tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-249079932024-03-17T23:00:23.931-04:00CHANGING THE COURTA chronicle of how a group of planners and practitioners are attempting to change the Bronx court system's approach to low-level criminal offending.Maria Almonte-Weston, Project Directorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01428528472943662806noreply@blogger.comBlogger597125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-12628829484682165222019-04-15T12:33:00.000-04:002019-04-15T12:39:38.935-04:00Ramon and Chad bring BCS to NYC Ceasefire <br />
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A couple weeks ago Chad and Ramon
participated in the New York City Police Department’s Operation Ceasefire initiative. This
annual event was launched in December 2014 in collaboration with the National
Network for Safe Communities. NYC Ceasefire recognizes that most of the violent
crime that takes place is committed by a small number of people deeply connected
to gang or drug activity. It focuses on reducing violent crime by communicating
directly with these individuals through text notifications and/or mass
meetings. NYC Ceasefire aims to bring community leaders, members of the law
enforcement community (i.e. prosecutors, probation officers, police) as well as
social service providers to give a three-pronged message to those who are
invited to attend: <o:p></o:p></div>
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<li><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Violence in the
community must come to an end</li>
<li><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"><span style="font-family: "times new roman"; font-stretch: normal; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: normal;"> </span><span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Continued violence
will face swift and intense response from law enforcement</li>
<li><span style="mso-list: Ignore;"> <span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span><!--[endif]-->Social service providers
will be present to provide resources to those willing to change.</li>
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<span style="text-indent: -0.25in;">To hear more about Ramon and Chad’s
experience in NYC Ceasefire as service providers, read below:</span><br />
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<b>Ramon</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Chad and I were asked if we
would be interested in helping with the NYC Ceasefire Initiative. As someone
who is formerly incarcerated, I believed it would be a good opportunity to
connect with formerly incarcerated individuals as well as those who are deeply
involved in gang activity. Ceasefire is collaboration with various government
agencies (New York City Police, Department of Probation) as well as many
community organizations who provide services to those who have been impacted by
gun violence. Many returning citizens and current gang members were attended
the event as participants. I must admit I felt very nervous at the event due to
the heavy police presence there. But I also believe that if I felt that way then
the individuals who attended perhaps felt the same way.<o:p></o:p></div>
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As soon as Chad and I arrived,
we were assigned to a room with other local service providers and given supplies
to conduct intake sessions. As participants begin to arrive, they will usually
stop at a desk, (apparently with those they feel more comfortable with) and
begin to have one on one case management sessions with a service provider. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I noticed that it helps when I wear my shirt
with the Bronx Community Solutions logo.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Before joining us the service
providers for case management, the participants go to another room in which
community and religious member, city, state, federal agency speaks to them
about the dangers of being involved in drug/gang activity and the intense consequences
they face from law enforcement if they continue their involvement. We were then
able to speak with the participants, encouraging them that many people in the
community simply want to feel safe and reminded them that they are cared for. This
year, Bronx Community Solutions was one of three service providers who attended
the event. We were able to work with 8 participants from the event and referred
one participant to a job training program. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Chad</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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The experience that I have had with
NYC Ceasefire has been both uplifting as well as eye-opening. I was first
invited to attend the Ceasefire event in 2018 and I have attended each meeting
since then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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I attended in the capacity of
workforce development coordinator and helped a few of the young men who attended
get connected to employment, vocational or educational services. The reception from
the participants has been very positive. The eye-opening part of Ceasefire for
me was just how young the participants were as well as the severe consequences they
would face if they were to return to a life of crime. More importantly, it was
heartwarming to see the support that the participants receive from community
stakeholders such as the clergy and community residents. We were also able to
connect participants with information for low income housing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The participants who sat with me were very
receptive to the services we had to offer. I am looking forward to attending future
Ceasefire events. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
<br />Maria Almonte-Weston, Project Directorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01428528472943662806noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-81540284801387388992018-10-05T15:47:00.003-04:002018-10-05T15:47:23.439-04:00Community Service Participates in Cedar Park Cleanup <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1mDS_g6ijR86Ctp0WSRK4S7d3K8Dhfn0EZGIB3bDG0sMPs4wqNbW5jrFxBX9hyphenhyphen-Hv8y0T0-zS88mlNJ3syOYBAXHlR5jkTSr9Qf7ikDm7B1ojDXtzooJED25iGJpIM1f3ui1/s1600/20180828_095258.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1mDS_g6ijR86Ctp0WSRK4S7d3K8Dhfn0EZGIB3bDG0sMPs4wqNbW5jrFxBX9hyphenhyphen-Hv8y0T0-zS88mlNJ3syOYBAXHlR5jkTSr9Qf7ikDm7B1ojDXtzooJED25iGJpIM1f3ui1/s400/20180828_095258.jpg" width="300" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0-3WlxHChNZ-hBy_65-X9wcYmq7KG-a1gCeom_qhLLDXz5JAV9YJFVCJGEbVWFL6kQLdZcsFlVW1Z5P-ZXFmJ8yjA0hJk0OMgh0Phq59gyVNcDiIpXMvzDA4POSFN_NISB2x4/s1600/20180828_104420.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0-3WlxHChNZ-hBy_65-X9wcYmq7KG-a1gCeom_qhLLDXz5JAV9YJFVCJGEbVWFL6kQLdZcsFlVW1Z5P-ZXFmJ8yjA0hJk0OMgh0Phq59gyVNcDiIpXMvzDA4POSFN_NISB2x4/s400/20180828_104420.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
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August 28th - Bronx Community Solutions' Community Service team spearheaded a park cleanup in Cedar Avenue Park. The crew, along with community service participants and staff from the New York City Parks Department, cam together for this event. Attendees really got their hands dirty and were able to do debris/trash removal. They also were able to replace mulch and handle some much needed landscaping of the parks' trees and bushes. This event is just one of many neighborhood cleanup projects that the Community Service Team take the initiative to do throughout the year. Take a look at the photos from this event above.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05208066071139840216noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-25735103729492522292018-10-01T14:25:00.002-04:002018-10-01T14:25:29.383-04:00Leslie Arias Farewell Interview <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDj9QqcCCmBGtPJMoxUIAWiQRaBDqv-PxtZivfBTrf_i-5WqXj5DDnXGvb6n-qnMaSJUCsiia6tKGufsukZEn7GFe959AS2BlUnJhqrt0VfH0my0ET5haqN5bYXyC6WRXBHsDV/s1600/L+Arias+Interview+Pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDj9QqcCCmBGtPJMoxUIAWiQRaBDqv-PxtZivfBTrf_i-5WqXj5DDnXGvb6n-qnMaSJUCsiia6tKGufsukZEn7GFe959AS2BlUnJhqrt0VfH0my0ET5haqN5bYXyC6WRXBHsDV/s400/L+Arias+Interview+Pic.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Leslie Arias, BCS Compliance Manager<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">
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Leslie Arias, Compliance Manager for Bronx Community Solutions, left us to relocate to Miami on last week Friday. In the three years that she was here, Leslie made an indelible impression on the our staff members and on our organizational culture. A prime example of the lasting impact of her legacy is the support group she began for staff members who wanted a safe space to express how they're feeling and what they are going through. She will be truly missed and we wish her the best in all her future endeavors. </div>
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I had the chance to sit with Leslie to conduct an interview with her to discuss her time at Bronx Community Solutions. Here are some of the things she and I were able to discuss: </div>
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<b>What I wanted to talk
to you about was your experience here and what you’re going to be doing
in Miami once you leave. So can you tell me about what you do here at Bronx Community Solutions now
and how you were able to work up toward that role? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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So currently I am a compliance
specialist. I oversee most, if not all, most compliance matters as far as court
dates and client reporting, anything that has to do with quality assurance and guaranteeing
that we are providing the most effective service to the courts and to our
clients. It’s a very ‘liaison like’ position where we work with other
departments to ensure that things are running smoothly and that policies are in
sync with each across department lines. I definitely enjoy my role as a
compliance specialist. It’s been the perfect capstone, so to speak, to my time
here. <o:p></o:p></div>
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I came to Bronx Community Solutions as an intern for
the intake department. I really just went head first into the work. I learned
how to do DWI screenings and assessments. I’m also bilingual so I was able to
use that skill to work with ADP groups. I did a 9-month internship with Bronx Community Solutions. It
wasn’t for academic credit or anything. It was more for just the work
experience because I hadn’t really had any professional experience before then,
specifically within the criminal justice field. So, you can say that my
internship here was the start of my professional career. I didn’t want to leave
at first but it was an internship, I was at the end of my nine months and it
was time to see what else was out there for me. So, I left for a few months and
I came back in February 2016 when I was hired as an intake specialist. I was
super excited about that because starting as an intake specialist felt more
like a refresher course for me. I had already known most of the
responsibilities of the job from my time as an intern even though a few things
had changed. In a very short amount of time after I came back, I discovered
that our former DWI Resource Coordinator was leaving at the time. They sort of
took me under their wing and had me observe many things with the DWI
initiative. I didn’t have a formal position with the DWI initiative but I was
able work very closely with the DWI Resource Coordinator to assist in its
implementation. The time I spent working with this project was considered to be
an informal training for me because when this position become open I decided to
apply. The DWI Resource Coordinator instead became split into two roles, one of
them being the DWI Intake Manager. The role of Intake Manager was offered to me
and it was something I decided to take on. I was doing administrative work for
the DWI initiative as well as conducting intakes and working to mainstream the
whole intake process in general. I held
this position for almost a year and then I began the transition into
compliance. I was given an opportunity to apply for a new compliance manager
position and I was immediately selected for the post. I really do feel that my
position as a compliance manager has been the culmination of my experience here. Everything I’ve done from being an intern to intake specialist has come
to fruition my current role. I’ve pushed myself to really becoming a master at
working with our client databases like JCA and that’s really helped assist in
my growth as a professional. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Wow that pretty
awesome. So just to confirm, you’ve been with Bronx Community Solutions for three years now?<o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Yes, I have been here three years. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>So, there should be
some good and bad memories here and there for you huh? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Yeah, I guess you can put it like that. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>So, I wanted to ask you
what would be your most fond memory of Bronx Community Solutions as a whole? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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I like the dynamic we have. It
ironic because I was writing a paper on organizational culture. I think that
Bronx Community Solutions has a culture where we are very family oriented. That has its strengths and
weaknesses in a sense that we have lot of unity but it’s still a weakness in
that we can fight as if we’re brothers and sisters. So, we do have that sort of
camaraderie here. But I definitely enjoy the attention to detail that people
have here. There’s this intimate sort of feeling working with the staff here
and that is something that is difficult to find in a workplace. I enjoy the
fact that people here check up on you, they ask about how you’re feeling and I
feel that’s important you know. Its important for people to feel that they are
welcomed and needed in an organization and I feel that Bronx Community Solutions has given that to me
and I couldn’t be more appreciative. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Now I don’t want to
put you on the spot. But if you could choose one person from the staff here,
who would you say has given you the most support while you were at Bronx Community Solutions? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Now that’s kind of hard because I
don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings okay! But if I had to choose one person
then it would have to be Lovis. She was the first person to hire me as an
intern and then she hired me as a compliance manager. So, she’s been a part of
my professional growth from beginning to end and I think that is pretty symbolic.
