Operation ABLE of Michigan has launched this e-newsletter to keep businesses informed about the many ways we work in partnership with employers.

The first edition is being sent by e-mail to a number of human resource professionals and other executives.  We have gathered these e-mail addresses from a wide variety of sources.  Some have participated in our annual job fair, Think Tank, and/or luncheon to honor outstanding mature workers.  Some have ordered publications from us or placed job orders online or by phone.  In the past 18 years we have compiled lists of many of our colleagues who, like us, are members of professional associations.

Because we respect the privacy of our colleagues, we do not share our mailing list with anyone outside our organization.

We hope you will find ABLE eNews useful in your work.  However, if you prefer not to receive this electronic newsletter in the future, please CLICK HERE.  This will start your e-mail system with the subject line "Unsubscribe from ABLE eNews."  Please be sure to include your name in the message so we can locate you more quickly in our files and remove you from the mailing list.

If you have any questions, suggestion, comments or would like additional information, please don't hesitate to get in touch with us.

The 18th Annual "Ability is Ageless" Job Fair will take place on Wednesday, March 31, 9 am - 1 pm, at the Motown Detroit Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel in Southfield.

Hosted by Operation ABLE of Michigan, the job fair is a unique opportunity for employers to meet skilled, experienced applicants. 

The fee for employers to exhibit is $175 for registrations received by February 1.  After that date the fee increases to $200.

To register and pay online, CLICK HERE.  You can also use the link to download the registration form and register by e-mail.

Sponsors include the Michigan Department of Community Health Office of Services to the Aging, WWJ Newsradio 950, AM 1270 - The Sports Station, UPN50, and CBS62.

Linda Burwell, Daniel Essad, Jim Berline, and Timothy Zetterholm were recently elected to terms on the Board of Directors of Operation ABLE of Michigan.

Burwell is a principal in the law firm Nemeth Burwell and immediate past president of Human Resources Association of Greater Detroit.  Essad, also a member of HRA, is Senior Human Resources Manager at Plante & Moran.  Jim Berline is Chairman & CEO of the advertising firm BERLINE.  Zetterholm is an information technology specialist and most recently Vice President of Cap Gemini Ernst & Young.

"Operation ABLE's job training and job search programs will be greatly enhanced by the business expertise they all bring to the table," said Karen Kosniewski, president of the nonprofit agency.

Operation ABLE of Michigan and SPEC Associates, a Detroit-based evaluation company with expertise in gerontology, have been selected to participate in Better Jobs, Better Care, a national research project to improve the recruitment and retention of quality direct care workers.

The Operation ABLE - SPEC Associates team is among a group of eight grantees that have been awarded $3.8 million by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and The Atlantic Philanthropies to conduct the Better Jobs, Better Care program study.  The two-year grant award is for $468,000.

The other participating organizations are Boston University School of Public Health;  Brandeis University, Schneider Institute for Health Policy;  Connecticut College;  Cornell University Cornell Gerontology Research Institute;  Margaret Blenkner Research Institute, Benjamin Rose; University of California Los Angeles, School of Public Policy and Social Research; and University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research. 

“The studies and program evaluations by these grantees will fill gaps in our understanding of what works in retaining high-quality direct care workers – workers critical to the care of our elderly and disabled,” said Maureen Michael, program officer at RWJF.

Additional details about the grant award can be found at PRNewswire.

Winter '04 Schedule of Classes Now Available

Operation ABLE of Michigan is the premier provider of computer and job training to the mature worker aged 40 and over.

The agency offers introductory, intermediate, and advanced training in the Microsoft Office 2000 suite, including Word, Access, Excel, and PowerPoint, as well as sessions aimed at helping adults with their job search.

The courses are excellent - and cost effective - ways for companies to increase the office skills of their employees.

For details and to download the schedule, CLICK HERE or phone ABLE at 1-800-922-HIRE.