Group items tagged

Website Name: Military Family Research Institute URL: http://www.cfs.purdue.edu/mfri/public/Default.aspx Website Overview: Military Family Research Institute (MFRI) recognizes the challenges and sacrifices military families endure due to deployments and relocations. Their mission is to strengthen community involvement, support educational goals, and to create policies and programs the help support and improve the quality of life for military families. Intended Audience: The intended audience is both civilian and military families living in Indiana, and throughout the United States. Critique: The website is credible as it is an extension of Purdue University. There are several links that provide access to ongoing research studies, not-for-profit organizations, and several partners of MFRI, such as, Career Learning and Employment Center for Veterans with Disabilities (CLEC). They do not appear to be selling or advertising products. The website is full of useful information and seems aimed at educating its intended audience. Relationship to work, family, community class: MFRI seems to understand the struggles that military families face and are actively trying to lessen some of their burdens, especially with education. There are several links to grants and higher education programs made available to military families. Also, MFRI actually offers a $1500 grant to community organizations that work toward helping military families. Other comments: I liked that MFRI are actively working with military families to see where they can use a helping hand. For example, based on communications with military families, MFRI created a report discussing the challenges that veterans often face when being introduced to the college environment. They took initiative and are trying to make the transition from military life to civilian life easier on these individuals and their families.

How can you go wrong with a website that opens to "Operation: Hire A Hoosier Vet Career Fair"! The Veterans Administration estimates that there are more than 22.7 million US veterans today. http://www.va.gov/vetdata/docs/quickfacts/Population-slideshow.pdf I believe that with the end of hostilities in Iraq, and as the draw down in Afghanistan looms, we will see more returning vets facing an stagnant economy, and its good to know there are resources available for aiding in the process of re-integration.

One thing I noticed is that the site lists five goals, but doesn't really say how they plan to reach them. They should tell what they're doing to reach these goals. Also, like you mentioned, these deployed military members will be coming back to a stagnant economy; how do they intend to address that? If they are finishing their time in the military, they're going to need jobs. We don't exactly have many jobs right now, so I think this should be the major concentration.

Website Overview: The Families and Work Institute is a think-tank organization based on non-profit efforts to critically review the emerging issues of family, work and community. They are action oriented while also conducting massive amount of research in challenging traditional mindset and blending conventional approaches. The non-partisan organization generates research then utilizes it to build the work and family model through awareness and support. Intended Audience: The purpose of this website is to reach men and women in the efforts to communicate issues and best practices for working families. The intended audience are all those affected by work-family issues despite age, race, gender or culture. Critique: Families and Work Institute is a great resource for those battling the work-family struggles that affect our daily lives. The website is very well put together with every link I used fully functional and supported with information. As I explored the website I didn't feel like there was any unnecessary information. The newsroom portion of the website which gave updates on current events was a bit out dated however the appropriate links were in place to direct visitors to other non-profit programs. . It was a well planned out website with limited links which helped keep the site from feeling overwhelming. Overall the information on the website was appropriate and easy to follow. Relationship to work, family, community, class: The Families and Work Institute are committed to their mission of researching and creating awareness of emerging family-work issues. They insist on driving their agenda, on doing work they truly believe in, on doing work of the highest quality and on achieving results. There challenge is that, together and with help, they can maintain commitment to excellence in providing research assist those in the work family circle Other comments: I was impressed with this website both with the setup of the overall website and communi

continued..Past project reports are available for purchase. There has also been research done involving the elderly and family caregivers. I was not aware of the amount of research this institute performs until I accessed the projects pages and saw that the list of past and current topics is somewhat significant. The most interesting research is the ongoing study on the changing workforce that currently compiles research from the last 20 years. I also learned that the healthcare industry offers the best flexibility work schedule options to their workers. Manufacturing, Hotel and Restaurant businesses offer the least flex scheduling options.

This is a pretty good site, They seem to do important work, with our ever changing economy and jobs going to foreign countries, it is very important to have an organization other than the government studying the cause and effects of the system around us. the site was easy enough to find my way around. I plan to look at it a little more.

