[nabs-l] Funding rural-state student divisions

Sun May 24 22:44:20 UTC 2009

Hi Jim,
Yes good point.  Because you are spread out
and small its expensive and impractical to bring your division together.
I suggest you meet the division members at your  state convention.  Students 
should be encouraged to attend the convention to learn and have a network.
While its best to meet face to face to have social or advocacy events, I 
think there are other means to bring you together and know each other.
While not perfect, these ideas if done regularly can foster a sense of 
community.
Unfortunately Virginia is inactive because the student members don't 
participate.  We have a list serve and Corbb the president tried a 
conference call but hardly any participation.  Although we are not rural we 
are a big state and I hear southern VA lacks transportation.  So we have 
some of the same challenges you are dealing with.

I'm sure since we're talking students or young adults, all own a computer or 
have access to one.
Using the computer you can:
1. Set up a list serve to talk among yourselves.
2. Use facebook or other social media to promote yourselves.
3. You spoke of having a webinar for nabs.  Why not start in your state?  Of 
course you need the support  of the state nfb to do it but surely they would 
help.
Maybe you and the vp of MABS could lead the webinar.
4. You are small but it only takes a handful, like three or four students to 
write this.  How about writing a small newsletter and posting it online and 
sending it out to students in hard copy who request it and parents of blind 
children.  This will get the word out to them so when their kids are 
preteens or teenagers they can join the group.
Your publication will be like the Student Slate about articles of your own 
life experience, living the philosophy and what nfb means to you.  You could 
also put ideas for your student seminar in it and invite comments be sent to 
you or another designated person.

To know each other you can use conference calls.  How about using a 
conference call to plan a fundraiser and carry out the fundraiser at state 
convention?
Also for funding maybe some of the local chapters can donate money to your 
student treasurery.
For the personnel problem, enlist the time and energy of other members of 
nfb for this.

HTH,
Ashley

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Reed" <jim275_2 at yahoo.com>
To: "NABS mail list" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, May 24, 2009 3:20 PM
Subject: [nabs-l] Funding rural-state student divisions

