For BronxWorks programs, the end of the Summer means more than just the return of the Fall and the school year. It also means our end of summer trips, and after a couple of summers without them, you can bet our participants were excited. In this spotlight, we share two trips for BronxWorks participants at different ends of the age spectrum.

BronxWorks Older Adult Centers Visit Holiday Hill Park

Seniors from BronxWorks programs and Older Adult Centers visited Holiday Hill Park in Prospect, CT on August 25 for an end-of-summer celebration! Over 250 BronxWorks seniors enjoyed a number of activities, including dancing, bingo, boating, and the big pool! Breakfast, lunch, dessert, and snacks were provided during the all-day party. BronxWorks seniors were joined by other seniors from across NYC. We had such a wonderful day celebrating with our seniors!

BronxWorks Family Shelters Visit DreamWorks Water Park at American Dream Mall

For their first big trip since the COVID-19 pandemic, the BronxWorks Family Residences celebrated the end of the 2022 Summer by making a splash at the DreamWorks Water Park at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey. The trip was funded through donations raised by our amazing riders in this year’s TD Five Boro Bike Tour. Over a dozen families and staff from all three BronxWorks Family Residences enjoyed time at the water park followed by lunch and activities in the mall. Thank you to our amazing volunteer riders, fundraisers, and everyone who donated to make this trip happen!

For BronxWorks programs, the end of the Summer means more than just the return of the Fall and the school year. It also means our end of summer trips, and after a couple of summers without them, you can bet our participants were excited. In this spotlight, we share two trips for BronxWorks participants at different ends of the age spectrum.

BronxWorks Older Adult Centers Visit Holiday Hill Park

Seniors from BronxWorks programs and Older Adult Centers visited Holiday Hill Park in Prospect, CT on August 25 for an end-of-summer celebration! Over 250 BronxWorks seniors enjoyed a number of activities, including dancing, bingo, boating, and the big pool! Breakfast, lunch, dessert, and snacks were provided during the all-day party. BronxWorks seniors were joined by other seniors from across NYC. We had such a wonderful day celebrating with our seniors!

BronxWorks Family Shelters Visit DreamWorks Water Park at American Dream Mall

For their first big trip since the COVID-19 pandemic, the BronxWorks Family Residences celebrated the end of the 2022 Summer by making a splash at the DreamWorks Water Park at the American Dream Mall in New Jersey. The trip was funded through donations raised by our amazing riders in this year’s TD Five Boro Bike Tour. Over a dozen families and staff from all three BronxWorks Family Residences enjoyed time at the water park followed by lunch and activities in the mall. Thank you to our amazing volunteer riders, fundraisers, and everyone who donated to make this trip happen!

As a Bronx-based organization, a key part of the BronxWorks mission is to provide services that will help break the cycle of poverty within our communities. We offer an array of programs to support the children and youth of the Bronx starting at preschool and running all the way through high school, post-high school and young adulthood. BronxWorks is invested in every stage of our participants’ education and has recently expanded our post-high school and college preparation programming in the Center for Achieving Future Education (CAFE).

BronxWorks CAFE is a program that has helped young people and their families for nearly twenty years with a critical life stage: the transition from high school and/or HSE completion to college. CAFE helps students explore higher education and post-high school opportunities and prepare for their college career. The program provides one-on-one college counseling, SAT prep classes, assistance with college and trade school applications, assistance navigating financial aid and scholarships, college tours and fairs, a variety of workshops covering all aspects of the college application and transition process, and college retention and support services. CAFE works with students throughout the Bronx and other boroughs and shares strong partnerships with Bronx area high schools including Frederick Douglass Academy III, Theatre Arts Production Company School (TAPCo), Validus Preparatory Academy, and Bronx School for Law, Government & Justice (LGJ).

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, CAFE, much like other BronxWorks programs, shifted to virtual programming. Now as the Bronx recovers, CAFE has doubled-down on college and post-high school education opportunities as a way to make generational impact for the students and families of the program. CAFE expanded its programming to include a focus on college retention. Funded through the Robin Hood Foundation, CAFE added three College Success Advisors to provide ongoing engagement and support to participants during their college journeys. Now the BronxWorks CAFE team has a total of eight staff working with over 200 students each year throughout their college exploration, application, transition, and matriculation phases.

I feel extremely proud of the program and the additions we’ve made. A lot of our staff have their own college stories or are the first in their families to attend college and that’s why they are passionate about the work we do.”

