Got Cocaine? Yale Center for Clinical Investigation May Need You

If researchers at the Yale University School of Medicine discover a cure for cocaine addiction, it may be because of people being paid $800 to participate in a clinical research study, after responding to an advertisement in the local Advocate newspapers and a phone call to the “Cocaine Clinic Research Recruitment” line.

The ad asks “Are you currently using cocaine?  Are you NOT CURRENTLY on medication?”  It then goes on to offer payment for those deemed eligible to participate “in a paid cocaine use" study.

No mention of the fact that cocaine remains an illegal drug.  The Drug Policy Alliance indicates that according to government surveys, eight percent of high school seniors reported using cocaine at least once during their lifetime.  In 2010, 23 percent of eighth graders, 32 percent of tenth graders, and 45 percent of twelfth graders reported that crack was “fairly easy” or “very easy” to obtain.

The Yale Cocaine Research Clinic studies the “causes and consequences of cocaine addiction in order to develop improved treatments and, ultimately, to prevent addiction to the drug,” the clinic’s website explains.  Who is eligible?  “Individuals who are now using or have used cocaine.”

The nationally-recognized research includes active studies in  the genetics of addiction, brain imaging (PET, MRI), psychopharmacology, medications development,  and sleep and cognition. The clinic is located at 34 Park Street in New Haven.

Among four pages of studies highlighted on the website of the School of Psychiatry are a handful that relate to cocaine use or cocaine abstinence, and the impact of various medications on the addiction.

One study among the nearly 40 “active addictive behavior clinical trials,” sets out its impetus and objective:

“Opioid and cocaine dependence are major problems among veteran and non-veterans and no effective pharmacotherapy exists for cocaine dependence. Methadone has not shown robust effectiveness in reducing cocaine abuse. Thus, new treatments are needed for the individuals who have developed cocaine dependence. This study is designed to test a new pharmacotherapy for cocaine dependence and is a placebo-controlled trail.”

A separate study outlines detailed eligibility criteria which includes a requirement that individuals “are using cocaine more than once per week in the previous 30 days, provide a cocaine-positive urine specimen at screening, and fulfill criteria for current cocaine dependence.”  Another is an initial investigation for “A Drug Treatment for Cocaine Users Who Are Also on Methadone Maintenance Treatment.”  The “small clinical trial with cocaine users” would, if deemed sufficiently promising,  be followed by a more extensive double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

Yet another current clinical trial tests whether a “learning enhancing medication will help methadone maintained cocaine abusers with their learning and memory.”  Eligible participants – those with current cocaine abuse or dependence – must be willing to commit to 12 weeks of treatment, or a placebo.

Other ongoing clinical research studies within the School of Psychiatry related to addictive behavior include those related to alcohol addiction, smoking addiction, and post traumatic stress disorder.  In addition, there are approximately 30 mental health clinical trials underway, ranging from postpartum depression and domestic abuse to obsessive-compulsive disorder and binge eating.

Beyond those, there are numerous clinical trials for “healthy volunteers.” Chronic conditions like diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, and pediatric and geriatric illnesses, are all being studied at Yale. The Yale Center for Clinical Investigation website stresses that “staff members, study doctors, nurses and coordinators are available to answer questions” of individuals considering participation in clinical studies, “so that you can make an informed decision.”  Trial categories include cancer, mental health, heart/cardiovascular, brain, spinal cord & nervous system, women's health and children's health.

At the beginning of 2013, Yale University launched a major effort to recruit thousands of volunteers to participate in clinical trials being conducted at Yale's Schools of Medicine, Nursing, and Public Health. Posters, brochures, newspaper ads, radio spots, transit ads, and community health fairs encourage members of the Greater New Haven community, including students, to enroll in the hundreds of trials that are initiated every year. The campaign is called "Help Us Discover" because without community involvement, lab research cannot be translated into treatments, the campaign kick-off announcement stated.