She has supported me by challenging me to envision long term career goals for
myself. I recently enrolled in graduate school and the guidance I received from
Lovis played a big role in my decision to even consider graduate school. She
helped me to see the reality things and would put my vision into context. She
would always say “if you want to get here then you’re going to have to do such
and such”. She was always pointing me in the right direction and that sort of
support when even beyond my job responsibilities. She was able to support me in
ways that were very important to me on a personal level. Her honesty and really
guiding/shaping me along the way and just helping to cultivate my professional
skills has really helped to make me into the person I am today. I think that
was a huge part of my professional growth and Lovis deserves most of the credit
for that. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Who made you laugh
the most during your time here? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Oh man!! Where do I start because
that’s a hard one! I would say Justin because he always had some random crazy
thing to say. Between Justin and Willie, I’d say. They were part of the
original intake crew and the things that would come out of their mouths would
make me be like “ugh I just can’t deal with you right now”! But it was all in
good fun. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>So now you’re
relocating to Miami. What do you hope to bring with you from your time here
when you make your transition? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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Definitely the work ethic that I’ve
been able to develop since I’ve been here. The work ethic that we have here,
the strive that we have are definitely qualities that I’d like to bring with
me. We’re not a laid back kind of office. So, going to into a part of the
country where it is much more laid back, I would like to bring that same level
of assertiveness and that can-do mentality with me. Maybe it’s a New York
attitude in general but it is definitely a Bronx Community Solutions attitude in particular. It’s
nothing for us to be answering phone calls typing emails and working with a client
all at the same time here. So, I want to make that sort of skills with me as I continue
to do this work and transition into another state. <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>So here is the final
question: What is it that you want to tell the people that you’re leaving
behind at Bronx Community Solutions? Is there a final thought or shout out that you want to give to
them? <o:p></o:p></b></div>
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<span style="line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Wow its hard and I’m going to try to do this
without crying okay? I think, besides the gratitude I feel, this has been just
such a roller coaster season for me in general and the staff here at has
been more than what they think they are to me, if that makes sense. I’ve had
colleagues that have become family to me, have become my closest friends and
they definitely have made me feel wanted and supported. I cannot tell you how
much that means to me. I will always remember this place. Anything that I say about
Bronx Community Solutions will always be good and the people still here will always have my heart.
There is a piece of my heart that will always stay here. I always felt that the
work I did here was worthwhile. I had a lengthy commute to get here and there
was never a day that went by where I thought to myself that the work we do wasn’t
worth the effort it took to get here. So, I am extremely grateful, more than I
can even express. My words really fall short in explaining how deeply connected
I am to this project and to the staff here. So, I just wish everyone here at the best. I always want to hear bigger and better things about Bronx Community Solutions and
hopefully I can come back and visit sometimes that I will see this vibrant,
robust workplace still serving the community. This place is one of a kind and I
love all of the people that are still here.</span></span></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-79301783556307809612018-09-17T16:11:00.000-04:002018-09-17T16:12:45.457-04:00Restorative Justice in the Community <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Bronx Community Justice has been running circles in the Bronx since May 2018, and the community is already yearning for more circle opportunities. When conducting outreach for community member volunteers, community members often express that community justice is long overdue in the Bronx. Potential volunteers express an eagerness to participate in the program, and frequently ask if it is possible for them to refer members of the community who have been arrested. Khalil, one our regular community member volunteers who is also heavily involved in community organizing and violence prevention in the Bronx, expressed his gratitude for the BCJ restorative circle model. After being trained in restorative practices by BCJ staff, he now brings the circle model into his daily community work, and has begun implementing restorative justice circles in his meetings with young people. Khalil has expressed an interest in taking BCJ’s work even further, stating: “how can we take what we’re already doing, and bring it to the next level? What we’re doing is building a great base, but I want to take this further.” Khalil hopes to further incorporate restorative circles into the Soundview community and utilize them to connect to young men as a tool for violence prevention. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Similarly, Tommy, a community leader in the Central Bronx, shared: “I love what you guys are doing, and I love to support it. People of color in the Bronx have been disproportionately punished for years, and this can help balance the scales. But I want to move to the next step, how can we make this longer term? How can we involve the community and bring this to them?” Tommy shared a vision of creating opportunities for ongoing circles to help build a sense of community in the Bronx River area, and to prevent potential violence in the neighborhood. Community members have also demonstrated a powerful commitment to the program. James, a 28-year-old community member who works 80 hours a week, uses his one day off to attend a three-hour circle with our program every Tuesday. James frequently shares with our participants that restorative justice circles have become therapeutic for him, and he now hopes to shift careers to become a restorative justice facilitator to help community members who are justice-involved. James is committed to volunteering with our program, and is eager to see how restorative justice can be used within his community. The dedication and enthusiasm our BCJ community members provides the BCJ staff with the motivation and enthusiasm to continue to expand the use of restorative justice practices in the Bronx, and provides critical insight into the interests and needs of the Bronx community.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-62638623522774080712018-09-17T14:23:00.000-04:002018-09-17T14:23:38.021-04:00Highlights of Bronx Community Justice <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplRXfRNNgn9GpWLPqnMtrqFYk5HqbsgZ9nJijavNTBk4GMdZD2YcvXhYIB1z6oLtWN3LaCBLgGvUoYHPSzCrdiSlFPE3ABBzaineiG3j7PD8BoKQNGf77ocIy0sm8QovyMY_h/s1600/Training+Circle+Pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgplRXfRNNgn9GpWLPqnMtrqFYk5HqbsgZ9nJijavNTBk4GMdZD2YcvXhYIB1z6oLtWN3LaCBLgGvUoYHPSzCrdiSlFPE3ABBzaineiG3j7PD8BoKQNGf77ocIy0sm8QovyMY_h/s400/Training+Circle+Pic.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Ummer Ali and Rachel Gregory </span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">U</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">nexpected connections:</span></b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Our two participants, Dario, a 19-year-old Latino man from the Bronx who was arrested for graffiti, and Lucas, a 28-year-old white man from Queens arrested for marijuana possession, initially appeared to have nothing in common. Despite their significant differences, the circle process helped the two men identify common points of connection, including the fact that Lucas was currently employed as electrical engineer, while Dario was hoping to join a union to become an engineer after having graduated high school. When discussing their reactions to their arrests, the two men described their drastically different experiences with law enforcement, and their shared desires to avoid future justice involvement. During the circle, both participants opened up about personal challenges they have experienced in their families and relationships, and the community member, Khalil, shared about the role that toxic masculinity has played in preventing himself and other men in his community from seeking needed mental health and supportive services. At the end of the circle, both participants expressed gratitude for the ability to participate in the circle process, for having the opportunity to both share personal and vulnerable stories, and for the chance to develop connections with someone from a different walk of life.</span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Discovering common ground and generating support:</span></b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Justin is a 29-year-old Latino man arrested for marijuana possession. Justin participated as a solo participant in our circle, along with our community member, James, a 28-year-old man who had past encounters with law enforcement as a young person, who is now invested in impacting his community through storytelling and mentorship. During the circle, Justin and James discovered that they had both recently moved back to New York from the South and moved in with a family member after a difficult breakup. Both men also shared that they were recovering from heartbreak and struggling to rebuild their lives, dignity, and careers in the aftermath of their relationships ending. Other significant similarities between the members were revealed over the course of the circle, including that all of the men in the room had grown up with absent fathers and single mothers who had struggled to provide the kind of emotional support their sons needed. The men in the circle shared about the feelings of shame and embarrassment they experienced after their arrest, and their concern about how they would be perceived by their families. In addition, the circle also discovered that James was currently working as a truck driver, while Justin had recently obtained his trucking license and was actively looking for trucking opportunities. After the circle ended, James exchanged numbers with Justin and offered to help him find employment in the trucking industry. The participant Justin also expressed a strong interest in returning to the program after his case was dismissed to volunteer as a community member.</span></div>
