acquiring their textbooks

The book exchange was sponsored by the AULA Library and Project Second Life. Project Second Life is a collaborative project of the Applied Community Psychology Specialization and the Education Department. The goal of Project Second Life is to raise awareness among AULA community members about global and local issues that impact individual and collective well-being. The activities of Project Second Life encourage AULA community members to live more sustainable lives, not only in how they consume and dispose of unwanted goods, but also in how they contribute to the sustenance of those less able to provide for themselves.

“The creation of this degree program is very mission consistent for us,” said AULA President Tex Boggs. “Antioch University Los Angeles provides an educational experience that both enables and encourages students to advance social, economic, and environmental justice. Graduates of the Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management program will have the skills and commitment necessary to make a lasting difference in the communities they serve and in the nonprofit institutions that employ them.”

Students enrolled in the 48-unit, 18-month program designed for working professionals will attend class one evening each week, and on the occasional Saturday morning, with online coursework between on-campus meetings. Each 10-week quarter will be devoted to the in-depth study of an essential aspect of nonprofit management. Specific areas of curricular focus include Programs, Advancement, Administration and Finance, Governance and Finance, Nonprofit Systems, and Organization Sustainability. In addition to lectures, readings, simulations, case studies, and practice exercises, students participate in a variety of field-based activities.

“The nonprofit sector is the third largest labor force in the U.S., employing one in ten workers,” said Susan Nero, Chair of Graduate Management Programs. “The MA in Nonprofit Management degree responds to the need to prepare an increasing number of professionals for greater success as program and development directors, financial administrators, executive directors and board trustees leading sustainable, mission-driven organizations.”

The program’s unique competency-based curriculum was developed following a review of recent research that identifies the capacity building needs of the nonprofit sector and the related managerial competencies and leadership skills required to address them. In addition, program design was informed by an AULA survey of experienced nonprofit professionals, as well as by a review of job descriptions for executive directors and other senior positions in nonprofit organizations.

“If there ever was a time when nonprofit leadership could get by exclusively on a combination of good intentions and passionate commitment, that time is no more,” said AULA faculty member and veteran nonprofit consultant David Norgard. “More than ever, in addition to focusing on the impact they want to achieve, nonprofit executives and managers must have a deep, working understanding of how nonprofits sustain themselves as distinctively effective organizations.”

“The Addiction Studies concentration provides a unique opportunity for students to gain an advanced education in a profession that is rapidly growing,” says Drew Williams, who is a Certified Addiction Treatment Counselor III and AULA Addiction Studies steering committee member. “Equally as important, AULA students will obtain the broad liberal education necessary to address the many needs of individuals challenged by addiction.”

AULA will be one of the first universities to offer a full concentration in this discipline. Although many states require individuals working in the addiction treatment profession to possess a master’s in counseling or other related degree, California only requires addiction treatment professionals to be certified through one of several certifying bodies. But this is quickly changing and AULA is one of the first to answer the call for higher education for addiction treatment personnel.

The Addiction Studies concentration curriculum is designed to reflect cutting-edge and real-time advances in addiction treatment and mental health professions. The curriculum fulfills the educational requirements necessary for credentialing as a certified addiction treatment counselor in the state of California. The concentration consists of 15 courses totaling 45 units and provides appropriately challenging coursework that offers upper division scholarship for an advanced education in addiction studies. Students will also have an opportunity to count prior learning and independent study units toward the concentration requirement.

A launch event entitled “Higher Education for the Addiction Treatment Profession: Antioch University Los Angeles Answering the Call” will be held on Friday, May 10. The keynote speaker is Dr. Darryl Inaba, author of Uppers, Downers, All Arounders. Also presenting is Dr. Lori Phelps, Director of the California Association for Alcohol and Drug Educators, author of Intervention, Treatment & Recovery, and Charley Lang, MFT, from Antioch University, presenting on postmodern approaches to addiction counseling. There is no cost for the event and lunch will be served. Please see the calendar for details.

Mr. McKim is the Senior Partner of McKim Nonprofit Consulting, and has over 35 years of national and international marketing and technology leadership. He is past board chair for Meals on Wheels West, previously on the President’s Advisory Council for the Chicago School of Professional Psychology, and is a mentor for SCORE. He has served as board secretary for Camp Coca-Cola Los Angeles and Technology Committee chair for the Wellness Community. He has a master’s degree in Nonprofit Management from Walden University, and two degrees in Leadership and Administration from Northeastern University.

Also elected to office were Joseph Klauzar as vice-chair, and Dannelle-Mimi Phan as treasurer, both for two-year terms.  Klauzar is a highly experienced financial advisor and investment manager at Morgan Stanley Smith Barney who has worked as a global investment manager for more than 25 years.  Phan is audit unit manager for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, and serves as a member of the Board of Governors of the Institute of Internal Auditors, Los Angeles Chapter and is its past president.

