Editorial

BofA Names Boc a Helping Hands and The Arc of Palm Beach County 2022 Neighborhood Builders

Bank of America today announced that Boca Helping Hands and The Arc of Palm Beach County have been named as the 2022 Bank of America Neighborhood Builders® awardees for their work to remove economic barriers and advance socioeconomic opportunity in Palm Beach County. With a multi-year grant from the bank, the two organizations will expand programs and services that are addressing healthcare, education, employment, and basic needs for the underserved and those with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Boca Helping Hands and The Arc of Palm Beach County will each receive a $200,000 grant over two years, comprehensive leadership training for the executive director and an emerging leader on topics ranging from increasing financial sustainability, human capital management, and strategic storytelling, join a network of peer organizations across the U.S., and access capital to expand their impact. The program continues to be the nation’s largest investment into nonprofit leadership development.

“Nonprofits like Boca Helping Hands and The Arc of Palm Beach County are the backbone to our community in Palm Beach County as they are dedicated to understanding the obstacles many individuals, families and community members are experiencing,” said Fabiola Brumley, president, Bank of America Palm Beach County. “It’s important that we direct not only capital, but also the necessary resources and training to help position these nonprofits and their leadership team for long-term success as they grow strategically and make a positive impact.”

Boca Helping Hands uses a holistic approach to combat poverty by making food, medical, and financial assistance programs available to at-risk and vulnerable populations impacted by systemic and racial inequity. The bank’s funding will go towards expanding pantry bag distribution, healthcare access, and resource center emergency financial assistance, particularly helping the g rowing number of families who n e e d f o o d a s s i stance due to inflation. Boca Helping Hands Grants Manager Anna Campitelli Rubenstein will join Boca Helping Hands Executive Director Greg Hazle and participate in leadership development to advance Boca Helping Hands’ connections with funding sources and partnerships with other community organizations.

“Advanced communication training and learning about best practices will help us better promote to diverse audiences, advocate for our programs, recruit new supporters, and help us set clear expectations for projects and the organization as a whole,” said Rubenstein. “Belonging to a larger network of nonprofit leaders that we can learn from and consult, brainstorm, and exchange ideas with is invaluable in our assessment of unmet community needs. The impacts can be further amplified when we share these lessons with our staff, board, and other local networks.”

The Arc of Palm Beach County strives to create a continuum of care for those w i t h i n t e l l e c t u a l and developmental disabilities through programming that advances disability inclusion and adultcare focused services. The bank’s funding will be used to e x p a n d e m p l o yment ser vices and programs, training technolog y needs, support travel, operational costs, and curriculum development. Specifically, they will be able to create a Hospitality and Tourism Certificate Program to provide adults with disabilities the qualifications needed to better secure sustainable job placement. The Arc of Palm Beach County Senior Director of Adult Day Services Kristie Giles will join The Arc’s CEO Kimberly McCarten and participate in leadership development to further future collaborations and inspire new avenues for The Arc of Palm Beach County’s programming.

“What I love about the opportunities for leadership development through the Bank of America grant is that they create a new environment of people from outside of my industry and from across the nation ready to share their unique perspectives,” said Kristie Giles, senior director of adult day services, The Arc of Palm Beach County. “These conversations will undoubtedly spark ideas we can implement at our organization to improve our team, programs, and services. Further, it provides an excellent opportunity for potential collaborations and partnerships.”

In Palm Beach County, 27 nonprofits have been selected as Neighborhood Builders, with the bank investing more than $5.8 million into these local organizations since 2005. The invitation-only program is highly competitive, and organizations are selected by a committee comprised of community leaders and past Neighborhood Builders honorees.

Through 2021, Bank of America has invested over $280 million in 50 communities through Neighborhood Builders, partnering with more than 1,400 nonprofits and helping more than 2,800 nonprofit leaders strengthen their leadership skills. Neighborhood Builders is just one example of how Bank of America deploys capital in communities, builds cross-sector partnerships, and promotes socioeconomic progress as part of its approach to responsible growth.

