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Librarian Mario Ascensio |
U.S. Embassy speaker assists Jamaican organizations navigate social media
If Facebook were a country, it would be the world’s fourth largest. One of out of eight couples married in the United States in 2009 met on social media websites. These statistics make it clear the social media revolution is not a passing fad, but a fundamental shift in the way people communicate.
When large corporations in the United States started integrating social media into their communication strategy, then it became pretty obvious that Flickr, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube were evolutions gaining ground globally. It is with this revolution in mind that the U.S. Embassy is hosting workshops March 18 and 19 in order to assist Jamaican organizations to use social media to expand their outreach and strengthen their partnerships.
Acclaimed social media guru and librarian Mario Ascencio, recognized as a leader in the library and information science field, will instruct invited participants from schools and libraries, non-government organizations and government agencies, on how to utilize a communication medium that is fast becoming the ultimate tool for business.
Mr. Ascensio is a “hands-on” instructor who has been lauded for his work in Los Angeles and New York with Hispanics at the grassroots level to make them more IT-savvy. As a seventeen-year-old library page, he helped a timid, illiterate Latina get her library card. The experience made him realize the extent to which libraries could affect the disadvantaged and, at that moment, he resolved to become a librarian. He also worked as a visual arts liaison librarian at George Mason University Libraries in Virginia, and was one of the few Latino professionals on campus.
Mario Ascencio is the Director of the Corcoran Library at the Corcoran Gallery Art and College of Art and Design in Washington, DC. He is also the Immediate Past President of REFORMA - The National Association of librarians who promote Library and Information Services to Latinos and Spanish speakers. He is devoted to the empowerment of other minorities, as reflected in his work with American Library Association's Black Caucus, the American Indian Library Association, and the Asian Pacific American Library Association.
The 2010 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR) is an annual report by the Department of State to Congress prepared in accordance with the Foreign Assistance Act. It describes the efforts of key countries to attack all aspects of the international drug trade in Calendar Year 2009. Volume I covers drug and chemical control activities. Volume II covers money laundering and financial crimes. (more)
U.S. Embassy moves to paperless visa system as of March 24
The U.S. Embassy in Kingston announces that as of Wednesday, March 24, 2010 it will accept only online visa applications, doing away with the paper-based forms familiar to applicants. On March 24, use of the new form becomes mandatory and the U.S. Embassy will no longer accept printed DS-156 nonimmigrant visa applications. Form DS-160, the new electronic form, will be available on the embassy’s website (http://kingston.usembassy.gov) beginning Thursday, March 4, 2010 for optional use by applicants. Applicants are encouraged to begin using the new DS-160 form as soon as it becomes available. (more)
Changes in public window hours and new appointment system at Department of Homeland Security/Immigration and Customs Enforcement
As of January 4, 2010 the Department of Homeland Security/Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (DHS/ICE) public window will operate on an appointments only basis. On this date, there will also be a change in the public window hours. The public window will now be open on Mondays and Thursdays between 11:00 AM and 12:00 p.m. (and not 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. as before).
The DHS/ICE public window facilitates matters pertaining to travel/transportation letters and voluntary deportation only. Appointments can be made at anytime by sending an email to ICEKINGSTON@state.gov
