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8th Annual Youth
Advocacy Awards Held in June
On June 10th, Youth Continuum presented its 2008 Youth
Advocacy Awards to State Senator Martin Looney and New Haven Reads founder,
Christine Alexander. Partnership
awards were given to Guilford High School Interact Club, North Madison
Congregational Church and the Hamden Elks Lodge #2224.
The awards celebrate the achievements of those who strive to
improve opportunities in education, healthcare, employment and enrichment
for Connecticut’s
children and families.
Sponsors included Yale
University, Tri-Con
Construction, Hagget and Longobardi a division of J.H. Cohn, LLP, Blakeslee
Prestress, Wave Length Graphics, United Illuminating Company and New
Alliance Bank.
Congratulations to all of our youth who were announced as
recipients of the ‘Yes, I Can!’ Scholarship Awards at the
Breakfast: Kevin R., Tyrenzo A. and Lindsay T. These scholarships are made possible by a
generous donation from an anonymous family.
Dr. James P. Comer To Receive Local Honor
At Youth Continuum's 40th Anniversary Celebration (4/07)
NEW HAVEN – On Friday,
May 4, Youth Continuum will present the 2007 Youth Advocate Award to Dr.
James P. Comer, the Maurice Falk Professor of Child Psychiatry at Yale
University School of Medicine's Child
Study Center,
at a Ruby Gala at the LoRicco Ballroom, 216 Crown Street, New Haven.
The Youth Advocacy Award honors those who work to improve the lives of
children and youth through education, access to health care, employment,
and enrichment. Also attending are Youth Continuum founder, Dr. I. Ira
Goldenberg, and first executive director, Dr. Wesley T. Forbes, Sr..
Youth Continuum is pleased to have Veronica Douglas, director of
special projects for WTNH/MyTV9 as mistress of ceremonies.
Dr. Comer, perhaps, is best known for the
founding of the Comer School Development Program in 1968, which
promotes the collaboration of parents, educators, and community to improve
social, emotional, and academic outcomes for children that, in turn, helps
them achieve greater school success. His concept of teamwork has improved
the educational environment in more than 500 schools throughout America.
A prolific writer, Dr. Comer has authored
nine books, including Beyond Black
and White; School
Power: Implications of an Intervention Project; Waiting for a Miracle: Why Schools Can't Solve Our
Problems, And How We Can; and Leave No Child Behind: Preparing Today's Youth
for Tomorrow's World. Dr. Comer has also written more than
150 articles for Parents Magazine and more than 300 syndicated
articles on children's health and development and race relations.
The Yes, I Can!
Scholarship awards will also be presented at the event. These funds
provide opportunities for youth to pursue academic and enrichment goals
with up to $5,000 in scholarships dispersed each year. Previous scholarship
awards have helped our clients to continue college studies in the fields of
communications, health care, and fine arts.
“This is a very
special occasion for Youth Continuum,” noted Carole A. Shomo,
Chief Executive Officer, “and we opted to hold our anniversary
celebration in May, which is National Foster Care Month, in an effort to
highlight the need for support of foster youth. As an
‘institutional’ foster family we are proud of the resiliency
and determination of the youth in our care.”
For ticket information or
questions about the Ruby Gala, call 203.562.3396, or visit www.youthcontinuum.org.
For more information about National Foster Care Month, visit www.fostercaremonth.org.
The
event is sponsored by NewAlliance Foundation in partnership with Yale-New
Haven Hospital, and is generously supported by AT&T, the
Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the Connecticut State Medical
Society, Lewis G. Schaeneman Foundation, Merrill Lynch, New Haven County
Medical Association, People’s Bank, RC Knox, Suzio York Hill, Tri-Con
Construction Managers, Trinity Financial, Tyler Cooper, UHY LLP, and Yale
University.
Youth
Continuum Donors Meet Matching Grant Challenge (1/2007)
Thanks to the generosity of many, Youth
Continuum successfully met a challenge set forth by the Community
Foundation for Greater New Haven. This fall, the Community Foundation
launched its Making A Good Gift Better matching grant challenge for
agencies serving the basic needs of food, clothing, and shelter in our
community. All new and increased gifts raised by December 31st
were eligible for a dollar-for-dollar match, up to $5,000 per agency. Youth
Continuum was notified that our application was successful and the
organization will be receiving a grant from the Foundation for the entire
$5,000!
Since
1928, donors to The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven have built
the community's endowment currently valued at approximately $245 million.