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<i><b><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Developing a sense of healthy masculinity:</span></b></i></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Kevin is an 18-year-old young man who was charged with possession of marijuana. Included in this circle were two community members Evan, and Khalil. Evan is a formerly incarcerated man who is now pursuing opportunities to mentor young people and give back to his community, and Khalil is a minister and supervisor at a neighborhood organization who has had prior justice involvement, and who now works to prevent violence by mentoring young people in his neighborhood. Prior to the circle starting, Kevin was closed off and slightly confrontational. The circle engaged in a conversation about what it means to be a man in our communities, and discussed experiences of vulnerability and loss. The conversation explored experiences of grieving after the loss of a loved one, and the difficulty in navigating emotions as a man. During the circle, Kevin also discussed his experience of his arrest, and opened up about what he would do differently in the future to make better decisions. Evan offered advice on what it means to be a man in prison, and why Kevin should avoid going there at all costs. Towards the end of the circle, Kevin thanked Khalil for teaching him about what it means to be a man, and Khalil shared that he had learned a lot about manhood from speaking to Kevin as well. Khalil then offered to help Kevin with mentoring and job opportunities moving forward. We ended the circle with a powerful statement from Kevin: “I don’t have a lot of male role models in my neighborhood. It’s hard to find people to look up, but I feel like I’ve found that group today amongst you guys.” Since the circle has ended, Kevin has voluntarily returned to BCJ to meet with a social worker. During his voluntary case management session, Kevin discussed his plans to go to college, explored potential job opportunities in the construction field, and began working on his resume. Following his individual session, the social worker from BCJ is now working to connect Kevin to a basketball coach at Bronx River Community Center so he can get involved in basketball in a safe neighborhood space. Finally, Kevin has expressed an interest in returning to Bronx Community Justice circles as a volunteer community member this fall.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-79413681253143112062018-09-17T14:15:00.000-04:002018-09-17T14:16:41.132-04:00Community Partner Conversations: Tomas Ramos <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF6nsAt99thH6gvlixVGflPWI0uAO-xRZNHdrPAOVs_Qc2l9yVdszGd_2zt77nBHEZE79OBIc6499zrHmc4nzcAtgdHFH7puGjGO2cEv4cs9yo_38qYnq1ukZs_ULXmPWNGx9I/s1600/Tomas+Pic+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1588" data-original-width="1258" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF6nsAt99thH6gvlixVGflPWI0uAO-xRZNHdrPAOVs_Qc2l9yVdszGd_2zt77nBHEZE79OBIc6499zrHmc4nzcAtgdHFH7puGjGO2cEv4cs9yo_38qYnq1ukZs_ULXmPWNGx9I/s400/Tomas+Pic+%25282%2529.jpg" width="316" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bronx River Community Center Program Director Tomas Ramos accepts recognition award from Jennifer Petersen</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tomas Ramos, Program Director for the Bronx River Community Center, has been one of the original three partners of Bronx Community Justice. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Tomas has been a hands on collaborator s</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ince the first moment of hearing the idea of using restorative practices to solve the problems within the community. He has offered space within the center to conduct restorative circles, encouraged staff members to participate in training sessions provided by Bronx Community Justice and has served as a volunteer for the program as well. Nearly one dozen participants have had their cases solved by sitting in circle and 15 residents of the community have been trained in restorative practices within this community center. Bronx Community Justice has now become a stable in the Bronx River community and it owed, in large part, to Tomas' leadership and passion for this effort. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I had a chance to sit down with Tomas for a quick discussion about this partnership and where he would like to see it progress towards: </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I want you to be able to give me a brief description of the programs and activities that are offered here at Bronx River. </span></b><div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We offer after school programs for middle school and high school students from 2:00PM to 6:00PM Monday through Friday. And within that afterschool programming, we provide help with homework. We offer classes focusing on STEM, financial literacy, and civics as well. During the evening hours we provide programming for the community at large, specifically for high school students and adults. We have a volleyball program, a basketball program, we offer Zumba and self defense classes. We have a recording studio that is open to the public. Finally we host advisory board meetings and parent committee meetings for the residents of Bronx River Houses. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can you tell me what your initial reaction was after you were approached with the idea of bringing restorative circles into this space as another resource for the community? </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was first approached about Bronx Community Justice itself, I was extremely excited about it because I didn't know there were any organizations doing this kind of work in The Bronx. This borough needs it the most out of all the five boroughs. We definitely have the largest incarceration rate for people of color and most of the people who get arrested, in my opinion, should not be arrested. There should be some sort of alternative. So when I was approached about this and told that it was a pilot program for young people to avoid going into the criminal court system I was just extremely in awe and very excited about it. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What exactly compelled you to agree to bring this program into Bronx River Community Center? Did you see a particular need for it in the community or was it more of a positive addition to the programs that were already here? </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I would say both. There is definitely a need for restorative circles in this community and we also want to expand services and to have more resources for the community. Young people in this neighborhood are arrested every day for minor violations, misdemeanors offences that they shouldn't be going through the court system to for. I was told by someone who is engaged in this sort of work that if someone is arrested once it is very likely that they will be arrested again. So if you can bypass going through the court system and have a clean slate, then maybe a young person can avoid being held in the court system. That's why I love this program and why I agree to bring it to the center. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You've had the opportunity to be trained in restorative justice by Bronx Community Justice staff and have been able to sit in a circle with our participants. Can you describe what those experiences were like for you? </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To me it was a very positive experience. It opened a dialogue for the participants in the circle. I feel like opening up and telling your story can sometimes catch those participants and engage them in a positive way. I remember of the participants I sat in circle with was explaining how he arrested and that he really liked basketball. I was really able to make a connection with him because I remembered how much I liked basketball and that I used to get in trouble all the time at his age. By me telling my story I know that we were able to make an even stronger connection. We were able to speak afterwards and I could see that he looked at me as a positive role model for him. </span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Do you have a long term vision about where you see restorative justice going in Bronx River Houses and in this community center? </span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So I know that Bronx Community Justice is only using restorative justice to deal with minor offences as of right now. Hopefully we can get to the point where we are using circles to deal with more serious misdemeanor offences. Instead of going to traditional court we can have restorative circles here at this community center and have more structured-long term programming. When you're talking about more serious crimes then I would argue that they would need more than a one time intervention. I would like to see a program that is based on a three month or six month time frame with multiple sessions so we could really see the change in the participants and their situations over time. So I do see this growing and building and I want to be a part of it every state of the way. </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-17428765944270291432018-08-10T10:24:00.001-04:002018-08-10T10:24:53.783-04:00BCS Participates in National Night Out Events <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAxB723PaGpLxf9pegpjg7PWpuIwH0r5XErCoWsdWUVIs-bFC-OG6d2W4VlW84qVPHN_ig4TLu7J5PW5iulC9WnRRnq2RFdf2-Jg2_GQWtWOl9lHYzGBLLew-dUhkr92FX6j9E/s1600/BxDABYC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="741" data-original-width="749" height="395" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAxB723PaGpLxf9pegpjg7PWpuIwH0r5XErCoWsdWUVIs-bFC-OG6d2W4VlW84qVPHN_ig4TLu7J5PW5iulC9WnRRnq2RFdf2-Jg2_GQWtWOl9lHYzGBLLew-dUhkr92FX6j9E/s400/BxDABYC.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bronx Youth Court Members with Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark at National Night Out </td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"> Bronx Community Solutions had the great opportunity to participate in several National Night Out Events with our partners in the New York City Police Department. National Night Out is a 35 year tradition of bringing law enforcement and community members together to build connections and raise awareness on public safety issues. Each NYPD police precinct hosts a block party for their communities and this year our staff was able to participate in 3 separate events! </span><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Our community service crews supported the 44th Precinct by cleaning Mullaly Park and helping to prepare for their event. The crews</span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"> also assisted the 41st Precinct by cleaning
Longwood Avenue between Beck Street and Southern Blvd. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 18.6667px; text-indent: 0.5in;"> Bronx Community Solutions' Restorative Justice Team was able to partner with the NYPD's 43rd Precinct's block party that day too. This was the first time in which our Bronx Youth Court members had an opportunity to participate in a community event of this size. Our youth were able to participate by staffing our vendor table, handing out flyers, speaking to community members about Bronx Youth Court and helping out at the other vendor tables. They were also able to snag a picture with our very own District Attorney Darcel Clark!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14.0pt;"><o:p> </o:p></span><span style="font-size: 14pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">We are always excited to collaborate with our law enforcement partners in this amazing event. Thanks and appreciation to all the community based organizations who also attend every year and
take the time to make a positive impact in the community. It just keeps
getting better!</span></div>
<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-43654320462600205242018-08-02T12:45:00.001-04:002018-08-06T10:15:21.896-04:00HARMONY DAY AT VAN CORTLANDT PARK <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijih7wOTxQOZ9IVAh-NbT7Fpe7pp58LyqpnqNB9DxqmuD5vPgoWxRb9gGFp5mKYzHdZ4sv2rXmAEGP9rVMK52St0mYJk_HG-976HxoodQ5WHKSkny5SRZg4-LtnL4vaHqA02Qm/s1600/Harmony+Day+4+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1018" data-original-width="1512" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijih7wOTxQOZ9IVAh-NbT7Fpe7pp58LyqpnqNB9DxqmuD5vPgoWxRb9gGFp5mKYzHdZ4sv2rXmAEGP9rVMK52St0mYJk_HG-976HxoodQ5WHKSkny5SRZg4-LtnL4vaHqA02Qm/s640/Harmony+Day+4+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Crew Supervisor Corey Hatton leading the young people into Van Courtlandt Park </td></tr>