The Yale Center for Clinical Investigation (YCCI) was launched in January 2006, specifically to support and facilitate clinical and translational research and training. The School of Medicine was the only academic medical center in New England among the 12 institutions across the nation that received Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) funding – a program that has expanded to about 60 academic medical institutions across the country.

With support from the CTSA, the School of Medicine, the University, and the Yale-New Haven Hospital, YCCI has developed into a home for clinical and translational research at Yale. By expanding existing programs, forging collaborations with other NIH-funded centers and establishing new initiatives. As a result of these efforts, almost $200 million per year of Yale’s National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant support is now directly connected to YCCI, the institution’s website explained.

Achieving Efficiency in Human Services Delivery Proves Elusive for State

Perhaps this is why they call it bureaucracy.  Even when the goal is more family-friendly, responsive and efficient operations, it requires the following:  a presentation to the Governor’s Cabinet on Nonprofit Health and Human Services from the state legislature’s Bi-Partisan Municipal Opportunities & Regional Efficiencies (M.O.R.E.) Regional Entities Sub-Committee Human Services Working Group.  It occurred, without fanfare, at the State Capitol on May 6, 2013.

The subject:  a proposal now being considered by the state legislature to do what many in the room described as implementing a provision of law that generally dates back to the last century, circa 1992, that has been sitting on a shelf, as State Rep. Tim Bowles described it, waiting for just the right convergence of administration and legislature to take another crack at insisting on implementation.  Bowles viewed its original creation from the vantage point of the Office of Policy and Management, where he worked during the Weicker administration.

The plan, updated for 2013:  re-align the “service boundaries” of a series of state agencies in order to make them more easily navigable for families with troubled or challenged youth who can, at times, find themselves dealing with as many as 16 agencies and nonprofit organizations for necessary services, requiring a nightmare of navigation through agency after agency.

The state agencies involved: the Department of Social Services, Department of Developmental Services, Department of Children and Families, Department of Mental Health and Addition Services would adjust their geographic boundaries to create six service delivery areas that align with the six Regional Education Service Centers boundaries – thus bringing human services and education into geographic alignment, no easy task according to those gathered to discuss the proposal.

The initiative is embodied in House Bill 5267, approved by the Human Services Committee and now awaiting House action.  It’s stated goal:  “to establish an integrated human service delivery system to ease access for consumers and reduce inefficiencies.”

As was noted during the meeting, the bill omits the Department of Public Health from the list of participating agencies.  It also lays out a relatively aggressive time line for implementation – especially weighed against two decades of delay – including a plan to be submitted by 2014 that would include consolidation of office space, relocation of staff, implementation of one-stop services for referrals to services.  The one-stop centers would be required at half of agency office locations by December 2015, and the remainder by the following year.  All of which makes the stated expectation, in response to questioning by dubious Cabinet members,  that the plan implementation would move slowly – taking as long as a decade – even more curious, and seemingly inconsistent with the language of the bill.

The Office of Fiscal Analysis could not provide a fiscal impact for the planned service coordination, which also includes common information technology development.  The Office of Legislative Research report underscores the imperative for better coordination and collaboration by describing the status quo:  DCF has six regions covering the state.  DDA and DSS each have three regions covering the northern, southern and western parts of the state, but DSS maintains either a large regional office or a sub-office within the larger regions.  DMHAS has five service regions.

The Regional Educational Services Centers (RESC), whose boundaries would be mirrored by the other agencies, were created more than 30 years ago to “furnish programs and services” to Connecticut’s public school districts.  RESC works with DCF, DMHAS, DMR, DPH, DSS, the Department of Corrections, Department of Education and Board of Education & Services for the Blind on statewide issues.

The M.O.R.E. Human Services Working Group proposals also calls for “the establishment of pilot Regional Human Service Coordination Councils consisting of elected officials, representatives from DSS, DDS, DCF, DMHAS, DOC, ED, PH, Workforce Development Boards, Non-Profits, and Family Advocacy groups to coordinate regional efforts and continue studying and implementing more efficient service delivery.”

