One Day, One Job » development

The Constitution Project

Willy Franzen — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:06:57 +0000

Who doesn’t love the Constitution? Not only is it an extremely cool historical document, but it also happens to ensure our most sacred rights. You would think that such a document would be written with extreme clarity, but you probably know that ambiguity and interpretation come hand in hand with the Constitution. We’ve seen plenty of fractious debates end up in front of the Supreme Court and get settled with 5-4 decisions. The Constitution Project is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that aims to build consensus on Constitutional issues.

Come to a Career Consensus

Now, don’t misunderstand The Constitution Project’s mission. They’re far from anti-debate; in fact, they’re very much in favor of debate on Constitutional law. They just think it’s important to build some level of consensus on our most controversial legal issues. They do this “through constructive dialogue across ideological and partisan lines, and through scholarship, activism, and public education efforts.” If this sounds like an exciting project to you, then you should check out Jobs at The Constitution Project. They only have one position available right now—Development Associate—and it requires some prior experience, but it’s worth checking out.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about The Constitution Project?

Good Sports

Willy Franzen — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 15:46:14 +0000

Did you know that how wealthy your family is has a lot to do with which sports you play growing up? Sometimes it’s a demographic thing, but a lot of times it just has to do with whether or not your family can afford to pay for the equipment. Take hockey for example. There’s a ton of stuff you need, and it’s all expensive; whereas, basketball can be played with just a ball and a hoop in a park. There are no hard and fast rules about this, but it’s very clear that many kids don’t get the opportunity to try some sports because of the costs involved. Good Sports is a Boston based non-profit that “provides sports equipment to disadvantaged youth in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Philadelphia, and Chicago.” They may have pictures of Boston athletes plastered all over their website (yuck!), but they’re doing a really good thing.

Are You a Good Sport?

The idea behind Good Sports is pretty simple—they raise money and take equipment donations from manufacturers and then provide equipment grants to youth athletic programs. Additionally, Goods Sports runs Community Health Programs in conjunction with Community Health Centers to provide “necessary fitness equipment to children being treated in healthy weight, diabetes, or other obesity related medical programs.” They seem to be doing a great job, and the names on their Boards of Directors and Advisors show that they’ve excelled at integrating themselves within the Boston sports community. It’d be a cool place to break into the sports industry, as you’d have tons of networking opportunities. Right now, Good Sports is looking for an Administrative Assistant, which is kind of a do-everything job in a small non-profit like Good Sports. They do want someone with 3 years of experience as an admin, but I think that a new grad would be a great fit for this position. You can apply by sending a cover letter and résumé to Davin Lencz at dlencz@goodsports.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What’s your favorite piece of sports equipment?

Wildlife Conservation Society

Willy Franzen — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:41:20 +0000

I’m a nut about wildlife. I don’t watch Animal Planet all day or anything, but I get ridiculously excited when I see a new species in the wild. My hope is to one day run into a mountain lion in the wild, at least as long as I’m not being hunted. As fanatical as I am about wildlife, I bet I don’t even come close to the people at the Wildlife Conservation Society, a New York City based non-profit. They were founded in 1895 with a “clear mission to save wildlife and wild places across the globe.” Their first major success was aiding the recovery of American Bison, and now they’re working to “protect many of the world’s iconic creatures here and abroad, including gorillas in the Congo, tigers in India, polar bears in the Arctic, and ocean giants in our world’s amazing seascapes.” Beyond doing that, they also run 5 parks in New York City—the Bronx Zoo, New York Aquarium, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo and Queens Zoo.

Jobs in the Wild

According to Wildlife Conservation Society’s About page, they’re committed to protecting 25% of the world’s biodiversity. I’m not sure where that number came from, how it’s measured, or what exactly it means, but it sounds like an ambitious goal for a passionate organization. The way that pursues this goal is by focusing on 4 key issues: “climate change; natural resource exploitation; the connection between wildlife health and human health; and the sustainable development of human livelihoods.” With so much on their plate, Wildlife Conservation Society has a lot of job opportunities. You can find all of the information on their Jobs page, where they separate opportunities into New York City Full Time, New York City Seasonal, and Opportunities in the Field. Oddly enough, all of these pages feed into the same job search function. You can narrow down your search by any of the aforementioned categories, or you can just look at all of their job opportunities. You’ll probably want to take an especially long look at the following positions: Development Associate – Operations, Guest Relations Supervisor, Marketing Assistant, Membership Sales Associate, Pathology Technician, Program Assistant – Global Program Development, and Program Coordinator. You can apply for any of these positions online.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever been to any of Wildlife Conservation Society’s parks?

Shedd Aquarium

Willy Franzen — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 12:13:34 +0000

My parents are in town for the weekend, and I’ve been thinking of fun things to do with them around Chicago. One place that came to mind is Shedd Aquarium. I don’t think that we’ll end up getting a chance to make it there this weekend, but it was certainly a good thought. And once I thought about it, I realized that they’re probably hiring. Shedd Aquarium is much like other aquariums now, but it really stood out when it was opened in the 1930s. The aquarium was founded by John G. Shedd, retired president of Marshall Field & Company, and financed by him with $3 million in gifts. The goal was to bring Chicago up to par with other “cosmopolitan” cities that had aquariums, and by the end of the project Chicago’s aquarium “housed the greatest variety of sea life under one roof.” It also happened to be “the first inland aquarium with a permanent saltwater collection,” which meant that they had to ship millions of gallons of seawater from Florida on trains to provide a proper habitat for the sea life.

Shedd Your Job Search Worries

To this day, I still find it extremely impressive that an aquarium in Chicago can have whales and dolphins. The idea of a Beluga Whale in the heart of the midwest blows my mind. Although now the aquarium is more focused on education than on bringing up Chicago’s status, it’s still a great tourist attraction and a wonderful resource for the city. I’d imagine that Shedd Aquarium is very much like other aquariums in its mission and values, which means that they’ll have similar jobs. Right now they have a number of jobs posted, and a few look like possibilities for new grads. These include Membership Coordinator, Administrative Assistant (President’s Office), Brand Traffic Assistant, and Media Coordinator. You can apply by sending a cover letter and résumé to jobs@sheddaquarium.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever been to Shedd Aquarium?

