PS/MS 57 Team in East Harlem Celebrates the Life and Work of Dr. Seuss

Today’s guest blogger is Miguel Adames. Miguel serves with City Year New York as the Positive School Climate Events Coordinator on the Credit Suisse PS/MS 57 team in East Harlem. 

This past Friday, we held our second Bringing Books to Life (BBL) event, which was in honor of the great Dr. Seuss. BBL events are a great way to introduce popular children books in a more interactive format, which allows students to relive a book they have already read.  The book that was brought to life was Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat.

Our Dr. Seuss BBL was put on for students in pre-kindergarten to second grade, in our school’s auditorium. This event was not only extremely successful, but entertaining based on the positive reaction from our crowd. We had over 350 students and 40 adults present for this interactive function. We not only brought The Cat in the Hat to life, but we also presented Dr. Seuss’ life’s work to the audience, which included a game at the end. Celebrating Dr. Seuss’ birthday by putting on a wonderful BBL was not only an amazing opportunity, but also a great way to show students the importance of reading.

Thanks to Amanda Esteves, Andrew Group and Jessica Cantey for being the point people for this event and a huge thank you to my team for putting on yet another successful function.

18 Minute Networking 2013

Last Thursday, February 21, over 400 City Year corps members, staff and alumni filled the auditorium at Credit Suisse for our annual 18 Minute Networking event. This signature alumni event was planned by the City Year New York Alumni Board. The goal of the event was to give our 294 corps members the opportunity to meet and network with City Year alumni and friends, who have found success in fields that current corps members hope to break into following their year of service.

Our emcee for the evening, Sean McDevitt, National Alumni Director for City Year, Inc & Boston ’02 alumni,  welcomed everyone and introduced the flow of the evening to the corps and facilitators. We also had the opportunity to hear from Moira Girard, Vice President, Talent Development at Credit Suisse, who addressed the corps and shared her experience of achieving her position at Credit Suisse through networking.Thank you, Moira, for encouraging our corps to take advantage of this unique opportunity.

Sean McDevitt, National Alumni Director for City Year, Inc.

Moira Girard, Vice President, Talent Development at Credit Suisse

Nearly 70 City Year alumni and professionals facilitated round table discussions to provide corps members with an honest perspective of what to expect when entering the professional and academic fields. With 38 tables in total covering dozens of career fields and educational options in two separate rooms, the corps left feeling inspired.

After 3 rounds of 18 real minutes of networking, Nan Shearer, Alumni and Career Services Manager, City Year Inc. & DC ’08 & ’09 alumna, shared some of the great resources for professional and educational development that can be found on our Alumni Website. Finally, Itai Dinour, Senior Vice President and Chief Organizational Advancement & Alumni Officer at City Year (and former CYNY Executive Director), closed  the ceremony by sharing with the corps the importance of staying connected to the organization after they finish their City Year.

Itai Dinour, Senior Vice President and Chief Organizational Advancement & Alumni Officer at City Year, Inc.

A huge thank to our partners Keiko Akashi and Credit Suisse for opening your space to us once again, the City Year New York Alumni Board, all of the facilitators for holding meaningful conversations and networking with our corps, and to the corps for participating, remaining engaged, and taking the best next steps to become powerful alumni and “Leaders for Life”.

City Year New York and PS/MS 57 Take Leadership Upstate

Today’s guest blogger is Chris Godfrey. Chris is serving a second year with City year New York on the Credit Suisse PS/MS 57 team in East Harlem. 

At East Harlem’s James Weldon Johnson Leadership Academy (PS/MS 57), the sixth grade is a time of change. Though most of the students at the pre-K through eighth grade school aren’t new to the building, they are just beginning to warm up to the idea that they are now in middle school. Concepts such as homeroom, electives, and switching classes in between periods can prove to be quite the adjustment for a young student. From the very first day of classes, it becomes evident to every sixth grader that school just became a little more complicated.

In an effort to help ease the difficult transition from elementary to middle school, and to instill the skills that are required to develop positive leaders, PS/MS 57 gives every sixth grader the opportunity to participate in an annual weekend leadership camp. For the past five years, City Year has joined students and faculty for this camping experience, working as both session facilitators and team leaders. This year corps members and staff from the Credit Suisse PS/MS 57 team were joined by corps members from the Seven Generations Zone (East Harlem) and the Water Zone (Queens) to put together an unforgettable retreat experience for the campers of PS/MS 57.

The retreat began with a bus ride to Iroquois Springs Camp in Upstate New York. It was a nostalgic trip for the corps members who still held onto memories of City Year’s Basic Training Retreat, but one surprise that was waiting for us that wasn’t around in August was the blistering cold weather. Despite the chilly temperature, it didn’t take long before the kids were sprinting through the campground during the Apache Relay. The relay consisted of a variety of events that included untying a human knot, a sack race, and even a balloon shaving contest that left the assistant principal covered in shaving cream. After eleven different stations, and participation from over 60 students, a winner was determined and the kids were then introduced to the wonders of the Iroquois Springs dining hall. Great food was definitely a highlight of the trip as the kitchen staff went all out to accommodate the students with cakes, cookies, and other treats.

The weekend was filled with fun and games, including an unforgettable dance party and a Saturday afternoon on the low ropes course. The most important part of the experience was what the students were able to take away from the various leadership development sessions offered during the weekend by City Year corps members. The campers learned how to engage in active listening, and then used that skill to learn more about themselves and each other in the sessions that would follow. Other skills were learned as well. Campers learned how to zip up sleeping bags, make s’mores without turning them into flaming projectiles, and how many sweaters it takes to be warm in a wooden cabin when the temperature dips to 17 degrees.

By Sunday afternoon, the sixth graders boarded a bus and headed back to New York City, ready to take on all the challenges that await them in middle school. Leadership camp had been an amazing experience, and the students looked to be ready for the world…but first, they were ready for a nap. Let’s just say the trip back to East Harlem was very quiet.

Civic Engagement Begins Fall Community Engagement with HSBC and Credit Suisse

Today’s guest bloggers are Anthony Echevers and Dominique Durrant, New York Civic Engagement Service Leaders. Anthony and Dominique both serve as Volunteer Experience Coordinators within the Civic Engagement team.

HSBC has sponsored the team serving at IS 204 in Long Island City, Queens, for two years. On September 27^th, HSBC served alongside the IS 204 team at the Boys and Girls Club of Queens in Astoria. HSBC is one of the world’s largest banks and City Year New York had the honor of working with both their Legal and Compliance Departments. Volunteers cleaned up the basement with a fresh coat of paint, built four colorful planter beds and chess tables, created a uniform look for the outdoor railing, and painted over thirty murals for six different schools in Queens. HSBC also generously provided the Boys and Girls Club with a check for $1,500. Both the money that was received and the renovations that the Boys and Girls Club received will make the facility a better place to learn, play, and grow. Check out a few great moments from the day below!

The Credit Suisse service day was on September 28^th, 2012. Credit Suisse, a leading financial services company, has been a sponsor of City Year New York for seven years and sponsors both the PS/MS 50 team and PS/MS 57 teams in East Harlem. Credit Suisse volunteers served at Newtown High School, located in Elmhurst, Queens. We engaged over 150 volunteers in 375 collective hours of service at Newtown High School. Volunteers built and stained two cubbies, painted twelve wall murals, six canvas murals, and fifteen book cover murals. Despite less than ideal weather conditions, volunteers showed up ready to help transform Newtown High School. Students were thrilled to see the new murals displayed around the school following our service. Check out a few great moments from the day below!

Thank you to both HSBC and Credit Suisse for your continued partnership and commitment to improving our communities!