The Governor's Cabinet on Nonprofit Health and Human Services was established in September of 2011 to analyze existing public-private partnerships with respect to the state's health and human services delivery systems and to make recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of those systems in regard to client outcomes, cost-effectiveness, accountability and sustainability.   Members include:

• Co-Chair Terry Edelstein, Nonprofit Liaison to the Governor
• Co-Chair Peter S. DeBiasi - President/CEO, Access Community Action Agency
•   Michelle Cook, State Representative
•  Robert Dakers, Executive Finance Officer, Office of Policy and Management
• Joette Katz, Commissioner, Department of Children and Families
•  Terrence W. Macy Ph.D., Commissioner, Department of Developmental Services
•  Patricia Rehmer, Commissioner, Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services
• Dr. Jewel Mullen, Commissioner, Department of Public Health
• Roderick L. Bremby, Commissioner, Department of Social Services
•  Stefan Pryor, Commissioner, Department of Education
• William Carbone, Executive Director, Judicial Branch
• Yvette H. Bello, Executive Director, Latino Community Services
•   Deborah Chernoff, Communications Director, SEIU 1199NE
• Roberta Cook, President/CEO, BHcare, Inc.
• Marcie Dimenstein, LCSW, Senior Director, Behavioral Health Connection, Inc.
• Patrick J. Johnson, President, Oak Hill
• Daniel J. O'Connell, Ed.D., President/CEO, Connecticut Council of Family Service Agencies
• Maureen Price-Boreland, Executive Director, Community Partners in Action
• Anne L. Ruwet, CEO, CCARC, Inc.
• Amy L. Porter, Commissioner, Department of Rehabilitation Services

Volunteer Programs Celebrated in Ten Cities During Senior Corps Week

More than 4,900 seniors in Connecticut contribute their time and talents in one of three Senior Corps programs.

• Foster Grandparents serve one-on-one as tutors and mentors to more than 1,000 young people who have special needs.
• Senior Companions help more than 320 homebound seniors and other adults maintain independence in their own homes.
• RSVP volunteers conduct safety patrols, renovate homes, protect the environment, tutor and mentor youth, respond to natural disasters, and provide other services through more than 830 groups across Connecticut.

The programs operate in ten Connecticut cities - Bridgeport, Bristol, Danbury, Hartford, New Britain, New Haven, New London, Norwalk, Norwich, and Waterbury.

Senior Corps Week 2013 is May 6-10 to align with Older Americans Month – a time to celebrate, recognize, and highlight the extraordinary contributions that Foster Grandparents, RSVP, and Senior Companion volunteers make through service in their communities each and every day.  [See video.]

The Corporation for National and Community Service is joining with organizations across the country to honor the powerful impact of Senior Corps volunteers and encourage more Americans 55+ to serve their communities through the fourth annual Senior Corps Week.

For more than four decades, Senior Corps volunteers have used their lifetime of skills and experience to meet community needs. Today more than 330,000 volunteers age 55+ are serving through Senior Corps' three programs.  The Corporation for National and Community Service is a federal agency that improves lives, strengthens communities, and fosters civic engagement through service and volunteering. CNCS annually engages more than five million Americans in service to meet local needs through Senior Corps, AmeriCorps, and national days of service; improves communities through the Social Innovation Fund, and leads President Obama's national call to service initiative, United We Serve.

To learn more visit NationalService.gov  or call 202-606-5000 or TTY 1-800-833-3722.

New Partnership to Encourage Focus on Workforce Skills Gap

A new partnership has been formed to enhance communication between members of the public and community leaders on important issues in the Capitol region, and public events to facilitate the conversation are already on the calendar for this month.

Working in collaboration, CT News Project (parent of CT Mirror), WNPR, and the Hartford Public Library, with the support of the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving, have launched the Community Information Hub for the Capital Region to increase opportunities for people to have their voices heard on issues affecting them and their communities.

The Community Information Hub will offer web-based and community-based forums and dialogues where concerned citizens can report and discuss issues they care about and work together towards solutions. The online resource will provide residents with a broader platform to share their perspectives and ideas for community action.