Oceana

Willy Franzen — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 14:47:50 +0000

I love our oceans—everything about them. I love swimming in them, eating the food that they provide, fishing in them, watching sunsets over them, and all of the other wonderful things that they offer. However, our oceans are both blessed and cursed by the same thing—they seem infinite. That’s what makes them so great, but it’s also what has led us to abusing them nearly to the point of no return. A little pollution will disappear in the vastness of an ocean. Overfishing doesn’t matter because there are always more fish. Scraping up the bottom isn’t a big deal because we can’t see the bottom. I wish that oceans were that resilient, but they’re not. Oceana is a Washington, DC based non-profit organization that “seeks to make our oceans as rich, healthy and abundant as they were in our grandparents’ youth.” They recognize the value of their oceans, and they’re doing something to protect them.

Dive in to a Job at Oceana

From what I can tell, most of what Oceana does is based on advocacy and creating awareness. They do this through a number of campaigns including Stop Climate Change, Stop Dirty Fishing, Stop Destructive Trawling, Stop Seafood Contamination, Cut the Bait, Save Seat Turtles, Safeguard Sharks, Dive Into Ocean Conservation, Surf Into Ocean Conservation, Stop Cruise Ship Pollution, Advocating for Ocean Change, and Protect Prey. This approach makes sense because our everyday choices impact the future of the ocean, and until we understand that, we’re not going to take a collective action for positive change. Here’s what Oceana has to say about their campaigns:

To achieve real benefits for the oceans, Oceana conducts focused, strategic campaigns. Each campaign has a specific timeframe and objective that will make a significant difference to the oceans. Each campaign combines scientific, legal, policy and advocacy approaches to reach its goal. Saving the oceans may take decades, but in each of our campaigns we aim to accomplish an important milestone in that effort within two to five years.

If you love the oceans as much as I do, you might want to consider Jobs at Oceana. Right now they have a couple of opportunities that seem suitable for recent grads. These include Grantwriter and E-Activism Fellow. You can apply by sending a cover letter and résumé to resumes@oceana.org with the job title in the subject line.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you love about the oceans?

Mercado Global

Willy Franzen — Sun, 30 Aug 2009 13:26:04 +0000

Yesterday I told you about TechnoServe and all of the good that they’re doing by spreading entrepreneurism. Mercado Global is taking a similar approach to fighting poverty, but they’re doing it with a very specific focus. They are a New Haven, CT based non-profit organization “that links the world’s most rural and economically-disadvantaged cooperatives to the U.S. market through a model that provides both fair wages and investments in community’s long-term development.” Even more specifically, they focus on working with women who produce handmade products. So, not only is Mercado Global creating positive change in the developing world, but they’re also providing you with shopping opportunities.

Go to the Mercado

Here’s a pretty cool stat from Mercado Global: on average their sales triple the income of their partner artisans. When you multiply this income increase across their 360 artisans and their 2,100 dependents, you get a whole lot of social change. The best part is that a lot of that money goes directly to education—exactly what is needed to end the cycle of poverty. If you love the idea of what Mercado Global is doing, you should buy something from them—or consider a job. They don’t have a Jobs page on their site, but they do post opportunities on Idealist. Right now they have an opening for an Operations & Development Associate. They’d like someone with prior fundraising experience, but this job seems pretty close to entry level to me. You can apply by sending a résumé with cover letter explaining why you are interested in the position to Ruth DeGolia at ruth@mercadoglobal.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you buy something from Mercado Global?

National Building Museum

Willy Franzen — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 15:10:38 +0000

For nearly as long as humans have been around, we’ve been building shelters—places to sleep, eat, work, and play. And nearly as long as we’ve been building shelters, we’ve been doing it artistically. Function is still our primary goal—it’s the reason that we build things, but it’s amazing how development, architecture, construction and engineering, interior design, landscape architecture, and urban planning come together as an essential part of human culture. The National Building Museum in Washington, DC was started to “advance the quality of the built environment by educating the public about its impact on people’s lives.” Yes, it’s a museum filled with artifacts and objects related to the history of buildings, but it’s more than that. It’s really about “fostering lively discussion about a wide range of topics.”

Building Your Career

I’ve always had a special appreciation for buildings because they’ve fed me, clothed me, and educated me. My Dad is an architect, so artistically inspired structures pay the bills (or at least they did, now it’s helping people find jobs). If you have a passion for buildings, then a job with National Building Museum will lay the perfect foundation for your career. The National Building Museum Jobs page shows a number of opportunities that seem suitable for new grads. These include CityVision Team Leaders, Visitor Services Representative, Development Events Coordinator, and Membership Assistant. To apply for any of the jobs, send a cover letter, résumé, and salary history to recruitment@nbm.org with the job title in the subject line.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever visited the National Building Museum?

Free Press

Willy Franzen — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 15:18:03 +0000

I doubt many of you would disagree with the assertion that the “mainstream media” has some major issues that need to be worked out. Take the coverage of Michael Jackson’s death. Yes, he was a great entertainer. Yes, the way that he lived his life was totally perplexing. Yes, people are fascinated by him. But did we really need all that coverage? It’s just one example of how our media is failing us, but I’m sure that Free Press would be willing to give you many more examples. They are a non-profit, “national, nonpartisan organization working to reform the media through education, organizing and advocacy.” Free Press advocates “independent media ownership, strong public media, and universal access to communications,” and they do this through a number of campaigns: Save the Internet, Stop Big Media, No Fake News, Local Radio Now, Stamp Out Postal Rate Hikes, Save Our Spectrum, Community Internet, Public Broadcasting, Pentagon Propaganda, White Spaces, and Rate the Debates. They’re based in both Washington, DC and Florence, MA, and they’ve been working since 2002 to fix what they call a failing media system.