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The New York City Police Department held its annual
community event, Harmony Day, in the Bronx on Tuesday July 24, 2018.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Harmony Day Picnic was held a Van
Cortland Park with over 3,500 attendees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The three-decade old tradition is intended to bridge the gap between law
enforcement officers and the community.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Each year, Bronx Community Solutions’ Community Service team of staff
members and clients assist the NYPD with setup, cleanup and making Harmony Day
go smoothly for the children and families attending.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Here is Community Service Supervisor Corey Hatton’s account
of the Harmony Day festivities:</b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Today was a great day for this special event. It was a
bright, sunny day even though rain was predicted in the forecast earlier. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was an attendee and there were young people all
over the park. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At times, it seemed like
every summer camp in New York showed up to participate. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Counselors had their hands full. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The kids were having a lot of fun--there were
bouncy houses, dance battles, Frisbee, football, and many more activities. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Supervisors and community service clients
participated in a game of tug-of-war and (before you ask) of course we won,
more than once. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Police were there from
multiple precincts to mingle with the community. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Harmony Day has a long tradition of putting
kids first. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was an enjoyable event and
we are already excited for next year. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></div>
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Thank you to all who participated in this amazing event.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b><u>Bronx Community
Solutions Staff: </u></b><u><o:p></o:p></u></div>
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<b>Intake Specialist -</b>
Ramon Semorile<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Intake specialist</b>
- Dilma Taveras<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Coordinator of
Community Service & Initiative</b> - Moises Reyes<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Senior Crew
Supervisor</b> - Anthony Gonzalez <o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Crew Supervisor</b> -
Ismael Cruz<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Crew Supervisor</b> -
Corey Hatton <o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-60667062799385712372018-06-08T10:47:00.001-04:002018-07-05T15:30:35.084-04:00New Mentoring Program Works with Young Men<div>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Bronx Community Solutions launched a young men's mentoring group. The group will allow Bronx Community Solutions clients the chance to participate in roundtable discussions with male mentors who are leaders in the community, and share meaningful stories of their own struggles and how they can best support each other. In this Q&A, Youth Justice Coordinator <strong>Justin Briggs </strong>discusses Bronx Community Solutions and the young men's mentoring group.</span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Youth Justice Coordinator Justin Briggs</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><strong>How did you come to work for Bronx Community Solutions and how have you grown in the job?</strong><br /><br /><strong>Briggs</strong>: I came to Bronx Community Solutions as an intern through a program called AmeriCorps. At that time, I was attending a high school equivalency prep course with another agency. A Bronx Community Solutions staff member called my case manager and asked if he had anyone for this great internship opportunity that would provide a stipend and an educational award that could be used for any type of schooling. He immediately thought of me and presented the opportunity. I didn’t want to do it at first because the internship was in a criminal court and I was concerned about losing my “street cred”. I was 19 years old and just getting my priorities together, so taking the opportunity was the beginning of challenging myself for change. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">So,
I decided to take on the internship and during that 2-year period I got involved
in almost every department Bronx Community Solutions had at the time Intake, Clinic, and Community
Service Cleanup Crew. When my internship was over, I applied for an intake
position and became an official employee. I've grown tremendously since first
starting at Bronx Community Solutions. I developed professionalism, more maturity, and a new huge understanding
of people, how no one is perfect and we are all a work in progress.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">What led you to start a mentoring program for
young men?</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">What led me to
start a mentoring program for young men was having that understanding of people
being a “work in progress”. Me being able to identify a time and place of being
a young man and not understanding how important progress is and how we can
evolve by working on ourselves; building and defining our character. Growing up
in NYC in an urban environment showed me a lot regarding the way society views
young men of color and how much we ourselves add to stereotypes or negative
perceptions. The goal is not to change the thought process, but add to the
thought process and hopefully what is added can help them find a balance so
they can make better life defining choices.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">Do
you have any individuals in your life who you consider to be a mentor/role
model? If so who are they and how have they played a positive role in your
life?</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">Well my first
mentor/role model was my mother. Being a single woman of color and dealing with
certain struggles while at the same time instilling education and culture in
me. She always encouraged me to be better than the struggles around me and not
to end up “another statistic”. I have two older brothers that got involved in
the streets, so where she felt she went wrong with them, she wanted to do right
with me. My brothers also ended up being my role models. My oldest turned his
life of drug dealing into becoming a business man. Now he owns a barber shop
and is opening a juice bar in Albany. My second oldest brother introduced me to
hip hop and fashion. The whole matching thing I do with my clothes is
influenced by my second oldest brother. He was an aspiring rapper and
influenced me to write and express myself through poetry when I was growing
up.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"> </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">What
is your long-term vision for the mentoring group?</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">I want to get men
of color who has dealt with struggle and turned it into success to come in and
have a group discussion. Having the youth see people that come from overcome
their struggles and make something good out of it can have a powerful impact.
Since I mainly work with the male population I feel that helping to influence
them in a positive way can have a ripple effect on the community.</span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></b></div>
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<b style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">What
are the requirements for participating? In addition to gaining a mentor, what
other benefits will your clients gain by becoming a part of the group?</b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; text-align: justify;">The clients will
hopefully gain a sense of identifying what “masculinity” looks like, the role
they play being a man in their family and community, and identifying resources
that they can benefit from for employment, support and education.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-47989721855233816972018-05-31T16:31:00.000-04:002018-07-05T15:20:23.945-04:00Supervised Release Marks Two-Year Milestone <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The Supervised Release Program recently held its annual recognition ceremony to acknowledge clients who fulfilled their obligations and completed their cases. Clients spoke about the positive impact the program has had on their lives. The ceremony was also an opportunity to commemorate the program's two-year anniversary. The numbers clearly show the success of the program: in 2017, 93 percent of Bronx Supervised Release clients made their next court appearance. In this Q&A, Supervised Release program managers and staff speak about the program and plans for the future. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /><span style="font-size: 14px;"><strong>What has been the most significant accomplishment of the Supervised Release Program and its staff? </strong></span><br /><span style="font-size: 14px;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">The most significant accomplishment is the reverberating impact on lives, families and communities. The Bronx has released 1,409 participants under supervision from March 2016 to February 2018 with a 75 percent compliance rate, proving that cash bail is not the only way to ensure that those at risk for flight or re-arrest can be appropriately supervised. </span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt;">The Most significant staff accomplishment is the
continual ability to sustain the day to day fervor, insight and focus on the
countless of lives we serve.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">Whether it
is on the front line in court advocating and going the extra mile for
eligibility or contending with caseloads into the 60’s, the ability to be
effective in such a high stake and emotionally charged arena speaks to their
unwavering dedication and commitment to impacting lives and changing the system
in the way it views and uses bail.</span><span style="font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt;">We
are the difference makers in the bail reform fight.</span></span></blockquote>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Since the
implementation of supervised release, there have been several charitable bail
organizations that have come into existence, such as The Bronx Freedom Fund,
and they do work that is quite like the work done by you and your staff every
day. Can you explain what are the differences between the work being done
through supervised release and charitable bail? Do you see any possible
collaboration between Bronx Community Solutions and local charitable bail
organizations in the future?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">We all have our place in bail reform working towards the same goals, but
with unique approaches of how we go about changing the narrative and infusing
alternative measures into the system.</span></blockquote>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Can you
talk a bit about what sort of impact supervised release has had on the culture
within Bronx Criminal Court or more specifically, has supervised release become
a program that judges, prosecutors and defense counsel both embrace and have
some level of trust in? If so how long did it take for Bronx Community
Solutions to build that trust?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">BCS has a rich history of court-side
