Category Archives: Authors I-Q

ADR Authors by last name I-Q

Why Diversity Improves Project Management – by Michelle LaBrosse

The human capacity for self-delusion is nearly bottomless. We think we’re smarter than we are, more capable than we are and tougher than we are. For example, in one survey, 9% of men actually believed they could win a fight against an elephant!

That unwarranted confidence certainly extends to project management. According to a Project Management Institute survey, 85% of executive leaders said they believe their organizations are effective in delivering projects to achieve strategic results.

Continue reading Why Diversity Improves Project Management – by Michelle LaBrosse

William Whispers In My Ear by John C. Mannone

William Whispers In My Ear

Maybe this month, the good tomorrow, perhaps this day,
or even at the last minute, a simple joy will come. Already
I’ve made it through the night. At this stage of my life,

I’ll reserve judgment as to whether it is fate or a predestined
purpose for my suffering. Yet there are many others who suffer
more. Who am I to complain or doubt the value of my existence?

Continue reading William Whispers In My Ear by John C. Mannone

Asset from Another World by R. Nikolas Macioci

Asset from Another World

A star sticks to the nape of his neck
like an interplanetary kiss. His first
day in Farmersville, suspicion rises
like hair on a cat’s back. Folks do not
notice transparent, green eyes or
the odor of outer space he emits, but
talk of the star spreads fast as a missile.
Drunks at the Mahogany Bar want
to aim guns at the stranger who entered
town as if on a wisp of cosmic magic.
Continue reading Asset from Another World by R. Nikolas Macioci

African American History Month – by Eva Jo (Saddler) Johnson

African American History (AAH) Celebrations for decades have been designated to the month of February, mostly. I remember when invited the very few African American Educators’ staff members and our high school’s English Department Chairperson this was two years after I was hired in the state of Connecticut and after my college graduation.   

 We staff members were well aware that no knowledge or acknowledgement of African American History lessons were being incorporated or extra-curriculum programs into our school’s educational classroom goals and activities. 

“Negro History week” designation began in the year of 1926 and reported because of the lack of our history being included and presented in various and many national activities.  Carter G. Woodson, who earned his Ph.D. from Harvard U. along with the NAACP (National Association of Colored People) W.E.B. DuBois, founder in 1909 both were given much credit in most cases.  

 As part of our inspiration and In February of 1977, our formed committee planned an after school assembly program consisting of celebrating students from various grades, organizations also including the high school’s orchestra, and speakers from community civic and religious leadership positions. Afterwards, effort progressed at our town’s high school as annual celebrations with activity and shortly afterwards, students from our school’s student council organization were invited to joined our planning committees.  We, also became proud of their attentive and intensive participation and recommendations. 

After about two more years, these students requested that we entitle our AAH month’s high school celebration each February, “Brotherhood/Sisterhood Month Celebration.” We faculty members did and also included the sub-title as “African American History and Contributions Month” later returning to the first selected topic for our extended activities. The school board of directors, and schools’ systems’ central office staff mandated and incorporated into our entire system’s K-12 curriculum the inclusion of African American History and Contributions.  Some business, civic, and social ethnic group members began to assist and combine with us in some of our planning along with their own students and parents’ projects.

I personally never forget when a newly “rap songs” artist attended and spoke at a high school assembly program, and also when a student group ask me if they could do “break dancing” on stage at our middle school annual assembly program.   My approval brought me much praises and personal gratitude as a result of how much our students appreciated it, from our school ‘s systems and school administrators.  When we invited an “inner-school’s” middle school students’ group to attend this same year and invited them for lunch, afterwards, we all were happy. 

During the month of February, I’ve found throughout the USA that churches began incorporating  African American History and Contributions with informational objectives as well as motivational recommendations.

Our question today in the future decades is, “Will those projects suffice in the improvement of our near and far unity, equality, fairness, class diversity, and inclusion?” Are African American history celebrations provisions are and have been one of our great assets and has it contributed both personal, positive and progressive relationships and some economic growth. In addition, “How fair and intentional are we in the arena of “proportionality”?  Do we quickly judge without knowledge and to categorize the tangible and intangible? 

Personally, I have found “Collaboration and Connections” seriously are key words when we are evaluating and recommending. Visual?  Are we losing the utilization of comprehension with just quick visualization?  How obedient are we toward promotions with affirmations with representations in ethnic locations?  We do not have to be only in a classroom, office or on stage to become role models and mentors.

Fortunately, before my becoming a school’s supervisor and also while being a classroom teacher with summer breaks, I had many global experiences.  One example is when I became a volunteer international missionary in the country of Panama along with me grandson, Kory. (He knew more Spanish words that I did at that time.)  I had volunteered at what was considered and called an “English as a second and language School.”    

This school had the goal and theme known as “Constructionism.”  It soon became my understanding constructionism referred to there were no endings to ideas, conclusions, suggestions to also examples.  I saw this “focus “personally as, “Conclusions were prerequisites.”  When searching Checking the word via Google, the meaning was given “The result is interaction was summaries derived from their knowledge of ‘ISAP” which is defined as Italian in Specific Academic Purposes. 

I now acknowledge obtaining many ethnic similarities and desires sought, enhances closer and acknowledged relationships toward more understandings.  Political divisions require more attention and required and sought the goals toward democracy, both national and international. Those of us in or were especially in administration and leadership positions desperately must reinforce with pride obtained potentiality.

Yes, our elders and ancestors have” opened the door” to almost and many beginnings inspiring our concerns on how we utilize our knowledge and of our results, in other words, “What do we want to do with the knowledge?”  Are we equalized in our results?  “Are the doors open, now for all?

