Fun with Learning Carries on at FALC!

After closing its doors in March 2020, the Future of America Learning Center (FALC) hit the ground running with a remote curriculum and distance learning events that included a virtual version of its annual Science Fair. Over the summer, FALC celebrated 53 Universal Pre-K graduates at online ceremonies in which students sang songs and shared their dreams for the future.

In the fall, FALC reopened for in-person learning with a thorough safety protocol in place. With physical distancing and lessons about wearing masks and hand-washing, our staff worked hard to put safety first for FALC instructors, students and their families.

In honor of Multicultural Awareness Month in October, FALC projects focused on themes of community, family, culture and heritage. At a time when social issues involving race and culture became front-page news, students learned about racial equity and the role community leaders play to bring about change.

Moving beyond the community, students and their families learned about their personal backgrounds with “All About Me, My Family and My Heritage” projects that traced their individual history using maps. Children learned about cultures different from their own during activities that explored multicultural attire, food, games and traditional dance. The learning unit culminated in Thanksgiving celebrations that showcased different cultural traditions and ways that families connect during the holiday season.

Career Skill-building Goes Virtual with WorkForce 2000 and the Youth Mentoring Program

Our youth programs have helped thousands of students reach their academic goals and explore their career interests, and have given them a behind-the-scenes look at a variety of jobs in the healthcare industry. But what do you do when face-to-face learning is not an option? Go online!

Last summer, 223 teens participated in the WorkForce 2000 (WF2) summer professional development program. Students logged into Zoom for interactive sessions that focused on college prep and remote coursework assistance. Twenty students participated in WF2’s Pre-RN Program, which allows students to explore careers in nursing, with a curriculum geared toward students’ acceptance into nursing school. The Pre-RN students stepped up to revamp their final projects on midwifery to accommodate virtual programming due to the pandemic.

The Youth Mentoring Program (YMP) also launched a four-week remote learning experience during the summer. Instead of an in-person internship at the hospital or nursing home where their parents work, YMP students dived into a virtual development program that taught them about financial literacy and time management, along with skills to help them build resumes and professional portfolios of work. The course ran in conjunction with WF2, and a combined 250 teens collaborated during the joint venture.

Between the two programs, students created 17 live videos, which included interviews with first responders (as public service announcements about their COVID-19 experiences), along with relevant information and tips for virus prevention.

The programs held a virtual closing ceremony on July 30 to showcase finished projects and to award certificates to participants. Bridging the two programs helped students feel more connected in the world of virtual learning, while ensuring they continued to receive professional development skills to support their plans for the future.

CCF and CCC Respond to COVID-19 Emergency Child-care Needs

Even as all in-person activities were canceled last spring due to COVID-19, the Child Care Funds (CCF) and Child Care Corporation (CCC) continued to deliver remote programming and essential services. When financial and child-care needs grew during the pandemic, we were able to provide emergency child-care financial relief to both members and non-members.

In partnership with our donors—the JPB Foundation, Segal Family Foundation, Element Capital, PAC, Robin Hood Foundation and Mastercard Impact Fund—the CCF and CCC assisted more than 7,500 members and other healthcare workers with emergency child-care financial relief in the amount of $3.5 million.

The Child Care Resource and Referral Services (CCR&R) team also helped members without child care find alternative providers throughout the five boroughs and Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester counties. Within the first seven months of the COVID-19 pandemic, 1,300 1199SEIU members received referrals, affording them much-needed peace of mind and support as they worked on the frontlines. Many of our members were adversely affected by program cancellations and summer day camp closures, and our staff provided 4,000 stipends in lieu of approved benefits to support their child-care needs, totaling nearly $7 million.

To measure the effectiveness of the Funds’ COVID-19 response, our Assessment and Compliance Department administered a survey to more than 24,000 healthcare workers.

In addition, we learned that many families are spending $250 a week or more on child care or are facing financial hardship caused by unpaid leave from work, caring for children forced to stay home due to program and school closures.

At the start of the new year, the Funds had a waiting list of more than 1,000 healthcare workers in need of support. We anticipate the pandemic will continue to impact the child-care and financial needs of our essential workers, and we remain committed to providing support when and where it’s needed most.

Joseph Tauber Scholarship Program by the Numbers

The Joseph Tauber Scholarship Program (JTSP) supports the academic goals of the children of eligible 1199SEIU members by giving them the opportunity to attend colleges and universities in the New York City metro area and alleviating families’ common financial stressors. The longstanding program has yielded many success stories over the years, and the 2019–2020 award year was no different. Take a look at the top 10 universities and colleges currently attended by our scholarship recipients:

While 78 percent of JTSP students attend school within the City and State University of New York network, a few scholarship recipients attend other schools, including the Juilliard School, and three students are even studying abroad in the U.K. through New York-based programs. Sixty-one percent of students go to public schools, 38 percent attend private schools and only 1 percent of students attend a for-profit school.

Each year, scholarships are awarded as a taxable benefit to members of the National Benefit Fund, the Greater New York Benefit Fund and the Licensed Practical Nurses Welfare Fund. In 2019, the 1199SEIU/Employer Child Care Corporation awarded $5,775,577 in scholarships through JTSP.

Kids and Teens Learn about Holiday Sleep-Away Program at Camp Open Houses

Camp life can be hard to imagine for kids and teens living in and around the New York metro area, so each year, the Holiday Sleepaway and Teen Holiday Sleepaway Program teams show kids and teens what they can expect during sessions at their camps in upstate New York.

The Holiday Sleep-Away Program, designed for kids ages 8 to 12, is held at Camp Mariah in Fishkill, New York. Nearly 40 members gathered at the open house as the Fresh Air Fund presented information about the camp experience it provides, and answered members’ questions about the program, which offers sports, music, arts crafts, nature exploration and more.

At the French Woods Sports and Arts Center in Hancock, New York, members and teens ages 13 to 17 learned about the opportunity to build personal and academic skill sets through the Teen Holiday Sleepaway Program. Thirty-one families attended the open house, which gave potential participants the opportunity to submit applications, meet camp staff and hear about program highlights, including STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, math) projects, team sports and the performing arts.

CCC’s Holiday Sleepaway Program provides students with meaningful learning and personal development experiences during breaks from school in the winter and spring. Of course, due to safety guidelines surrounding the coronavirus pandemic, the spring 2020 sessions were suspended. The Holiday Sleepaway Program will resume in 2021, but the Teen Holiday Sleepaway Program has been cancelled. We look forward to welcoming campers back to the program in the future!