In 2005, The Foundation Board of Directors distributed over $14 million in
grants from over 600 different named charitable funds supporting a wide
range of programs and projects. The Foundation’s service area
encompasses: Ansonia, Bethany,
Branford, Cheshire, Derby,
East Haven, Guilford, Hamden,
Madison, Milford,
New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Wallingford, West Haven
and Woodbridge.
For more information about The Community Foundation visit www.cfgnh.org.
YC
Youth Win $15,000 Award from Ameriquest Mortgage Company To Help Their
Local Neighborhood (9/2006)
Youth
Continuum has been recognized by Ameriquest Mortgage Company and awarded
a $15,000 grant through Ameriquest’s Create Your Legacy program.
YC won as the result of its creative grant submission – where boys
from Forbes, Bradley, and Uno houses created a comic
strip demonstrating how they would use funds to improve programs at
the MacMullen
Center and their
community.
“This is an
opportunity to provide a grant that can really help children make a
difference in their community,” said Julie Brandt, senior vice
president of philanthropy and community engagement at Ameriquest.
“We are proud to have selected an organization where the kids have
demonstrated an active and passionate interest in supporting their
community”
Winning programs were
selected based on need, appropriateness, creativity, originality and the
involvement of youth in the planning and development of the projects, and
were chosen by Ameriquest associates nationwide. The $15,000 grants
were given in recognition of children’s innovative and creative ideas
for improving their after-school programs and their neighborhoods through
community service and teamwork. This is the first year of the Create
Your Legacy program which is expected to award up to $1 million annually.
Youth
decided to use the funds to purchase equipment for a recording studio at
the MacMullen
Center and are planning
a community service project to help fix up a playground for Mutual Housing
Association.
More information about
Ameriquest’s Create Your Legacy program can be found at www.Ameriquestcares.org
Youth Entrepreneurs Get
Busy This Summer at the City Jazz Fest (7/2006)
NEW
HAVEN – Participants in Youth Continuum’s Youth Enterprise
Project (YEP) are setting up shop at various events during the City
of New Haven Jazz Fest,
including Jazz in the Parks. The youth will bring their Three Brothers Vending project to
the Jazz in the Parks series, held in various parks around the City,
selling pre-packaged snack foods and soft drinks. At Jazz on the Green, the
youth will operate a chair rental booth where patrons can rent a folding
canvas chair for the evening for just two dollars.
The remaining dates for
the Thursday evening Jazz in the Parks series sponsored by Empower New
Haven are:
July 27 - Trowbridge Square
August 3 - Edgewood Park (near the tennis courts)
August 10 - Quinnipiac River Park
August 17 - Goffe St Park
The
Citizens Bank New Haven
Jazz Festival on the Green presented by Casey Family Services runs
Saturdays in August and includes:
August
5 – Dave Brubeck Quartet and Tito Puente, Jr.
August
12 – Kool & the Gang and Blue Orchid Orchestra
August
19 – Jonny Lang and T.S. Monk
For
additional information about the Jazz Fest, visit www.newhavenjazz.com.
Youth Continuum Publishes Continuous
Quality Improvement Report for 2005 (7/2006) Read the full report
ETEC is Renamed the MacMullen Center
in Honor of Long-time Supporter (7/2006)
NEW HAVEN - Youth Continuum's Education
Training & Enrichment Center (ETEC) has been renamed the MacMullen Center for Education, Training and Enrichment.
The Board of Directors decided to name the program for outgoing Board
President, Margaret (Peggy) MacMullen, who has been a major donor to the
agency and a staunch advocate for the educational services provided at the
Center.
For the past 6 years, Peggy has been a key friend and a
driving force behind some of the agency’s most innovative ideas. Her
passion for education has helped the direction and development of ETEC.
And, next year, while still a member of the Board, she is committed to
working on closing the achievement gap for our youth.
Peggy has been a friend to the youth; a major supporter of
the organization; a dynamic leader; and a marvelous representative to the
community and it is most fitting that we honor her in this way.
Murtha Cullina Employees Swapped Briefcases
for Paint Brushes to Benefit the MacMullen
Center (6/2006)
NEW HAVEN – To meet
the demands of activities for youth this summer, Murtha Cullina LLP
employees traded their briefcases for paint brushes on June 20th as they
spruced up the agency’s MacMullen Center.
Volunteers from Murtha Cullina’s New Haven,
Hartford, and Stamford offices gave the main classrooms
a facelift that included fresh coats of paint, a brand new 51”
television, and bookshelves.