Help Reform the Media

Maybe you enjoyed the Michael Jackson coverage. Maybe you don’t think that there’s anything wrong with the media. If that’s you, then Free Press probably won’t be the right place for you. They have a very specific idea of what they expect from the media, and until the media improves, they’re going to keep working to change the way that media is produced and consumed in our country. If that sounds like something that you want to be a part of, then you need to check out Free Press’ Jobs page. Right now they have 3 jobs posted, and two of them seem like they might be suitable for new grads. They’re looking for an Online Campaign Coordinator and an Office Coordinator—both in Florence, MA. The job postings get really in-depth, so give them a good look to determine whether the jobs will be a good fit for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What are your thoughts on the state of media today?

Taproot Foundation

Willy Franzen — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 14:04:30 +0000

As I tell you every weekend, the non-profit world can never get enough top notch talent. Part of the reason is that the careers aren’t nearly as lucrative as private sector careers, but another part of it is that there are a seemingly unlimited number of non-profit organizations out there. Taproot Foundation solves this problem in an interesting way. They act as a project management consulting service while linking top notch business professionals up with non-profit organizations in a volunteer capacity. They typically work with organizations in the areas of Arts, Education, Social Services, Environment, and Health on engagements in the areas of marketing, HR, IT, and strategy management. I’m always impressed by non-profit consulting services, and this appears to be a pretty cool twist on that model.

Tap into a New Career

The way that the Taproot Foundation works is that they recruit a team of 3-6 volunteers to work on an engagement. The teams are typically virtual, and they commit to 100 hours of time over 6 months. Each team member has a specific role, and a clear idea of the scope, deliverables, project plan, timeline, and tools & additional resources that will be relevant to the project. The team will also have the support of the Taproot staff and other volunteers at higher levels. It’s a really cool approach, and the volunteer opportunities sound truly exciting; however, the Taproot Foundation also happens to be hiring. Current job openings that might be suitable for new grads include VISTA Program Development Fellow – Pro Bono Action Tank (San Francisco, CA), VISTA Corporate Sponsorship Fellow (Chicago, IL), and VISTA Eastern – Central Region Program Fellow (Washington, DC). They also have a location in New York, but there’s nothing suitable there right now. Each of the job descriptions goes into great detail, so check them out to get the full scoop on the careers that the Taproot Foundation offers.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Dress for Success

Willy Franzen — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 14:00:49 +0000

At some point during your job search, you’ve probably read at least one article about what to wear to a job interview . If you’ve already had an interview or two, you were probably stressed out about the decision: blue shirt or white shirt? or some other mundane detail like that. For a lot of people, what to wear to an interview is a much bigger issue. That’s where Dress for Success comes in. They are a New York City based non-profit that aims to “promote the economic independence of disadvantaged women by providing professional attire, a network of support and the career development tools to help women thrive in work and in life.” Every year Dress for Success and their affiliates across the world help more than 40,000 women become better prepared to land a job.

Get Dressed for Success

Here’s how Dress for Success works. Women have to be referred to Dress for Success by government or non-profit organizations like homeless shelters, immigration services, job training programs, educational institutions and domestic violence shelters, and the woman must already have an interview scheduled to receive clothing. From there:

On her initial visit a woman receives a suit appropriate for the industry in which she is interviewing and, if available, accessories. After a woman finds a job she returns to Dress for Success for additional clothing that can be mixed and matched to make several outfits, providing her with the foundation for a professional wardrobe.

While we may be best known for providing suits to women, it is our employment retention programs that are the cornerstone of the organization. Soon after Dress for Success was founded we came to recognize that finding work is only one step in a woman’s journey towards economic independence; remaining employed and building a rewarding career are essential if a woman is to become self-sufficient.

You know how stressful the job search process can be, so I’m sure you can appreciate how awesome the Dress for Success’ work is. If you’d like to become a part of their team, you should check out their Jobs page or, actually, their Idealist page which has a couple of entry level jobs posted. These include Development Associate and Affiliate Relations Coordinator. The application details vary, so check out the job descriptions for all of the info. You also might want to check out Dress for Success affiliates across the world for other job opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Don’t forget to Dress for Success!

Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research

Willy Franzen — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:28:02 +0000

There are countless celebrities who support charitable causes. There are many who throw their full support behind a single organization; however, few celebs are as personally invested in their charitable work as Michael J. Fox is. Why is he so invested? Because his life is on the line. He is suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, “a degenerative disease of the brain that often impairs motor skills, speech, and other functions.” If you’ve seen Michael J. Fox on tv lately, you’ve seen what Parkinson’s does to the human body. It’s a tragic disease that will hopefully be cured due to the work of the New York City based Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. As an accomplished actor and someone who is living with Parkinson’s, Michael J. Fox is the perfect person to lead the fight against the disease.

Outfox Parkinson’s

The MJFF’s mission is pretty simple; they are “dedicated to finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease within the decade through an aggressively funded research agenda and to ensuring the development of improved therapies for those living with Parkinson’s today.” The Fox Foundation has already funded $142 million in Parkinson’s research, but they’re clearly not satisfied stopping there. To accomplish that, they need a top notch staff, so it’s no big surprise that they’re hiring. If you head over to the MJFF’s Jobs page you’ll see 5 open positions. 3 of them require significant previous work experience, but the other 2 seem well suited to new college grads—Grant Administrator – Research Programs and Development Assistant. You can apply by sending a cover letter and resume to foxjob@michaeljfox.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research?

Right To Play

Willy Franzen — Sun, 24 May 2009 14:42:08 +0000

You know all those rights that you learned about in school? All that stuff in the Constitution. I’m sure it’s important to you now, but how important was it to you as a kid? Unless you were a unique kid, you just wanted to play. That’s why Right To Play is such an interesting non-profit. They’re “an international humanitarian organization that uses sport and play programs to improve health, develop life skills, and foster peace for children and communities in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the world.” Play may seem trivial to many, but Right To Play has found that it’s often the key to opening up those other rights that many of us take for granted. They’re a Toronto based organization with a New York City presence, and they’re currently working in 23 countries: Azerbaijan, Benin, Botswana, Burundi, China, Ethiopia, Ghana, Jordan, Kenya, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Mozambique, Pakistan, Peru, occupied Palestinian territory, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, the United Arab Emirates and Zambia.