-Angela Rodriguez de Jesus,
Program Coordinator, CAFE

CAFE also launched its Summer Bridge program in July 2022, working to prepare first-time college-bound students ages 17-24 with the skills required to be a successful student in college. The program assigns each participant with a designated College Success Advisor that guides them before and during their transition to college, addressing any challenges including academics, financial aid, and navigating campus resources and on-campus living. Students receive one-on-one retention assistance and life skill workshops and, after completing the coursework, a stipend for book and transportation.

Our students are awesome and more motivated than ever. They want to hear about all of their opportunities. They are referring their friends to CAFE. They’re attending college tours and trips again. As a group, we held a graduation ceremony celebrating the seniors that are attending college in the coming fall semester.”

All of that work has already made a difference for the participants of CAFE. From the Fall 2021 cohort, 88 of the 120 students remained enrolled for a second year of college. And the recent graduating cohort for Fall 2022 includes acceptances and enrollments to Boston University; Brandeis University; Columbia; Cornell; Fordham; Ithaca College; St. Joseph’s College; Yale; several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HCBUs) including Howard University, Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Lincoln University; as well as the full suite of CUNY and SUNY schools.

We spoke with two recent graduating participants about their college journey and how the CAFE program helped them make decisions and prepare for it.

Emely M. Is Attending Columbia University

Emely’s family came to the United States from Mexico when she was six years old and she has lived in the South Bronx ever since. She and her younger sister were raised in a single-parent household by her mother. Emely attended Bronx LGJ High School where she connected with the BronxWorks CAFE Program in the tenth grade.

I always knew I wanted to go to college but I didn’t know where to start or look. CAFE helped me engage with my peer mentors and showed me what college would be like.”

BronxWorks CAFE mentors came to Emely’s class twice a month to present about college opportunities, answer student questions, and distribute resources and information. As she progressed through high school, Emely worked with CAFE staff to set her college goals and ultimately applied to 19 colleges, including CUNY and SUNY schools, University of Rochester, Hamilton College, and Columbia University. Emely was accepted by a number of her schools and decided to enroll at Columbia University for the Fall 2022 semester.

“My first true acceptance was to Hamilton College,” she says. “I got really excited and really emotional. That’s when it set in that I was about to go away. It will be the first time moving out of my mom’s house.”

Emely has spent the past summer in Columbia University’s Academy Success Program, a three-week program designed to help first-time college-bound students adjust to the academic rigor and on-campus lifestyle. She is planning to study biochemistry with a pre-health concentration and to one day apply to dentistry school to become an orthodontist.

My motivation is to help my family get out of poverty and to break the life cycle that my parents lived through. Coming here from Mexico has shown me the opportunities I have here and the support that I’ve received from CAFE and other BronxWorks programs to succeed. I hope that other students can see that as well. Like my sister, she is seeing how if I can do it she can do it too, and she’s really putting her foot in.”

Jared M. Is Attending Alfred University

Jared (left above) was born and raised in the Kingsbridge area of the Bronx. He spent much of his childhood at the St. James Recreation Center and as he got older he also worked there as a mentor, helping the younger kids with their homework and connecting with them through shared experiences. “My parents separated when I was 13 or 14,” Jared says, “I wasn’t prepared for that and it set me back mentally, but I was also able to use that experience to connect with other kids going through the same thing.” For all of his community service, Jared received a Rising Star Award from the Bronx Parks Department. At home, it’s largely the same way. He is the middle child of six siblings and excels in his role of holding the family together.

Jared attended BronxWorks afterschool programs when he was in middle school, and then reconnected with BronxWorks and the CAFE program while he was at the Theatre Arts Production Company High School (TAPCo).

CAFE helped me out a lot. Angela and Elsie were my College Advisors who guided me in high school. At the beginning I didn’t want to go to college at all, but when I decided I wanted to, Elsie sat beside me and helped me fill out my application.”

Ultimately, Jared applied and was accepted to Alfred University. He spent the past summer in the Alfred University Summer Program where he stayed on campus, took classes, and started his work study. He is saving money to purchase his own car and maintain his financial freedom.

I came up here early and at first I was scared. I missed my family and friends so much. It was a big transition for me. But I’m doing better now. I’m already connecting with people and faculty, and making friends. As soon as school starts, I’m hitting the ground running. I can’t wait to start, honestly.”

Even though he has graduated from the CAFE Program, Jared says he still gets emails from Elsie on scholarship information and college resources. Jared plans to study psychology and communications. He wants to become a psych therapist and a motivational speaker one day, building off his earlier experience as a mentor at St. James Rec Center and taking after his grandfather who is a deacon.