AULA’s current Board of Trustees is comprised of exceptional individuals; leaders in business and nonprofits who share AULA’s commitment to diversity, academic excellence, and community outreach. The other Board members are: Grant Abramson; Susan D. Anderson; Salar Atrizadeh; Susan Cole Hill, Jack Illes; Elias Lefferman; Lillian Lovelace; Alicia Miñana De Lovelace; Roland Palencia; and, Mary E. Power.

In Henry Cole’s brilliant picture book story, a young girl growing up on a farm risks everything helping someone she never meets escape slavery by using the Underground Railroad. This wordless picture book tells a story of camaraderie and bravery using beautiful pencil drawings. Unspoken was published in the United States in 2012 by Scholastic, Inc.

The 2013 Horace Mann Upstanders Book Award Committee has named three other award winners: Tomie dePaola for the Lifetime Upstander Award, Luis J. Rodriguez for Community Upstander Achievement Award, and Innosanto Nagara for Upstander New Talent Award for his new book A is for Activist.

Three books have been cited by the Horace Mann Upstanders Book Award Committee as Honor Books: The Family Tree, written by David McPhail and published by Henry Holt; Sophia’s War, written by Avi and published by Beach Lane Books; and My Name is Parvana, written by Deborah Ellis and published by Groundwood Books.

Established in 2008, the Horace Mann Upstanders Book Award honors books in which the main character recognizes injustice and acts in a way to right the wrong. This award honors new children’s literature that best exemplifies the ideals of social action and in turn encourages young readers to become agents of change themselves.

Members of the 2013 Horace Mann Upstanders Award Committee were: Fred Chapel (Core Faculty in the Education Department, Antioch University Los Angeles); Daniel Hutterer, Chair (Current Teaching Credential Student, Antioch University Los Angeles); Lisa Lepore (Library Director, Antioch University Los Angeles); Deborah Magana (Program Coordinator/Credential Analyst, Antioch University Los Angeles); J. Cynthia McDermott (Chair of the Education Department, Antioch University Los Angeles); Claudette S. McLinn (Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Multicultural Children’s Literature, Long Beach, California); Cherry O’Meara (Children’s Book Seller, Los Angeles, California); Ken Pienkos (Former Librarian, Current MFA/Creative Writing Student, Antioch University Los Angeles).

The groups are open to families of all ethnicities, religious backgrounds, configurations, and genders. Groups are facilitated by Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) trainees and interns at AUCC under the supervision of a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist .

Additionally, art therapy groups are available for the children while their parents are simultaneously participating in the parenting program, allowing the children to be nearby during the weekly meetings.

AUCC Manager Jill Howe-Vercos, MFT, explains, “The AUCC is very pleased to offer this program to moms and dads who would like extra support in their roles as parents, while also providing valuable training to our students and interns.  Our program is here to help families communicate better, and to promote healthy parent-child relationships.”

Day, evening, and weekend groups are available on a sliding scale basis, with no one turned away due to an inability to pay. For more information, please contact Shereen Hariri MFT, at shereenhariri@gmail.com or by calling (310) 574-2813 ext. 511.

Dr. Claudia Shields, AULA’s former director of Clinical Training in the graduate Psychology program, hosts the evening of live music. Songstress Tina Meeks and a four-piece band will perform songs made famous by Beyoncé, Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, and more. The evening will also feature soul food, dancing, and a cash bar.

“This year Antioch University honors the contributions of African Americans in U.S. history by presenting a retrospective of black female vocalists,” says AULA’s director of Student Affairs, Josh Williams.“Audience members are encouraged to sing and dance while a live band pays tribute to female vocalists who have inspired us throughout our lives.”

For more information on this soulful evening, please visit the Soul Divas Tribute Event page on the AULA calendar.

For the sixth consecutive year, the BA program will take partin the international V-Day movement to combat violence against women and girls. This year’s two performances were directed and co-organized by BA student and theater activist Cynthia Ruffin, and will be held on the AULA campus. “Being part of V-Day really makes me feel connected to the larger movement of working to end violence against women,” Ruffin explains. “V-Day allows me to see that I don’t necessarily have to hop on a plane to the Congo to be a part of this movement. I can do the work right here and it really does affect the world. I couldn’t be happier to be a part of this.”

“A Memory, a Monologue a Rant and a Prayer,” featuring pieces performed by both men and women, will be presented on Friday, February 15th. Saturday, February 16th marks the return of the award-winning play “The Vagina Monologues,” celebrating women’s sexuality and strength.

Admission for the V-Day events is $15 for one night, $25 for both, and benefit Linda’s Voice and One Billion Rising. Tickets are available online at Brown Paper Tickets. For additional information, please visit the V-Day event page on the AULA calendar