A Job That Is Fun and Games

Although working among “the most marginalized including girls, people living with disability, children affected by HIV and AIDS, street children, former child combatants and refugees” doesn’t sound like very much fun, Right To Play does its best to change that. Part of being human is having fun as a child, and Right To Play aims to ensure that’s a reality for all children. The organization has great stories about the work that they do. They’ve done a handball clinic in Jordan and put on a Peace Dream Cup in Liberia. If you’re looking for the intersection of sport and philanthropy, this is it. Right now, Right to Play’s Jobs page has a number of openings posted. None are explicitly entry level, but I think that you should take a look at the Grand Writer and Research Coordinator and the Development Coordinator positions. To apply, you can send a cover letter and resume to usa@righttoplayusa.org with the job title in the subject line before June 1st.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think about Right To Play?

The Bronx Defenders

Willy Franzen — Sat, 25 Apr 2009 12:13:41 +0000

Last night I had some friends over for dinner, and we played a question and answers game. My questions for everyone was “if you got arrested, what would it be for.” Think about that for a second. I’m sure most of you never expect to run into trouble with the law, but not all criminals intend to break the law and not all people who are arrested are guilty. Since you’re a college student/new grad with limited financial resources, how would you afford a defense lawyer? Your parents? (If your parents would pay for it, then maybe you should take advantage of that generosity and have them sign you up for our job search prep course.) Or would you end up needing a public defender? That’s not a good thought – “someone you’ve never seen; someone you didn’t choose; someone you have no reason to trust” is responsible for your freedom. That’s why The Bronx Defenders exists. They “have transformed the role of the public defender by changing the nature of the attorney-client relationship, investing in the communities where our clients live, and striving to create justice for the people [they] serve.” It’s still not pleasant to consider a court case, but having better public defense makes it a little less scary.

The Best Offense is a Good Defense

The Bronx Defenders, like many non-profits, is an organization that you hope that you never have to take advantage of, but if you do, it’s nice to know it’s there. They’ve been around since 1997, and they’re now “poised to grow to over 100 criminal and civil attorneys, social workers, parent advocates, investigators, administrative staff, and community programmers.” They’ve worked with more than 100,000 clients, and that doesn’t even touch on all of the additional community outreach that they’ve done. Despite their focus on public defense, there’s a lot more to the organization than helping out people who are in legal trouble. If you’re excited about what The Bronx Defenders is doing, you’ll be excited to know that they’re hiring. Although the position isn’t posted on their Jobs page, they have an Executive/Development Assistant position posted on Idealist. It seems like a perfect job for a new grad, so apply by sending a resume, cover letter (indicating job title) and 1-2 writing samples to Courtney Libon at courtneyl@bronxdefenders.org. (There appears to be a nearly identical position posted on The Bronx Defenders’ Jobs page as an internship, so we’re not quite sure what the deal is here.)

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you know about The Bronx Defenders?

Seacology

Willy Franzen — Sun, 15 Mar 2009 14:36:37 +0000

We’re less than a week away from the start of Spring here in the Northern Hemisphere, but it’s still kind of cold. If I could swing it, I’d probably try to get out of Chicago until early April and spend some time on a tropical island (who wouldn’t want to do that?). Unfortunately, the demand for tourist destinations along with other factors has put many of the world’s most beautiful islands at risk. Islands are important – not only are they awesome places to spend a vacation – they’re also the “earth’s great repositories of biological diversity.” Luckily, we have non-profits like Seacology to protect the world’s islands. Seacology is an organization that “searches for win-win situations where both the local environment is protected and islanders receive some tangible benefit for doing so.”

Island Jobs

As the “the world’s premier nonprofit environmental organization with the sole purpose of preserving the highly endangered biodiversity of islands throughout the world,” Seacology has a pretty cool niche. What’s even cooler is that they have a group of field representatives located across the world who scout out projects. I wish that I could tell you how to land that job, but it seems that they don’t have any island hopping vacancies right now. The kinds of projects that Seacology does vary pretty wildly, but they all have the structure of a trade.

Here are some of their more recent projects.

Repair to 20 primary schools and seven municipal offices in exchange for the protection of ten Madagascar Flying Fox roosts totaling 321 acres in the Mangoro Region of Madagascar.
Construction of a kindergarten and school administration building in exchange for the establishment of a forest preserve and two marine protected areas for Vuna Village, Fiji.
Establishment of a permanent no-take mangrove forest reserve in exchange for coral reef clean-up and mangrove restoration in Iboih Village, Indonesia.
Protection of the highly endangered Hainan Gibbon in exchange for the education of the children of four villages, Hainan, China.
Construction of a community center in exchange for protection of a forest reserve on Espiritu Santo, Vanuatu.

It sounds like an awesome concept, and it’s something that you can be a part of. Seacology currently has a job opening for a Development Assistant in Berkeley, CA posted on Idealist. It doesn’t sound as though you’ll get to go island hopping, but maybe that will be in the cards eventually. If it sounds like something that you’d want to do, send a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three references to islands@seacology.org.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

If you could visit any island, which one would it be?

The Cara Program

Willy Franzen — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 15:48:13 +0000

When people ask me what I do, I tell them, “I help college students find and land jobs and internships.” That’s my 3-second elevator pitch. If you were to ask people at The Cara Program what they do, you’d probably get a response like, “We help the homeless and at-risk populations find and land jobs.” Essentially we’re doing the same things – just for different groups of people. Finding a job isn’t easy, as you probably know, but think about how difficult it is for someone who is homeless. Employers typically want employees who can provide stability, but being homeless is a pretty big sign of instability. The problem is that it’s really hard to become stable without a job. That’s why The Cara Program, based out of Chicago, provides “comprehensive training, permanent job placement and critical support services.”

Who’s Cara?

Cara must be the person who started this program, right? Nope. The Cara Program was actually founded in 1991 by Tom Owens. So who’s Cara? Cara is a lot of people, because cára is old Irish for “friend.” The Cara Program is all about being friends to people in need. And right now, The Cara Program needs some new friends – in the form of employees. Their Careers page has a number of jobs listed, and a couple look suitable for new college grads. These include Development Associate, Job Developer, and Community Resource Specialist. The application instructions vary by position, so check out the specific job listings to get all of the details.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

How’s your job search going?