collaborative innovation and sentencing programming. Pre-trial supervision was
outside of our wheel house, but as a solid social service provider and
monitoring agency for the court, it was not beyond our expansion capacity.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">The onset of SRP was a little tricky in
getting full buy in, but with key legal stakeholders like Judge Grasso, the
strong reputation and credibility of BCS [Bronx Community Solutions], trainings/ technical support from
MOCJ [Mayor's office of Criminal Justice], and a dedicated team of program staff, trust and reliance on the program
was quickly embraced (our 3-month numbers were met in the first month).</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">As with ATI programming, judges, prosecutors
and defense have come to rely on SRP as a viable option to give an opportunity
for individuals, within a structured model, to avoid the collateral
consequences of Riker’s [Island Correctional Facility].</span></blockquote>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Supervised
Release is staffed by a group of dynamic social workers and resource
coordinators that work daily to ensure the program’s success. Sometimes the
work can be draining and even discouraging for them. If you had the chance to
say give words of encouragement to your team what would they be?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">The staff work tirelessly.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">They are often the ones who are here working past 5 PM because there doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to balance the work
load.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">However, they always seem to put
the client first.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">Court staff work now
365 days a week in 18-hour shifts, and again, they always seem to put the
clients first.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">I would say that your
labor is not in vain – that there are countless of stories of impact that we
may never know.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">As people get arrested
and returned to their families, against the odds, it is solely because we were
there and offered the court an alternative.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">They are the difference makers in this process called procedural justice
and fairness.</span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">One day when Riker’s and
the cash bail system is changed for the better, they will always be able to say,
“I was a part of that.</span></blockquote>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><br /></span></b>
<b style="font-size: 11pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">As
Supervised Release goes into its 3rd year of operations, what do you hope to
see the program accomplish in the future?</span></b><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;"><br /></span>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: 11pt;">Expansion into to the Domestic Violence arrest population and
inclusion of programming that speaks to some of the felony arrest and younger
age populations.</span></blockquote>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-9991258809599056372018-02-16T10:29:00.001-05:002018-04-12T10:20:47.459-04:00Bronx Community Justice Brings Restorative Practices to the Borough<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Community members practice restorative circles at a recent volunteer training.</i></td></tr>
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<o:p>Bronx Community Solutions has collaborated with NYPD and the Bronx District Attorney's Office to create an early arrest, early diversion project based on the principles of restorative justice. This project will serve individuals arrested for quality of life misdemeanor offenses. Eligible participants will be able to have their cases resolved by attending a restorative circle instead of an appearance in criminal court. Restorative circles will bring participants together with volunteer residents to foster conversation on the impact of harm on the broader neighborhood, how they can work together to build community and address pressing concerns. Restorative Justice aims to empower volunteer residents by putting in their hands the power to address quality of life offenses that take place within their community. It also aims to show participants that there are members in the community who care about their well being and want to work with them to avoid further involvement in the justice system.</o:p></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-81381511402885904882018-02-16T10:22:00.003-05:002018-04-12T10:20:21.851-04:00New Drug Treatment Court To Serve High Risk Opioid Users<span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><br /></span>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><i>Bronx Community Solutions' Project Director, Maria Almonte-Weston, speaks at the </i></span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: 12px;"><i>OAR press conference alongside Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark and </i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="font-size: 12px;"><i>Chief Administrative Judge, Hon. Judge George Grasso</i></span></span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "merriweather" , "georgia" , "times new roman" , serif;">January 28th - BCS is proud to announce the launch of an innovative treatment court that will work with misdemeanor drug offenders, specifically opioid users who are at high risk of overdose. The Overdose and Avoidance Recovery program (OAR) will offer intensive drug treatment to participants instead of jail time, and will offer support services such as employment readiness and supportive housing. Participation in OAR is voluntary, and eligible offenders who complete the program will have their case dismissed and sealed.<br /><br />OAR "is an innovative tool for confronting a scourge that has ravaged the Bronx far too long and ruined hundreds of lives," Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said. "Last year, our borough had the second highest rate of opioid overdose deaths in the state. My office has a duty to stem this health crisis by addressing defendants who cycle through the criminal justice system because of crimes fueled by drug abuse."<br /><br />The Bronx has seen the highest increase in opioid related deaths over the past few years than all other NYC boroughs. In 2017 alone, more than 300 Bronx residents died of drug overdoses, double the number in 2010.<br /><br />“It's not the normal sense of crime and punishment. Our track is about compassion and recovery,” Judge George Grasso, Administrative Judge for the Bronx Criminal Court said. “Now we are in full crisis mode...It's not about slapping wrists. It's about saving lives.”</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-32183398130689568082017-11-09T17:05:00.000-05:002018-01-04T18:19:06.365-05:00Former Clients Lead Town Hall on Police-Community Relations<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 8px; text-overflow: ellipsis; word-wrap: break-word;">
<i>written by Serena Tillman, Youth Justice Social Worker</i></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>former BCS clients present on police-community relations at the Civilian Complaint Review Board town hall meeting</i></td></tr>
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Yesterday Bronx Community Solutions' Youth/Young Adult Team and two former clients attended the <a href="http://www1.nyc.gov/site/ccrb/index.page">Civilian Complaint Review Board</a> (CCRB) Town Hall Meeting. We were invited to prepare a statement addressing the night's topic of police-community relations. The meeting was intended to open a dialogue with community leaders and residents of the Bronx in order to better understand police-community relations in the borough. It was a forum for the community to voice their concerns, offer insights, and share experiences with policing in their neighborhood.</div>
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<a href="http://exaltyouth.org/">Exalt</a>, a non-profit based in Brooklyn, serves 15-19 year old previously-incarcerated youth and young adults by providing training and a paid 6-week internship in any of the 5 boroughs. Exalt is our leading referral partner for young clients seeking employment. When we received the invitation from CCRB, we immediately thought to reach out to our partners at Exalt to identify a graduate (and former BCS client) who could present at the town hall.</div>
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*Candace was a client of Bronx Community Solutions in August 2015 and, upon completion, was referred to Exalt. She graduated from their program and is now working full time as an Administrative Assistant at the Daphne Foundation. The Daphne Foundation invests in organizations that empower community residents directly affected by poverty, violence & discrimination to develop solutions that result in a more equitable, fair and peaceful New York City. Candace spoke about things the CCRB can do to foster public trust, such as eliminating the stigmatization of black communities and setting a better example for black and brown kids than what surrounds them.</div>
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*April was a client BCS client last January and upon completion was referred to Exalt. April graduated from Exalt in June and was offered a part-time job at her internship placement, Sweet Water Dance & Yoga Studio. April shared a personal encounter with the police in her precinct and the negative perception NYPD seem to have of African Americans.</div>
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<i>How we're changing the court:</i></div>
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By participating in our Adolescent Diversion programming, young people are connected to staff and services relevant and specific to their needs and life stage. Our work with partners like Exalt helps young people build and maintain strong connections with their communities long after their court mandates are completed. Through Exalt, Candace and April had the opportunity to gain important job skills and access platforms to fight for their community and strengthen their public speaking skills. </div>
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* names have been changed for confidentiality </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-50788537882528086052017-10-27T14:58:00.000-04:002017-10-27T14:59:56.758-04:00Supervised Release Talks Justice Reform in Washington D.C.<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<i>The following post was written by John Megaw, Director of Special Initiatives</i></div>
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On Friday, October 20, 2017 an intrepid group of Supervised
Release staff from Bronx Community Solutions traveled to the 2017
International Criminology Conference at the Whittemore House, home of the
Women’s National Democratic Club in Washington, D.C. This annual conference is
organized by the <a href="http://www.ipsonet.org/">Policies Studies Organization</a> of the American Public
University System. Despite the utility of the internet, there really is no
substitute for hearing directly in-person from those that helped design and
implement this bail reform program in New York City.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>The Supervised Release team in Washington D.C. (from left to right): Tracee Page, Geraldine Mangual, Elizabeth Swan-Taylor, John Megaw, Jamaal Anderson</i></td></tr>
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The format for the presentation titled, <i>Is Supervised Release an Important Part of Justice Reform? Lessons from
the New York Unified Court System </i>was a panel discussion which included Ms.