As a Bronx-based organization, a key part of the BronxWorks mission is to provide services that will help break the cycle of poverty within our communities. We offer an array of programs to support the children and youth of the Bronx starting at preschool and running all the way through high school, post-high school and young adulthood. BronxWorks is invested in every stage of our participants’ education and has recently expanded our post-high school and college preparation programming in the Center for Achieving Future Education (CAFE).

BronxWorks CAFE is a program that has helped young people and their families for nearly twenty years with a critical life stage: the transition from high school and/or HSE completion to college. CAFE helps students explore higher education and post-high school opportunities and prepare for their college career. The program provides one-on-one college counseling, SAT prep classes, assistance with college and trade school applications, assistance navigating financial aid and scholarships, college tours and fairs, a variety of workshops covering all aspects of the college application and transition process, and college retention and support services. CAFE works with students throughout the Bronx and other boroughs and shares strong partnerships with Bronx area high schools including Frederick Douglass Academy III, Theatre Arts Production Company School (TAPCo), Validus Preparatory Academy, and Bronx School for Law, Government & Justice (LGJ).

At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, CAFE, much like other BronxWorks programs, shifted to virtual programming. Now as the Bronx recovers, CAFE has doubled-down on college and post-high school education opportunities as a way to make generational impact for the students and families of the program. CAFE expanded its programming to include a focus on college retention. Funded through the Robin Hood Foundation, CAFE added three College Success Advisors to provide ongoing engagement and support to participants during their college journeys. Now the BronxWorks CAFE team has a total of eight staff working with over 200 students each year throughout their college exploration, application, transition, and matriculation phases.

I feel extremely proud of the program and the additions we’ve made. A lot of our staff have their own college stories or are the first in their families to attend college and that’s why they are passionate about the work we do.”

-Angela Rodriguez de Jesus,
Program Coordinator, CAFE

CAFE also launched its Summer Bridge program in July 2022, working to prepare first-time college-bound students ages 17-24 with the skills required to be a successful student in college. The program assigns each participant with a designated College Success Advisor that guides them before and during their transition to college, addressing any challenges including academics, financial aid, and navigating campus resources and on-campus living. Students receive one-on-one retention assistance and life skill workshops and, after completing the coursework, a stipend for book and transportation.

Our students are awesome and more motivated than ever. They want to hear about all of their opportunities. They are referring their friends to CAFE. They’re attending college tours and trips again. As a group, we held a graduation ceremony celebrating the seniors that are attending college in the coming fall semester.”

All of that work has already made a difference for the participants of CAFE. From the Fall 2021 cohort, 88 of the 120 students remained enrolled for a second year of college. And the recent graduating cohort for Fall 2022 includes acceptances and enrollments to Boston University; Brandeis University; Columbia; Cornell; Fordham; Ithaca College; St. Joseph’s College; Yale; several Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HCBUs) including Howard University, Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Lincoln University; as well as the full suite of CUNY and SUNY schools.

We spoke with two recent graduating participants about their college journey and how the CAFE program helped them make decisions and prepare for it.

Emely M. Is Attending Columbia University

Emely’s family came to the United States from Mexico when she was six years old and she has lived in the South Bronx ever since. She and her younger sister were raised in a single-parent household by her mother. Emely attended Bronx LGJ High School where she connected with the BronxWorks CAFE Program in the tenth grade.

I always knew I wanted to go to college but I didn’t know where to start or look. CAFE helped me engage with my peer mentors and showed me what college would be like.”

BronxWorks CAFE mentors came to Emely’s class twice a month to present about college opportunities, answer student questions, and distribute resources and information. As she progressed through high school, Emely worked with CAFE staff to set her college goals and ultimately applied to 19 colleges, including CUNY and SUNY schools, University of Rochester, Hamilton College, and Columbia University. Emely was accepted by a number of her schools and decided to enroll at Columbia University for the Fall 2022 semester.

“My first true acceptance was to Hamilton College,” she says. “I got really excited and really emotional. That’s when it set in that I was about to go away. It will be the first time moving out of my mom’s house.”

Emely has spent the past summer in Columbia University’s Academy Success Program, a three-week program designed to help first-time college-bound students adjust to the academic rigor and on-campus lifestyle. She is planning to study biochemistry with a pre-health concentration and to one day apply to dentistry school to become an orthodontist.