The Community Hub also will present and connect to data and other information on issues and sponsor public events.  In its first public event, the Community Information Hub will host a forum on the workforce skills gap in Connecticut on Tuesday, May 7, from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Hartford Public Library.

The Hub will also offer people the opportunity to participate in a community conversation on the workforce skills gap and training programs on Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Hartford Public Library.

The Community Information Hub builds on the ongoing partnership between The CT News Project’s online news site, CT Mirror, and WNPR to collaborate on web and radio stories, cross marketing, and to share reporters and other resources. Both operations are located in the same facility at 1049 Asylum Avenue in Hartford.  The project also integrates and expands on the Hartford Public Library’s experience in providing facilitated community dialogues through its Hartford Listens series.

Offered in collaboration with East Hartford-based  Everyday Democracy, these events will inform residents of the issues, and the dialogues will help residents develop action agendas. Recent community dialogues focused on adult learning and the special needs of children of incarcerated parents.

The hub project is supported by two civic engagement staff:

• Heather Brandon serves as the director of civic media at CT News Project and WNPR, a new position responsible for efforts to promote civic engagement throughout Connecticut. Brandon will lead the partnership’s efforts to create a new civic media website, and will also develop and coordinate public issues forums and events. Brandon is a former freelance producer for Morning Edition, Where We Live, and The Colin McEnroe Show at WNPR.
• Tricia Barrett serves as the project’s community dialogue coordinator at Hartford Public Library and is responsible for the planning and implementation of all aspects of community conversations as well as related activities in the Community Information Hub project. Barrett is the former educational services manager at the Hartford Courant.

“The formation of the Community Information Hub in partnership with the Connecticut News Project, WNPR and Hartford Foundation for Public Giving leverages our assets in new ways and puts the library at the center of an important community movement. We are already at the heart of the community, and civic engagement is at the heart of where the public library is going in the 21s century.”said Matthew K. Poland, chief executive officer of Hartford Public Library.

The Community Information Hub is supported by a three- year, $374,362 grant from the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving.

 “The Hartford Foundation supports the Community Information Hub partners’ goal of broadly engaging the community, reaching residents and organizations from throughout the region, including local schools, faith-based organizations and diverse nonprofit and community leaders,” said Linda J. Kelly, president of the Hartford Foundation.

To register for the workforce skills gap forum log onto: https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?llr=eco8pgdab&oeidk=a07e7adwjkh9a034b6f&oseq= 

To register for the community dialogue on the workforce skill gap log onto http://workforcedialogue.eventbrite.com/#

Students Want Financial Education Before High School Graduation

While more than 3 of 4 teens (76%) believe the best time to learn about money management is before graduating high school, less than 3 in 10 (29%) reported programs currently in place, according to a national survey of teens.  Those statistics stand out  in the latest Junior Achievement USA^® (JA) and The Allstate Foundation 2013 Teens and Personal Finance Poll. The gap between students who want financial education and those who receive it  is precisely the gap that JA volunteers seek to fill - which explains why more volunteers are needed.  JA is a partnership of educators and volunteers from business and the community. The survey also found that 25 percent of teens think they will be age 25-27 before becoming financially independent from their parents, up from 12 percent in 2011. Concurrently, parents are also expecting their children to be in their mid-20s by the time they are financially independent, as the economy, availability of jobs and societal norms now indicate a longer dependence on parents.

More than one-third (34%) of teens said are somewhat or extremely unsure about their ability to invest money.  Even as credit cards are aggressively marketed to teens, 20 percent remain somewhat or extremely unsure about their ability to use credit cards. And of the 33% of teens who say they do not use a budget, 42% are "not interested" and more than one-quarter (26%) think "budgets are for adults."

JA provides volunteers with everything they need to be successful in the classroom, including comprehensive classroom materials, step-by-step lesson plans and training, a choice of grade (K-12) and a school location close to home or work and a connection to an individual teacher to coordinate times during the school day for as few as five lessons, each lasting approximately 45 minutes.   Providing children with positive adult role models, who illustrate ways to build self-confidence, develop skills and find avenues of success in our economic system, is a hallmark of Junior Achievement.