Rosa Aguirre, the Associate Director of Case Management Services, Ms. Tracee
Page, the Associate Director of Court Operations and Mr. Jamaal Anderson, a
Supervised Release Graduate. Each of these presenters spoke passionately about
Supervised Release – how it is designed to reduce the use of unnecessary jail
and promote voluntary social services to those charged with non-violent felony
and misdemeanor offenses and to help defendants avoid future contact with the
justice system. As a graduate of the program, Mr. Anderson discussed the
importance of the support he was given by his Supervised Release case manager,
how his case was ultimately resolved as well as the help he was given to secure
new employment.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The presentation was well received and there were excellent
questions from the audience as they considered the benefits of decreasing the
use of bail at arraignment and creating a format to help defendants address
underlying causes of negative behaviors.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>2017 International Criminology Conference</i></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-30894153560939617412017-10-05T18:12:00.000-04:002017-10-05T18:12:06.768-04:00Getting in the Weeds with Community Service: A Garden in Need<div class="MsoNormal">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Community Service staff members Azem Dobrodoli and Corey Hatton hard at work</i></td></tr>
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Every day as they clean the parks and streets of the Bronx, our community service team and clients provide the most visible presence for Bronx Community Solutions in the borough. Over the years, our "crew" (as we call them) has gained quite the reputation and, in turn receive weekly requests from local residents, businesses, politicians and other community members to bring their special touch and expertise to various projects around the Bronx. <br />
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One recent request came from an employee of <a href="http://www.childrensaidnyc.org/programs/community-schools/">Children's Aid Society</a>, who partners with schools to provide academic programming, health services and much more. Children's Aid works with the Bronx's P.S. 50 and recently acquired a community garden nearby where they plan to run their <a href="http://www.childrensaidnyc.org/programs/gardening">Go! Healthy Gardens</a> program for students. But years of neglect had left the space overrun with weeds, trash and broken furniture.<br />
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Enter Bronx Community Solutions' crew who, 4 staff members and 7 clients strong, went to work for three days cleaning and weed whacking and doing what they do best. The final product speaks for itself. Check out the pictures and video to see a job well done. <br />
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How we're <i>Changing the Court</i>: <br />
The justice system has traditionally offered punitive sentences such as fines and jail time, giving offenders no opportunity to reconnect with their communities or the people in them. Bronx Community Solutions' community service projects provide a restorative framework-- holding people accountable while giving back to the borough and neighborhoods where they live. Through these projects, clients are often introduced to people and places previously unknown to them and have the chance to re-engage with their place of residence in positive ways. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Before (above): the garden's overgrown weeds and broken furniture made it un-walkable and unsafe<br /><br />After (below): BCS staff and clients literally paved the way for the garden to become a use-able space and learning environment for local elementary school students</td></tr>
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Watch the team in action!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-77630604151132114412017-10-04T13:22:00.001-04:002017-10-04T13:22:24.493-04:00BCS on the Beat with 42nd Precinct<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Bronx Community Solutions continued our growing collaboration with the 42nd precinct last Thursday as two of our clinical staff members, Shlomit Levy (Clinical Coordinator) and Magaly Melendez (Safety & Empowerment Counselor) took to the streets with NYPD to conduct outreach in areas with high prostitution rates. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Outreach was a huge success as BCS staff spoke at the opening roll call meeting, rode along with officers and engaged with a total of 7 women to provide care packages and information about Bronx Community Solutions' voluntary services. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">How we're <i>Changing the Court</i>:</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Bronx Community Solutions and The Center for Court Innovation are among a group of justice practicioners increasingly recognizing that prostitution is often a form of human trafficking. In response, new approaches have developed--rather than fines and jail time--to address the complex and overlapping problems, including violence, fear, trauma, abuse and drug addiction, that keep many prostituted women, men and children in "the life" of prostitution. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">Police officers too have began recognizing the deeper needs of the residents they serve who are "in the life" and understand that collaborating with organizations like BCS will best address these needs. Since beginning our collaboration with NYPD, Bronx Community Solutions has been able to provide both immediate (water, food, condoms) and long-term (counseling, warrant vacation, employment services) assistance to men and women "in the life", with the hopes that their needs will be addressed without involvement in the criminal justice system. You can read more about our human trafficking initiatives here: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">http://www.courtinnovation.org/topic/human-trafficking</span><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Magaly Melendez and Shlomit Levy present at the 42nd precinct's "roll call" </i></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>BCS staff conduct outreach to Bronx residents</i></td></tr>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;"><br /></span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-67248515369123349862017-08-11T11:07:00.000-04:002017-10-04T11:11:26.184-04:00NYPD and Bronx Community Solutions Join Forces at Annual Safety Summit<div style="background-color: white; color: #333333; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; margin-bottom: 8px; text-overflow: ellipsis; word-wrap: break-word;">
On Thursday, August 10th, Bronx Community Solutions' Safety and Empowerment Initiative Counselor, Magaly Melendez, and Clinical Coordinator, Shlomit Levy, attended the Safety Summit, sponsored by the Bronx's 42nd precinct. The summit, led by the 42nd precinct's Neighborhood Coordination Officers, featured Bronx-based leaders and agencies providing community-based services and advocacy. </div>
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Those present included Bronx Community Solutions, the <a href="https://www.aspca.org/about-us/contact-us">ASPCA</a>, the <a href="http://schools.nyc.gov/default.htm">Department of Education</a>, and <a href="http://odysseyhousenyc.org/">Odyssey House</a>. Shlomit and Magaly spoke about Bronx Community Solutions' voluntary walk-in services including mental health referrals, drug treatment, employment advocacy and more. District 16 Councilwoman (and long-time BCS partner) Vanessa Gibson spoke about community safety and the summit closed with a discussion among concerned residents and community members on the precinct's high crime areas. </div>
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How we're <i>Changing the Court</i>: </div>
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Bronx Community Solutions' Safety & Empowerment Initiative has recently partnered with the 42nd precinct to conduct outreach to women who are being trafficked and exploited. We look forward to our growing partnership and continuing to collaborate on projects that will benefit the community.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Bronx Community Solutions staff member Shlomit Levy and Magaly Melendez with Council Member Vanessa Gibson and officers from the 42nd Precinct</i></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-41168536499934404482017-07-31T16:56:00.001-04:002017-10-05T11:22:46.194-04:00BCS Community Impact at Tremont Avenue<iframe allowfullscreen="true" frameborder="0" height="569" mozallowfullscreen="true" src="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/10Tfwn_P0DXJxzD6MrjdndtwBk3qThjJnNRblikTjluI/embed?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000" webkitallowfullscreen="true" width="960"></iframe>Last Friday, Bronx Community Solutions teamed up with Precinct 48 and Community Board #6 to host a special graffiti cleanup event along Tremont Avenue. The graffiti has been a serious concern for shop owners in the area, who were worried that it could negatively affect their business, so we decided it would be a great community project to take on with our clients and partners.<br />
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The weather was picture perfect. Everyone was briefed on what to do and what group they were working with. We took over Tremont Avenue armed with spray cans, rollers, brushes, dust pans, brooms and garbage bags.We started on
Belmont Avenue and worked our way up to Southern Blvd., painting over graffiti tagged walls and
gates on stores and businesses. We had our work cut out for us, as graffiti covered much of that stretch of Tremont.
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As we were working, many people passing by asked us what we were doing. When we explained, they told us they were happy the neighborhood
was being cleaned up. The business owners were very pleased to have their
property look presentable again. One particular owner--of Linda’s Pizzeria--gave
us complimentary smoothies to show his gratitude. He even told the News 12 reporter how happy he was about the project. </div>
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We
wrapped up the day with Pizza. We didn’t get to paint as many store fronts as we had wanted to because we were short on time, but we will definitely be returning soon to finish what we started. BCS is looking
forward to a continuing partnership with the 48th Precinct and District Manager John
Sanchez on graffiti issues.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Thank you so much to our partners at </b><b>Community Board #6:</b></div>
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District Manager John Sanchez
and Support Team: Evan Cui, Suzanna Ya, Neil Van Cott, Joshua Murillo</div>
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<b>And to our partners at Precinct 48:</b> Celisbeth Perez, Officer Sanchez and
Officer Mims</div>
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<b>And of course, thanks to our wonderful community service staff:</b></div>
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Crew Supervisors Anthony Gonzalez and Corey
Hatton, Up Next Intern Joshua Jackson, and staff members Tiffany Barksdale and Chris Rivera.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><b><span style="color: purple;">See our day of community service featured on News 12 with a quote from our very own staff member Tiffany Barksdale</span> <span style="color: blue;"><a href="http://bronx.news12.com/story/35995784/volunteers-clean-graffiti-from-east-tremont-businesses">here</a>!</span></b></span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-81557066294069036032017-07-25T15:26:00.000-04:002017-07-25T15:26:30.484-04:00BCS at Harmony Dayby Caroline Yang, Summer Intern<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Above: BCS Clients and staff members helping clean up at Harmony Day</td></tr>
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Today the BCS Community Service team took a break from its usual routine, and brought clients to Van Cortlandt Park to help out with the NYPD's Harmony Day. The event, which has been held annually for 30 years, aims to improve relationships between police officers and young people in the communities they serve by bringing them together for a day of fun.<br />
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BCS clients helped out by keeping the area clean for kids enjoying the arcade games, bouncy castle, climbing wall, dunk tank and lots more. Overall, not a bad way to spend the morning!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">An officer takes a dunk!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">BCS Community Service staff at Harmony Day</td></tr>
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<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxPOtqGJKX4ZR776spRSJZ4fyCkRoJ0u8djhoQOBPrt5SuCGaNqgXE3yrg26aGwK7i_5SGoxqxpG6o' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0HF0o8lhocnkm0K5VjSGMP-5FaRLIU4sF1R1MzOebwcPno6wi1JR_ykLWMiAJ9hB6FKVsafmbDZzFaMOwmFCBF_othXKOCld0CRNIpQPtY6iRA3Ob42J-lt0Iu5Q9qc3bbaVj/s1600/harmony+day+5.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0HF0o8lhocnkm0K5VjSGMP-5FaRLIU4sF1R1MzOebwcPno6wi1JR_ykLWMiAJ9hB6FKVsafmbDZzFaMOwmFCBF_othXKOCld0CRNIpQPtY6iRA3Ob42J-lt0Iu5Q9qc3bbaVj/s320/harmony+day+5.png" width="240" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span> The Sticky Wall was a big hit <span style="font-size: x-small;"> </span>Brave souls attempting the climbing wall</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting patiently for a facepaint makeover</td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-20520872993342486302017-07-25T12:25:00.001-04:002017-10-05T11:37:03.012-04:00Connecting the Dots: "Punishment and Help"<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 115%; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Below, Bronx Community Solutions' community service staff member Corey Hatton describes
an experience working with a client address his specific needs with the help of
clinic staff member Magaly Melendez. Though the client was at BCS to complete a
community service mandate, Corey recognized that he could benefit from BCS’s
social service resources, and Magaly was able to find him a place to live.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Last month I had a
client named John* who told me he needed a MetroCard to get on the train.
He didn’t want to get on the subway without paying, because it was against the
law and the reason he was mandated to do community service in the first place.
