Midlands Business Journal • MARCH 29, 2019 •
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REGIONAL LANDSCAPES Continued from preceding page. nation, tied. Several specialty public administration areas were also ranked highly including: Public Finance and Budgeting tied at No. 4; Local Government tied at No. 8; Nonprofit Management No. 11; and Public Management No. 35. Also notable: The Grace Abbott School of Social Work’s graduate programming at No. 96 and the College of Business Administration’s part-time MBA at No. 99. U.S. News and World Report’s 2020 Online Program rankings also named UNO’s online criminology and criminal justice graduate program the nation’s best program of its kind. The Department of Biochemistry at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln is the recipient of the 2019 University-wide Departmental Teaching Award. Honored departments, selected by a committee of faculty members from across the university, receive $25,000 to be used in a manner the department sees fit, such as for travel to a conference, instructional equipment or improvements to a classroom or student resource. UNL’s Department of Biochemistry has made significant efforts to revitalize its curriculum. The department’s faculty has also built an outstanding record in research, with one of the highest levels of extramural support per FTE on campus and numerous publications in high-impact scientific journals.
Activities of nonprofits…
The 22nd Annual JDRF Promise Gala “Invest in a Cure” was organized by the JDRF Omaha-Council Bluffs Chapter. The Gala raised more than $1.6 million to accelerate life-changing breakthroughs to cure, prevent and treat type 1 diabetes and its complications. For the first time in its history, the event was live streamed due to the blizzard. Participants bid on silent and live auction items and donated to the signature JDRF Fund A Cure program. Fund A Cure provides the opportunity to make a 100 percent tax-deductible gift directly to fund critical JDRF research priorities. Fund A Cure contributions raised over $1 million. The YMCA of Greater Omaha received
its fifth consecutive 4-star rating from Charity Navigator. The 4-star rating from Charity Navigator represents an independent evaluation of the Y’s financial stability and commitment to transparency and accountability. Only 11 percent of organizations evaluated by Charity Navigator have ever earned a 4-star rating for five consecutive years. The Y also kicked off its 2019 Strong Communities Campaign. This annual fundraising campaign helps the Y provide programs and services to everyone in the Omaha-metro area. In 2018 the YMCA of Greater Omaha provided more than $1.7 million in scholarship and financial assistance to Omaha families. Pottawattamie County Community Foundation has awarded a $1,000 grant to Children’s Square U.S.A. for its unique science, technology, engineering, and math programs in its three-year-old preschool classrooms. The addition of these learning tools will provide each student with a solid foundation in the STEM field at an early age. Eighty-five percent of students who have participated in this program met the Iowa Learning Standards. Learning is assessed by evaluating enhanced fine-motor skills, expansion of vocabulary, enhanced number recognition, and identifying quantities. In addition, Children’s Square has developed curriculum focused on recycling, being a good citizen and working as a community.
Arts and events…
Anthony Maranise, American Book Festival Award winner and author, will hold a book signing and discussion on his latest book from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. on April 4 at Urban Abbey. The book, “Cross of a Different Kind: Cancer and Christian Spirituality,” is a celebration of his 20 years of remission and as a cancer survivor. Maranise draws from his experiences as a cancer survivor, spiritual theologian, and hospital chaplain to guide readers to an understanding of suffering and joy. Also featured will be the book’s illustrator, Mirjana Walther. Proceeds from sales at this event will
MEETINGS AND SEMINARS Monday, April 1 AIM is hosting Infotec on April 1-2 at the Embassy Suites Omaha - La Vista Hotel and Conference Center. Infotec combines the best of big conferences and small networking events into one experience, focusing on the intersections of technology, business and innovation. Breakout sessions will include talks on blockchain, cloud based AI, scalable oracle database solutions in AWS and Azure DevOps. Workshops, which can be added to the general conference cost, include automated web UI testing with Geb, data-driven organizing and Certified ScrumMaster Training. Registration is available online. Wednesday, April 3 The GROW Nebraska MarkeTech Conference will take place at the Younes Conference Center in Kearney, Nebraska. MarkeTech is a marketing and technology conference in Nebraska that attracts attendees from all over the state as well as outside the state. The keynote speaker will be Amanda Bond, owner of The Ad Strategist and creator of The StrADegy System. Breakout sessions will include topics like: video and multi-media strategies, cyber security, web presence brand raising and more. There will be opportunities for networking in between sessions. Registration is online. Lutz will host a seminar on human resource management in a changing environ-