Website Overview: Labor Project for Working Families is based around a vision of a multicultural work place that values the rights of families in the work force. They were established in 1992 is a non-profit that build relationships with family oriented organizations with the focus on fighting for family rights. They focus on unions as a source to build long term relationships and leverage employers to gain more family rights and values in the work place. Intended Audience: Working families. Critique: After reviewing the site for only a short period of time I could tell this organization was very pro-union and utilized them as the backbone of their support center. This website was less non-partisan then Families and Work Institute which I reviewed earlier. I liked the approach of using such powerful tools such as unions however I think the website could have been more balanced in their views of unions. The site was well put together and mapped clearly with little repeat information. Their annual reports were completely up to date available to be viewed. The information within the reports clearly backed up their mission statement and objectives. Very few other sites make financial information as readily available as did Labor Project. Overall they communicated their message well and demonstrated their value as a non-profit. Relationship to work, family, community, class: The Labor Projects for Working Families was clearly focused on creating awareness for the working families and the importance of family rights. They created a link between the power of unions and the benefit of working with employers to rally around family values and benefits. The use of strategic partnerships seems to be effective by their annual reports and use of diversity tracking with employers. I could quickly tell the focus on family rights after reviewing the website. Respecting the diversity and place of family is a core value for Labor Projects and one I clearly support. Overall

Based on the information you have given, and by reviewing the website myself, I do believe this a credible source. I understood the organization's purpose of building alliances between unions and the community groups for workers to be able to have family leave, paid sick days, and flexibility. Like you said, they are very pro unions which means they could possibly only see this side of an argument. I was impressed how the website was clearly mapped out, how much information was provided, and the purpose of the organization as a whole. They truly believed in building a family friendly workplace, and like you said, I would also support that. Your review was very good, after reviewing the website I realized you did I nice job of explaining the purpose and hitting the main points. It does look like the word count deleted some of your work, and I am interested in what else you have to say about this organization. Nice work overall!!

Continuation of earlier comments...it cut off the last couple sentences. Overall I thought the website was put together and support the content clearly however the agenda and political views of the website nearly over shadowed the purpose behind the organization. Dan Robertson

Deer Oaks- A Behavioral Health Organization http://www.deeroaks.com/ From the company's posted mission statement, Deer Oaks is a large behavioral healthcare organization offering Employee Assistance, Elder Assistance, and psychological assessment and treatment services throughout the United States. Of particular interest to our class, Deer Oaks offers Employee Assistance Program services to 'public and private companies. From the website, "founded in 1992, Deer Oaks EAP Services is a premier provider of Employee Assistance, Work/Life, and Health & Wellness Programs serving over 1 million members throughout North America. Deer Oaks offers public and private employer groups short-term counseling and work/life services that positively impact employee morale, medical claims, turnover, and supervisor effectiveness." As far as intended audience, this is a commercial website intended for the members of employer groups that subscribe to the services that Deer Oaks provides. Employees have 24-hour access to the Deer Oaks website to receive resources to balance work and family life. Through the website, employees can receive information regarding Deer Oaks services, answer self-assessment questionnaires and schedule appointments. The website features online support chats, message boards, questionnaires, monthly educational newsletters, an online library and an online magazine. The website also offers web-based seminars and information on a wide variety of topics, including wellness, family and workplace issues, financial and legal concerns. I find the website quite credible as a review of the credentials of the senior members of the organization shows them to be highly trained and qualified to perform their jobs. A number of them have received Doctorates in clinical psychology and seem well qualified to direct programs designed to assist employees attempting to balance work and life commitments. The range of assistance provided under the EAP plan is quite extensive a

