Child Center’s WIA Program Prospers under Leadership of Eric Torres

For the third year running, The Child Center of NY’s WIA program, managed by Eric Torres, has received an “Excellent” PQMT rating by the New York City Department of Youth and Community Development. The PQMT, or Program Quality Monitoring Tool, measures programs in eight key areas, from “Administrative Requirements” to “Program Content.” Torres, who became director of WIA in December of 2012, has been working hard to change the direction of the program and meet the needs of the students. WIA, from the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, aims to increase occupational skills, employment, retention, and earnings for individuals in or potentially in the workforce.

According to Torres, DYCD each year raises its standards, so that he and others in similar positions have had to adjust several times to meet or exceed the changing requirements. Since Torres took the position, The Child Center’s afterschool WIA program has been rated seven times. The ratings received were, in this order: Fair, Fair, Good, Excellent, Excellent, and Excellent, with the seventh recently-conducted rating pending. Torres’ program is one of three to receive three Excellent ratings, and one of only two that received three in a row. DYCD has also increased over the years the number of students Torres’ program serves, from 50 to 70 to 100 and now to 110 students. Those students participate in the program at three schools: in Elmhurst, South Ozone Park, and Far Rockaway.

“Now in college and reflecting on what I benefited from the WIA program makes me feel proud of all I did during this program. In ways I gained many leadership skills that I did not know I had,” said alum Franchesca Arecy, currently attending SUNY New Paltz on a scholarship. “For our service learning projects, we had to come up with what we were going to do as community service for the semester. I always found myself pitching ideas right away. I loved speaking out loud and sharing all of my ideas and also hearing those of my peers. There were many times when I was recognized by all of the staff, and that is when I really started realizing all that I was capable of.”

Torres explained the changes he implemented to achieve the Excellent PQMT ratings. “First we began by developing new internship opportunities for students in various sectors. We have improved on our case management by hiring more effective staff, we have expanded to different schools and built relationships with students and partnerships with administration. We’ve focused overall on changing the quality of services we provide for our students,” he said.

Of note also is that The Child Center’s WIA program is one of the only programs evaluated that actually procures internship opportunities for its students, with over 40 different sites in sectors such as medical, retail, animal care, child care, law, and business.

And Torres is fully invested.

“I’m connected to these kids because I grew up in similar circumstances, so I put my personal feeling into it,” he said.

Clearly, that investment is returning dividends for The Child Center’s career-oriented students. As Arecy put it, “WIA showed me that even if I come from a low-income background, I still had the opportunity of living that independent life I have always wanted and attending college at the same time… which has made a really big change in my life.”

 

Head Start Programs Receive Early Holiday Presents from Heavy Hitters

Our Head Start folks with Assembly Member Aubry, Congressman Crowley, and Secretary of State Perales

The Child Center of NY’s early childhood education programs are ending the year with a bang.

First, our Early Head Start program in Flushing, which serves children ages 0-3, was reviewed by the national Office of Head Start.

In an effort to ensure the continued quality and compliance of the programs it funds, OHS periodically reviews all grantees and evaluates their performance in such areas as health and safety, fiscal integrity, school readiness, and teacher-child interactions. The data is used to determine future funding and if corrective action needs to be taken.

Staff Spotlight: Chuck Caputo, Associate Executive Director for Behavioral Health Services

What brought you to The Child Center of NY?
My previous experiences have been in behavioral health, quality improvement, and services to children and families (including foster care and adoption). Most recently, I was at another organization overseeing outpatient clinics, mobile crisis, PROS [Personalized Recovery Oriented Services], and home visiting services, where I used data and metrics to help ensure that we were meeting financial and quality outcome expectations. I was attracted to being presented an opportunity to do some of that same type of work here at The Child Center. And as a longtime advocate for children and families, I was particularly drawn to the mission and the amazing work that The Child Center accomplishes throughout Queens.

What is your day-to-day like?
It’s hard to describe an “average” day — I really never know what is going to come up on a daily basis, and I like that type of environment! I usually have a number of meetings at Central Office during the week which focus on overall agency operations and systems concerns. My office is at the South Jamaica Clinic, which is great, because I have an opportunity to see our program operations as they happen! I usually work out of that office one or two days a week. In addition, I touch base regularly with all my program managers in the OMH/OASAS [New York State Office of Mental Health/Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services] and home visiting programs. I also spend time trying to help address issues with our electronic health records, HR-related challenges, and overall agency strategic goals and objectives that the senior team has established to help position the agency for the future.