FAU Lands U.S. Depar tment of Defense Grant for Power ful Imaging Tool

Florida Atlantic University has received a $599,503 grant from the United States Department of Defense for a powerful high resolution imaging technique that can reveal nanoscale structures. The Transmission Electron Microscopy enables multidisciplinary research in the materials and life science fields and includes a scanning unit, an EDS detector for elemental analysis and a tomography holder for 3D visualization of nanostructures.

The acquisition of the Transmission Electron Microscopy is a joint effort across six colleges and institutes at FAU including the College of Engineering and Computer Science, the Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, the Schmidt College of Medicine, Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute, the Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, and the College of Education. FAU’s research efforts related to the grant will include nanocomposites, bio-inspired materials, nanoparticles, wearable sensors, drug development and delivery, bone tissue regeneration, biofilms, biomedical microelectromechanical systems and stem cell-matrix interactions.

“Nanoscale imaging capabilities will not only ensure rapid progress in our current Department of Defense-funded materials research, but also will stimulate research in relevant areas such as biomedical engineering, marine biotechnology, sensing and threat detection as well as nanotechnology,” said Vivian Merk, Ph.D., principal investigator and an assistant professor in FAU’s Department of Ocean and Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering and Computer Science, and Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science. “Due to its great versatility, this research equipment will be critical in a variety of our research projects and will significantly contribute to the success of FAU’s long-term research and STEM education goals.”

T r a n s m i s s i o n Electron Microscopy is essential for studying the micro- and nanostructure of inorganic, organic and hybrid materials. In inorganic samples, the instrument reveals the orientation and internal structure of crystal lattices down to individual atoms, as well as defects, such as dislocations or grain boundaries. Transmission Electron Microscopy is the preferred method to directly measure the size, grain size, size distribution, and morphology of nanomaterials. The technology also provides direct structural information on soft matter, including synthetic polymers, macromolecules or organic fibers. The imaging technique reveals the ultrastructure of biological systems in fine details.

Research using this instrumentation will deepen knowledge about cellular uptake mechanisms that play a key role in drug delivery and will prove useful for studying complex interfaces in highly mineralized tissues such as enamel or bone for improved bone regeneration and tissue engineering. In recent years, scientists have made significant strides in understanding the underlying mechanisms of interface failure, crack propag ation, nanoparticle dispersion, and particle/ polymer interaction. An integral part of this research is identifying mechanisms responsible for failure and aging. Utilization of the Transmission Electron Microscopy, in combination with macroscopic testing, will help FAU researchers better identify the best strategies for long-term material protection and reinforcement.

“Electron microscopy has become an indispensable tool in areas important to national defense, such as physical sciences, engineering and biomedicine,” said Stella Batalama, Ph.D., dean, FAU College of Engineering and Computer Science. “We are excited to house this cutting-edge instrumentation in our college, which will be integrated into research training to augment our existing capabilities in research areas of interest for the Department of Defense. In addition, we are developing course curricula for K-12 education to attract students in underrepresented institutions to pursue studies leading to STEM careers.”

Prior Department of Defense-sponsored materials research at FAU involves the development of flexible body armor and polymer matrix composites with outstanding mechanical and chemical stability. Nanoscale imaging capabilities will not only ensure rapid progress in this research, but also stimulate new research areas such as air revitalization in submarines, drug development and delivery, bone tissue engineering, sensing and threat detection, and nanotechnology. This instrumentation will further contribute to the development of new therapeutic tools and disease interventions.

As part of the grant, outreach efforts will encompass a number of initiatives, including str uctured student visits to the Transmission Electron Microscopy lab, internships for selected schoolteachers, or the development of a Nanoscale Imaging teaching module. Electron microscopy will be integrated into the undergraduate STEM curriculum to promote active learning and student engagement in the classroom. FAU’s Office of Undergraduate Research and Inquiry will support talented undergraduate students to work on Transmission Electron Microscopy-related projects under the leadership of a faculty mentor.

“Transmission Electron Microscopy is of great importance as it can stimulate students’ interest and motivation for studying science and technology by establishing a meaningful connection between the classroom and the real word,” said Merk.