The range of assistance provided under the EAP plan is quite extensive and would be an attractive benefit to anyone working for a company that sponsored such a plan. From the website, some of the services provided include: Comprehensive Diagnostic Assessments, Telephone Triage, Individual, Marital, Family, and Group Psychotherapies, Clinical Coordination and Consultation Services, Crisis Intervention Services, Supervisor/Manager Training, Psycho-Educational In-Services, Appropriate Referrals for Financial, Legal, or Health Plan Needs. Types of issues addressed through these services can include: Depression, Anxiety, Interpersonal, Familial, or Marital Conflicts, Grief: Death and Dying, ADHD and Conduct Problems, Substance Abuse, Stress Management, Childcare/Eldercare, Occupational issues, Crisis Management, Workplace Violence, Trauma: Abuse / Neglect, Domestic Violence, Financial, Health, or Legal Difficulties. Programs of particular interest include the following: Legal Assist Through Legal Assist, participants have free access to vital legal information on the Deer Oaks website, including a library of legal documents (with legal information on eldercare, domestic violence and family health) and a small claims and consumer "self-help" series, as well as access to online document preparation. Participants also have access to telephone information and services from a full service legal and financial Consumer Resource Center. Program participants are entitled to free preparation of a simple will by an attorney, and professional review of many types of legal documents. Find Now Childcare and Eldercare Program The Find Now program is designed to assist participants with caring for children and / or aging parents. The resources of this program make the search for licensed, regulated, and inspected childcare and eldercare services in each community an accessible and streamlined process. Online databases are available for searches. In addition, child and geriatric psych

The family Caregiver Alliance is an organization dedicated to giving a public voice for the caregivers; those who use their time outside of work to care for "loved ones with Chronic, disabling health conditions." The site provides more than advocacy and support. It presents educational materials, valuable information and research as well. "The Family Caregiver Alliance was the first community based nonprofit in the country to address the needs of families and friends providing long-term care at home." The site aims to address the concerns and support those who care for their loved ones in a diminished capacity. They offer information for public seminars, online webinars, and workshops that address specific needs. The Family Caregiver Alliance website is intended directly for those families and individuals that provide at home care for an individual in a severe diminished capacity. Although many of the seminars and newsletters address specific concerns in San Francisco and California, many of the topics and articles are relevant in every state. It provides information on how to communicate to doctors, how to take care of you as a caregiver, and provides information on more specialized care such as nursing homes, behavior specialist, and assisted living centers. It also creates a forum within seminars and webinars for individuals to communicate with others that are experiencing similar challenges and concerns. It offers online, unmoderated forums for open discussion from caregivers. They also offer support groups as well.

The Family Caregiver Alliance website is very professional, functional, and straight forward. The site is quite legitimate, publishing newsletters, articles, and sponsoring events to address the concerns caregivers face. Their list of sponsors and endorsements include AARP, the Administration on aging, the Archstone Foundation, and several California counties and California based organizations. Although they do not have a stated bias or affiliation to any political party, they do address that family care giving creates a lessening dependency on Medicaid and encourages the administration to support an agenda that addresses family caregiver concerns. . The site also details the eligibility criteria for each state's programs to assist caregivers in an easy to read chart. It is designed to be very user friendly and informational.

Elder care has become a more severe concern as the baby boomer population ages. Many of this generation are expected to be within the retirement phase anywhere from 20 to 40 years. With the increase in medical expenses and the increase in life expectancy, many families rely on their children to provide care and support for that aging generation. This time commitment can create a strain on the already complicated work-family balance. An interesting section concerned states legislation with respect to care giving. In the state of Illinois, "HB 493 (enacted 2003) Appropriated funds for senior caregivers of adult disabled children. It is informative to have knowledge of public assistance programs that may be available to help a family. Government and private industry often have policies and programs that are aimed to assist families in need with support, but the lack of knowledge regarding the programs often allows an individual in need to overlook the opportunity. Overall, the site is informative, clean, updated, and user friendly. There is plenty of information, but it is organized in an easily discernible fashion. There is a host of resources for further information and a variety of programs designed to inform and involve the caregiver with others that are in similar circumstances.

Raising a family in this modern world of instant everything can be a gargantuan task that is quite daunting to new parents no matter what their age is. Website Name: Family Support America URL: http://www.familysupportamerica.org Website Overview: This website is to help parents gain helpful and useful tips, information, support, and connections in order for families to survive. One of the main focuses is eating healthy and staying activity. Healthy children equal happy children. Other major topics include child abuse prevention, stress, adoption tips, education, childcare, and family-work situations. Intended Audience: The intended audience is parents. Critique: I feel that this site is somewhat credible. First off the website is an .org, thus referring to the website being associated with an organization. After doing some research on my local library database, I found a couple of publications mentioning the organization, Family Support America. One example of a publications mentioned that Family Support America hosted the 10th Biennial National Conference in Chicago. (2004) There is no specific author mentioned within the website. All information of given freely though each section does mention a sponsoring source at the end. The one thing that does bother me about the website is that it does not provide supporting documentation on its points. I do not find any signs of bias on the site since the site is directed to both parents. Relationships to Work, Family, Community Class: I feel this is site is very useful in helping families adjust and deal with work-family situation. Throughout this course we have read about many hardships and stress that many different types of families endure. This site gives families different solution to their dilemma. For example, we read about the lack of quality daycare many working parents deal with. Under the education & day care it gives a parent reading how to help you choose the right place for your child.