”JA delivers specific, effective programs in the classroom that respond to the knowledge gap,” said Louis J. Golden, President of JA of Southwest New England.  “Far too many teens lack a fundamental understanding of how to manage their money.  The poll reminds us that students recognize that.  JA provides young people the knowledge, tools and inspiration to understand our economy and their own finances, and make their way in the world.”

Last year, more than 2,500 volunteers - business professionals, parents, retirees, and college students – offered JA programs to more than 34,500 students in schools throughout Hartford, Litchfield, New Haven, Windham, Tolland, New London and Middlesex counties.  There are ongoing programs at the elementary, middle school and high school level, as well as afterschool programs.

“Classroom volunteers make economic concepts relevant, fuel the entrepreneurial spirit, and challenge the students to excel,” Golden said.  “They help provide the financial knowledge before college that students are seeking.”

To learn more about the JA volunteer program, contact 860-525-4510 or visit www.jaconn.net for details.

Reductions in Financial Aid Would Harm CT Students in Independent Colleges

Leaders of the state’s independent colleges and universities are expressing concern about the impact on their students of proposed plans that would merge the state’s three financial aid programs into one and substantially reduce funding over the next four years. The proposal would restrict both the amount of funds that financial aid directors may award needy Connecticut students and to whom they may award the funds, points out Judith Greiman, president of Connecticut Conference of Independent Colleges.  Because the revamped system would no longer considering the cost of attendance, students at private colleges would be disproportionately impacted.

The plan is part of Gov. Malloy’s budget proposal is now being considered by the legislature.  It consolidates the longstanding financial aid programs into a single Governor’s Scholarship Program.  University of Hartford President Walter Harrison said the plan “will begin, brick by brick, to dismantle the strong array of independent colleges and universities” in Connecticut.

“While we understand the difficult budget issues that continue to impact state services, we must point out that the three primary state-funded financial aid programs, CICS, CAPCS and Capitol Scholars, have been substantially cut in the past two budgets and in the FY 13 rescission,” Greiman told the legislature. “This comes at a time of historically high student need. Cutting need-based grant aid any further will only hurt Connecticut’s students and families.”

The proposal also shifts funding from the two need-based aid programs to a program that determines financial aid based on need and merit.  In addition, for the first time it would reduce the amount of grant funds available to students by using some of the money to pay for state agency administrative costs.

Discussing the students helped by the state grants, Martha Shouldis, President of St. Vincent’s College in Bridgeport, told the legislature’s Higher Education committee that almost one-half of nursing graduates in the state, for example, are educated at private colleges.   She pointed out that students are “not only educated here but have a record of gaining employment here in Connecticut – they are an important part of the state health care labor pool now and in the future.”

CCIC has highlighted the role of the 16 independent institutions on Connecticut.  The schools:

• Enroll 31% of all college students statewide including 45% of four-year minority students.
• Award 44% of all degrees granted in Connecticut in 2010-11, including 44% of all Bachelor’s, 64% of all Master’s and 58.5% of all Doctoral and 57% of all Professional degrees.
• Award 57% of all degrees received by minority students (four-year and above).
• Award 53-72% of four-year and above degrees given in key economic development cluster areas.
• Provided almost $65 million annually in need-based institutional financial aid to Connecticut undergraduates in 2010-11.

The CCIC institutions include Albertus Magnus College, Connecticut College, Fairfield University, Goodwin College, Mitchell College, Quinnipiac University, Rensselaer at Hartford, Sacred Heart University, St. Vincent’s College, Trinity College, University of Bridgeport, University of New Haven, University of Hartford, University of Saint Joseph, Wesleyan University and Yale University.