American Heart Association

Willy Franzen — Sat, 14 Feb 2009 13:06:17 +0000

If your sweetheart is out of a job this Valentine’s Day, then give him or her a gift that shows that you really care. Chocolates, flowers, and jewelry only bring temporary satisfaction, but there’s nothing more satisfying (besides a relationship with you, of course) than a job that you love. Enroll your sweetheart in Found Your Career (our online job search training course) today.

So far my Valentine’s Day related posts have been mostly about consumerism (ProFlowers, OpenTable, eHarmony, Tiffany & Co, and Vosges); however, since Valentine’s Day fell on a weekend this year, I had to find a Cupid approved non-profit. Since today is all about hearts, I thought that it’d be fitting to talk about jobs with American Heart Association. In case it’s not obvious, they’re a non-profit organization devoted to cardiovascular health. Their mission is to “build healthier lives, free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke.” It’s a simple mission, but it’s not an easy one. Since Valentine’s Day is really about the people whom we love, it’s fitting that we’re talking about an organization that is working to make sure that our loved ones are around and healthy for as long as possible.

Follow Your Heart to a New Job

American Heart Association has locations all across the country and a wide variety of job offerings. The job search function on their website is very easy to use, and it shows that they currently have 66 job openings. They are by no means all entry level, but there appear to be plenty of opportunities for new college grads. Administrative and Development seem to be popular areas for them right now, but there are other jobs as well. Make sure that you don’t overlook the positions with “Director” in the title. Usually jobs like those require significant experience, but the sampling that I looked at typically required 2+ years of experience, which might include some of you. There are literally jobs in ever state, so take a look and apply through their online process. If you have any questions about how to apply, check their FAQ.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Who’s your valentine?

Trickle Up

Willy Franzen — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 15:41:19 +0000

I’m not going to start an Economics debate on a Saturday morning, but I’m tempted. Trickle Up is a non-profit organization that was named as a slap in the face to the theory of trickle-down economics. Regardless of their economic philosophy, they appear to be doing great work by empowering “people living on less than $1 a day to take the first steps out of poverty, providing them with resources to build microenterprises for a better quality of life.” Trickle Up is based out of New York City, and they believe strongly in microfinance, micropreneurship, and microenterprises as being the solution to worldwide poverty. Their website does a great job of telling their story, so I recommend that you check it out to get a full feel for whom Trickle Up helps and how they do it.

Trickling Up

Trickle Up’s Jobs page is extremely simple and doesn’t include many details about what it’s like working for them, but it does include job postings with in-depth descriptions. There’s a Development Associate – Individual Giving position that doesn’t appear to require very much experience. It’s not explicitly entry leve, but if you have any fundraising/development experience, then it’s certainly worth a look. The deadline for applying is January 19th, and you can apply by sending a cover letter, resume and one writing sample to jesseg@trickleup.org with “Development Associate” in the subject line. There’s also a Program Associate for Africa job available (although the deadline was yesterday, 1/9/09). It looks like a really cool opportunity, so it might be worth trying to sneak in a late application by sending a resume and cover letter to africa@trickleup.org with “Program Associate” in the heading. It appears that the Development job is located in New York City, and the Program Associate job is in Africa. Trickle Up also has headquarters in India, Mali, Uganda, and Guatemala and projects in even more countries, but there don’t appear to be any other jobs available.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Trickle Up or Trickle Down? Both?

The Wilderness Society

Willy Franzen — Sun, 14 Dec 2008 15:51:04 +0000

For me the wilderness is central to life itself – I can’t be happy without time spent outdoors. That doesn’t mean that I’m not enjoying life in downtown Chicago, but I plan on spending lots of time in the woods and rivers of Wisconsin and Michigan once Spring starts to show its face. My philosophy is shared by the people at The Wilderness Society. Their About page says that “It is our calling and our passion to protect America’s wilderness, not as a relic of our nation’s past, but as a thriving ecological community that is central to life itself.” I couldn’t agree more. They’re a non-profit organization that provides “scientific, economic, legal and policy guidance to land managers, communities, local conservation groups and state and federal decision-makers” to “ensure the best management of our lands – national forests, parks and refuges, as well as public lands managed by the Bureau of Land Management.” I’ve seen one of my favorite places in the world (a Northern Michigan tract of wilderness and quality fishing areas) put at risk by poor land management policies that would have allowed natural gas drilling in an extremely sensitive area, so I know how firsthand how vital The Wilderness Society’s work is.

Work for the Wilderness

If you feel the same way about the wilderness as I do, then an entry level job with The Wilderness Society might be something worth considering. Their website does a great job of telling their story, so you should be able to get a much clearer picture o who they are and what they about by spending a little time browsing it. They even have a cool section where you can tell them what you’ve been doing to help. I’m not sure what they do with those stories, but it’s nice to see that they’re putting user-generated content to work for them. Their Jobs page lists a couple of opportunities that look like they have potential for new college grads. The most likely jobs are Office Administrator (San Francisco, CA) and Development Operations Coordinator (Washington, DC). To apply for these jobs, visit the specific job descriptions and use the e-mail at the bottom of the posting to send your cover letter and resume.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you enjoy the wilderness as much as I do?

Blackbaud

Willy Franzen — Mon, 08 Dec 2008 15:21:49 +0000

We’ve just had another weekend of looking at excellent entry level jobs at non-profits, so it makes sense that we’re going to look at jobs with a company that serves non-profits today. Blackbaud is a technology solutions provider for non-profit organizations that specializes in “fundraising, relationship management, financial management, education administration, website management, direct, marketing, ticketing, prospect research, consulting, and training.” That’s a lot to do, but Blackbaud is a big company – they have over 22,000 non-profit customers and almost 2,000 employees. They seem to growing at a good rate, and they even have locations in 5 countries.

