During a house meeting campaign in member congregations, AMOS organizers encountered countless workers, many of them Black, struggling to find decent work. In response, members of AMOS created Project IOWA to simultaneously fix the "skills gap" in the labor market and train people into living wage work. The Des Moines Register reports that since its inception, Project IOWA has graduated 205 people, 40% of which are Black, and making on average $14 / hour.

The Struggle to Help People Find Better Jobs, Des Moines Register

Due to its work in closing the achievement gap for Latinos in college access and STEM education, Project ARRIBA (established by EPISO and Border Interfaith) was named one of three El Paso "Bright Spots" by the White House Initiative on Education Excellence for Hispanics. Since its inception, ARRIBA has graduated and placed over 1,100 students in the El Paso economy.

At a 300-person assembly of 'Nevadans for the Common Good,' state legislators publicly supported NCG goals to address the state's teacher shortage and to ensure that a plan to privatize some medicaid services in Nevada is transparent and includes meaningful public participation.

State legislators Senator Michael Robertson and Assemblymen Paul Anderson and John Hambrick listened as Marsha Rodriguez told her story about the fragility of independence as a senior. 72 years old, Rodriguez described waiting 6 months to get into a Nevada Medicaid waiver program, the Home and Community Based Waiver, which helps pay for non-medical services that are essential for some aging seniors to continue living at home. After seven years of receiving non-medical care, she fears that privatization of Medicaid services would reduce access to those services and push her into a nursing home. NCG leader Barbara Paulsen noted that the cost of at-home services for six or seven people is about equal with the cost of covering one person in a nursing home.

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As this town continues to struggle with the fallout of a faltering economy, the City Council -- at Valley Interfaith's urging -- voted to make a strategic investment in its own workforce, putting in $28,000 towards job training program VIDA. Said student Monique Cavasos, "I want to know that they have something to look forward to."

Specifically, the City Council of Raymondville approved $28,0000 in Economic Development Corporation funds to expand VIDA's workforce training into their city. Said Mayor Gilbert Gonzales, "Education is a big thing...it improves our community with better-paying jobs."

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At the unveiling of a "Promesas del Valle" initiative, in which County leaders explained they are seeking official designation as a 'federal promise zone', Ambrosio Hernandez, the Mayor of Pharr, cited collaboration with Valley Interfaith as one example of a partnership that will continue with or without federal designation.

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After 6 Pima Community College campuses and 3 PCC adult learning centers challenged the 30 religious institutions of PCIC to a friendly competition of 'who can sign up the most voters,' Bishop Kicanas responded with a public endorsement of the Pima County bond.

PCIC leaders soon followed up with a civic academy for 40 pastors of 8 denominations, in addition to twenty more scheduled at individual congregations, libraries and community centers. The intent of the civic academies is to educate voters about the potential community benefit of the seven proposed bonds, as well as the costs. This is part of a long running campaign to expand workforce development opportunities offered by JobPath.

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To those concerned about anti-Muslim sentiment in the country, Huffington Post writer Carol Kuruvilla recommends, "Get involved with your local interfaith network." She cites Dallas Area Interfaith organizer Josephine Lopez-Paul:

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Fr. Daniel Kelly of St. Joseph Catholic Church and North Texas IAF -- in partnership with the Texas Catholic Conference -- hosted a press conference at his church announcing a coordinated interfaith effort to place limits on payday and title loan lending. Says Kelly, "every week another member of my parish tells me a horror story about one of these loans. They debilitate our families."

Congregational members and allies were joined by the Catholic Bishops of Texas in the public call for tougher regulations.

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By Frank Pierson Commonweal

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When Valley Interfaith leaders learned that the Edinburg Economic Development Corp. (EDC) was planning to slash funding for workforce development program VIDA, they immediately set up meetings with municipal elected officials to identify and ensure City funds to make up the gap. While they discovered that the Mayor and one councilmember was completely on board with the proposal, leaders soon learned that the other three commissioners (a new majority) were planning to slash funding.

One commissioner, despite professing to having his "heart touched by the testimony of the students" told leaders that he might consider an investment of $50K (as opposed to the $290K previously funded by the EDC). In response to Valley Interfaith's vocal rejection of his crumbs, he told leaders they were "going to have problems" if they did not change their attitude.

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