Legislation and Governance

Summary of the positions of All DC Council At-Large Candidates on Abstinence Education, Same Sex Marriage, and Publically Funded Abortion
A special election for the DC Council At-Large seat vacated by Council Chair Kwame Brown, will be held on Tuesday, April 26th. Be sure to vote for the candidate of your choice! Turnout is traditionally low in special elections in DC, and every vote will count. If you are not registered to vote, and you are a US citizen and a DC resident, you can now register to vote at your polling place on election day. Click here to view the election guide and to find your polling place. Ward 4 and Ward 8 will also elect members to the State Board of Education.

Watch the video of Candidate statements on the above issues as well as the budget deficit, truancy, and school vouchers, plus read candidate surveys:click here.

Bill Redefining Gender Identy Defeated in Maryland

A bill in the Maryland Assembly to redefine Gender as "appearance expression, or
behavior of an individual regardless of the individual's assigned sex at birth was sent back to committee on a vote of 27 to 20 by the Maryland Assembly on April 4, effectively killing the bill for this session. Find out more about the bill by clicking here .

Update on Legislation to allow Notaries to perform marriages in DC

Councilmember Phil Mendelson reports that "A hearing was held on this legislation last year. I did not move it. At this time, no action has been scheduled on the reintroduced bill." However, Councilmembers David Catania, Mary Cheh, and Jack Evans, with co-sponsors Interim Councilmember Sekou Biddle (who is running for the permanent Council At-Large Seat, and Marion Barry. Use the link below to compose and send your own email to all DC Councilmembers and key staff members:

Read the Washington Times article: Click here

Read the bill: Click here

Here is a commentary I wrote about the bill: Click Here

Use the ULTRA Teen Choice email tool to email all councilmembers and key staff: Click here to go to the email tool:

and call your concilmember and tell them that you do not want marriages to be performed by notaries:

Click here for the names and phone numbers of all councilmembers:

Programs and Events

HIV/AIDS, pregnancy prevention, and relationship education Presentation
are available for you school or organization.

Form left, Alexis, Daryn, and Brieanna during peer counselor training. This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

ULTRA Teen Choice is a premier provider of HIV/AIDS prevention services and peer counselor training that is abstinence centered and evidence based. Call Richard at 202-544-5081 to schedule sessions for your school, church or organization. Click here for more information.

ULTRA Teen Choice started as a community outreach project of Urban Grocery, a delivery service founded by Richard & Stacey Urban. Richard & Stacey believe in a model of community service that is holistic, where business and community service go hand in hand to benefit the community. Urban Grocery is proud to launch a new Affiliate Program for individuals, schools, churches, and organizations. Affiliates can earn $10 of free groceries for each person referred to Urban Grocery, or earn a $10 credit toward ULTRA Education programs, or $5 cash. Please visit www.urbangrocery.net to find out more and to sign up as an individual affiliate, or http://www.urbangrocery.com/ to sign up as an organization. Thank you for your support, and enjoy the free groceries!

News, Commentary and Media
Watato from the Nile: 9 year old girls' video about Lil' Wayne

Opportunities

Free IT Training for 18-24 year olds who live in the San Francisco Bay Area, DC, MD, or VA, Providence, Boston, Chicago, Rhode Island, New York City, Atlanta.
If you know anyone with a high school diploma or a GED who are between the ages of 18-24 yrs old and have an interest in IT Refer them to this site http://www.yearup.org/ to learn more about this free program.
This program asks for a 1 year commitment between the hours of 8:30 am and 5:00 pm.
They provide the student with a stipend and after six months, internships at companies such as Freddie Mac and AOL to name a few. Check out the website.  http://www.yearup.org/ About Year Up
Year Up is a one-year, intensive training program that provides urban young adults 18-24, with a unique combination of technical and professional skills, college credits, an educational stipend and corporate apprenticeship.
Success of their graduates -- enabling them to move on to full-time employment and higher education
Year Up is about providing opportunities for urban young adults to demonstrate their true potential.
We have achieved excellent results to date:
• 100% placement of qualified students into apprenticeships
• 83% student retention
• 90% of apprentices meet or exceed apprenticeship partner expectations
• 87% of graduates placed in full or part-time positions within 4 months of graduation
• $15/hr average wage at placement