This site was interesting. It was very simplistic compared to other sites that have been reviewed in this forum. There is some great information available, but there is a lack of enthusiasm or care. The site seems mildly depressing with the white and blue color scheme. Overall, it has great intentions, but it lacks some of the more social aspects that other similar organizations has. I feel one of the best resources are other parents or individuals that have similar experiences. We can learn from each other and support one another. Using social networking or blogs helps to foster that communication. I feel this site just misses the mark with its simplicity. Thank you for your review on this site. Joshua

Wow, I would most certainly agree with you Toni. The webpage is certainly lacking a lot of polish as well as information. The information provided has no credible sources and is very scares. I would agree with Jade that the organization seems to be a real organization, however they certainly seem to be lacking a real mission. They claim to cover everything form child abuse to divorces. Most organizations seem to focus on one aspect instead of just doing it all. The sponsored links on each page also raise some red flags. Overall, I would say this is the worst website I have seen while doing this project.

Focus on the Family http://www.focusonthefamily.com/ This website focuses on family issues beyond work/family issues including; marriage, parenting, life challenges, faith and social issues. Focus on the family also has a radio broadcasts, websites, simulcasts, conferences, interactive forums, magazines, books, counseling and much more. Their mission statement is "To cooperate with the Holy Spirit in sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ with as many people as possible by nurturing and defending the God-ordained institution of the family and promoting biblical truths worldwide." And their vision is to redeem families, communities, and societies worldwide through Christ. This organization has a value statement which emphasizes value on evangelism, marriage, children, human life, social responsibility, and the individuality of both male and females. This is a large not for profit organization with a 2010 asset and liability of just over $82 million. Obviously Focus on the family is a Christian based organization which targets mainly Christians. All materials are accessible to the general public and seem be easy to understand. Focus is a politically active organization and highly influential in our countries policies. This is a highly legitimate organization with many contributors from all walks of life. This organization was founded by a world renowned child psychologist, Dr. James Dobson Ph.D. I learned that this site has a treasure trove of information and help with raising children. As a working father myself, and a product of parents who lacked in both parenting skills and communication, I had a rough time trying to train my own children. Without the proper training on child raising or even how to deal with your spouse in hard situations, we find ourselves working longer hours to stay away from the problems at home. Although this site might not be interesting for everyone because of its outspoken Christian beliefs, one cannot deny that getting educated on p

Focus on the family is a great source! The cite provides a lot of useful advice and I have heard them on the radio many times. Definitely one to trust. Nice work.

What a great pick for a review... one I would not have thought of, but very appropriate. I think so many times I think of the work family conflict of only having solution at work, but the solution can come at home when one chooses the life they want to lead.

Part 1: The URL: http://www.momsrising.org/ A brief overview of the website: This website is a network of people, united by the goal of building a more family-friendly America. This sites major campaign is M.O.T.H.E.R.S. This stands for M= Maternity & Paternity Leave O= Open Flexible Work T= Toxics H= Health Care for All E= Early Care and Education R= Realistic & Fair wages S= Sick Days, Paid. One of the tabs is take action. This tab breaks down the M.O.T.H.E.R.S. campaign and how people can help in the efforts. This ranges from designing your own ONEsie to sending a letter to congress. The next major tab is M.O.T.H.E.R.S This tab provides stories about each letter. As well as the facts, articles, what someone can do to help, and moms who are blogging about that subject matter. This site also includes In The News tab and Media tab. These tabs have press releases and videos relating to the M.O.T.H.E.R.S campaign. There are vast list of articles coming from sources like CNN, Parents Magazine, and Bloomberg. The intended audience: This site is geared mostly towards working mothers, but it also addresses families in general. Their big campaign is from the word mother, but their goal is for everyone. They want to change the world into a family friendly one. This is open to the public and very accessible and relatable for anyone with a family.