A For-Profit for Non-Profits

What I think is the coolest thing about Blackbaud is that although they are a for-profit company, their products and services are enabling tens of thousands of non-profits to do better work. They provide services for non-profits that serve all kinds of areas – education, religion, arts, environment, healthcare, animal welfare, and more. They’re a great place for you to become familiar with the non-profit world and to get a broad view of how many people there are out there trying to make this world a better place. If this sounds like something that you want to be a part of, then you need to look no further than Blackbaud’s Careers page for information on how to join them. The site does a great job of conveying who they are, as it starts with a video compilation of interviews with employees about what they have to say about working at Blackbaud. From there you can navigate to Blackbaud’s Campus Recruiting page, which is a bit short on information, but gives you all of the basics that you need. They’ve already gone through a serious campus recruiting schedule, so now you’ll have to rely on their website to find their jobs. They have two areas that you’ll want to look for these jobs – College Recruiting and Entry-level jobs. I’m not sure why they separate these two, but they seem like they should be classified together. Current opportunities for new grads at Blackbaud include Web Developer (Indianapolis, IN), Java Programmer (Indianapolis, IN), Quality Assurance Analyst (Charleston, SC), Junior Software Designer (Charleston, SC) and Customer Support Analyst (Charelston, SC). This should be everything suitable for new college grads, but you can always look at Blackbaud’s general job listings if you don’t see anything that speaks to you. To apply for a job with Blackbaud, you can submit your resume online directly from the specific job listings.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Ever heard of Blackbaud before? What have you heard?

Global Impact

Willy Franzen — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 14:40:29 +0000

Although many people don’t realize it, almost every non-profit organization spends a considerable amount of time and resources on raising money. Some call it development, and others call it fundraising. Whatever you call it, it’s time and resources that charitable organizations have to direct towards something other than their missions. Global Impact is a non-profit organization that makes it its mission to raise money and awareness for other non-profit organizations. With the money that it raises, Global Impact works directly with U.S. based international organizations to help the world’s most vulnerable people. Despite the fact that Global Impact is all about fundraising, they still think that it’s important to limit administrative costs, which is why they’re able to give away 88% of the money that they raise while only 5.3% of their spending goes to administration and fundraising. Much of Global Impact’s proficiency in fundraising comes from their participation in and promotion of workplace giving programs. Global Impact is very selective about where their money goes, so member organizations are expected to meet very specific criteria before they are able to receive funds. Global Impact has

Help Make a Global Impact

Global Impact isn’t doing a lot of hiring, but their Jobs page shows a couple of openings that should be of interest to philanthropically minded new college grads. Right now they’re looking for a Member Services Associate and a Microsoft Application Developer. You can find detailed job descriptions on Global Impact’s Jobs page, and you can apply by scrolling to the bottom and filling out their contact form. There’s not much more information available beyond the fact that Global Impact is based out of Alexandria, VA.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Global Impact?

Citizens Advice Bureau

Willy Franzen — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 12:00:57 +0000

Although you may not realize it, but most college students return home after they graduate. Don’t believe me? Check out this article that says that 58% of you will return home and 32% of you will stay for more than a year. Although it may not be your desired outcome, it’s nice to have a place to stay and get settled before you start life in the real world; in fact, it’s a luxury. There are a lot of people and families who are left without a home, education, or a job and need a place to settle for a bit. They don’t have their parents’ house to go back to, and they don’t know where to go or what to do. If they’re in the Bronx, they can go to Citizens Advice Bureau, a settlement house. What’s a settlement house? You’ll get the full story in the Wikipedia entry on the settlement movement.

Get Settled with Citizens Advice Bureau

Citizens Advice Bureau provides a wide array of services for people who are facing tough times. CAB wants to help the 1/3 of Bronx residents who are living in poverty to improve their lives by building sustainable local economies. It all started with one small office, and now CAB operates 28 sites and serves 35,000 residents every year. As they continue to grow, they need help, and new college grads are perfect for many of the positions that they’re hiring for. CAB’s Jobs page is filled with opportunities for you to touch the lives of people who are struggling. There are both full-time and part-time positions, and the areas of work range from Program Development and Case Management to Early Childhood Teaching and Development. If you’re looking for non-profit work in New York City, Citizens Advice Bureau is definitely worth looking at. The e-mail addresses to apply to vary for each job, so pay attention if you’re applying to multiple jobs. There is an online job application posted on CAB’s website, but we’re not sure what it’s for.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Know anything about Citizens Advice Bureau? Leave a comment.

Independent Diplomat

Willy Franzen — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:02:32 +0000

Since diplomacy is “the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states” according to Wikipedia, one would assume that a diplomat is a representative of a group or state. Independent Diplomat is a non-profit organization that is trying to live outside that definition. Their mission is to provide the knowledge and experience of long time diplomats to countries that are disadvantaged or marginalized to the point that they don’t have the resources to effectively practice diplomacy. Started by a former British diplomat, Independent Diplomat has worked with nations that include Somaliland, Western Sahara, Kosovo, and the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus to prevent and resolve conflict. They’re kind of like management consultants for diplomacy.

Working for Diplomacy

If you majored in International Relations, you’re probably already really excited about the possibility of a job with Independent Diplomat. They’re a unique organization that takes a very different approach to foreign affairs. They are currently looking for a Program and Development Assistant in their New York City office. This position is closely intertwined with the Executive Director and the Director of Development, and requires someone who is truly committed to changing the practice of diplomacy. There are certainly some administrative tasks involved with this job, but there’s also a lot of room to grow and learn. You can find an extremely thorough job description here.

This is the only job that Independent Diplomat currently has that looks well suited to new college grads, but it seems like a perfect fit. To apply you should send an e-mail to newyork@independentdiplomat.org with “Program and Development Assistant” in the subject line. Your e-mail should include: a cover letter of no more that one page stating why you are interested in the job and why you believe you are qualified for it; a resume of no more than 2 pages; a sample of your writing of no more than 2 pages; and contact details for 2 references for whom you have worked in a professional capacity and who are willing and available to be contacted.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Does the idea of an “independent” diplomat seem strange to you?