Personally, my career in the area of education, sociology, urbanization as well as my experiences in America and abroad (Internationally) has clarified my energy and interactions to go hand in hand.  Up from age of 18 and only attended segregated Chattanooga, I lived and served and work in the state of Connecticut for about sixty years.  I also raised four children and as you can guess, I was considered always “very active”.

Therefore,  this year and as we highlight African American History during the month of February, 2023. Let us intensify the opportunity to open our hearts as well as our feet and hands to integrate activities also ethnicity emphasizing, economic progress utilizing visualizing our pride, goals, character, spirituality, determination, empathy and inclusion as well as our legacies.

Let us intensify (…hold hands) while intensifying the provided and received opportunities to open our hearts, too along with our feet and hands integrating local and international activities while emphasizing our pride, goals, character, spirituality, sometimes empathy and inclusion also our legacies of both African Americans and others and remember expansive actions speak louder than words as we seek improvement and growth would be my request.

African Americans and others.  GOD MADE US ALL.  

Footprints In Time: Generation Reflections – by Martin Kimeldorf

As my parents exited middle age, they began receiving flyers and seeing ads about retirement living communities. It was as if they had entered a momentary pause in their lifeline. My father, Don, began talking with my mother about the items they should keep and things to get rid of. Then one day my mom, Fay, showed up with a brown paper bag of books by Dr. Spock on child raising. 

After her first vodka gimlet, she told me she was giving me the bag of books she had been saving for me. Then after her second vodka cocktail, she confessed she just couldn’t part with them. 

There was a pause. It was awfully long. We averted our eyes and scanned the room.

Then she quipped, “This was silly. I should be going.” Without comment, she rose and headed for the door. My wife and I were struck mute and motionless. Then my mom got up and wordlessly left. It was so unlike Fay.

I had been having this dream for several days as winter drew to a close in 2023. It turned out this early morning would be the last night I dreamt this story…It has now reached its conclusion…and so I write. 

Continue reading Footprints In Time: Generation Reflections – by Martin Kimeldorf

The Audacity of Baby Steps and Hope! (Part 2) – by Leslie Nelson

“I take two steps forward, I take two steps back…”

The first line of those lyrics to the 1989 hit song, “Opposites Attract,” composed by Oliver Leiber and sung by Paula Abdul, swirled in my head as I thought about how to pick up from part one of this article series. If I apply those lyrics to matters of race, lack of racial progress in particular, what baby steps come to mind and what do two (or more) steps back look like?

Now for those of you that read it, Part 1 was about Phyllis and Eugene Unterschuetz’ RV journey across the nation, leading discussions about racial healing. That work culminated in their book, “Longing Stories in Racial Healing,” which they talked about during the November meeting of the 26 Tiny Paint Brushes writers’ guild. I ended part one with this challenge and question – “What should we, as individuals, consider doing next to further racial progress?” 

Continue reading The Audacity of Baby Steps and Hope! (Part 2) – by Leslie Nelson

Dialogue to counteract hate – by Simma Lieberman

I’m Jewish. My first personal memory of antisemitism was when I was eight years old. I was in the synagogue with my father on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, a day of fasting, praying, and atonement.

We were engaged in silent prayer when all that silence was broken by loud yelling and banging as the door crashed in. A group of young white Christian boys were attacking us. They threw things at us and called us names like “sheeny” and ‘kike.” “Go back to your country. You don’t belong here,” they screamed.

 I was terrified. We knew about the Nazi genocide of over 6 million Jews and other people who did not fit the Aryan “bloodline’. Many in our neighborhood had numbers tattooed on their arms from the Nazi concentration/extermination camps. All of that trauma was passed down to us.

I remember thinking, “How could they hate us so much? They don’t even know us.” At that early age, I wanted to get to know people who were different than me and have them get to know me so we wouldn’t hate each other. I also realized that to end hate, stop violence against us and find safety, Jewish people needed to join other people who had experienced discrimination. That became my mission.

Continue reading Dialogue to counteract hate – by Simma Lieberman

DEI: What’s Old Is New Again – by Susan McCuistion

The last few years seem to have been challenging for many people, myself included. Last year, I had the privilege to take a bit of a sabbatical. Even though I found it difficult to fully pull myself away from my work, I was removed enough that when Deborah Levine, Editor in Chief for this publication, asked the Advisory Council members to write on upcoming trends, I felt a little out of touch. I decided I needed to catch up a bit, and I started my research. Much to my dismay, I felt like the more things changed, the more they remained the same. I wasn’t seeing much different than what colleagues and I talked about over 20 years ago. People were still focused on hiring and attraction and leadership development. Some spoke of developing business cases and strategies around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI)—or whatever form it’s currently taking.

Frankly, I had hoped we had a lot of this figured out by now.

Continue reading DEI: What’s Old Is New Again – by Susan McCuistion

Living in an Axial Age – by John T. Pawlikowski, OSM, Ph.D

Prominent religious thinkers and activists such as Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and Thomas Berry have defined humanity in recent decades as living in an axial age. In simple terms, an axial period is one in which there are major mutations of our social fabric regarding consciousness and social structures.

I believe we today remain living in an axial period announced by the likes of de Chardin and Berry. Living in such an age that occurs every few hundred years in history is both challenging and uncertain. We cannot easily predict the eventual outcome of the transformative process. The significant changes that are likely to occur may move civilization in directions that are productive and fundamentally enriching for all created life forms or, on the contrary, they may enhance the further deterioration of our social fabric and sustainability foundations. People will come to know and experience the final verdict when the current axial age reaches its conclusion. The new age that dawns will retain some forms of previous creational existence. But the new existence will undergo significant, even radical redefinition. 

Continue reading Living in an Axial Age – by John T. Pawlikowski, OSM, Ph.D