Part 2: Credibility: This site seems to be very creditable. They do their research on legislation, and get articles from creditable sources. For example in the toxic information they have a campaign for the safe chemicals act of 2011. Their creditable sources include sites such as CNN, Bloomberg, ABC news, and more. It does not seem biased. It offers any information that relates to their common goal. They do not seem to care where the source is from as long as it has useful and important information about their goal. They research legislation, and keep up to date on anything that affects families. General observations and relation to Work, Family & Community: In looking at this site it is very apparent that they are serious about their goal. They want to create a family friendly world, and have different outlets for people who want to do the same. They have many articles, and blogs as well as actually ways to get people involved in the campaign. This relates to Work, Family & Community because it addresses the major objectives in favor of families. Most of the objectives have to deal with the work-family balance. It also involves the community by offering ways to reach out and help. It is a national campaign linked to articles, blogs, videos, and information to help people towards the family friendly work environment and policies.

I really like this site. This site keeps me and others updated on issues that affect many people. It is also nice to know that the issues mentioned are being addressed and that many people share common ideals and goals. Mom's Rising is bringing awareness as well as bringing solutions to the table. These women seem to have life figured out... family comes first. I think we all can learn a lot from these women and the issues that affect our daily family and work lives.

PART 1 OF 4 Title: Family Support America - http://www.familysupportamerica.org Purpose and content: The purpose of the website seems to be to provide educational and/or public service information for parents, teachers, and caregivers. The content is basically brief definitions and information regarding child abuse prevention, tips to avoid lashing out at your children, tips on adoption, education, daycare, divorce with children, work and family balance, caregiving, and links to other web resources. Accuracy of information: None of the information is comprehensive in nature. However, the brief text that is present does seem believable. It seems the purpose is to direct visitors to outside sources -- or to the "sponsors" shown at the bottom of most pages, which are for-profit businesses. All the information on the pages within this website seemed to be generic tips and definitions that could have been copied and pasted from almost any other website with similar information. Qualifications of the author or group that created the site: There is nothing on this website to determine the author's identity or establish any qualifications, expertise, or credibility of anyone associated with this website or organization.

PART 3 OF 4 Title: Family Support America - http://www.familysupportamerica.org The domain Whois report shows Avid Amiri to own about 17 other domains and is associated with over 1,000 more. This is not concrete evidence that information is biased and the site is actually for advertising, but it is conspicous. Either Avid Amiri is the person hired by the organizations to register and host the domains -- which does not seem plausible since the address is the same for all contacts and the organization -- or Avid Amiri is in fact also the author. If the latter, I would venture to presume Avid Amiri is using domains as an underhanded method of search engine optimization (SEO) for the for-profit businesses shown as sponsors on many pages of the website. Further investigation of Avid Amiri revealed there is one with the name Avid Amiri located in the Salt Lake City area that is a member of LinkedIn and Twitter. When looking at the Twitter page connected to that Avid Amiri, that person is in fact a consultant specializing in search engine optimization. Contact information / means of communication with author or webmaster: On the Contact page there is an email address that looks like it is attached to administration -- whether it intends to be web administration or organizational administrative staff member or author is not clear. The address is admin@familysupportamerica.org. There is a mailing address on the Contact page as well. It lacks the two-letter state abbreviation. There is no phone number. There are no specific contacts displayed. Broken links: The link to the "learning center" hangs on a blank page and is therefore broken (http://www.familysupportamerica.org/familysupportamericalearningcenter.html). The Links and Resources page does not provide any links or resources at all.