National Braille Press

Willy Franzen — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 13:09:33 +0000

Everything that I know about braille, I learned in elementary school. I know that the braille system is used by blind people to read and write, and I also know that braille was invented by a French guy named Louis Braille. I recently learned that L’Occitane uses braille in their packaging, but that’s about all that I can rattle off. There’s a lot more to braille, and the Wikipedia page on braille is a great place to get educated. Why should you be reading up on braille? Because the National Braille Press is hiring, and if you want to work for them, you better be well versed in the ins and outs of braille. They are a non-profit organization that prints and publishes braille books, magazines, textbooks, and tests and offers embossing services with the hopes of promoting braille literacy.

Jobs You Can Feel Good About

I’m not sure how much computers, text to speech, audiobooks, and other technological innovations are affecting braille publishing, but it seems that the National Braille Press continues to thrive. Right now they’re looking for a few additions to their team in Boston, MA, and some of their job openings seem primed for top entry-level talent. The National Braille Press is hoping to hire an Executive Assistant, a Sales and Programs Coordinator, and a Donor Relations Coordinator. The e-mails that you should send your cover letter and resume vary, so be sure to check the job postings carefully.

The NBP also seems to always be looking for braille transcribers. They offer a braille transcription course (it costs money) that offers the training to gain national certification from the Library of Congress. Here’s what they have to say about braille transcription jobs:

This is a perfect career opportunity for people who (1) love reading and books (2) enjoy learning new computer codes and (3) care about making a good living while making a difference. If you enjoy crossword puzzles, word games like Scrabble, playing an instrument, or even writing codes like HTML, etc., you probably have the innate ability to become an excellent transcriber.

Our best transcribers are organized and self-supervising; passionate about “getting the details right;” driven to use computer technology efficiently; fast learners and open to feedback; and impatient to get the job done.

They say that an excellent transcriber can make up to $70k per year, while an average transcriber makes about $40k per year. It’s certainly a career path that you probably never thought of but is worth considering.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Can you read braille?

Arena Stage

Willy Franzen — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 12:25:56 +0000

Continuing with our patriotic weekend, we’re going to take a look at Arena Stage, a non-profit theater company that produces “huge plays of all that is passionate, exuberant, profound, deep and dangerous in the American spirit.” They put out all types of productions “from vast epics to charged dramas to robust musicals.” Located in Washington, DC, Arena Stage has been around 6 decades and was one of the first non-profit theater companies. They reach an annual audience of over 200,000 people (we reach more here!) and strive “to instill in the public a life-long love of and participation in the theater arts through [their] education programs.”

Jobs Off Stage

Arena Stage has a number of job opportunities for the drama enthusiasts in the crowd. The most interesting opportunity is Audience Development Manager, which unfortunately isn’t described as entry-level. This job is all about “identifying and cultivating relationships with corporations and organizations to augment Arena’s group sales efforts.” They say that they want 3 years of prior experience, but if you did something like this in a college organization, it might be worth applying. Arena Stage also has job openings for Carpenters (set design), Inbound Sales Associates, and Telemarketing Sales Associates. If you want to get involved with a non-profit theater company, these are some great opportunities to get your foot in the door. We wonder if Arena Stage might have some opportunities specifically tailored to new grads, since they do appear to have a strong internship program. Keep an eye on their Jobs page, or send them an e-mail and see if they have anything else available.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

We hope you had a great July 4th weekend. We sure did.

Wild Salmon Center

Willy Franzen — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 13:00:35 +0000

If you’ve been following us from the start, you know that the first non-profit organization whose jobs we featured was Save Our Wild Salmon. Today we’re going to look at jobs at the Wild Salmon Center, which has quite a few similarities to the aforementioned organization. I decided to do this for two reasons. First, I care deeply about wild salmon and like drawing attention to organizations that help them. Second, I’m leaving for a weeklong fishing trip today and it’s getting me in the mood for fishing (don’t worry, we’ll maintain our daily posting schedule). So let’s talk about how you can make a career out of protecting globally significant salmon ecosystems!

Why Salmon?

A lot of you might find it strange that fishermen are so concerned with protecting animals that they then impale on a hook. The truth is that few people other than fishermen have enough knowledge of salmon to fully appreciate them. The Wild Salmon Center is not a fishermen’s organization; however, you can be sure that fishermen are some of its most loyal supporters. Atlantic salmon stocks were once prolific, but are now barely holding on. The United States’ East coast used to have amazing runs of salmon as far south as the Connecticut River, but now there is not a single river in the country with a “good” run. Canadian stocks are in much better shape, but still a shadow of what they once were. Pacific salmon stock, on the other hand, are still thriving in comparison to their Atlantic brethren; although, that may not be the case for much longer. Wild salmon are important because they’re more beautiful, better tasting, more fun to catch, and native to our country. They are also key indicators of the health of our coastal watersheds – measures taken to protect salmon will have impacts on entire ecosystems. The Wild Salmon Center explains why they care about salmon in much greater detail here.

Working to Save Salmon

Whether you enjoy eating salmon or catching them, a job at the Wild Salmon Center will offer the experience to work towards protecting something that you care deeply about. The only active job listing on the Wild Salmon Center’s Jobs page is for a Development Associate. This isn’t a true entry-level position, but it may be a appropriate for a new grad who has had volunteer experience in fundraising. The Wild Salmon Center also has two new job listings on Idealist.org. They are looking for a Sustainable Fisheries and Markets Program Associate and a Conservation Finance Program Associate. The only experience that is required for these jobs is a familiarity with Russia – speaking Russian is a huge plus – and cross-cultural work. This is essential because so many of the most pristine remaining salmon rivers are located in Russia. All of the jobs at the Wild Salmon Center look fascinating (and that’s not just the fisherman in me saying so), and will offer wonderful opportunities for new college graduates who are conservation minded.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Any other fishermen out there? Leave a comment and say hello.

