News and Resources

YOUTH ACTION DAY: We Want Summer Jobs!

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

"Employment! Want it!” echoed through the Well of the Legislative Office Building in Albany on January 30^th, as 250 New York City youth emphasized their need for summer jobs. This year marks the 13^th annual Albany lobby day for The Campaign for Summer Jobs, co-sponsored by United Neighborhood Houses and Neighborhood Family Services Coalition.

The two youth emcees, David Hope (age 25) and Gabriella Wilkinson (age 16), got the crowd motivated for the day ahead. Gabriella said, “Thanks to SYEP, I now have a job I love at a Beacon Center, leading activities for kids.” Other speeches by teens and a performance by the step team from the Child Center of NY in Ozone Park brought the energy of the rally through the roof.

Legislators and officals stopped by to show their support of the rally, which was held to urge State leaders for $35 million for SYEP. Among the speakers were Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver and Senators Bill Perkins, John Sampson, Daniel Squadron, Marty Golden, Valmanette Montgomery, and Adriano Espaillat. “Courage is the word of the day,” said Senator Malcolm Smith, commending the youth for challenging their leaders. Speaker Silver echoed his sentiments, saying, “Make your voices heard. Help us to understand how we can help you.”

The youth met with legislative champions of the program following the event to share their summer job experiences, and to advocate for more funding. Last year, only 31,000 NYC youth of the 130,000 who applied were employed through SYEP - a drop from the 50,000 employed in 2009. It’s clear that when it comes to employment, youth want it.

View photos here!

In their own words…

"My summer job gave me something positive to do with my time. I also set an example for my friends, who want to get jobs this summer." Cindy, 14

"It's important for us to speak out for our rights; we need to let the legislators know that kids need money too, and no one wants to stay home and waste their summer on the couch." Damien, 13

"Summer jobs are important because what would happen to the businesses that we work at? Or the camps? We give a lot of extra help." Sherry, 15

Bloomberg Spares Education Department from Budget Cuts

Friday, February 03, 2012

The New York Times School Book mentions United Neighborhood Houses in its discussion of cuts in the Mayor's preliminary budget to funding for thousands of daycare and after-school programs.

"According to the public advocate, Bill de Blasio, roughly 16,000 daycare seats would be lost if the mayor does not increase financing to the Administration for Children’s Services. And though exact numbers have varied, groups like the Center for Children’s Initiatives and the United Neighborhood Houses have estimated 25,000 positions lost in the city’s Out-of-School Time program, an after-school program that opened under Mayor Bloomberg. "

Read the article>>

Nancy Wackstein addresses Hunter's Silberman School of Social Work 2012 Winter Graduates

Thursday, February 02, 2012

On January 18, UNH Executive Director Nancy Wackstein, as commencement speaker, addressed the Winter 2012 graduates of Hunter's Silberman School of Social Work. In her remarks, Nancy urged the new graduates to carry on the legacy of social reform - the cornerstone of the social work profession today - and to take on leadership positions, mobilize voters, and most importantly, be a loud advocate for social services.Congratulations, graduates!

Read her full remarks here.

Corporate Volunteers Help Light Up the Holidays in December

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

ARAMARK at Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center

Four dedicated volunteers from ARAMARK put in a full afternoon of lunch service for the seniors of Lincoln Square Neighborhood Center. The event started off in the kitchen, where the volunteers helped LNSC staff prep the day’s meal – and even slicing potatoes for meals to come. With Christmas music filling the dining area and a disco ball hanging festively in the middle of the room, ARAMARK volunteers dished up lunch and brought it to each senior. Following lunch and clean-up, they helped LNSC fold calendars of January’s upcoming events and menus to distribute to the seniors. It was welcome help for sure. Reflecting on his experience, ARAMARK Sales Consultant Darin Milman said, “Serving lunch to the seniors at LSNC allowed me to reflect on the importance of giving. They were so grateful and they enjoyed the meal too!” Thank you ARAMARK volunteers for your service.

BlackRock at Sunnyside Community Services Center for Active Older Adults

If anyone knows how to throw a spirited holiday party, it’s Sunnyside Community Services. A great team of 10 BlackRock volunteers, led by UNH Board Member Tom Skrobe and SCS Board Member Earl Nelson, greeted seniors at the door, chatted with them at their tables, served lunch in the kitchen, and cleared tables after the meal. BlackRock gave an extremely generous donation of a 42” flat screen TV for the Center, and brought a special dessert for the seniors of macarons and pastry cookies. Following lunch service and even a visit from Councilmember Jimmy Van Bramer, a live band kicked up the music with salsa and merengue, and the seniors took over the dance floor. “It was fantastic to see how lively and engaged everyone at SCS was in the holiday celebration, and such a pleasure to be able to help add to their enjoyment of the festivities,” said Mike Oler of BlackRock. Thank you to the volunteers for making this holiday party one of a kind.

