The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) is a research and development agency of the United States Department of Defense responsible for the development of emerging technologies for use by the military.
The United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is a cabinet-level executive branch department of the U.S. federal government created to protect the health of the U.S. people and providing essential human services. Its motto is "Improving the health, safety, and well-being of America". Before the separate federal Department of Education was created in 1979, it was called the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare (HEW).
Goodwill Industries International Inc., often shortened in speech and writing to Goodwill, is an American nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that provides job training, employment placement services, and other community-based programs for people who have barriers to their employment. Goodwill Industries also hires veterans and individuals who lack either education, job experience or face employment challenges. The nonprofit is funded by a network of 3,200+ retail thrift stores which operate as independent nonprofits as well.
Easterseals is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit providing disability services, with additional support areas serving veterans and military families, seniors, and caregivers.
The H-1B is a visa in the United States under the Immigration and Nationality Act, section 101(a)(15)(H), that allows U.S. employers to employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. A specialty occupation requires the application of specialized knowledge and a bachelor's degree or the equivalent of work experience. The duration of stay is three years, extendable to six years, after which the visa holder can reapply. Laws limit the number of H-1B visas that are issued each year. There exist congressionally mandated caps limiting the number of H-1B visas that can be issued each fiscal year, which is 65,000 visas, and an additional 20,000 set aside for those graduating with master’s degrees or higher from a U.S. college or university. An employer must sponsor individuals for the visa. USCIS estimates there are 583,420 foreign nationals on H-1B visas as of September 30, 2019. The number of issued H-1B visas have quadrupled since the first year these visas were issued in 1991. There were 206,002 initial and continuing H-1B visas issued in 2022.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is a federal agency that was established via the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to administer and enforce civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The EEOC investigates discrimination complaints based on an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, disability, genetic information, and retaliation for participating in a discrimination complaint proceeding and/or opposing a discriminatory practice.
A background check is a process a person or company uses to verify that an individual is who they claim to be, and this provides an opportunity to check and confirm the validity of someone's criminal record, education, employment history, and other activities from their past. The frequency, purpose, and legitimacy of background checks vary among countries, industries, and individuals. An employment background check typically takes place when someone applies for a job, but it can also happen at any time the employer deems necessary. A variety of methods are used to complete these checks including comprehensive database search and personal references.
Recruitment is the overall process of identifying, sourcing, screening, shortlisting, and interviewing candidates for jobs within an organization. Recruitment also is the process involved in choosing people for unpaid roles. Managers, human resource generalists and recruitment specialists may be tasked with carrying out recruitment, but in some cases public-sector employment, commercial recruitment agencies, or specialist search consultancies are used to undertake parts of the process. Internet-based technologies which enhance all aspects of recruitment are now widespread, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI).
The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) is the section of the United States government's Department of Defense responsible for developing a layered defense against ballistic missiles. It had its origins in the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) which was established in 1983 by Ronald Reagan and which was headed by Lt. General James Alan Abrahamson. Under the Strategic Defense Initiative's Innovative Sciences and Technology Office headed by physicist and engineer Dr. James Ionson, the investment was predominantly made in basic research at national laboratories, universities, and in industry. These programs have continued to be key sources of funding for top research scientists in the fields of high-energy physics, advanced materials, supercomputing/computation, and many other critical science and engineering disciplines—funding which indirectly supports other research work by top scientists, and which was most politically viable to fund within the Military budget of the United States environment. It was renamed the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization in 1993, and then renamed the Missile Defense Agency in 2002. The current director is U.S. Navy Vice Admiral Jon A. Hill.
The United States Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is an independent agency of the United States government that manages the US civilian service. The agency provides federal human resources policy, oversight, and support, and tends to healthcare (FEHB), life insurance (FEGLI), and retirement benefits for federal government employees, retirees, and their dependents.
The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 is a United States federal law, codified at 29 U.S.C. § 701 et seq. The principal sponsor of the bill was Rep. John Brademas (D-IN-3). The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 replaces preexisting laws to extend and revise the authorization of grants to States for vocational rehabilitation services, with special emphasis on services to those with the most severe disabilities, to expand special Federal responsibilities and research and training programs with respect to individuals with disabilities, to establish special responsibilities in the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare for coordination of all programs with respect to individuals with disabilities within the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, and for other purposes.