Young Adult Unemployment Rates Persist at High Levels, Education Remains Key Factor

Analyzing the enduring economic effects of youth unemployment, a new report by Demos outlines a serious job crisis, especially those with less education and individuals of color.  Surveying a full year of U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data from 2012, Stuck: Young America’s Persistent Jobs Crisis shows that 18 to 34 year-olds make up 45% of the total share of the unemployed population nationwide and continue to face a serious jobs gap—with 4.1 million new jobs needed to return to pre-recession levels of employment. Among the report’s key findings:

• Young adults gained little ground in 2012. Altogether, there are more than 5.6 million 18 to 34-year-olds, 45 percent of all unemployed Americans, who are willing and able to take a job, but have been shut out of opportunities for employment.
• Young adult Hispanic workers experience unemployment rates 25 percent higher than those of whites, while African Americans face rates approximately double.
• The greatest differences were attributed to education: the unemployment rate for 18 to 24 year olds with a Bachelor’s degree was 7.7% compared to 19.7% for those with a high school diploma.
• In 2012, the labor force participation rate of 18 to 24 year olds declined to its lowest point in more than four decades.
• Workers with a four-year degree are 9 to 12 percentage points more likely to be in the labor market than workers with a high school diploma in every age group. The unemployment rate for workers with a high school diploma is twice as high as unemployment among workers with a Bachelor’s degree

The findings update data provided in 2012 to the Connecticut Commission on Children and Connecticut Workforce Development Council, which indicated that teenage labor force participation had dropped 48.2 percent over the past 22 years across the US, and employment rates were lowest among teens of color.   The Commission and Council held a public forum on youth unemployment last year, noting that “For young people, the Great Depression isn't a history lesson - it's a current event.  While the overall unemployment rate hovered around 8 percent last summer, it stood at 17.3 percent for those between the ages of 16 and 24.”  The new Demos report suggests that progress has been negligible in the year since.

Demos is a public policy organization “working for an America where we all have an equal say in our democracy and an equal chance in our economy.”  The organization is led by former Connecticut Secretary of the State Miles Rapoport, and has offices in New York, Washington and Boston.   The new report indicates that if job growth continues at 2012 levels,  “it will be another ten years before the country recovers to full employment. Even then, workers under 25 will face unemployment rates twice the national average.”

The Demos report recommends that “Public investment to directly employ young adults—especially young adults of color and those without a college degree—could address the jobs crisis facing this generation, contribute to the recovery through increased consumer spending, and accomplish the kind of strong, stable, and diverse society that we envision for our future.”

National BRAIN Research Initiative Good News for Connecticut

The BRAIN Initiative — short for Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies — announced this week by President Obama, calls for historic investments in research and development to fuel innovation, job creation, and economic growth.  In Connecticut, where scientific research – from stem cells to bioscience – has been advocated and advanced by government and a roster of companies home-grown and imported, the proposal to push yet another scientific envelope should be good news. The Initiative “aims to bring together nanoscience, engineering neurology,” said Dr. Francis Collins, Director of the National Institutes of Health, who described the initiative as “bold and audacious.”   It is an effort to revolutionize understanding of the human mind and uncover new ways to treat, prevent, and cure brain disorders like Alzheimer’s, schizophrenia, autism, epilepsy, and traumatic brain injury.

The announcement came on World Autism Day, created to bring attention to the group of developmental disabilities known as autism spectrum disorders (ASD).   In Connecticut, Autism Speaks, part of the national organization, offers connections to 120 resources to support and assist families.  Recent stats indicate that autism effects 1 in 88 children and 1 in 54 boys .

The Alzheimer's Association, the world's leading voluntary health organization in Alzheimer's care, support and research said it “looks forward to working with the administration on this ambitious new project.”   The Connecticut chapter holds its annual education day on April 16 in Berlin.  More than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer's, including 200,000 younger than age 65.

The President highlighted the BRAIN Initiative as one of the Administration’s “Grand Challenges” – ambitious but achievable goals that require advances in science and technology to accomplish. The President called on companies, research universities, foundations, and philanthropies to help create the jobs and industries of the future while improving lives.  The BRAIN Initiative is launching with approximately $100 million in funding for research supported by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), and the National Science Foundation (NSF).