PART 4 OF 4 Title: Family Support America - http://www.familysupportamerica.org/ Design, organization and ease of use: The overall appearance of the website is generic. It is what I call a "cookie-cutter" template. It is easy to read and navigate, but that is because there isn't much on it. The home page template is fractured, i.e., the left panel link image is too large for what is allowed in the template causing a fracture in the design elements. A site map is available, but the learning center link does not work. There are no help screens. There is no search available within the site. Final evaluation remarks: At first glance, this site is revealed as a non-profit site (.org domain extension) sharing family support information. At second glance, it appears to be a bare bones approach to direct visitors to other sites for more comprehensive assistance and/or information. The home page reads they can help with child abuse, alcoholism, and more, but continues that if they cannot help, they can direct the visitor to someone who can. There are no individuals featured. There is nothing to indicate anyone has any credentials of any type in the field of Family Support. Again, it appears to be directing visitors to other sites and it does not appear to do that well. The closer look reveals misrepresentation and sneaky SEO tactics to pump up search results for the businesses shown as "sponsors" on many of the pages. I will say the information that is on the pages is not useless and it does pertain to families and work as I feel the real-world pressures of work and bills to pay has a lot to do with family abuse and the ability or non-ability to deal with those issues.

Website Name: Family Life Project URL: http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~flp/index.cfm Website Overview: The Family Life Project focuses their study on child development, particularly on children living in rural areas. This project is interesting as it follows the lives of a number of children from birth through their second grade school. Specifically, they are focusing on the temperament and the competence of the children, as well as, any outside factors that affects children from low-income families. Intended Audience: The intended audience for the Family Life Project is both families and educational organizations. Critique: The Family Life Project is a joint study amongst The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Penn State University, the National Institute of Health and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. The website provides a detailed list of the key staff responsible for overseeing the study, which leads to the sites credibility. The site offers a brief overview of the study, but provides little in the way of detailed information. Although, the site provides a fair amount of information under the FAQ link, the user will have to search the various organizational links provided. Overall, the information within the site is easy to understand and the website itself is simple to navigate.

The website is easy to navigate, but information seems to be limited, and out of date. The last recorded newsletter or update i could find was from 'Winter 2009". This report detailed some results from their 48 month study, but it would be interesting to see what kind of metrics they found at 60 months, and even 72.

The site is interesting but if the community knows certain children are being "followed", I believe that will throw off the results of their studies. However, it is good for the community because they are coming together for their children...just as a community should. I wish neighborhoods were a little more like they were in the old days when it was safe to walk down the street.

Website Name: Association of Family & Consumer Sciences (AAFCS) URL: www.aafcs.org Website overview: This websites vision is "AAFCS is recognized as the driving force in bringing people together to improve the lives of individuals, families, and communities." The website tries to provide leadership and support to professionals who work with or assists families and communities. They work to help families and communities make informed decision about their "well being, relationships and resources to achieve optimal quality of life." The members consist of educators, human service and business professionals, administrators and managers, researchers, and community volunteers. They assist by offering affiliate memberships, journals, networking and leadership opportunities, conferences and research grants. They do this by connecting professionals with different practices and provide researched-based knowledge about everyday life topics. The organization was founded in 1909. Intended Audience: Business professionals that work with families and communities. To see some of the information on the website you have to become a member. Relationship to work, family, community class: I think this relates to the class by offering information to those that assist us. If you are a member they offer ongoing education to assist families "achieve optimal quality of life" which is pretty much all of our goals. Other comments: I found this website when I was looking up another I had seen while working. I had initially looked up Family, Career and Community Leaders of America and this was an affiliate. So I clicked the link and read through the information. This website seemed to be authentic and credible, when you type in their name there is a hit in the online encyclopedia, it has a copy right date and give plenty of contact information. After reading and reviewing the website, I am not sure how this helps, my guess is people that want to make a change or help

Other comments: I found this website when I was looking up another I had seen while working. I had initially looked up Family, Career and Community Leaders of America and this was an affiliate. So I clicked the link and read through the information. This website seemed to be authentic and credible, when you type in their name there is a hit in the online encyclopedia, it has a copy right date and give plenty of contact information. After reading and reviewing the website, I am not sure how this helps, my guess is people that want to make a change or help their communities become members and are giving the tools and education to be able to do it more effectively. There did not seem to be any bias, just the opportunity to become a member and be connected. Looks like not all of this material made it on either.