Rialto Capital Management at Hamilton-Madison House’s City Hall Senior Center

UNH Board Member Nelson Hioe and his team of 15 volunteers from Rialto Capital Management brought the holiday spirit to Hamilton-Madison House’s City Hall Senior Center. In addition to providing special lunch service to the packed room, Rialto Capital Management donated money for fresh fruit, which HMH used to purchase juicy Korean pears to go with each lunch served. During the meal, 50 gift cards to a local grocery store - additional gifts from Rialto Capital Management - were raffled off. Thank you for not only serving lunch but making sure this holiday season was one filled with fresh food for seniors.

City's Cuts to After-School Programs Will Affect 27,000 Kids

Friday, January 20, 2012

The city's plan to chop after-school programs in half will leave tens of thousands of children with nowhere to go after school, endangering working families and putting children at risk, youth advocates and members of the City Council said Thursday.

The after-school cuts could force hundreds of parents to quit their jobs in order to care for their children, jeopardizing already tenuous household incomes in the neediest parts of the city, said Nancy Wackstein, executive director of United Neighborhood Houses, an umbrella group that serves about 20,000 children in after-school programs.

"We're going to leave working families, who the mayor says he is committed to, out in the cold," Wackstein said. "If we want to support working families keeping their jobs, we need after-school. If we want to keep kids off the street, from doing bad things, we need to give them good things to do."

Read the full article>>

NY1: Funding For City's Head Start Programs In Jeopardy

Thursday, December 22, 2011

Tens of thousands of the city's youngest and most at-risk children attend Head Start programs every year. The federally-funded prekindergarten is designed to boost learning and development before kids even get to school and provide free, high quality childcare for low-income families.

However, 250 of the city's Head Start programs may now be at risk.

The bulk of the city's Head Start money goes to the Administration for Children's Services, which then distributes it among 250 individual programs. But now ACS has landed on the federal government's first-ever list of substandard Head Start programs. That means ACS will have to re-apply for its $190 million grant.

“They have a whole vision and a model for how to deliver quality early childhood to low income kids. Without Head Start funds, that whole thing falls apart and thousands and thousands of kids would lose an opportunity to have quality care,” said Nancy Wackstein of United Neighborhood Houses.

Watch the news story here>>

Settlement Houses: The Original Community-based Family Resource Centers

Tuesday, December 20, 2011

The Institute for Children, Poverty, and Homelessness featured a story on the history of settlement houses in their Fall 2011 issue of Uncensored: American Family Experiences with Poverty and Homelessness.

From the article: "Nancy Wackstein, the head of United Neighborhood Houses, a coalition of New York City settlement houses, invokes this history to characterize the mission of contemporary settlements. 'Being a settlement house means you’re not just a service-delivery organization,' she asserts, 'you’re also a social-change organization.'"

Read the full story:

The New York Times SchoolBook: Out-of-School Time Programs Faces Deep Cuts

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

New York City plans to cut financing for an after-school program that opened under Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, a move that advocates say could cut the number of seats for children nearly in half next year.

Nancy Wackstein, executive director of United Neighborhood Houses — an association of New York settlement houses and community centers — estimated that because of budget cuts, 23,000 children of elementary and middle school age would lose access to the program next year.

“When the school dismissal bell rings and parents are still at work, many of their elementary and middle school children will have nowhere to go,” Ms. Wackstein said in a statement.

Read full article>>

The Epoch Times: After-School Programs Face Funding Cuts

Tuesday, December 13, 2011

A Nov. 28 Addendum proposed by the Bloomberg administration drops funding to just under $70 million for the 2013 year, a cut of $20 million from this fiscal year and $47 million cut from the start of the Out-of-School Time (OST) program two years ago, according to a news brief from The Center for New York City Affairs.

(Tara MacIsaac/The Epoch Times)

Approximately 46,000 slots for youth in after-school programs, or “Out of School Time” (OST), were lost over the past four years due to $8.5 million in budget cuts, according to Kevin Douglas, policy analyst for United Neighborhood Houses.

Read full article>>

The New School's Center for New York City Affairs: "Mayor's Axe to After-School?" featuring Policy Analyst, Norah Yahya

Monday, December 12, 2011

The Bloomberg administration is poised to make sharp cuts to the primary source of government funding for hundreds of free after-school programs that currently serve about 53,000 children across the city.

Just two years ago, the city's "Out-of-School Time" or OST program received more than $117 million in city funds and served more than 87,000 kids. This fiscal year, the program was reduced to $90 million in city dollars. And now, a recent contract proposal from the administration indicates that, in 2013, the program will be cut to just under $70 million. Advocates say the reduction will nearly halve the number of program slots available to city kids.

Norah Yahya, a policy analyst for United Neighborhood Houses of New York, maintained that the current situation is different from the usual back-and-forth that organizations engage in with the mayor at budget time. "It's dire," she said. "Cuts of this magnitude to services are not usual."