I believed he needed it. I made a couple of calls to the clinic. Eventually, Magaly
met with him, and he was given the MetroCards because it was a special
situation.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">John came back the
next day to complete his community service. After he signed in we started
talking, and he thanked me for helping him get access to transportation. The
conversation turned to talking about his life. He told me he had done twenty
years in prison and he was still adjusting to regular life. He told me kind of
a funny story: after he had gotten out of prison, he went to the subway to try
to buy tokens. “Yeah, tokens,” the clerk laughed. She had to tell him they don’t
sell those anymore, and introduced him to MetroCards. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">John went on to tell
me that he was homeless, and that both his parents were deceased. He rarely saw
his kids, and his siblings lived in different states, so he was alone. He told
me that he had to carry all his belongings—heavy duffle bags and backpacks—from
place to place. Breaks in the conversation allowed me to process this
information and think about what I should do, while I engaging with other
clients and World Vision employees.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I wanted to help, so I
spoke with Magaly [a BCS clinic staff member]. She told me she wanted to meet
with John. Fast forward a little and I was escorting him to the intake office.
I had him wait while I spoke to Magaly—I just wanted to explain the whole
situation to her. I introduced them and The Great Magaly proceeded to work a
miracle. She made a call, and quickly found a place for him to live in Far
Rockaway. She showed us pictures of the place on her computer, and I think we
all were impressed and surprised at how nice it looked. John even took a
picture of it. He was in tears, and I think Magaly got a little misty too. <o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I want to take this
opportunity to say thank you to Magaly. You are awesome, and I think you even
surprised yourself. You said you have never placed anybody that fast. You set a
record and pushed the bar even higher. I know your help came from the heart and
you are very appreciated. You made John’s day. I’m happy to know great people
like you.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">I thought it would be
a good idea for the client to meet and talk with Ramon [a community service
staff member], since Ramon can understand what it’s like to be incarcerated for
a long time. Ramon was instrumental in providing support for someone in need,
even if it was just to listen. Some people don’t understand what John had gone
through, and there is great power in someone just stopping to give their
undivided attention. It can be a stress reliever and I think you did that for
him, Ramon. I can say with confidence that when the client left BCS, he felt
lighter and could see more clearly without the cloud of despair he had been
carrying around.<o:p></o:p></span></span></i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i>* </i>Name changed for privacy reasons</span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-81183311529839198482017-07-25T12:25:00.000-04:002017-10-05T11:48:38.585-04:00Punishment to Public Health Conference<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>This post was written by BCS intake staff member Ramon Semorile</i>.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZNiu2QhNaM7djW328-iW8hnoi-YhiZcj6TKtrupSdAgeXFkIw3E8Fb7Xy6awwEky0yFHpSs_tYC7vJ3AQ1qTm5aLKDkq6pGwtz8cbzkmnooVmGoUgOXa_gIvPm6oEtZmxb63/s1600/p2ph.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPZNiu2QhNaM7djW328-iW8hnoi-YhiZcj6TKtrupSdAgeXFkIw3E8Fb7Xy6awwEky0yFHpSs_tYC7vJ3AQ1qTm5aLKDkq6pGwtz8cbzkmnooVmGoUgOXa_gIvPm6oEtZmxb63/s1600/p2ph.jpg" /></a></div>
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On June 8<sup>th</sup> and 9<sup>th</sup> I attended the
Punishment to Public Health (P2PH) Conference, a collaboration between John Jay
College and the NYC Department of Health. The purpose of the conference was to look
at what has been done for people incarcerated on Rikers Island who have mental
health issues.</span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After a healthy breakfast and some networking, the conference began with keynote speaker Kirk James,
Clinical Assistant Professor at NYU Silver School of Social Work. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Mr. James stressed the conference's goal of community
education. He emphasized that inmates with mental health problems should be a
priority, and that we were there to discuss what works and what doesn’t when it comes to supporting this group of people. </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Below is a summary of some of what
I learned at the conference.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the 1960's and 1970's, evidence began to emerge in Canada
about what approaches to mental health actually seemed to work. <span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;">They
identified various effective treatments and learned that the process of
rehabilitation seemed to help those struggling with mental health.<br /> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><br /></span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is important that we advocate for the education of judges, district
attorneys, justice systems and criminal agencies nationwide on how to approach
cases where the client has mental health problems, because these kinds of cases
require unique, humane treatment. Furthermore, we need to be able to
provide services for inmates who suffer from mental health problems.<br /> </span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s also important for the courts to be able to recognize people who have
mental health issues when they enter into the system. For that reason, the
courts should implement assessment tools that examine drug use, employment,
criminal behavior, lifestyle, risk level, dynamic needs, clinical destabilizers
and lifestyle destabilizers to determine mental health status.</span></span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Above all, we need to treat people in the criminal justice system with respect.
That means that probation should focus on restoring people’s humanity. It means
that we should avoid the term ‘defendants’ and use ‘clients’ instead. It means
that when we work with clients we should make an effort to get to know their community,
their friends and their family.</span></span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"></span></span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When we talk about mental health it’s important to talk about who is
impacted. Most often, black and Latino populations suffer more than others
because they have less access to support and resources. Black communities
especially have been criminalized in the U.S. throughout their history in this
country.</span></span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In 1789, the 13<sup>th</sup> Amendment outlawed slavery ‘except as
punishment for crime’. The amendment freed slaves, but from then on, black
Americans were systematically criminalized under Jim Crow and penal systems
that treated blacks more harshly than whites. Effectively, this meant that many
were returned to conditions of slavery, because once they were convicted of crimes
they could be legally forced to work. In the present day we can
observe the way that black Americans were systematically swept into prisons by ‘hard
on crime’ rhetoric of the Reagan and Bush administrations that advocated for
more prison and harsher sentences. This history stacks the deck against poor black
communities.</span></span></span> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The facts about mental health at Rikers
Island today are stark. 80% of people incarcerated at Rikers have mental health
problems. 40% have severe mental health problems and 20% have minor mental
health problems. In light of these facts, it is paramount that the corrections
officers at Rikers be trained to interact with inmates with mental health
issues. It’s important to spread awareness that mental health and violence are
not inherently connected. Most people with mental illness are not violent. They
deserve humane treatment, recognition of their conditions and proper support.</span></span></span></blockquote>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;">To learn more about the P2PH Conference, visit the site at:</span></span><span lang="EN"> </span></span><span class="shorttext"><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; line-height: 107%;"><a href="http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/p2ph-conferences"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">http://www.jjay.cuny.edu/p2ph-conferences</span></a>
</span></span><span lang="EN" style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 10.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-83567617444656587762017-07-11T11:02:00.000-04:002017-07-11T11:02:52.891-04:00Our BCS Community is Growing! Meet Our Newest Staff Members<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAhXCGkSPlngVAynyYTRU1Qa9LTW4WP4mHJUmRq08KNzsq5S5NtQiBNIPjKb1pIvNlPjosUWUIBamchaAyAdDdIson2WISm8GKhf2_ZV9WUeRFUWU-QCblHpOeBYOi0YIETPL/s1600/caroline+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="581" data-original-width="639" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGAhXCGkSPlngVAynyYTRU1Qa9LTW4WP4mHJUmRq08KNzsq5S5NtQiBNIPjKb1pIvNlPjosUWUIBamchaAyAdDdIson2WISm8GKhf2_ZV9WUeRFUWU-QCblHpOeBYOi0YIETPL/s200/caroline+picture.jpg" width="200" /></a><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #222222;"><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b style="color: #222222;">Caroline Yang, </b><i style="color: #222222;">Summer
Intern</i></span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Caroline Yang is a
summer intern who who is looking forward to helping out in a variety of
departments at BCS. She is currently working towards an undergraduate degree in
sociology at the University of Edinburgh and is interested in pursuing a career in criminal justice reform.
She has previously worked at the Manhattan DA's office as a summer intern and
at the American Museum of Natural History as a research assistant. </span></span></div>
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<b style="color: #222222; font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; text-align: center;"><br /></b>
<b style="color: #222222; font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; text-align: center;"><br /></b>
<b style="color: #222222; font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; text-align: center;">Vivian Martinez, </b><i style="color: #222222; font-family: times, "times new roman", serif; text-align: center;">SRP
Intake Specialist</i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Vivian Martinez is an
intake specialist at Bronx Community Solutions where she plays a key role in
assessing participants’ social service needs as well as scheduling appointments
for community based Service. She also assists the DWI initiative as the
secondary point person for all DWI/DUI operations, which includes provider outreach,
creating court reporting documentation, database tracking and general troubleshooting for DWI issues. She is well-versed in the changing landscape of VTL law and OASAS regulations. Ms. Martinez has recently graduated with a Bachelors
in Applied Science in Criminal Justice from Monroe College. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Kevin Kleinknecht,</b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"> S</span><i style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">r. Court
Representative, CIRT </i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">As the Senior Court Liaison for Bronx CIRT, Kevin Kleinknecht advocates for the legal rights of defendants facing mental illness and provides psychoeducation to court staff. While pursuing his master's degree, he interned with the Bronx Community Solutions clinical department and brings this experience to the courtroom. Mr. Kleinknecht has a diverse history in social services having worked in substance abuse treatment, foster care, and outpatient mental health. He enjoys biking and seeing live music on the weekends. He holds a B.S. in psychology and literature from Florida State University, and an MSW from the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College.</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 12.6667px;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b><br /></b></span>
<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Jonathan Paez-Lopez</b>, <i>Court
Liaison, SRP</i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jonathan Paez-Lopez is
currently a Court Liaison for the Supervised Release Program at Bronx Community
Solutions. The program monitors non-violent felony and misdemeanor cases and
serves as an alternative to bail. Jonathan obtained his Bachelors of Science at
SUNY Buffalo State college majoring in Criminal Justice. Jonathan previously
worked as a case manager for the Youth Services Program at the Center for
Community Alternatives, where he provided direct case management and counseling
for court mandated youth.<span style="color: #222222;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><b>Jocelyn Jimenez</b>, <i>Court
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Jocelyn Jimenez is
currently a Court Liaison for the Supervised Release Program at Bronx Community
Solutions. The program monitors non-violent felony and misdemeanor cases and
serves as an alternative to bail. Jocelyn obtained her Bachelors of Science at
George Mason University majoring in Criminology with a minor in Psychology.
