Latest news with #DYCD
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Yahoo
Yes, Incarcerated Dads Can Play an Active Role in Their Children's Lives
Kervin Sygney has been at Rikers Island for 30 months and misses kissing and hugging his 4- and 10-year-olds most of all. That's one of the hardest parts about incarceration. 'When I left, my son was 2, so he's not the same person. We'll have to start over from scratch when I get out,' he says, dressed in a tan uniform to denote his status as a PIC (person in custody) awaiting trial. In the meantime, he wants to play an active role in their lives from behind bars. But it's not easy. 'We often think of dads as being able to provide and protect. But when they're not physically present, the other contributions they can make are discounted,' says Mike Bobbitt, Deputy Commissioner of Community Development, NYC Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD). To help combat this stigma, the DYCD created the Fatherhood Initiative, a program launched at Rikers Island in 2024 with the goal of helping dads reconnect with their kids while developing essential parenting skills through classes and counseling. Workshops occur twice a week in a classroom setting and cover everything from effective co-parenting to emotional regulation. Though the biggest lessons may be accepting that there's no one way to be a dad. 'It's not a cookie-cutter experience,' says Montavani, a facilitator who encourages honesty and vulnerability by sharing his own stories. 'It can be scary to put yourself out there,' he says. 'But there's a baseline understanding that we're in a safe space trying to figure out what fatherhood is about together.' The program has inspired Kervan to get to know his children on a deeper level: 'I found out my daughter's favorite color is sage blue and my son's favorite food is pizza.' Showing interest in his kids' likes and dislikes is helping to rebuild trust between them. He's also gotten better at navigating co-parenting dynamics. 'I was not on good terms with my children's mother, and we started to really speak because of the program,' he says. 'I want us to come together and be one for our children.' Kervan, who only met his own dad once, is determined to be an involved father. 'I don't know how it feels to really have a dad, so that pushes me to be there for my kids,' he says. And whether he knows it or not, research shows that active paternal engagement reduces behavioral problems in children and improves their socio-emotional health. Rikers Assistant Commissioner for Advancement and Enrichment Programs Stacey King has witnessed the program's impact during family visitation days. 'It tugs at my heartstrings to see [the dads] enjoying quality time with their children,' she says. 'It's my hope that they can use the resources provided in the workshops, even post-discharge, to improve their parental relationships.' Kervan is certainly counting down the days until he's out of Rikers. The first item on his agenda? 'There's gonna be lots of hugs and kisses,' he says. Read the original article on Parents
Yahoo
29-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mayor Adams to announce expansion of free after-school programs as part of NYC budget
Mayor Adams hopes to offer free after-school to more New York City families by opening 20,000 new program slots over the next few years, he is expected to announce on Tuesday afternoon. The expansion, which he is dubbing 'After-School for All,' will have an annual price tag of $331 million by the 2027-28 school year, according to plans to be shared at P.S. 20 Anna Silver on the Lower East Side. The additional seats are set aside for public school children in kindergarten through the fifth grade. Once fully phased in, about 184,000 elementary and middle school students could have access to the city's after-school programs, bringing the city's total investment in after-school to $755 million per year. 'To make New York City the best place to raise a family, we need to make sure our young people and families have opportunities to thrive,' Adams said in a statement, 'and that is why we are launching a big, bold vision to achieve universal after-school for free for all students who want it.' 'Our parents shouldn't have to choose between picking up their child or working a job to put food on the table — and now they won't have to.' The mayor's office said $21 million was allocated in his upcoming budget plan — coming later this week — to start rolling out 5,000 new program slots this fall. From there, the number of additional seats will double each year, until the expansion is baselined for the third school year. Despite the aspirational name, it was not clear if Adams' after-school program would be truly universal. Zachary Nosanchuk, a spokesman for the mayor, described the announcement as a 'starting point' on a path to universal access — in other words, a seat for any family who wants one. Last year, there were about 530,000 kindergarteners through eighth graders in the city school system, according to enrollment data. The city's Department of Youth and Community Development, which contracts with independent after-school operators to run the programs through an initiative known as COMPASS, has been tasked with assessing the level of need and adding slots if necessary. DYCD is