Interesting review, Kassandra. I was fascinated to find out about the field of FCS. I had no idea of its existence. Quality of life as seen from a family-based point of view would seem to be at the core of many of the issues we discussed this semester. This seems to be a very well-designed website. I wish the organization could do a better job of making its existence known to the general public! I feel that they have alot to offer in the way of ideas and strategies for families to use in the pursuit of optimal well being. Take care, Mike

URL: http://www.timeday.org Website Overview: Take Back Your Time is a major US/Canadian initiative to challenge the epidemic of over-work, over-scheduling and time famine that now threatens our health, our families and relationships, our communities and environment. The purpose of the website is to bring individuals and organizations together in support of a public policy agenda to guarantee paid leave for all parents for the birth or adoption of a child, guarantee at least one week of paid sick leave for all workers, guarantee at least three weeks of paid annual vacation leave for all workers, placing a limit on the amount of compulsory overtime work that an employer can impose, making Election Day a holiday, and making it easier for Americans to choose part-time work. Intended Audience: The content on the website is geared toward individuals and organizations affected by work-family issues. It intends to speak to the needs for time poverty relief that millions of Americans share. Critique: The Take Back Your Time website is an advocacy site. Although it provides a great deal of useful information about the issue, its main purpose is to raise awareness by supporting a movement that seeks a "more balanced American life" by encouraging all types of programs to win back time, whether on a personal level or by enacting legislation locally and nationally. I found the information provided on the site to be credible. Everything is directly related to education on and support of their "Time to Care" agenda. The organizations that they partner with (the Moms Rising Web Site and www.MassCouncilOfChurches.org) show further evidence of their credibility.

John de Graaf is the national coordinator of TAKE BACK YOUR TIME, and a frequent speaker on issues of overwork and over-consumption in America. He is often a guest lecturer on college campuses. John is the co-author of the best-selling AFFLUENZA: THE ALL-CONSUMING EPIDEMIC (Berrett-Koehler, 2001/2005-now published in eight other languages as well.). He is also the editor of TAKE BACK YOUR TIME (Berrett-Koehler, 2003) and of the children's book, DAVID BROWER: FRIEND OF THE EARTH (Henry Holt, 1992). He also wrote the first chapter ("Childhood Affluenza") of the American Academy of Pediatrics' seminal book on childhood, ABOUT CHILDREN (2004). His articles have been published in dozens of magazines. John has worked with KCTS-TV, the Seattle PBS affiliate, for 24 years, as an independent producer of television documentaries. More than 15 of his programs have been broadcast in Prime Time nationally on PBS. He is also the recipient of more than 100 regional, national and international awards for film-making, including three Emmy awards. Relationship to work, family, community class: Take Back Your Time agenda relates to work, family, community class because their mission is to reduce the Time Bind and relieve the strain that families have when trying to balance work, family, and community responsibilities. The agenda is focused on uniting groups who seldom talk to each other -- family values conservatives and the women's movement, labor unions and environmentalists, clergy and doctors, advocates for social justice, enlightened business leaders and the "slow food" and "simple living" movements creating awareness of emerging family-work issues. The Agenda also recognizes that Working Americans and their families are imploding from a 24/7 workplace with no boundaries and we need time to care for our children, our families, our communities, our religious and spiritual lives, and ourselves. These are all topics that we have discussed in the course.

General Observations: A few things (statistics) that I learned about Work, Family & Community by exploring the site: -163 of 168 countries guarantee paid leave for mothers in connection with childbirth. 45 countries offer such leave to fathers. The U.S. does neither. - 139 countries guarantee paid sick leave. The U.S. does not. - 96 countries guarantee paid annual (vacation) leave. The U.S. does not - 84 countries have laws that fix a maximum limit on the workweek. The U.S. does not. - 37 countries guarantee parents paid time off when children are sick. The U.S. does not. Other comments: I thought that the website was both informative and educating. It enforces a great initiative that is based on collaboration, between individuals and organizations, to satisfy a clearly stated agenda.

