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Corporate Social Responsibility
News
3.01.2005 ET
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Three Xerox Employees Begin Paid 'Social Service Leave' in March; Transfer Business Skills to Nonprofit World
(CSRwire) STAMFORD, CT - This month, three Xerox Corporation employees will
put their business savvy to work and start as full-time, paid volunteers
at nonprofit organizations that counsel grieving children, provide food
and household items for the economically distressed, and serve families
afflicted with multiple sclerosis. The three will take six-month
sabbaticals from Xerox as part of the company's 2005 Social Service Leave
program.
The leaves of absence are underwritten by The Xerox Foundation, which has
granted sabbaticals to 461 employees since the Social Service Leave
program began in 1971. This year eight Xerox employees nationwide will
work for six to 12 months on community projects of their choice - while
their salary and benefits continue to be paid by Xerox.
The program leverages the skills of Xerox employees in one-time projects
that are designed to leave a lasting legacy with the organizations. Two
of the employees starting their leaves in March are working for nonprofits
in the Rochester, N.Y., area, and the third is working in Traverse City,
Mich.
Michael's Place
Karen Sehi, a statistical analyst, will begin her six-month sabbatical
with Michael's Place in Traverse City on March 1. The nonprofit supports
children and adults who have lost loved ones, those who are coping with a
loved one's long-term illness, and families coming out of the cycle of
domestic violence. The organization currently serves more than 200 people
in the grief support program.
Sehi will direct marketing, special events and volunteer training,
enabling other staff to focus on building a stronger funding plan for the
agency. She first became involved with Michael's Place after her
brother-in-law died, leaving behind his 13-year-old daughter, and she
currently serves as secretary of the board.
National Multiple Sclerosis Society
On March 7, Roman Kowalski, a program manager for Xerox from Rochester,
will begin his six-month project with the Upstate New York Chapter of the
National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Through its staff and volunteers,
the chapter offers programs and services to 8,000 families in a 42-county
region in Upstate New York.
Kowalski will use his technical and business experience to help the
organization's administration become more effective in its work processes.
His primary project will be to conduct an in-depth resource analysis to
develop job descriptions and metrics so that the chapter can optimize the
time, effort and money it spends on client services and comply with
national reporting requirements. Kowalski has been volunteering with the
chapter for more than a dozen years.
Trinity House of HOPE
Patricia Forte, a Xerox financial analyst from Rochester, will start her
six-month volunteer leave with Trinity House of HOPE in Webster, N.Y., on
March 15. The organization houses a food pantry and used clothing and
furniture center, and it offers emotional and financial support to local
residents who are struggling with economic distress and poverty.
Forte's project will be to implement a permanent grant-writing system to
increase the revenues available to meet their needs. "I know the one
thing holding the organization back from helping more people is not lack
of volunteers but lack of funds," said Forte, who has been involved with
the Trinity House of HOPE for the past year.
The Xerox Social Service Leave program is believed to be the oldest of its
kind in American business. Xerox estimates that through the collective
efforts of Social Service Leave participants, it has donated about a
half-million volunteer hours over the past 33 years.
Social Service Leave is just one of the ways that Xerox people support
their communities; for example, about 15,000 Xerox people volunteer on
projects each year through their local Xerox Community Involvement
Program. Corporate philanthropy is a fundamental component of Xerox's
corporate responsibility and citizenship efforts, which include
environment and health programs, minority- and women-owned supplier
programs, diversity and employee support, and business ethics and
corporate governance initiatives. For more information, visit www.xerox.com/csr.
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