In January, Governor Malloy proposed the Bioscience Innovation Act which, over ten years, would establish a $200 million fund here to strengthen Connecticut’s bioscience sector, to be administered by Connecticut Innovations, the state quasi-public economic development entity.  Private organizations also promote and advance research in the state, as well as responding to individual dealing with brain-related diseases or injuries.

The Brain Injury Alliance of Connecticut (BIAC) sponsors approximately 30 support groups throughout Connecticut. All provide information, support, and encouragement to survivors and their loved ones.  The organization has events planned in May (bike-a-thon) and June. As a partner in prevention, BIAC works with individuals, organizations, schools and government to educate people in Connecticut about the causes and realities of brain injury. As a resource in recovery, BIAC is the only non-profit organization in the state dedicated to providing brain injury survivors and their families.

Also among the numerous organizations in Connecticut with a particular interest in brain-related research is The Connecticut Brain Tumor Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to raising awareness of the disease, providing hope and support for those living with brain tumors in Connecticut and raising money “to support and advocate the cutting-edge research we all know someday will find a cure.”  The organization has major fundraising events planned for May (at CitySteam in Hartford) and July (at the New Britain Rock Cats).  The organization is led by “nine individuals whose lives were changed forever by the five words, ‘you have a brain tumor,’” according to the Alliance website.

Hydrocephalus is an abnormal accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) within cavities of the brain called ventricles.  The Hydrocephalus Association's mission, including a chapter in Connecticut, is to eliminate the challenges of hydrocephalus by stimulating innovative research and providing support, education and advocacy for individuals, families and professionals dealing with hydrocephalus. More than one million Americans live with the challenges of hydrocephalus every day. Anyone, at any time, may be diagnosed with hydrocephalus.  The organization will hold a fundraising walk in Middlebury in September.

The Epilepsy Foundation of Connecticut is dedicated to improving the lives of people with epilepsy and their families. They are Connecticut's only affiliate of the national Epilepsy Foundation. Approximately 60,000 people in Connecticut have epilepsy, and 1 in 10 people will experience a seizure at some point in their lives, the organization emphasizes.

The new national BRAIN Initiative promises to accelerate the invention of new technologies that will help researchers produce real-time pictures of complex neural circuits and visualize the rapid-fire interactions of cells that occur at the speed of thought. Such cutting-edge capabilities, applied to both simple and complex systems, will open new doors to understanding how brain function is linked to human behavior and learning, and the mechanisms of brain disease, according to The White House.

Survey Reveals Teens Unprepared for Costs of College, Uncertain About Future

As prospective college students receive word this month on whether they’ve been accepted to their preferred institution – and how much financial aid they’ll be receiving - the greater challenge begins.  That’s the grueling exercise to crunch the numbers to try to come up with ways to afford the impending and imposing tuition bill. That reality makes the findings of the Junior Achievement USA^® (JA) and The Allstate Foundation's 2013 Teens and Personal Finance Poll ring alarm bells for teens and their families, as they look ahead to the financial impact of college:

• Only 9% of teens report they are currently saving money for college.
• More than a quarter of teens (28%) haven’t talked with their parents about paying for college.
• More than half (52%) of teens think students are borrowing too much money to pay for college.

JA is helping students understand the importance of saving and planning for future financial needs, working with students from kindergarten through 12^th grade.  That’s at the core of JA’s work, driven by volunteers who provide a real-world view for students.  To meet the need reflected in the latest data and reach more students, JA has opportunities right now – often at a school close to home - for volunteers to participate.

The increasing cost of college, difficult job market and sluggish economy appear to be affecting teens’ views on the timetable for attaining financial independence, and the prospects for their long-term financial security.  According to the poll, during the past two years the percentage of teens who:

• Think they will be financially dependent on their parents until age 25 has more than doubled – from 12% in 2011 to 25% in 2013.
• Say they don’t know or are not sure at what age they will attain financial independence from their parents jumped from a mere 1% in 2011 to 11% in 2013.
• Don’t know or who are unsure if they will be financially better off than their parents has risen significantly, from 4% to 28%.

