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In an editorial co-written by our CEO and President, Melanie Hartzog, and Jennifer Geiling, CEO of Union Settlement, these two nonprofit leaders make the case for a greater investment in the city’s social service workers. They note that “Contracted nonprofits rely on government funding, with contract revenue representing upwards of 90% of many budgets….And without our hardworking and highly-skilled team members- our counselors, our health workers, our classroom teachers and aides — nonprofits and the city have no ability to deliver. Humans are of course at the core of human services.”

“With growing inflation and compressed salaries, our workforce is facing an increasingly steeper climb to build a better future for themselves and their families,” they write. “Wage increases for the social services workforce in New York City is a critical step toward wage equity and financial stability.”

Read more at NY Daily News

Skye Ostreicher speaks to our CEO & President, Melanie Hartzog. They disucss how she parlays her government experience into the nonprofit sector to help provide social services in New York City, the upcoming opening of our Vital Brookdale supportive housing, and more.

Read more on City & State, or watch the video below:

Bill Baccaglini, The Foundling’s former President & CEO, appeared at Fordham University’s Graduate School of Social Service this week. He was conferred an honorary doctorate of humane letters, as well as gave a commencement address to this year’s class of nearly 500 graduates.

“You don’t do this because it’s easy. You’ve chosen to do this because it needs to be done,” he said in his address. “We’ve seen enough suffering to know that the true heroes are those individuals who believe that the highest calling and greatest gift is to have the opportunity and ability to improve the lives of those around them.”

Read more at Fordham News here.

The American Psychiatric Association Foundation (APAF) announced the winners of its 2022 Awards for Advancing Minority Mental Health at its annual benefit held in conjunction with APA’s 2022 Annual Meeting in New Orleans.

The Foundling was one of the recipients of this award, given our commitment to providing mental health treatment and social services targeted to the needs, strengths, and cultures of its diverse community. The award honored our goal of removing disparities, particularly in the following communities – LGBTQIA+ youth and their families; the Deaf community; and Latinx and African American families in Harlem.

Read more at American Psychiatric Association

2021 has been a year of transformation. From the pandemic’s continued impact on our community, to major leadership shifts in city, state, and federal government, it’s been a year of change for all of us. Thanks to your support, The Foundling has not only navigated this new landscape, providing life-transforming services to over 30,000 children, adults, and families in New York and Puerto Rico, but has also expanded our reach, impact, and vision for the future ahead.

Our latest Impact Report, Transformation, chronicles this work over the past year – and showcases the successes you have helped us achieve. Explore the report, which includes powerful stories from our participants, leadership and donor spotlights, and details on how our programs are continuing to provide support and stability for our neighbors in need.

Browse our Impact Report here, or learn about our larger reach on our Impact web page.

Mott Haven Herald highlighted our Haven Kids Rock performing arts program in a recent feature, which features interviews with co-founder Nef Jones and two of the Haven Academy scholars currently in the program. “What I love about it is it helps me communicate with people. I can express how I feel with just singing or acting or dancing,” says one of the students. “It really connects to you in life, which sometimes can help you feel good about yourself.”

Read more at Mott Haven Herald

 

 

Since 1970, the TCS New York City Marathon – the world’s largest marathon – has been a source of inspiration for runners around the globe. On November 6, 2022, over 50,000 athletes will once again take to the streets for a 26.2-mile route through all five boroughs of New York City. While the lottery for general admission to the race is now closed, The Foundling still has spots available for dedicated runners. Join us in becoming a part of this important milestone!

In partnership with New York Road Runners, The Foundling is proud to support a team of ten runners. Apply today to join The Foundling’s 2022 TCS NYC Marathon team, as spots will fill up quickly! The final deadline to secure your spot is June 1!

Click here to learn more and reserve your spot!

In Fall 2021, our Day Habilitation participants were invited to join in a VisABILITY art workshop series to help develop their creative talents. Workshops were led by The Foundling’s creative facilitators, with each one introducing our participants to a different artistic medium – from photography to poetry.

In the course of these workshops, many of our participants found that art provided a novel way to truly share their voices and experiences with the world. “We have a lot of individuals that really have a hard time expressing their feelings and emotions…but if you look at their artwork, it speaks a thousand words,” says Lamont Issacs, Assistant Vice President of our Day Habilitation program.

The VisABILITY project culminated in an art exhibition to showcase these bold and powerful works – and on March 23, The Foundling’s Developmental Disabilities team hosted a celebration of the exhibition at Vinny’s Café (a community space within Vincent’s Village, a supportive complex for seniors managed by the Sisters of Charity Housing Development Corporation.)