expected to soon release its first request for proposals in over a decade, giving after-school operators their first rate increase in years. Adams is facing an uphill battle to reelection as an independent candidate. If polls hold, the implementation of any multiyear after-school plan could fall to a new mayoral administration, as the Trump administration mulls federal budget cuts and threatens to withhold funding from progressive cities. Despite the fiscal headwinds, several of the mayoral candidates vying for the Democratic nomination have made free after-school part of their campaign promises for a more affordability city for families. Brooklyn State Senator Zellnor Myrie has floated an even greater expansion that spans from preschool through 12th grade, while former city comptroller Scott Stringer proposed a longer public school day. A final budget negotiated with the City Council is due by the end of June.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Immigrants Keep Lining Up to Learn English as City Hall Cuts Support
This article was originally published in THE CITY. Inside a classroom at the Center for Family Life in Sunset Park on a recent Monday morning, teacher Julian Colón was busy setting out notebooks, folders, pens and crayons on a table. Outside in the hallway, a sign taped to a wall reads 'CLASES DE INGLÉS POR ESTE CAMINO' — English classes this way. It was the first day of the spring semester in this predominantly Latino corner of the Brooklyn neighborhood, where Colón was expecting about 30 students in class. Get stories like this delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter But not everyone who wanted a seat at the table was there. More than 400 students are now on the center's waitlist, according to Maria Ferreira, its adult employment program director. 'I sit right by the reception, and every single day we get inquiries about ESOL,' Ferreira told THE CITY, using the acronym for English for Speakers of Other Languages. 'Every day we're adding people to the waiting list.' Demand for English classes has increased with the influx of migrants that began in 2022, according to a new report by United Neighborhood Houses, which represents 46 settlement houses that help serve immigrant populations, even as City Hall has slashed funding. At Flatbush-based social services giant CAMBA, program manager Jude Pierre said more than 700 prospective students are now waiting to get into one of its 10 city-funded ESL classes, which collectively accommodate about 200 students. Related 'With the migrant crisis…we ended up getting a lot of individuals coming here to register for classes to the point where we basically had to stop taking registrations,' Pierre told THE CITY. 'We got to the point where it didn't make any more sense to have thousands of people on a waiting list, knowing we would never get to most of them. We started saying, 'Sorry, we can't do this, because it's not fair to you,' and trying to refer them to other places.' Last year, the Department of Youth and Community Development reduced funding for literacy classes by nearly 30% to $11.9 million from $16.8 million, the report noted. Many long-time providers in areas where migrant shelters were clustered also lost out on DYCD dollars after the agency adjusted its funding eligibility formula,' as THE CITY previously reported. According to the report, many classes now depend entirely on discretionary dollars from the City Council, which increased its funding to $16.5 million in fiscal year 2025 from roughly $6.5 million in recent years to back organizations DYCD left behind. Several providers, however, told THE CITY that compared to DYCD's multi-year contracts, Council funding, which requires annual reconsideration, makes it difficult to plan ahead and maximize offerings. And for some, like CAMBA, Council funding was not enough to cover the losses from DYCD with the group reducing the number of students it serves by 174 and closing its waitlist, Pierre said. So far, providers say, demand among new arrivals has remained steady even as the Trump administration's mass deportation efforts have led many new arrivals fearful of working or sending kids to school or even walking the streets. 'Ideally, these programs would be supported by a robust, baselined program managed by DYCD that offered students and providers stability with year-over-year funding,' the report says. 'However, until DYCD revisits its unnecessarily restrictive stance…it is crucial that the City Council continue this support to make sure that adult learners continue to have access to quality classes.' While fewer than 3% of the 1.7 million immigrants in need of English classes are able to access it through city-funded programs, according to the report, students who were able to find their way into a class told THE CITY improved English has helped with their daily lives — and their job prospects. Currently, two-thirds of New Yorkers with limited English proficiency earn less than $25,000 a year, according to American Community Survey data cited in the report. Rosanie Andre, 42, came to New York City from Haiti in 2023, and said she started taking English classes at CAMBA last year after three months on a waitlist. Since then, she's been able to get a job serving food at Speedway while also delivering packages for Amazon per diem. 