Jocelyn successfully completed internships with Bronx Treatment Court and Bronx
Community Solutions where she demonstrated her passion for reforming and
helping the diverse community the programs serve.</span><br />
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<b style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Wanda Garcia</b><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">, </span><i style="font-family: times, "times new roman", serif;">Behavioral
Health Supervisor, SRP</i></div>
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<span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Wanda Garcia has previously worked as a forensic social worker providing mental health services to
incarcerated individuals with serious and persistent mental illness at the Erie
County Correctional Facility, and facilitating group therapy for individuals
incarcerated for sexual offenses. She also has previous experience working with
children and families in preventive services programs in the Bronx and Buffalo,
NY. Wanda earned her Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice from John Jay College and
a Master’s in social work from Stony Brook University. She is currently
pursuing a PhD in sociology with concentrations in Criminology and Race and
Racism at the University at Buffalo. Her research interests include the
transition to adulthood for young adults ages 18-24 from low socioeconomic
communities. <o:p></o:p></span></span><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;">Hobbies include horseback riding and dance.</span></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-84973575695357748002017-06-27T14:31:00.000-04:002017-06-27T14:31:58.428-04:00Reentry Anonymous speaks with inmates about support<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIH5wU-qpHBnLJNlUM7pqsrvUF4k5j1ilmLD_cUG_KeO2w-SQAtY_Y7ic8_v81MG9I6oADhlS8aUBOcbS9iHVuP62cMZpyzczU0xM8V9iYqBiZhyphenhyphen2QndVDttjnYhVrVvEwOx0/s1600/ramon+picture1jpg_Page1_Image1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="282" data-original-width="257" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixIH5wU-qpHBnLJNlUM7pqsrvUF4k5j1ilmLD_cUG_KeO2w-SQAtY_Y7ic8_v81MG9I6oADhlS8aUBOcbS9iHVuP62cMZpyzczU0xM8V9iYqBiZhyphenhyphen2QndVDttjnYhVrVvEwOx0/s200/ramon+picture1jpg_Page1_Image1.jpg" width="180" /></a><a href="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/MCC_New_York_jeh.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="637" data-original-width="800" height="251" src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/46/MCC_New_York_jeh.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">Mr. Ramon Semorile Metropolitan Correctional Center in downtown Manhattan</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt;">Last month,
BCS staff member Ramon Semorile participated in an information
session for inmates at Metropolitan Correctional Center about the Reentry Anonymous Support Group. The group helps ex-offenders break the cycle of recidivism and offers support as
they make the difficult transition back into their communities. Below, Mr. Semorile describes his experience speaking about the group.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i><span style="background: white; font-size: 12pt;">On
May 23<sup>rd</sup> I went to Metropolitan Correctional Center as a representative of the Reentry Anonymous Support
Group to talk to inmates that were nearing
their release dates. We were part of a group of about 10 different agencies including U.S. public defenders, U.S. Parole and the DOE fund. The purpose of
the visit was to let inmates know about support resources available to them
once they are released.</span></i><span style="background: white; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<i><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">We went up to one of
the dormitories and I set up a table for the group. I sat down, and some
gentlemen approached, curious to learn more about Reentry Anonymous. I told
them about the work of the group and let them know how to learn more from the
Reentry Anonymous website. They were happy to see that there were people
there to support them. The other providers and correctional officers were also
interested to hear about our work. It was a good day for all. </span></span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-67095046360095589232017-06-18T13:04:00.000-04:002017-06-19T13:04:46.234-04:00Center for Court Innovation Programs Partner to Support Fathers<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: normal; margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhps_aNou18yuY3jJSZxUmRQ-u4SsBd2S2tizBOH5tsTcJPIAcJ6eb0BNbE6npgcezz_YTIdCf4FvmBRvxsVAQamR-vwGV2Ah9TeAxJpCGTLIATW5ajXSXjpm5rLyaKpU3AcXpT/s1600/rahmel+picture.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhps_aNou18yuY3jJSZxUmRQ-u4SsBd2S2tizBOH5tsTcJPIAcJ6eb0BNbE6npgcezz_YTIdCf4FvmBRvxsVAQamR-vwGV2Ah9TeAxJpCGTLIATW5ajXSXjpm5rLyaKpU3AcXpT/s400/rahmel+picture.jpg" width="300" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif; font-size: x-small;">UPNEXT participant and BCS intern, Rahmel Warren</span></div>
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: times, times new roman, serif;">On this Father's Days we want to highlight the work of our sister program, UPNEXT, who supports non-custodial fathers and unemployed men through job training and family engagement. Bronx Community Solutions hosts several UPNEXT interns each year who get experience working with our Community Service team and build valuable skills as they prepare for full-time employement. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">Below, our most recent intern, Rahmel Warren, reflects on his experience working at BCS through the UPNEXT program,
giving his take on the importance of the organization’s work and providing a
little insight into how BCS supports its clients while contributing to the
Bronx community. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">I had a great
experience as a fellow at Bronx Community Solutions. The people who work there
always made me feel welcome in the office. They really engage with their
clients, and are always able to help people feel better about navigating the difficult
situations in which they find themselves.</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">I learned a lot from
Moises, Corey and Anthony [community service staff members] about how to
interact with our clients in order to help them feel better about their
circumstances. Of course, everything wasn’t all peaches and cream. There were
definitely hard days when clients were difficult to deal with and had to be
sent home. But every day was a new challenge, and something different.</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">The people at BCS work
really hard to contribute to the Bronx community. They take time out of their
busy work schedules to help crews paint over graffiti in the neighborhood and
connect people to housing, food and employment services. If that isn't trying to make your community better, I don't know what is.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">I won’t forget one day
when a man came in to do his community service. He was talking about how he had
just gotten out of jail and had been locked up for a long time. He was going
through a lot, staying at different shelters where his belongings were being
stolen. Corey and I had a long talk with him and were able to get him some help
and connect him to support. He met with Magaly, who was able to set him up with
a place to live and enroll him in a job program where he could do right for
himself.</span></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "times" , "times new roman" , serif;"><i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;">I think Maria and
Jennifer [BCS project directors] are doing a great job with the BCS program. It
was exciting to be working around such great people. I’m very proud to have
been a part of the fellowship program at BCS. I loved the experience and hope
I can use what I learned later down the line to support people who need help.
And finally, I just want to thank everybody at BCS for everything they do in
every department. Keep doing what you are doing because you are changing lives.
</span></i><span style="color: #222222; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 9.5pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24907993.post-35048881248054450742017-05-12T16:46:00.004-04:002017-05-12T16:56:05.961-04:00Partners in Practice: John Jay College of Criminal Justice<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: x-small;">by Lovis Nelson-Williams, Compliance Manager</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXYf-kpVHI6OE_DNRqoGqMXQbaotUs2tOVCH232_Ikk84XZPeFO4TwFx_qA7ZiIE6hfzcsmkk1c2MsFYF9365GrslD-zXNDI5BdcUTOGY63VB18KHA_tp9PT538jfjMvyywaFt/s1600/John+Jay2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXYf-kpVHI6OE_DNRqoGqMXQbaotUs2tOVCH232_Ikk84XZPeFO4TwFx_qA7ZiIE6hfzcsmkk1c2MsFYF9365GrslD-zXNDI5BdcUTOGY63VB18KHA_tp9PT538jfjMvyywaFt/s400/John+Jay2.jpg" width="390" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Above: BCS Project Director, Maria Almonte-Weston with Intake Intern Chris Rivera and BCS Compliance Manager, Lovis Nelson-Williams; Below: Chris Rivera presents on his internship experience</td></tr>
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Bronx Community Solutions had the honor of being recognized
as a provider of professional experiences and opportunities for John Jay
students. At the Public Sector Internship Reception, hosted by Jeremy Travis, criminal
justice agencies and organizations across New York City were present alongside
students engaged in internships. Bronx
Community Solutions as well as other providers, were thanked for allowing
students to combine theoretical concepts in the classroom, with the real life
experiences of various criminal justice career paths. We had the pleasure of
having one of our current interns, Christopher Rivera, a senior at John Jay,
talk about his role in the organization. He has had the opportunity to provide
services for defendants via the intake department in the very busy Bronx
Criminal Court. Christopher made jokes about the `colorful’ clients he meets
with day in and day out. However, he realizes this internship provides direct
contact with the population he so passionately wants to serve. He is learning
of the many challenges faced by those who are criminal justice involved. It is
amazing that BCS can provide the exposure that helps to inform the next
generation of forward thinking criminal justice professionals. </div>
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<o:p></o:p>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05678056819462560086noreply@blogger.com0