HENRY STREET SETTLEMENT
EDUCATION & EMPLOYMENT SERVICES
THE WEEK OF MARCH 23, 2015
ACCOMPLISHMENTS
 In YAIP, DN (9A) was hired at Whole Foods, TA and BE (11A) were hired at Goodwill. SR (11A)
was accepted to Queenborough Community College for the fall.
 Five participants in the ESL-Job Readiness program started work this week as housekeepers in hotels
and many more went on interviews. The ESL 1-Job Readiness class is coming to a close and has been
focusing on interview preparation. They also learned vocabulary related to health and the body. The
ESL Basics classes continued talking about NYC transportation and watch a We Are New York movie
about getting around the city. They discussed problems with the transportation system and brainstormed
potential solutions to those problems.
 In Project Rise, two Cohort 7 participants were hired at the Marlton Hotel and Partners in Care. To date,
19 Cohort 7 participants have gained unsubsidized employment.
 SONYC CASTLE students showed off all their talents and hard work at the Cycle 2 Culmination show.
 Our Middle School Success Center completed its 2nd round HS applications. MSSC Peer Leader,
Ashley Stewart was selected to shadow Councilmember Chin on Tuesday, and MSSC completed its 3rd
"Breakfast of Champions" Peer Leader training.
 As cycle 3 approaches, Grades K-3 of the After-School Program at PS 134 were introduced to our cycle
3 theme of “community” with an afternoon art project assisted by volunteers from one of our newest
corporate sponsors: Houses of Kaizen. Our Fourth graders are starting to learn sign language. Our Fifth
grade group has been struggling with the issue of bullying. Despite the Bully Prevention curriculum
taught this year, these students are at an age where they think it’s cool to be part of a group (click) who
might alienate those who might be different, and that it is alright to be cruel or sassy just to elevate their
own self-esteem. After realizing what poor choices they have been making they wrote apology letters to
the individuals they realized they had been bullying.
 When L.A. first came to JET, she expressed that she was extremely desperate to find work and was
willing to take any job that she could get. Even though she had over 10 years of experience working for
the City, L.A. lacked self-confidence due to the fact that she had been unemployed for an extended
period of time. However, she had an amazing personality and a strong eagerness to “hit the ground
running” as soon as she was given an opportunity. Shortly after our first one-on-one session she was
referred to Whole Foods and she was offered a position on the spot. L.A. recently expressed that she is
in love with her new job at Whole Foods and is aiming to become Team Leader within the next 6
months!
 This week our Square Root of Success participants at 301 learned about the bone structure within the
human body. The participants gained strong content knowledge about what a bone is and how it is
mostly made of calcium, and most importantly how these hard pieces of tissue that makes up our
skeletal structure. They also learned about the importance skeletal structure and how it supports the
body. As an expansion of this lesson the class made two life size models of the human body with an
outline of our bone structure.
 At PS 20’s After-School Program, Ayo, a sculptor from the Abrons Arts Center just concluded his work
with our third graders. The third graders had to use their bodies and everyday objects to make
sculptures. Students enjoyed seeing that they can make art using their bodies and everyday items. Unit
KA worked on understanding the special features of the planets in the solar system. Unit KC explored
the impact of gravity in our everyday lives. Unit 1A converted their classroom into a bakery. They
learned about synonyms and antonyms through pictures and definitions. Then we taught our students to
make synonym rolls. Unit 2C architects learned how to build a solid foundation and structure. Unit 3A
scientists learned more about the parts of the flowers and how they grow. Unit 4A scientists learned
more about density this week. They first predicted the weight of a balloon and an orange. Then the
students explained their own predictions and made connections to density.
 Our 301 Camp Henry Director attended the ACA Tri-State Camp Conference. She learned about cool
programming ideas and staff development. She was able to meet a Michael Brandwein, an amazing
speaker, who had great tips on how to give staff a more leadership role and get them thinking in more
creative ways within camp. She was also able to listen to a lawyer, an ex-cop, camp directors, and camp
staff with a wealth of knowledge on what keeps their clients/campers learning, happy, safe, and having
fun. Marc Kielburger, the co-founder of Me to We, spoke on how to get students involved in global and
local issues. At the end of the Conference we were graced by Hilary Rodham Clinton who spoke about
the importance of Camp, education, stories from her past, most influential person she has met, etc.
 PS 110 After-School staff attended Parent/Teacher Conference and were able to sit down and discuss
YIU student progress from November until now. During program hours, Kindergarten students went to
the Abrons Arts Center to host their very own Art Show. They loved being able to play with the dice and
board games they created. The students showed off their art work to the Pre-K students and family
members. Third and fourth graders worked on self-portraits using mirror material, pencils, and white
paper.
 At BGR’s After-School Program, in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day, Unit 1B created a three
dimensional craft named over the Rainbow. This taught the students about dimension and why is it used
in everyday life. This week Unit 2A tested their mathematic skills. Counselors had citizens participate in
a competition where they were given a number and they had to think and write down as many equations
(addition, subtraction, multiplication and decision) that equal the number. Over the past two weeks Unit
2B's literacy focus has been based on identifying character traits in a story. This week the citizens
gathered around and actively listened to the story Charlie and the Cheese Monster. The students were
able to use specific words to describe the character's traits, such as curious and creative. Unit 3 read Dr.
Seus' s " The Lorax" to our group. We focused on identifying some of the similarities between the book
and our neighborhood. The children were able to make comparisons from the pollution in the book and
the pollution we see here in the Lower East Side. We were able to make connections to their personal
feelings towards greed and making a change for the better.
 VS is a young single mother who always wanted a better life for herself and her child. VS came to Jobs
Plus seeking a steady, permanent job. She had been working at several part time positions to make ends
meet. While working part-time at Century 21, she applied for and got a sales associate position at Rite
Aid. After three months at the position, she became full time. VS had a plan to move out of her housing
development and away from the Lower East Side. After a year of savings, VS was able to secure an
apartment in Ithaca, NY and was able to get a used car with her tax return. VS and her child will be
moving in April. She is transferring her position at Rite Aid.
UPCOMING EVENTS
MSSC 7th Grade Parent Meeting
Parent Workshop on Managing Test Anxiety
All About Creativity Sharing
SONYC Demo Lessons
430 PM
415 PM
CEC
PS 134
PS 20
CEC
 April 1
Henry Street Scholarship Application Deadline
5PM
301
 April 3-10
School Holiday Camp
8 AM
BGR, PS 20
 April 6-9
SONYC Holiday Camp
UNMS Basketball Camp
 April 8-10
College Access and Retention College Tour
 April 13
Expanded Horizons Program Application Deadline 5 PM
301
 April 17
All Staff Retreat (all programs closed)
Ed Alliance  March 31
CEC
CEC
930 AM