'When I did my interviews, you have to speak in English with the manager. And it helped me a lot because I understand people now,' Andre, a native Haitian Creole and French speaker, said in English. Learning English has also helped Andre communicate with her 6-year-old — who only started speaking after their move to New York City. 'And she started to speak English — English only. She knows nothing in Creole,' Andre said. 'I try to listen to my daughter and speak to her English-only.' With her English improving, Andre said she is better able to help her daughter with her homework. 'I try to explain her how to do it in English,' Andre said. 'If no CAMBA, I have difficulty to understand. Cuz when I come here, I don't understand nothing. When people speak, I smile because I understand nothing.' Roodleir Victor, 29, saw English classes as an essential stepping stone in furthering his education. He had completed his college coursework for an economics degree in his native Haiti, he said, though he ultimately fell just short of obtaining a degree because it would have required him to stay in the country's capital, which has been embroiled in political turmoil and gang violence. He started taking English classes when he moved to the city in 2023, he said, in hopes of continuing his studies here. For four days a week, he attended English classes in Flatbush from 1 to 4 p.m. before heading to Long Island to work at a pasta factory on a 5 p.m. to 5 a.m. overnight shift. Victor is now enrolled in a GED class, he said, and hopes to study computer programming after that. 'I would like to study at a university which I can learn technology. But it's difficult for me, because I don't have the support I need to go there,' Victor said in English. 'But for me personally, I believe in my capacity to adapt.' Back in Sunset Park, a 55 year-old asylum seeker was patiently waiting to enter the room half an hour before class started at 9 a.m. 'I'm just eager to learn,' the native of Ecuador said in Spanish. 'It's important because I want to communicate with others for a job.' The mother of five arrived in New York City three months ago, she said, after seeking asylum at the Mexico-California border then being detained there for three months. She's cleaning homes to help make ends meet, but hopes to land a job with steadier income soon. 'Whatever I can get I pick up, but those jobs come and go,' she said. 'I was in a workforce development program but the curriculum was in English so I started looking for classes.' Oscar Lima rolled into English class with his e-scooter just after class started at 9:30 a.m. The 34-year-old is now in his second semester of classes, he said, which he makes time for in between catering gigs, food deliveries and a third job as a barback. 'My bosses told me, 'You're a good worker, but you need to learn English,'' Lima said. 'And I decided that I didn't want to learn English myself.' Lima and other students now settled into their seats, turning their attention to Colón. 'Everybody, are we ready? Listos?' Colón asked. 'Yes,' the class responded timidly. Colón then began presenting ground rules on a digital whiteboard: Try to arrive within the five-minute grace period after the class start time, and come prepared with books, papers and pencils. 'The most important rule,' Colón continued, before repeating himself in Spanish. 'Please don't be afraid to participate and make mistakes.' At break time, Lima shared how he, his wife and his two sons had arrived in the city from Colombia about three years ago. While the family had started off at a shelter, Lima said, they're now able to afford an apartment of their own. His two kids — seven and ten years old — quiz him about names of objects around the house, he said, and often encourages him to learn English alongside with them. 'New York, it poses many challenges. It's difficult at the beginning, but it's not impossible,' Lima said in Spanish. 'My American Dream is my sons…I want my children to perhaps have what I didn't have, but at the same time I want to show them how to earn it, and how to work like good people.' The story was originally published on THE CITY.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Mayor Adams expands job training and employment programs for youth
NEW YORK (PIX11) – Looking for a job in New York City? There will soon be a new workforce program for people ages 18-40 involved in the criminal justice system who are at risk of involvement in community violence or residing in communities with the highest rates of gun violence. More Local News Mayor Eric Adams announced Thursday that $15 million would be allocated to the Community Resources for Employment and Development Initiative or CRED. The New York City Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD) and its network of providers, including Common Point Queens, will oversee it. Commonpoint Queens currently offers job training programs to youths and teens who are residents of New York City. 'To be able to provide meaningful, impactful services for community members, especially when you're down on your luck or made a mistake, they're life-changing,' said Danielle Ellman, the President and CEO of Common Point. You can learn more about the CRED Initiative in the coming weeks here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