National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship

Willy Franzen — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:23:26 +0000

Steve Mariotti was living a successful corporate life when he decided that he needed a change. He didn’t buy a sports car, get a toupée, or start dating 20 year-olds. Ok, he could have done those things, but we have no reason to believe that he did he did. He chose to leave his job and to start teaching special education in the New York City school system. This presented obvious challenges. Teaching special ed can be hard enough in a community with extensive resources, but it must be near impossible in underserved public schools like those in New York City. Mariotti realized that one of the only ways that he could reach his students was by teaching them how to run a business. They loved the subject matter. As Mariotti developed a entrepreneurship based curriculum for his job as a special ed teacher, he realized that he could extend the reach of his educational successes. He founded the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship with the goal of bringing entrepreneurial education to low-income youth

Entrepreneurial Education

The National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) has now been around for over 20 years and has programs in 21 states and 14 countries. All it takes is a look at some of NFTE’s recent alumni who have started their own businesses to see how successful the organization has been. The power of entrepreneurism is quite amazing. Not only are NFTE’s students getting an alternative education through the organization’s programs, but they are also being empowered emotionally and financially by being responsible for their own successes. We’re really impressed by NFTE and their website, so be sure to browse around to get more information on the organization.

NFTE is a modest sized organization with 79 employees and a $15 million annual budget. They have locations across the country, but look to be hiring mostly at their headquarters in New York City. They have two job listings that appear to be geared towards new college grads, but it’s a bit hard to determine if both are actually entry-level. On the NFTE Jobs page there is a listing for a Development Associate that lists no experiential requirements; however, there is also an Idealist.org listing for this job that says 3 years of experience are required. The job description does say that applicants should have a “capacity to deal with ambiguity,” so maybe this is some kind of test. The other job listing is not on the NFTE website, but is on Idealist. It is as a Development Assistant. These are similar jobs, both having to do with fundraising, but we’re not sure which one you should apply for. We guess you’ll have to deal with ambiguity. You can send a resume and cover letter to hr@nfte.com.

The NFTE also has presences in Baltimore, the Bay Area, Chicago, Greater Dallas, Fairfield / Westchester County, Greater Los Angeles, New England, New York, Pittsburgh, South Florida, and Greater Washington D.C. Although they don’t currently appear to have job openings at these locations, you should certainly watch to see if anything is listed in the near future.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you rather give up your job search and chase your entrepreneurial dream? Leave a comment and tell us about the business that you want to start.

Trout Unlimited

Willy Franzen — Sat, 08 Mar 2008 13:00:03 +0000

If you’ve visited our about page, you might have noticed that I (Willy) am a fisherman – a fly fisherman to be more precise. Those of you who are unfamiliar with fishermen might think that sport fishing has a negative impact on the environment, but the opposite is typically true. In fact, sportsmen often make the best conservationists – mostly because they have a vested interest in protecting the resources that are necessary to the enjoyment of their sport. For this reason many conservation organizations have been formed by groups of sportsmen. One such organization is Trout Unlimited, which aims to conserve, protect, and restore North America’s coldwater fisheries and their watersheds.

One of the cool things about Trout Unlimited is how much participation goes on at the local level. Whether it’s a stream clean up, a restocking of a native strain of trout, or Trout in the Classroom, the local chapters use their own resources as well as those supplied by the national organization to improve local coldwater fisheries. TU may be an environmentalist organization, but it brings together people from a wide range of backgrounds and political persuasions to accomplish a greater good. I’ve been going to TU meetings since I was a little kid, and although I may not always agree with the national organization’s stance on some issues, I support Trout Unlimited because of the work they do. With that bias out in the open, let’s get to jobs at Trout Unlimited.

Currently there is only one entry-level job opening at Trout Unlimited, but it looks to be a good one. They are currently looking for a Development Assistant / Assistant to the President (this position is no longer listed, so we’ve removed the dead link). This position will have some administrative responsibilities, but will also play a big role in fundraising. You’ll also be working at the top levels of the organization, which has to be great for networking. If you’re a new grad who loves fly fishing and wants to get into development or fundraising, take a look at this job. If you’d like to apply for an unlisted position, there’s no mention of how to do so. We recommend that you use TU’s contact form to let them know of your interest.

Note: On April 27th we revisited entry-level jobs at Trout Unlimited.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

If you love fly fishing too, leave a comment and say hi!

American Museum of Natural History

Willy Franzen — Sat, 01 Mar 2008 13:00:08 +0000

Founded in 1869 with the help of Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. (Teddy’s father), the American Museum of Natural History was the first of its kind in New York City. A museum devoted entirely to the wonders of the world, it now houses amazing collections on minerals and gems, fossils, mammals, a variety of anthropological exhibits, a planetarium and much more. A few notable items that are currently housed in the museum include a life-sized model of a blue whale, the “Star of India” – the world’s largest blue sapphire, and a Tyrannosaurus rex skeleton. The museum should definitely be on your list to visit if you’re ever in NYC, and it’s also a great place to consider for employment. If you love the natural world but can’t resist the pull of a big city, what better place to start your career than a natural history museum?

The American Museum of Natural History offers entry-level jobs in a number of different areas. Some of the listings say that up to 2 years of experience is required; however, the job descriptions for the positions that we’ve identified make the jobs sound like something that most of our readers would be fully prepared for after graduating college. Current openings include: Administrative Assistant/Junior Analyst (the description on this one actually doesn’t sound too secretarial); Assistant Director, Stewardship (some type of development experience is probably necessary, whether volunteer or internship); Development Associate (job description uses the term “entry level”); Marketing Associate, Communications; and Web Developer (temporary position with an opportunity to go permanent). The museum also lists a number of part-time jobs on their jobs page. Speaking of which, it’s a little hard to find the American Museum of Natural History’s jobs page, so they could stand to make it a little more visible. We were also disappointed by the lack of a clear About page on the site. It’s a good thing there’s Wikipedia to save the day.

The last thing that we should tell you about applying for a job at the American Museum of Natural History, that they don’t “solicit or accept applications or résumés unless it is for a specific job listed on this website.” So, cold calling is out on this one, but they have a lot of entry-level job openings anyways. It shouldn’t be a problem.

Note: On April 27th we revisited entry-level jobs at American Museum of Natural History.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Jobs at the American Museum of Natural History
Exhibitions at the American Museum of Natural History
About the American Museum of Natural History (Wikipedia Entry)
Overview of the American Museum of Natural History’s Programs

Have you ever been to the American Museum of Natural History? What’s your favorite exhibit?