Part one the URL: http://www.workingmother.com/ A brief overview of the website: This site covers everything a working mother would want to know, or read about. Of course like the two main categories for working mothers, they have the two main tabs on the site being at home and at work. They also have three sub tabs including: best companies, research institute, and conference and events. The at home tab has tips, ideas, and inspiration to help working moms balance household, family and me time. When you explore this section it offers many articles that address different topics concerning the home. For example, there is an article about pinkeye prevention. There is also an article about six family friendly earth day activities. Under the articles there is also a bunch of working mom blogs that you can read that pertain to subjects about the home. At work tab, is the other major tab on this site. This tab offers career tips and advice for every working mom at every stage of life. This tab offers a new range of articles that have to do with work. Some of the topics range from training you brain for pregnancy to stay sharp on the job, and how to ace an interview. Like the home tab this tab also has work mom blogs, but these blogs deal with the work side of life instead. The best companies tab has the latest news, tips, and trends on work-life and the advancement of women from Working Mother's signature initiatives. This include articles about the best working mother companies to work for, as well as updates on family policies and benefits.

Thank you for the review of this site. I was at first intimidated by the vast amount of information and links on the site, but after a bit of browsing, it did seem to flow more smoothly. I like the way that they have subdivided the topics by "@Home" and "@Work". This makes it easier to move throughout the site and locate more relevant information. The part that I thought was most valuable was links to blogs of other mothers. It is good for individuals to be able to network and create a community with other individuals that are experiencing similar problems or concerns. Community can be a great asset to obtaining information, and the blogs allows for a virtual community. I also like the fact they had information about family friendly employers to work for. This could be valuable to anyone who is looking for a new career and has to balance a family as well. Overall, I feel there is a great deal of information and the site serves a great purpose. Thank you again for your review. Joshua

Great review, Ashley. I enjoyed browsing the website as it seems to be full of great information for working moms (whether they work inside or outside of the home). I have to say, though, that this site seemed to be mostly for entertainment factor until I found the research library. The library is full of great information and research relevant to work/life/family/community challenges. I also found several resources specific to women (gaps and stats of careers/salaries/education of men and women). Overall I thought this was a great site that somewhat solidified what we've read/learned over the course of this semester.

The workplace flexibility 2010 website advocates for "the development of a comprehensive national policy on workplace flexibility." They strive to bring attention to the workplace flexibility offer links to resources that discuss specific concerns or legislation in more detail. The site has workplace flexibility issues broken down amongst several categories, including: stakeholders, families and caregivers, military families, older workers, low wage workers, people with disabilities, and employers. The site is a public policy initiated at Georgetown Law. The site is intended to be a continually updated site that aims to "lay the groundwork for implementation of meaning workplace flexibility policy solutions." It is part of the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation's National Initiative on Workplace Flexibility. The material available is discernible by any audience and is meant to generate support and inform those who are concerned. There is not an expectation of higher learning to understand the sites position or material.

Although there is a great deal of valuable information, the site mainly is an archived list of websites that relate to a specific concern. The events section has not been updated since 2010 and the news article section was last updated in August of 2011. Since the website is sponsored by Georgetown Law, it does maintain some credibility, but it lacks proper updating and true independent thought. If the visitor was looking for information on the effect of workplace inflexibility in a particular sector of the economy, as previously discussed, they will find a great deal of website resources at their disposal. The main accomplishment of the organization is a paper that was published in 2010 discussing a variety of issues related to workplace inflexibility and outlined several possible remedies for the issue. The organization does not offer direct support to any particular political party or to any support to a particular advocacy group. They simply state the concern, outline the problem, and address possible solutions and links to find additional information. Therefore, it does not appear that any bias exists.

There was some additional information concerning work, family, and community that Workplace Flexibility 2010 addressed that I had not previously considered. Often many of us relate work-family issues to a traditional job or career. The site addresses this concern in relation to military personnel. Our discussions concerning workplace inflexibility mainly dealt with the inability of a parent to get time off to care for a child who is sick, or dual earning income families that are unable to attend to a child before or after school. In general, solutions to these concerns typically include reduced hours, greater flexibility of hours, ability to work at home, or parents working differing shifts. In military families, the imbalance becomes even more widespread. An active military member could be deployed for over a year and often, longer than that. This creates an additional strain on the family. The community and family are instrumental in assisting these families. I had not previously considered inflexibility with relation to active military personnel. Overall, the site is well-designed and encompasses a great deal of information and resources available for the workplace inflexibility concern. I would argue that the site needs to be continuously updated and provide statuses on the progress made with respect to the issue in the sectors they outline.