Three and a half years into the 4-year CCF initiative, grantees continue to make huge strides in providing more and more residents from persistently low-income neighborhoods with the services and support they need to succeed.  Grantees are scaling programs that work and, with increasingly sophisticated data, relentlessly improving programs to achieve better outcomes.

The Cypress Hills Local Development Corporation (CHLDC) significantly expanded its youth development pipeline in September 2017 and now serves 1,695 young people in afterschool programs in ten public schools. Thanks to improved coordination and data analysis, these young people now have a smoother transition among programs that support their success in life, including the Middle School Student Success Center and the College Success Program.

Students benefitting from CHLDC’s College Success Programs are flourishing. To date, 153 students attained their Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree.  Thirty-three percent attained their degrees in under six years – beating the national average (between 18%-24%) for low-income, first generation and minority students.

For youth not college bound, CHLDC’s employment programs continue to show strong results in job placement and retention, with 120 job placements a year. CHLDC’s job training programs are so mutually beneficial to employers and employees that three paratransit employers have agreed to enter a fee-for-service model for their CHAMPION paratransit driver training.

And, the organization continues to make headway in creating affordable housing: 53 low income senior citizens are expected to move into the Cypress Hills Senior Housing Project in the next month and the 47-unit Pitkin Berriman project is expected be completed by March 2018.

From CHAMPION to family champion

Devon Gardner (pictured on right) and Jerome Paul

When Devon Gardner came to CHAMPION, he was unemployed and struggling to support three young children. After completing the CHAMPION program, Devon went to work for an Access-A-Ride company. Devon was mentored by one of CHAMPION’s alumni Jerome Paul, who has risen to the position of dispatcher at the company.

Since completing the Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) training program, Devon has worked hard. He was able to obtain a Class B CDL, an upgrade and advancement on his original license. Devon also drives a school bus part-time to

 supplement his income for his family. His family’s living situation has improved dramatically and Devon often stops in to speak with new CHAMPION classes to encourage and support new students.

Led by Fifth Avenue Committee (FAC), in partnership with Red Hook Initiative, Brooklyn Workforce Innovations (BWI) and Southwest Brooklyn Industrial Development Corporation, the Stronger Together (ST)  collaboration  continues to advance its goals of helping South Brooklyn public housing residents build skills and gain well-paying jobs.

The initiative prepares low-income, working age, adult public housing residents living in Red Hook and Gowanus to succeed in their education and in gaining and sustaining employment. This includes preparing them to benefit from the billions of dollars of public funding coming into the area for Gowanus Canal clean-up, post-Sandy reconstruction, NYCHA land redevelopment, and private investment.

So, this season public housing residents in Red Hook and Gowanus benefited from an expansion of ST’s sector-based employment programs, including a new pilot Solar Panel Installation Training Program led by BWI and funded with Post-S>andy Governor’s Office of Storm Recovery funds.

When ST staff learned that many of its participants want more sector based trainings >and union jobs, but were hamstrung by a lack of a high school diploma >and other prerequisites, they added individualized tutoring for the High School Equivalency (HSE) test >and built new partnerships with groups that offer soft skills training, stipends, >and certifications needed for union apprenticeships.

To create additional employment opportunities for public housing residents, ST >and FAC’s Neighborhood Employment Services program are collaborating with Rebuilding Together to offer industry st>andard certification >and short-term sector based trainings in construction fields.

Fifth Avenue Committee’s newest affordable housing site at 635 4th Avenue, Brooklyn

FAC may be able to direct some of these graduates to jobs in its own affordable housing development pipeline.  FAC now has the largest affordable housing development portfolio in the organization’s history, with over 500 units under management >and 1,100 new units in development, on target to provide housing for thous>ands of low-income people.

Ms. Q. is a NYCHA a resident in Gowanus >and came to FAC seeking assistance finding employment. Ms. Q saw a Stronger Together flyer posted in the lobby of her NYCHA residence. The flyer announced an upcoming TABE screening for enrollment into the NYCHA Resident Training Academy (NRTA).  At the time, her gross annual income was below $14,000. While she was interested in NRTA training as a long term goal, she needed immediate work. So, ST Staff helped her update her resume to successfully apply for a part-time front-desk position at a FAC building. She also passed the TABE test for enrollment in the NRTA training program. Ms. Q was able to maintain her part-time employment, complete training, >and has obtained employment with NYCHA as a caretaker. She started at NYCHA at $12.95 per hour with benefits >and is currently earning $14.25 per hour!

One of New Settlement Apartments’ CASA’s many tenant rallies.

St Nicks Alliance continued to improve NABE 3.0 education outcomes among the elementary school children they serve through their new approach to after school >and transformational coaching >and launched a high school version of NABE 3.0. The organization’s allied workforce >and housing >and homeless prevention programs continued to ensure stability for families in their target NABE 3.0 neighborhood, dominated by public housing.

Five hundred elementary school students in St Nicks Alliance’s four after school centers within the NABE 3.0 pilot area saw a 25% increase in report card grades within one school year  After school students also made marked gains in literacy, increasing by 22% the number of students reading at grade level.  St. Nicks Alliance found that embedding skilled Literacy Coaches in after school was a pivotal strategy for struggling students >and one they seek to replicate.

St Nicks Alliance saw the need to go beyond serving elementary school children. With funding through Citi’s Progress Maker’s Fund, St. Nicks Alliance targeted five local, public high schools each with large numbers of low-income, struggling students (40% of graduates did not plan to attend college; only 10% were “college ready”).  St Nicks Alliance addressed a gap: there were no services in place to prepare students for success beyond high school. In response, they launched Career GPS, an innovative approach that supported teens >and young adults to complete high school, gain entrance into college >and/or secure a career.  In the first year of the program, Career GPS helped:

●      1150 students gain employment in p/t jobs >and internships.

●      910 students received quality enrichment experiences in support of college >and career goals.

●      325 students remained in school >and on track to graduate

●      62 students prepared for career including 33 who participated in skills training, 23 who were placed in jobs >and 45 who received paid internships

Beyond school, St Nicks Alliance continued to improve >and exp>and pathways to employment. In its first year, its Skilled Build construction training trained 96 individuals >and placed 80 young adults from North Brooklyn in the booming construction sector.

The housing specialist team has assisted 127 households with homeless prevention.  St. Nicks Alliance co-founded St>and for Tenant Safety Coalition, a city-wide coalition led by tenants >and community groups that drew public attention to the practice of “Construction as Harassment” >and successfully introduced >and facilitated the passage of 13 pieces of legislation cracking down on tenant harassment, a major factor causing dislocation of low >and moderate income residents.