My motivation is to help my family get out of poverty and to break the life cycle that my parents lived through. Coming here from Mexico has shown me the opportunities I have here and the support that I’ve received from CAFE and other BronxWorks programs to succeed. I hope that other students can see that as well. Like my sister, she is seeing how if I can do it she can do it too, and she’s really putting her foot in.”

Jared M. Is Attending Alfred University

Jared (left above) was born and raised in the Kingsbridge area of the Bronx. He spent much of his childhood at the St. James Recreation Center and as he got older he also worked there as a mentor, helping the younger kids with their homework and connecting with them through shared experiences. “My parents separated when I was 13 or 14,” Jared says, “I wasn’t prepared for that and it set me back mentally, but I was also able to use that experience to connect with other kids going through the same thing.” For all of his community service, Jared received a Rising Star Award from the Bronx Parks Department. At home, it’s largely the same way. He is the middle child of six siblings and excels in his role of holding the family together.

Jared attended BronxWorks afterschool programs when he was in middle school, and then reconnected with BronxWorks and the CAFE program while he was at the Theatre Arts Production Company High School (TAPCo).

CAFE helped me out a lot. Angela and Elsie were my College Advisors who guided me in high school. At the beginning I didn’t want to go to college at all, but when I decided I wanted to, Elsie sat beside me and helped me fill out my application.”

Ultimately, Jared applied and was accepted to Alfred University. He spent the past summer in the Alfred University Summer Program where he stayed on campus, took classes, and started his work study. He is saving money to purchase his own car and maintain his financial freedom.

I came up here early and at first I was scared. I missed my family and friends so much. It was a big transition for me. But I’m doing better now. I’m already connecting with people and faculty, and making friends. As soon as school starts, I’m hitting the ground running. I can’t wait to start, honestly.”

Even though he has graduated from the CAFE Program, Jared says he still gets emails from Elsie on scholarship information and college resources. Jared plans to study psychology and communications. He wants to become a psych therapist and a motivational speaker one day, building off his earlier experience as a mentor at St. James Rec Center and taking after his grandfather who is a deacon.

On August 26, BronxWorks held our Annual All-Staff Picnic at Tibbetts Brook State Park in Yonkers, NY. The picnic is a welcome tradition every year, bringing hundreds of staff together for a chance to enjoy each other’s company. Staff indulged in hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, rice, and much more! Children of all ages had fun games to play, including giant Connect 4 and Bean Bag Toss. Many staff members explored the park, including the pool and small water park on site at the park. Scroll down for some pictures!

See more pictures here.

On August 26, BronxWorks held our Annual All-Staff Picnic at Tibbetts Brook State Park in Yonkers, NY. The picnic is a welcome tradition every year, bringing hundreds of staff together for a chance to enjoy each other’s company. Staff indulged in hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, rice, and much more! Children of all ages had fun games to play, including giant Connect 4 and Bean Bag Toss. Many staff members explored the park, including the pool and small water park on site at the park. Scroll down for some pictures!

See more pictures here.

Now in our second year coming out of the pandemic, BronxWorks summer activities were back in full swing. Last year our summer programming operated on a smaller scale and maintained many virtual elements. While some of those virtual elements remain, the 2022 summer schedule returned in-person and in a big way with the Summer Rising initiative, our summer camps and Cornerstone programming, Summer Youth Employment Program, and more.

The BronxWorks Summer Rising initiative included X149 South Bronx Preparatory School, PS 42, and PS 130. The Summer Rising initiative was a free six-week program for students in elementary and middle school. Participants received academic support in the morning from DOE certified teachers followed by enrichment activities in the afternoon facilitated by BronxWorks staff. Over 500 elementary and middle school students enrolled in BronxWorks Summer Rising this year. In addition, we held six more summer day camps for children K-5, and programming at each of our Cornerstone Community Centers for participants K-HS. In total, over 800 students joined us for BronxWorks summer programming.

Our summer participants enjoyed a menu of activities each day. They learned about architecture and engineering through the Salvadori Center and built earthquake resistant structures out of toothpicks and clay. They learned acting, improv, and self-expression skills through Playocity.

A partnership called Bigs In Blue brought officers from the NYPD 40th precinct to mentor our middle schoolers on a range of important topics and to foster positive conversations between young people and police officers. For their community service project, students and officers created a campaign called “Keeping the School Clean” and made signs and PSAs to get out their message. Another partnership with the NYC Parks Department brought students into the woods at Van Cortlandt Park to learn Orienteering and Wilderness Skills.