“This is an
amazing example of generosity,” said Carole A. Shomo, CEO of Youth
Continuum. “Thanks to our friends at Murtha Cullina, the building is
going to be in great shape just in time for summer programs for our
kids.”
About Murtha Cullina LLP
With 130
attorneys and offices in Hartford, New Haven and Stamford,
Connecticut and Boston
and Woburn, Massachusetts, Murtha Cullina LLP offers
a full range of legal services to business, governmental units, non-profit
organizations and individual clients.
The firm's regional practice focuses on
litigation throughout New England, transactional representation in the
corporate, financial and real estate areas, estate and closely held
business planning, and a full range of industry-focused legal services
including Bankruptcy and Creditors Rights, Construction, Domestic Relations
(Massachusetts only), Employee Benefits/ERISA, Environmental and Land Use,
Government Affairs (Connecticut only), Health Care, Intellectual Property,
Labor and Employment, Municipal Law and Public Finance, Tax and Utility and
Communications.
Legendary "Last Poet"
Sharing Poetry and Life Lessons at ETEC (4/2006)
NEW HAVEN - Abiodun Oyewole, a
founding member of the group The Last Poets has been turning local
youth on to the power of poetry and the spoken word during April, which is
National Poetry Month. Oyewole has conducted a weekly Hip Hop poetry
workshop for boys ages 14 to 18 at Youth Continuum’s Education Training & Enrichment Center (ETEC).
The workshops, which continue through June, focus on both the creative process of writing and the
final product, with a goal of strengthening the youths’
self-expression.
Along the way, Oyewole has shared some
life lessons. Like many of the youth in the workshop, he was able to
overcome the same urban social maladies of a broken home or child abuse.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime
experience for some of these boys,” said Ife Michelle Gardin,
coordinator of the project. “They will hopefully look back on this
time spent with Abiodun and understand the impact he has had.” Gardin
was responsible for making the connection to Oyewole who is an old family
friend.
The Last Poets are considered the
rappers of the civil rights era, bringing together music and spoken word in
a purposeful way. Oyewole has had a number of projects not under The Last
Poets name, including recordings with contemporary hip hop artists. He is currently on the faculty at Columbia University.
ETEC Awarded Multi-Year Grant from Community Foundation
for Greater New Haven
(11/2005)
NEW HAVEN - Youth Continuum's Education
Training & Enrichment Center (ETEC) recently received significant
funding from the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven. ETEC is
a new initiative serving as an education and job skill training program
that includes hands-on work experiences and personal enrichment
opportunities for at-risk youth. It is located on Grand Avenue in New Haven. The funding will enable the
agency to enhance programming at ETEC through a youth entrepreneurial
program.
“We are grateful to the Community
Foundation for joining us as a partner in the ETEC venture,” said
Carole A. Shomo, chief executive officer of Youth Continuum. “This is
a first step in providing a positive, real-world work experience for the
youth we serve and it is so important to have the support of the community
for these kids to succeed.”
The Community Foundation for Greater New
Haven awarded the program $75,000 over two years for a youth
entrepreneurial project. Through hands-on activities and an entrepreneurial
curriculum, youth will develop skills which better equip them for life and
the world of work. These skills include critical and creative thinking;
problem solving and communication; and personal empowerment and
effectiveness.
Additional support for ETEC is provided by
the Verizon Wireless Foundation; the Lewis G. Schaeneman, Jr. Foundation;
NewAlliance Foundation; AT&T; Workforce Alliance; UBS Foundation USA;
the Tow Foundation; the Annie E. Casey Foundation; the Mayor’s
Community Arts Grant Program; the Anna Fitch Ardenghi Trust; and the Tow
Foundation. A grand opening for ETEC is scheduled for early 2006.
About the Community Foundation for Greater
New Haven
Since 1928, donors to The Community
Foundation for Greater New Haven have built the community's endowment
currently valued at approximately $245 million. In 2005, The Foundation
Board of Directors distributed over $14 million in grants from over 600
different named charitable funds supporting a wide range of programs and
projects. The Foundation’s service area encompasses: Ansonia, Bethany,
Branford, Cheshire, Derby,
East Haven, Guilford, Hamden,
Madison, Milford,
New Haven, North Branford, North Haven, Orange, Oxford, Seymour, Shelton, Wallingford, West Haven
and Woodbridge.
For more information about The Community Foundation visit www.cfgnh.org.
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