November 2006

Volunteer for VITA Tax Program:  

June 2006

May 2006

March 2006

Jan 2006

Cyber Café Receives EIC/VITA Grant

The Cyber Café @ Malden Square was approved as a VITA site for tax preparation assistance for low-income residents in the tri-city area.  This included grant money to coordinate a large crew of volunteers and form a coalition of organizations. This grant was awarded to MassCAP for 10 CAP agencies, including Tri-CAP—a Cyber Café partner. See our sister site, Malden Tax Partnership, for more information.. 

Cyber Café Receives AmeriCorps/VISTA Grant

The Cyber Café @ Malden Square was approved as a site for the CTC VISTA Project, part of the AmeriCorps/VISTA Program coordinated through UMass-Boston. Bill Martin (left), a long-time Café volunteer (database coordinator and technical support), was approved as the Cyber Café's VISTA Member.

As a VISTA Member, Bill will coordinate the Cyber Café Mentor and Gateway programs and help expand the Café's collaborations and partnerships with other organizations. Bill will begin his VISTA year of service on June 15 with a 3-day pre-service orientation at UMass-Boston. He will also attend the CTCNet National Conference at the end of July in Washington, D.C.

Bill will coordinate the Cyber Café Mentor Program, which matches volunteers and patrons with peers who are skilled in specific areas. The Café's mentoring has been done informally over the past five years. Bill will help formalize the program and enroll people in mentoring with goals, assigned mentors, and tracking of efforts and results.

Bill's main focus as a VISTA Member will be to continue the work begun by Kiran Raina in the Cyber Café Gateway Program; an offshoot of the Mentor Program. This program provides one-on-one and small group technology training and related assistance in job, housing, and benefits searches for people in transition from homelessness. It coordinates closely with several agencies serving people who are homeless or living in homeless transitional residences. The Career Place provides assistance and resources in the job search area. Gateway participants can become Peer Mentors by completing specific assignments and a required number of program hours and training.

The Cyber Café is currently recruiting for front desk and database volunteers so that Bill can focus on his new project. Contact Neil La Vita after 3 PM, Mon-Fri, at 781-393-0575, if you want to volunteer.

For information about the CTC AmeriCorps/VISTA, contact Paul Hansen, Director, CTC VISTA Project, College of Public and Community Service, University of Massachusetts/Boston, 100 Morrissey Blvd., Boston, MA 02125-3393

http://www.cpcs.umb.edu/vista, 617.287.7122 (voice) 617.287.7274 (fax).

May/June Courses

The Café is looking for part-time instructors for several courses, including one-night special topics. Do you have computer skills you'd like to share? Join Ben, Jessica, Kim, Frank, and Jennifer as a Cyber Cafe Computer Instructor! Share your skills with folks who really want to learn.  See our Calendar for current schedule.

Contact Neil at the Café, 781-393-0575, to discuss.

Cyber Café 5th Anniversary

May 16th, the Café's 5th Anniversary, may have been a quiet "celebration" compared to past years, but we are proud to have served the greater Malden community these past 5 years.  More than 5,800 people have become Café members in those 5 years. We have taught basic-level computer courses and provided one-on-one computer assistance to hundreds of individuals, shared our space and technology with other organizations so they could add a computer component to their programs, and become a "drop in" spot in downtown Malden for many. 

We hope to be here for another 5 years and longer! Your aid will help. Make a donation to the Cyber Café to help us continue this needed service.

Did you know...?

We are not a service of city government; in fact, we receive no funding from the City of Malden and are funded through grants, by the 5 CTAC partners*, and from donations such as yours!

• In 2005, we had 1,440 new members sign up
• 85% of these new members came from Malden, Everett, & Medford
• 80% of these new members are considered low-income

* Malden Access Television, Murray Learning Associates, Office of Representative Christopher G. Fallon, The Career Place, and Tri-CAP

Spring Courses

Courses will run from med-March through Mid-April for Basic Computer and Basic Internet. If you need other courses, please talk with Neil at the Café in the afternoons.

Basic Internet: Mondays: March 20, 27, April 3, & 10

Basic Computer, Section 1: Tuesdays: March 14, 21, 28, & April 4

Basic Computer, Section 2: Thursdays: March 16, 23, 30, & April 6

Policy Change!

We have discontined our "first 5 printouts free" policy. All print pages are now $.10/page, even mistakes. While we wish we had unlimited funds to provide printing for free, it is no longer possible. 

If you do not know how to print a "selection" in web pages, or aren't sure how to manage the number of pages you print, please ask our helpful staff at the front desk area. They will be glad to help you learn how to manage the # of print pages so we all can conserve paper, ink, and other precious resources.

Winter Courses

Courses will resume at the end of January for Basic Computer and Basic Internet. If you need other courses, please talk with Neil at the Café in the afternoons.

Basic Internet: Mondays: January 30, February 6, 13, & 27

Basic Computer: Tuesdays: January 31, February 7, 14, & 21

Basic Computer: Thursdays: February 2, 9, 16, & 23