>
>
>
>
>
>
> NABS Officers, Board Members, and State Presidents.
>
>
>
> I am writing to discuss the lack of stable NABS funding for
> rural-state student divisions. I am also writing to ask NABS Officers, 
> Board
> Members, and State Presidents to begin considering and discussing how NABS 
> can best
> provide adequate, stable, and annual financial assistance to its 
> rural-state student
> divisions.
>
>
>
> First, using the Montana Association of Blind Students
> (MABS) as an example, I will discuss the unique challenges of presiding 
> over a
> rural-state student division. Then, I will demonstrate how and why 
> rural-state
> student divisions are inherently financially disadvantaged when compared 
> to
> urban divisions. Then, I will further explain and justify the need for 
> NABS to
> provide special consideration and financial support for its rural 
> divisions. Last,
> I will make a suggestion as to how to fund rural-state student divisions; 
> and,
> I will also explain how MABS would spend any special funding.
>
>
>
> To be perfectly clear about my intentions, the purpose of this
> post is to begin a dialogue regarding this issue prior to the National
> Convention; that way, once we arrive at the National Convention, debate 
> will
> have already begun, and action can more easily be taken to fix this 
> problem.
>
>
>
> Let me begin by
> detailing a few relevant statistics regarding The State of Montana:
>
> 1. In terms of land mass, Montana
> is the 4th largest state in the union.
>
>
>
> 2. Montana
> has a state population of slightly less than one-million people.
>
>
>
> 3. In terms of population density
> (persons per square mile), Montana
> ranks 48th in the union.
>
>
>
> 4. In terms of population size, Montana
> ranks 44th in the union.
>
>
>
> 5. Montana
> only has six cities with populations larger than 25,000 people; and only 
> three
> cities with populations larger than 50,000 people.
>
>
>
> 6. Statewide, the Montana University
> System only has two major universities, four smaller universities, five
> colleges of technology, three community colleges, and three private
> institutions, for a statewide total of 17 higher-education institutions.
>
>
>
> 7. For fiscal year 2009, the entire
> Montana University System only has approximately 36,000 full-time 
> students. If
> you consider part-time enrollment, the two largest universities combine 
> for
> only 50,000 students.
>
>
>
> 8. I have been told by the DSS
> Director for The University of Montana (the larger of the two major
> universities), that the University only has 10 blind students; based on 
> this
> number, I estimate that there are less than 30 blind students in the whole
> state.
>
>
>
> 9. The annual Montana Association
> of the Blind (MAB) state convention averages only 80-120 attendees.
>
>
>
> How do the above
> statistics influence the operations of MABS?
>
>
>
> 1. Statewide, Montana’s
> blind population is small. This means that MABS will also be small. Our 
> small membership
> leads to insignificant dues revenue. Furthermore, our small membership 
> also
> means a reduced labor supply for the purposes of advocacy and fund-raising
> efforts.
>
>
>
> 2. Currently, MABS is represented
> in three universities; there are 1-3 students per university, and those 
> universities
> are separated by 200-400 miles. Our
> small, dispersed membership reduces our ability to establish our division 
> as a
> presence within the state, within our state NFB affiliate, within any 
> given university,
> or within any given community. This hurts both fund-raising and 
> recruitment efforts.
> Additionally, this geographic dispersal and isolation prevents our 
> division
> from establishing a sense of community within itself, thus reducing 
> membership,
> recruitment, involvement, and motivation. As president, I have yet to meet 
> any
> of my division’s members face-to-face.
>
>
>
> 3. Due to our state’s large
> geographic area, as well as its inadequate public transportation systems, 
> efforts
> to bring all MABS members together for purpose of a social event, an 
> advocacy
> effort, or a fund-raising campaign are expensive, time-consuming, and
> impractical affairs. For example, it can take eight hours by Greyhound bus 
> to
> go from The University of Montana (in Missoula)
> to Montana State University-Billings.
>
>
>
> In general, how and
> why are rural-state student divisions inherently financially disadvantaged 
> when
> compared to urban-state student divisions?
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 1. Rural-state student divisions
> lack the membership to be able to generate any meaningful amount of dues 
> revenue. Furthermore, unlike urban-state student divisions, where the 
> blind student population is larger, thus
> more easily located and recruited, there is not much a rural-state student
> division can do to expand its membership.
>
>
>
> 2. Due to insufficient dues revenue, all funding for a rural-state
> student division must come from fund-raising and grants, this includes the
> funds for basic operating costs, as well as all funding for any special
> projects or events. This puts rural-state student divisions at a financial 
> disadvantage
> when compared to urban-state student divisions because rural-state student
> divisions have to engage in fund-raising simply to exist, whereas 
> urban-state
> student divisions can cover their basic operating cost with dues revenue.
>
>
>
> 3. Rural-state student divisions lack the manpower to be able to
> fund-raise effectively. When it comes to writing grants, rural-state 
> student