The Javits–Wagner–O'Day Act 41 U.S.C. § 46 et seq. is a U.S. federal law requiring that all federal agencies purchase specified supplies and services from nonprofit agencies employing persons who are blind or have other significant disabilities. The Act was passed by the 92nd United States Congress in 1971 as a significant amendment to a prior act in 1938.
Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) veterans organization founded by Paul Rieckhoff, an American writer, social entrepreneur, advocate, activist and veteran of the United States Army and the Iraq War. He served as an Army First Lieutenant and infantry rifle platoon leader in Iraq from 2003 through 2004. Rieckhoff was released from the Army National Guard in 2007.
Seedco, the Structured Employment Economic Development Corporation, was founded in 1987 and is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing economic opportunity for people, businesses, and communities in need. Seedco's headquarters are located in New York City and the organization does work in Arkansas, Connecticut, Georgia, Maryland, New York, and Tennessee. Seedco formerly invested in low-income communities in many areas of the country to create jobs and support small business owners through its subsidiary, Seedco Financial. Seedco Financial was spun off into its own company in 2012 now under the name TruFund Financial Services.
The Older Americans Act of 1965 was the first federal level initiative aimed at providing comprehensive services for older adults. It created the National Aging Network comprising the Administration on Aging on the federal level, State Units on Aging at the state level, and Area Agencies on Aging at the local level. The network provides funding—based primarily on the percentage of an area's population 60 and older—for nutrition and supportive home and community-based services, disease prevention/health promotion services, elder rights programs, the National Family Caregiver Support Program, and the Native American Caregiver Support Program.
American Manufacturing & Packaging (AMP), previously ARC Diversified, was a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation located in Cookeville, Tennessee, mainly concerned with hiring and training the severely disabled in the manufacturing of food products. The company employed over 100 severely disabled people to manufacture and co-pack several private label brands and its own brands - Millstone Traditions, Granny Bunt and Beachhouse Seafood. On average, their brand portfolio reached more than four million people around the world daily. AMP was the first non-profit agency in the country to operate a USDA approved facility for the production of manufactured goods sold to the feeding programs of the US Government and private industry. AMP utilized the manufacture of food items to create opportunities for severely disabled in the development of work skills, vocational services and a better quality of life. It ceased operation in late 2011 following accusations of fraud and lying about the ingredients in a product.
Palantir Technologies is a public American company that specializes in big data analytics. Headquartered in Denver, Colorado, it was founded by Peter Thiel, Nathan Gettings, Joe Lonsdale, Stephen Cohen, and Alex Karp in 2003. The company's name is derived from The Lord of the Rings where the magical palantíri were "seeing-stones," described as indestructible balls of crystal used for communication and to see events in other parts of the world.
Jeffrey Alexander Sterling is an American lawyer and former CIA employee who was arrested, charged, and convicted of violating the Espionage Act for revealing details about Operation Merlin to journalist James Risen. The case was based on what the judge called "very powerful circumstantial evidence." In May 2015, Sterling was sentenced to 3½ years in prison. In 2016 and 2017, he filed complaints and wrote letters regarding mistreatment, lack of medical treatment for life-threatening conditions, and false allegations against him by corrections officers leading to further punitive measures. He was released from prison in January 2018.
Travis Association for the Blind, also known as the Austin Lighthouse, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization employing over 400 Texans of which approximately 200 are legally blind in four facilities in southeast Austin, Texas as well as a facility in Taylor, Texas. Travis Association for the Blind warehouses, distributes, manufactures, and repairs a wide variety of merchandise for local, state, and federal government as well as private industry.
RespectAbility is an American nonpartisan nonprofit organization dedicated to empowerment and self-advocacy for individuals with disabilities. Its official mission is to fight stigmas and advance opportunities for people with disabilities. RespectAbility was founded by one-time political consultant Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi and philanthropists Donn Weinberg and Shelly Cohen in 2013. Its current President and CEO is Ariel Simms, and its chairperson is Ollie Cantos.