Through our own intergenerational project, Building Practice that Creates and Sustains Intergenerational Community Centers, we partnered across our Children & Youth and Older Adult Services Departments to bring together older and younger people to learn with each other and foster that cross-generational bond between these key groups in our communities. Over the six week program, students and seniors came together to garden, to cook, to share stories about their families and their culture, to make maps, and other arts and crafts.

BronxWorks SNAP-Ed Educators gave nutrition and fitness workshops. Students also participated in Teen Battle Chef (TBC), a hands on culinary skills program that meets our participants where they are at in the world of nutrition and cooking. The program culminates in a cook-off where participants demonstrate a recipe to a panel of judges.

Students also enjoyed a choice of outdoor and physical activities. Bike NYC brought classes to St. Mary’s Park where our students learned the skills and gained experience needed to enjoy safely biking in an urban environment. Participants were able to go on bike trips to Randall’s Island and through Crotona Park. Gotham Tennis also provided lessons throughout the summer to introduce the sport of tennis to our participants. They have even offered one student a scholarship to continue lessons throughout the year.

As always, STEM played a big part in our summer plans. The Salvadori Center brought even more lessons and projects to demonstrate the relevance of math, science, and the arts as it relates to buildings, bridges, and parks, and our communities. We also brought in Building Beats to teach students the science of music production and how to produce, mix, and engineer their very own beats. There were science and math lessons with HYPOTHEKids and fashion and cosmetology activities. The summer work culminated in a STEM Expo at our Classic Cornerstone Community Center where participants from all of our summer programs came together to demonstrate what they had learned. Learn more about the STEM Expo.

Of course, one of the highlights for summer participants are field trips. This year we packed our schedule with as many trips as we could find. We went to Coney Island, the Central Park Zoo, the New York Aquarium, Billy Beez, Bowlmor Lanes, Boundless Adventures, the Bronx Zoo, the Museum of Natural History, Sporttime USA, Sesame Place, Dave & Busters, Van Cortlandt Park, Randalls Island, and more!

Summer Youth Employment Program

If you know anything about the summer at BronxWorks, you know about the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). This year, 1,327 young people ages 12-24 signed up to gain work experience or take on summer-long project-based learning. 778 older participants ages 16-24 were placed across 225 worksites at BronxWorks or with partner organizations. The interns are paid a stipend and gain valuable work experience.

Participants ages 12-15 work in project-based learning groups focused on a variety of topics, including environmental and social justice, food equity, nutrition, and culinary skills. The groups are conducted with both virtual and hybrid models, meeting every week to discuss topics and share their work. Groups studying environmental activism completed team-building and leadership exercises and learned to make infographics and other ways to communicate information.

Groups studying nutrition learned about healthy eating, food deserts, and careers in food. They took trips to stores and learned to cook recipes together.

Summer Programming at the Family Residences

Big things are also happening this summer at BronxWorks Family Residences! We partnered with NYC Children’s Theater to bring theater and music literacy to our residents. Through the program, NYC Children’s Theater brings volunteer artists to each site every week. The volunteers lead activities and exercises to promote the arts and support the emotional-wellbeing of the children living at all three Family Residences. The activities are designed with calming rituals and include reading and acting out books, singing songs, and mindfulness and breathing exercises.

There are nature walks and picnics at Wendell Park, and trips to the library for story time and arts and crafts, a behind the scenes field trip to a restaurant to speak with the owners and meet the cooks and learn about the importance of food and culture. The New York City Football Club has also invited the children to participate in their recreational soccer programs. Last but not least, we have the end of summer trip coming up, where children from all three residences will go to the American Dream Mall. The Childcare programs prepare an 8am to 6pm schedule every day for the children living in our family residences to help them enjoy the summer, give them an opportunity to spend time outside of the shelters.

Now in our second year coming out of the pandemic, BronxWorks summer activities were back in full swing. Last year our summer programming operated on a smaller scale and maintained many virtual elements. While some of those virtual elements remain, the 2022 summer schedule returned in-person and in a big way with the Summer Rising initiative, our summer camps and Cornerstone programming, Summer Youth Employment Program, and more.

The BronxWorks Summer Rising initiative included X149 South Bronx Preparatory School, PS 42, and PS 130. The Summer Rising initiative was a free six-week program for students in elementary and middle school. Participants received academic support in the morning from DOE certified teachers followed by enrichment activities in the afternoon facilitated by BronxWorks staff. Over 500 elementary and middle school students enrolled in BronxWorks Summer Rising this year. In addition, we held six more summer day camps for children K-5, and programming at each of our Cornerstone Community Centers for participants K-HS. In total, over 800 students joined us for BronxWorks summer programming.

