Steve Kaufhold, the Chair of the Rubicon Programs Board of Directors, announces a new and exciting leadership structure at Rubicon. Rick Aubry will continue on as President of the organization and Jane Fischberg will be promoted to Executive Director, effective immediately. Jane and Rick will work closely to make sure that the Board's vision is realized and that the strategic plan just approved is implemented (see below).

Click here to read the full letter from Steve.

Rubicon’s Board of Directors approved a 3-year strategic plan that calls for significant growth for the organization. The goal is to increase the impact we have on the people and communities we serve. Specifically we plan to do this by expanding our workforce services into new geographies and creating a national social enterprise to support Rubicon’s mission. We also plan to increase our internal capabilities to provide high-quality, high-impact services across all departments and to identify ways in which we can better serve our clients. Look for updates on the implementation of the plan over the next few years.

A first step in realizing our strategy was to create a new mission statement and values statement for the organization. It was an organization-wide effort that produced a concise way of describing what this incredibly complex organization does.

Click here to read the new mission statement and values.

Rubicon's Deputy Director of Workforce Services, Drew Douglass, graduated from the Sector Skills Academy. He and 18 other professionals specializing in a type of workforce training known as "sectoral employment development" have participated a series of leadership workshops developed by the Aspen Institute's Workforce Strategies Initiative (WSI) and Public/Private Ventures (P/PV), two organizations known for their research on workforce issues.

For more information, click here.

Rubicon is currently being featured on CNN International!

It's part of its Principal Voices series where they address the major challenges facing the world today, with views from Nobel Peace Prize winners, visionaries, and regular folks like you and me. Principal Voices gathers together a series of the world's foremost thinkers in their respective areas. For 2007 this is in social entrepreneurship, technology and innovation, and alternative energy.

Click here to see the clip and read the white paper by Rubicon's President, Rick Aubry.

A BIG thanks goes to the following funders! We could not deliver the results we do without your support. Thank you!

• Wells Fargo Bank
• Y&H Soda Foundation
• Lesher Foundation
• Health Services Department/ Mental Health Division, for significant renovation of a Rubicon housing site

Donate to Rubicon today!

Thanks to the generous support from our donors, Rubicon Programs is able to continue to provide high quality direct services to those most in need in Bay Area communities. As a nonprofit organization, we rely on donations from our community supporters – including you – for a significant portion of our annual operating budget.

Every gift adds to Rubicon’s ability to sustain our year-around programs and services – it’s easy and convenient to make a gift to Rubicon using one of the following gift vehicles:

• Individual and Corporate Cash Gifts
• Stock Gifts
• IRA Retirement Account Gifts
• Employee Contribution Programs and Matching Gifts
• Tribute Gifts
• Planned Estate Gifts
• Sponsor or Purchase Tickets to Rubicon Events
• In Kind and Professional Contributions
• Gift Sponsorships, Recommendations and Referrals

Gifts may be made via mail, telephone and Rubicon’s website. Make checks payable to Rubicon Programs Inc. and send them to:

Rubicon Programs Inc.
Development Office
2500 Bissell Avenue
Richmond, CA 94804

Donations are happily accepted by phone. Call our Development office at (510) 231-3965. Donate online by visiting our website: www.RubiconPrograms.org Thank you for your generous support!

Another way to support Rubicon is to turn your guilty pleasures of shopping into charitable acts! Shop online at www.FreePledge.com and support Rubicon at no cost! FreePledge enables you to shop online from prominent retailers, to pay the normal prices, and to have a percentage of your purchases donated to Rubicon at no cost. A win-win! There are over 175 prominent online retailers like Amazon, Target, and eBay available to you today.

Click here!

Are you interested in social enterprise? Do you want to contribute your time to a leading organization with 34 years of experience?

Rubicon Programs is seeking volunteer Board members! Specifically we are looking for individuals whose business has a significant presence in Contra Costa County, business leaders, venture capitalists, PR and marketing professionals, and workforce services leaders. The Board meets monthly – in person or by phone – and is expected to fundraise for the organization. We are looking for expertise and energy to help us implement our three year strategic plan.

For more information and an application form, contact Jane Fischberg at 510 231 3987 or janef@rubiconprograms.org.