Jill Gentile - DD Art Show

Jill Gentile, who leads our Developmental Disabilities Division, provided opening remarks on March 23.

This special event allowed Foundling staff and Trustees, Sisters of Charity, program participants, and friends and family to enjoy refreshments, admire the artwork, contribute to a group installation, and learn more about the VisABILITY project. For many of our Developmental Disabilities participants, this was the first time they had attended a gallery event, and it was a wonderful experience where their abilities, viewpoints, and talent were acknowledged and celebrated.

Artists - DD Art Show

Artists had the opportunity to share and discuss their work.

“With the art showcase, we’re really giving an opportunity for the community to think more about what a society that’s more inclusive of the experiences and abilities around us might look like,” shares Carly Johnson, one of The Foundling’s Clinical Coordinators and a VisABILITY Workshop Facilitator.

And our VisABILITY project is not over – our art gallery continues to garner interest from the community and local officials.

Artwork - DD Art Show

Our participants’ artwork, photos, paintings, collages, textile arts, and more – was beautifully displayed throughout the café.

Additionally, The Foundling has also launched a corresponding digital exhibition featuring a virtual tour, art to view, and even the opportunity to purchase original works (with proceeds benefiting the artist and funding additional VisABILITY workshops). View the exhibition here.

 

 


Interested in learning more about the VisABILITY Project? Hear our participants and staff speak about their experiences in the video below:

Not Just Bad Kids Book CoverAt The Foundling, we understand that many of the behavioral challenges exhibited by children and teenagers  are often linked to past trauma, stress, and other environmental factors. In our Health and Behavioral Health programs, we couple personable and compassionate care with evidence-based therapeutic models to help children and families get on track for success.

Based on the insights he’s learned throughout his career, Dr. Akeem Marsh, the Assistant Medical Director of our Home for Integrated Behavioral Health, recently co-edited a book – Not Just Bad Kids: The Adversity and Disruptive Behavior Link which hit bookstores earlier this year!

Dr. Marsh and co-editor Lara J. Cox began developing the book after conducting a series of presentations drawing on the patterns and behaviors they’d noticed within their psychiatry practices. Dr. Marsh’s passion for the topic is rooted in both his previous work within New York City’s juvenile justice system, as well as his current role working with children and families at The Foundling.

“Within the Home of Integrated Behavioral Health, the overwhelming majority of the people we serve have been traumatized – not only by whatever happened that landed them in foster care, but also often by the systems that they’ve been involved with,” Dr. Marsh says. “They get to us at some point on that journey. And on our psychiatry team, we work to not further that trauma, but to facilitate the process of healing.  It’s really about meeting people where they’re at, and being sensitive to things they might have experienced.”

The book covers this topic in great detail, and aims to provide child welfare professionals with background that can be easily applied to their clinical work. Targeted chapters involve context and tools for working with young people that have been involved in the child welfare system, juvenile detention facilities, and more.

“Those chapters talk about the specific aspects of those systems, and how certain behaviors might manifest in youth that have had those experiences,” Dr. Marsh says. “We really tried to cover all the bases – providing context for how these kids behave in school, as younger kids, as teenagers. We give vignettes and stories that show what methods work and what should be avoided.”

Dr. Marsh hopes that the book will help professionals view ‘problem kids’ differently and encourage them to address root causes of behavior, rather than enacting harsh punishments and punitive measures that aren’t effective long-term.

“Anyone who works with kids should want to understand where they’re coming from,” he says. “Psychiatrists, pediatricians, social workers, teachers, police officers: they may notice behaviors, attitudes, or actions that don’t make sense on the surface. This book helps put those things into context and provides background – ultimately helping them be more empathetic, and better able to provide support to young people in our community.”

Dr. Marsh is excited to share these ideas, and hopes that the book will spark change. “I really hope we see a reimagining in the way this work is done,” he says. “Formal training often sets expectations that things are always done a certain way, which doesn’t always meet the needs of the children and families we serve.  I’m interested in seeing how we can be creative in meeting the needs of our community.”


Dr. Marsh’s bookNot Just Bad Kids: The Adversity and Disruptive Behavior Link – is available for purchase through a variety of retailers. Additionally, those with institutional access may access the full book via ScienceDirect.

Interested in hearing more from Dr. Marsh and learning about our trauma-informed therapeutic models? Watch our Health & Behavioral Health overview video here:

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