> divisions don’t have the personnel to have multiple people writing 
> multiple
> grant applications; this limits the grants we can apply for. Additionally, 
> when
> it comes to other means of fund-raising (such as selling candy), 
> rural-state
> student divisions lack the manpower to execute fund-raisers that will 
> generate a
> noteworthy amount of revenue.
>
>
>
> Why should NABS provide
> special financial support for its rural-state student divisions?
>
>
>
> 1. If state student divisions are
> to be governed by NABS, then NABS needs to provide adequate support for 
> its
> state divisions. In the case of urban-state student divisions, NABS might 
> not
> have to expend many resources to insure that those divisions remain viable 
> and
> sustainable. On the other hand, in the case of rural-state student 
> divisions,
> NABS may need to spend more of its resources to insure the stability of 
> those
> division.
>
>
>
> Within the field of political
> science, it is widely accepted and recognized that the only reason 
> individuals
> (collectively forming society) agree to be governed is because government 
> provides
> services that they, the individuals, are unable or unwilling to obtain on 
> their
> own. If a government stops providing services for the people, then the 
> people no
> longer have a reason to continue to consent to being governed; eventually 
> that
> government will lose legitimacy and will ultimately fail. So it goes with 
> NABS,
> if rural-state student divisions are not adequately funded by NABS, then 
> why
> should rural-state student divisions continue to consent to being governed 
> by
> NABS?
>
>
>
> The relationship between government
> (NABS) and the governed (rural-state student divisions) is a two-way 
> street; rural-state
> student divisions can and will support the goals and objectives of NABS, 
> if
> NABS supports the rural-state student divisions financially. Without 
> financial
> support from NABS, rural-state student divisions haven’t the financial 
> means to
> contribute to the goals of NABS.
>
>
>
> Last, I would like to clarify the relationship
> that exist between the state student divisions and NABS. State student
> divisions can exist under our state affiliate’s recognition without NABS,
> however, NABS can not exist without the state student divisions. 
> Therefore, it
> is in the best interest of NABS to make sure that all of its state student
> divisions are successful and sustainable.
>
>
>
> 2. MABS, like other rural-state
> student divisions, is small and dependent through no fault of its own; 
> NABS
> needs to recognize the fact that the plight of MABS is directly linked to 
> the
> fact that Montana ranks 44th
> in the Nation in terms of population size, and NABS needs to act
> accordingly.
>
>
>
> Additionally, I would like to point
> out that small, dependent divisions could exist in urban states, and I 
> would
> venture to guess that those divisions would be small and dependent through 
> some
> fault of their own. NABS should not reward divisions that are failing due 
> to
> lack of leadership or other identifiable, avoidable, and correctable 
> causes,
> but NABS should recognize when divisions are struggling due to static,
> uncontrollable, and unchangeable circumstance (such as state populations), 
> and
> NABS should adapt and respond accordingly.
>
>
>
> 3. Without adequate and stable
> funding, rural-state student divisions are unable to contribute towards 
> the
> goals and objectives of the NFB and NABS. What it boils down to is this: 
> If we
> are a Federation, then we work together for a common goal, and one element 
> of
> working together is the financial element. If the urban-state student 
> divisions,
> the NFB, and NABS want the rural-state student divisions to do more than 
> simply
> exist on paper, if they want the rural-state student divisions to thrive 
> and
> actively contribute towards the goals of the NABS and NFB, then we need a
> different means of funding our rural-state student divisions.
>
>
>
> How can NABS adequately
> fund rural-state student divisions?
>
>
>
> 1. I propose that NABS provides
> rural-state student divisions with an annual $1,000 “subsistence grant.” 
> Ideally,
> the dollar value of these grants should remain constant from year-to-year, 
> and these
> grants should be automatic and guaranteed, as long as the rural-state 
> student
> divisions comply with established grant requirements.
>
>
>
> How would MABS spend a $1,000 annual “subsistence grant?”
>
>
>
> 1. As MABS
> President, I see MABS as needing $4,000 annually; $2,000 is
>
> needed to provide two scholarships
> to send two Division members to the National Convention; $1,000 is needed 
> to
> provide scholarships to get Division members to the state convention; and
> $1,000 is needed to provide funding for an annual student division summer
> gathering. MABS would use a $1,000 subsistence grant from NABS to fund any 
> of
> the above expenses.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> 2. As you can see, MABS is only
> asking NABS to fund 25% of MABS operating cost through an annual 
> subsistence
> grant; MABS must still come up with the rest of its operating cost via 
> other
> grants and fund-raisers. MABS is not asking for a hand-out, we are asking 
> for a
> hand-up.
> I thank you all for your time, and
> I look forward to working with you all on solving this problem
>
>
>
> Jim Reed
>
> President, Montana
> Association of Blind Students
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
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