What inspires you?
I’m inspired by staff and their commitment to the mission and the people we serve. I believe that when you treat staff right, they will serve our program participants in the best ways possible. I’m inspired by looking at the impact we can have on our program participants, and their resilience despite the sometimes overwhelming challenges that they face. I never underestimate the impact we have on our program participants; every time we interact with children and families we serve, we forever change their footprint — that’s a huge responsibility. I’m also inspired by the senior leadership at The Child Center — they are brilliant, and visionary. They make my daily work feel connected to a bigger purpose and vision, and that inspires me to think about what I want my legacy to be when I’m gone.

Read the rest of our spotlight on Chuck Caputo here.

The MYLC: Time to Help Youth Put Idealism and Anger into Action

From Occupy Wall Street to the Black Lives Matter protests, it’s clear that today’s youth are demanding change. Less clear are the avenues young people can take to make a tangible difference on the issues they care so much about. That’s why The Child Center of NY is excited to partner with the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development and the Youth Development Institute on a new initiative called the Mayor’s Youth Leadership Council. The MYLC will enable teens throughout the five boroughs to work on a specific policy change and present a plan to the mayor. It’s a unique opportunity for youth from all types of backgrounds to learn to put their idealism into action.

The Child Center Celebrates Lights On Afterschool

Lights On Afterschool, a 16-year-old program of the Afterschool Alliance, was celebrated this week around the country. In New York, nearly 400 schools participated in afternoon and evening festivities to increase public awareness about the importance of afterschool programs, and Governor Andrew Cuomo named October 22 Lights On Afterschool Day. Various activities were planned around the day at many Child Center of NY partner school locations: At COMPASS P.S. 223, Broadway was the theme of the evening; at Beacon 43, students celebrated a “Worldwide Day of Play.”

At Basie Beacon Middle School 72, where afterschool programs are also tantamount to the success of its students and the community it serves, the theme listed on the program was literacy, but the evening’s events offered so much more.

Bank and Investment Firm Come to Woodside Head Start

When a family enrolls a preschooler in a Child Center of NY Head Start program, parents must complete a home inventory that includes the statement, “You see 10 books in the home environment”—and parents answer either “yes” or “no.” More often than not, the answer is “no.”

“Most of the families in our program don’t own books,” explains Marie Mason, Education Director of The Child Center’s Ficalora Family Foundation Head Start Center in Woodside. “Poverty is an issue for the majority of them, and many parents may not be able to read English—or even their native language—and so are unable to read to their children.”

Encourage Diversity in STEM by Teaching It Right

New York City’s public school students return to school today. While their parents have spent the weekend stocking their kids’ backpacks with new pencil cases and notebooks, let’s hope their teachers have stocked their classrooms with toothpicks, cork, coins, and other everyday materials. The reason is simple: These materials can be used in hands-on experiments that encourage trial and error and the application of complex concepts. That’s the right way to teach STEM to tomorrow’s leaders, and it needs to be an integral part of schools and after-school programs—especially those that primarily serve minorities, low-income students, and other groups typically underrepresented in STEM fields.

Child Center Staffer to Compete in National Pageant

Anna Treppiedi, a.k.a. Ms. New York, is no shrinking violet. As students at the School’s Out New York City (SONYC) after-school program at the Waterside School for Leadership know well, she doesn’t shrink from a challenge, or from any opportunity to speak her mind—especially when the subject is education. That’s why it’s no surprise that she’s a contestant in this year’s Ms. America pageant.

Youth Baseball League in Far Rockaway Kicks Off

Baseball is back in Far Rockaway. A new baseball league called Far Rockaway RBI, for youth ages 6-14, was formed as one of The Child Center of NY’s youth development programs and held its kick-off event last Saturday. The creation of the league was the result of the commitment and collaboration of many community partners, including Major League Baseball (MLB).

Why the Jamaica Now Leadership Council Matters

Jamaica, Queens has been a part of my life for over two decades. I’ve spent nearly 30 years both working and living in and around this community. As The Child Center of NY’s Associate Executive Director for Youth Development and Community Engagement, I’ve had the privilege of experiencing it not only from my own perspective, but also from that of the next generation. I’ve seen firsthand that Jamaica’s young people are very talented, willing to work hard, and eager to make the most of any opportunity to make a better life for themselves when opportunities are given to them. Such opportunities have been admittedly scarce for them, but a new effort seeks to change that.