Our summer participants enjoyed a menu of activities each day. They learned about architecture and engineering through the Salvadori Center and built earthquake resistant structures out of toothpicks and clay. They learned acting, improv, and self-expression skills through Playocity.

A partnership called Bigs In Blue brought officers from the NYPD 40th precinct to mentor our middle schoolers on a range of important topics and to foster positive conversations between young people and police officers. For their community service project, students and officers created a campaign called “Keeping the School Clean” and made signs and PSAs to get out their message. Another partnership with the NYC Parks Department brought students into the woods at Van Cortlandt Park to learn Orienteering and Wilderness Skills.

Through our own intergenerational project, Building Practice that Creates and Sustains Intergenerational Community Centers, we partnered across our Children & Youth and Older Adult Services Departments to bring together older and younger people to learn with each other and foster that cross-generational bond between these key groups in our communities. Over the six week program, students and seniors came together to garden, to cook, to share stories about their families and their culture, to make maps, and other arts and crafts.

BronxWorks SNAP-Ed Educators gave nutrition and fitness workshops. Students also participated in Teen Battle Chef (TBC), a hands on culinary skills program that meets our participants where they are at in the world of nutrition and cooking. The program culminates in a cook-off where participants demonstrate a recipe to a panel of judges.

Students also enjoyed a choice of outdoor and physical activities. Bike NYC brought classes to St. Mary’s Park where our students learned the skills and gained experience needed to enjoy safely biking in an urban environment. Participants were able to go on bike trips to Randall’s Island and through Crotona Park. Gotham Tennis also provided lessons throughout the summer to introduce the sport of tennis to our participants. They have even offered one student a scholarship to continue lessons throughout the year.

As always, STEM played a big part in our summer plans. The Salvadori Center brought even more lessons and projects to demonstrate the relevance of math, science, and the arts as it relates to buildings, bridges, and parks, and our communities. We also brought in Building Beats to teach students the science of music production and how to produce, mix, and engineer their very own beats. There were science and math lessons with HYPOTHEKids and fashion and cosmetology activities. The summer work culminated in a STEM Expo at our Classic Cornerstone Community Center where participants from all of our summer programs came together to demonstrate what they had learned. Learn more about the STEM Expo.

Of course, one of the highlights for summer participants are field trips. This year we packed our schedule with as many trips as we could find. We went to Coney Island, the Central Park Zoo, the New York Aquarium, Billy Beez, Bowlmor Lanes, Boundless Adventures, the Bronx Zoo, the Museum of Natural History, Sporttime USA, Sesame Place, Dave & Busters, Van Cortlandt Park, Randalls Island, and more!

Summer Youth Employment Program

If you know anything about the summer at BronxWorks, you know about the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP). This year, 1,327 young people ages 12-24 signed up to gain work experience or take on summer-long project-based learning. 778 older participants ages 16-24 were placed across 225 worksites at BronxWorks or with partner organizations. The interns are paid a stipend and gain valuable work experience.

Participants ages 12-15 work in project-based learning groups focused on a variety of topics, including environmental and social justice, food equity, nutrition, and culinary skills. The groups are conducted with both virtual and hybrid models, meeting every week to discuss topics and share their work. Groups studying environmental activism completed team-building and leadership exercises and learned to make infographics and other ways to communicate information.

Groups studying nutrition learned about healthy eating, food deserts, and careers in food. They took trips to stores and learned to cook recipes together.

Summer Programming at the Family Residences

Big things are also happening this summer at BronxWorks Family Residences! We partnered with NYC Children’s Theater to bring theater and music literacy to our residents. Through the program, NYC Children’s Theater brings volunteer artists to each site every week. The volunteers lead activities and exercises to promote the arts and support the emotional-wellbeing of the children living at all three Family Residences. The activities are designed with calming rituals and include reading and acting out books, singing songs, and mindfulness and breathing exercises.

There are nature walks and picnics at Wendell Park, and trips to the library for story time and arts and crafts, a behind the scenes field trip to a restaurant to speak with the owners and meet the cooks and learn about the importance of food and culture. The New York City Football Club has also invited the children to participate in their recreational soccer programs. Last but not least, we have the end of summer trip coming up, where children from all three residences will go to the American Dream Mall. The Childcare programs prepare an 8am to 6pm schedule every day for the children living in our family residences to help them enjoy the summer, give them an opportunity to spend time outside of the shelters.