ment at its Omaha office. On the most basic level, HR is involved in recruiting, hiring, benefits, compensation, training, employee relations, terminations — just about anything that involves employees and their work lives. In this seminar, Stephanie Hand will cover human resource management in an ever-changing environment. In the second half of the seminar, Chris Bouchard of Lutz Talent, will discuss the benefits of hiring temporary staff, as well as some downfalls that can lead to a less-than-ideal experience for both parties. Bouchard will cover the right way and a wrong way to go about temp workers including the screening process and “to-do’s” once the temporary employee is hired. Thursday, April 11 Tania Richard — award-winning actress, author, and diversity and inclusion consultant — will headline the April chapter program for the Human Resource Association of the Midlands. Richard, who is also the owner and lead trainer of Improv Delivery: Improvisation Training for Professionals, will lead the audience through skill building exercises centered on navigating difficult conversations about race. The April Program will be held at the Scott Conference Center, 6450 Pine Street. The general public is invited to attend. Tickets can be purchased online at hram.org/events until April 5.
benefit Urban Abbey and St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis. Apollon Arts Space will debut Rumors in the Kitchen on April 4 at 7 p.m. The Apollon is an intimate, immersive and often interactive theatre and art space. Tickets include dinner and show and provide guests the opportunity to engage with the performers throughout the evening and participate in various activities within the story of the show. The menu is curated by a local chef and will include tea biscuits, cottage pie and sweet rice pudding with raisins. Tickets are $30 and available online. The show runs through April 20. Don’t miss your opportunity to obtain free tickets to Grant Imahara, an electronics and robots expert from Discovery Channel’s Mythbusters, who will headline this year’s Nebraska Science Festival on April 5. Tickets for general admission seating are online. Imahara will share his experiences in science, which includes a current consulting role for Walt Disney Imagineering, where he works on next-generation robots to go into Disney’s theme parks. He also has worked on some of the most famous movie and TV robots of all time including R2-D2 and the Energizer Bunny. The Strategic Air Command & Aerospace Museum will host SciPop Interactive on April 6 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. SciPop Interactive includes science demonstrations and hands-on activities that highlight the mystery and illusion of pop-culture icons from Harry Potter and comic books. Guests ages 12 and younger will receive free admission and are encouraged to wear their favorite costume in support of their favorite comic book or Harry Potter character. There will be make-and-take projects for the first 500 youth, which include an invisible ink potion and an opportunity to
create a comic book. The 2019 Omaha Health Expo — Mind, Body and Spirit Fair, will take place on April 6-7 at the Baxter Arena from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event also includes the Senior Living Expo and will have over 300 exhibitors promoting healthy, holistic lifestyle choices and therapies. There will be over 50 educational workshops, demonstrations and presentations as well as natural food dining experiences and a sports and fitness clinic for kids. The event is $5 and there is free parking. Inclusive Communities is hosting the 2019 Humanitarian Brunch on April 7— an opportunity to recognize individuals and organizations for their service and commitment to making our community a better and more inclusive place for everyone. The featured guest speaker will be Vu Le, executive director of Rainier Valley Corps, a social justice nonprofit. The following will be awarded: Humanitarian of the Year: Marta Nieves, Otto Swanson Partner of the Year: The Barbara Weitz Community Engagement Center, and Volunteer of the Year: Emily Schirmbeck. Registration is online. After hosting 15 workshops last October and engaging nearly 300 students, Opera Omaha and Nebraska Writers Collective have selected eight original poems, written by local students. The poems have been selected to be set to music by Luna Composition Lab alumni composers as part of Opera Omaha’s ONE Festival on April 7 and will be performed by the Opera Omaha Holland Community Opera Fellows. The selected poets will have the opportunity to participate with the composer in a workshop to further develop the piece with the composer and musicians, participating in the creation process.