Teens’ uncertainty about their financial future is also a reflection of their lack of financial knowledge and understanding.  More than one-third (34%) are somewhat or extremely unsure about their ability to invest money.  And of the 33% of teens who say they do not use a budget, 42% are "not interested," and more than a quarter (26%) think that "budgets are for adults."

“Today’s teens expect to be financially dependent on their parents longer, and the number who can’t even predict when they might gain financial independence has jumped ten-fold in just the past two years,” said Louis J. Golden, President of JA of Southwest New England.  “The economy certainly plays a role, but part of the uncertainly is because far too many teens lack a fundamental understanding of how to manage their money.  JA delivers specific, effective programs directly to the classroom that respond to that knowledge gap.”

JA's unique delivery system provides the training, materials, and support necessary to build student skills in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. Last year, more than 2,500 volunteers - business professionals, parents, retirees, and college students – offered JA programs to more than 34,500 students in schools throughout Hartford, Litchfield, New Haven, Windham, Tolland, New London and Middlesex counties.

The volunteers use their personal experiences to make the JA curricula practical and realistic. Providing children with positive adult role models, who illustrate ways to build self-confidence, develop skills and find avenues of success in our economic system, is a hallmark of Junior Achievement.  Individual interested in learning more about the JA volunteer program should contact 860-525-4510 or visit www.jaconn.net for details.

State Grant Backs Transforming UConn Research into Start-Up Companies

UConn Ventures and the University of Connecticut’s Office of Economic Development (OED) have been selected to receive a state grant to provide technical assistance and training for small and medium sized businesses.  The $220,000 grant was awarded by the Department of Economic and Community Development as part of the state agency’s Economic Development Grants Program. UConn Ventures will apply the state funding in support of its mission to seek out university-based research innovations, assess their commercial potential, and provide resources to address the management, market, and technology associated with launching a new venture.

The initiative aims to help migrate technologies developed in UConn’s research labs, including the UConn Health Center, to support early-stage companies and small business expansion.  UConn Ventures will work with research faculty in providing technical assessments and direct support that result in product development, testing and creation as well as fundable plans to launch either a new business or a new product or process.   UConn Ventures will focus use of the grant funds on efforts to:

• support work to develop data, prototypes and test both technical and market relevancy in order to deploy new technologies and processes,
• expose academic scientists to industry processes, experts and needs, thus impacting the course of future research in ways that will support industry and the economy,
• engage Connecticut entrepreneurs and industry members from small business who may be potential investors, owners, licensees, CEO’s, or champions,
• establish and further relationships that will support and advance a culture of innovation in Connecticut.

Plans call for two levels of financial support to fledgling companies under the program: 1) to assess and mitigate technical and market risks of a technology, and 2) to commercialize projects that have established proof of concept and identified a commercialization path.

“Our work is all about innovation, entrepreneurship, and scale,” said R. Mark Van Allen, President of UConn Ventures.  “We seek out university-based research innovations, assess their commercial potential, and provide resources to address the management, market, and technology risks associated with new venture formation.  We appreciate the state’s support of our work, and the reinvigorated commitment of the University and the Department of Economic and Community Development to help us to accelerate business creation and development.”

UConn Ventures, aligned with the University’s Office of Economic Development, creates business start-ups by guiding the development process, soliciting funding and recruiting management based on technologies invented by UConn students, faculty and staff.  It is a subsidiary of the UConn Foundation.  Financial benefits accrue to the individuals whose research innovation is at the core of the start-up business, and UConn.

“The Office of Economic Development is committed to applying resources in ways that will better support technology transfer and industry partnership,” said Mary Holz-Clause, UConn Vice President for Economic Development.  “UConn Ventures offers precisely the expertise and experience that is essential to successfully commercialize great research and great ideas, and their organization will play a pivotal role in building future successes.”

More information about UConn Ventures and the Office of Economic Development is available at www.uconnventures.com.