Fort Greene SNAP

SNAP’s EDUCATION COMMITTEE GETS ORGANIZED!

Theresa Theophano, LMSW, Community Organizer

After steadily gathering information and laying groundwork over the past few years, Fort Greene SNAP recently launched a new incarnation of its Education Committee. The committee was formed to address the learning needs of our community’s children and the performance of local schools in the district. We held our first meeting on February 9th; attendees included members of Community Board 2, the Fort Greene Association, Myrtle Avenue Revitalization Project (MARP), Community Learning Support Organization (CLSO), the office of Assembly member Joseph Lentol, The READ Foundation, and of course SNAP staff.

At the meeting, to which parents of local schoolchildren were invited, we discussed our shared concerns about low reading scores among 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students at PS 67 (the Charles A. Dorsey School) here in the heart of Fort Greene. A 2007 report showed that only 29% of 5th graders were able to read on level, and overall, the students’ scores were significantly lower than those at a comparable school in Red Hook. As a response to this problem, the committee is attempting to reach the school’s principal and is willing to offer help to both the school and local families.

Meantime, our team is regularly conducting outreach and talking to parents and grandparent caregivers about how they can use their voices to ensure the best possible education for their children. We strongly encourage all interested parents to share their ideas and concerns at future sessions, and to contact us any time between meetings.

This essential work is made possible by a generous grant from the New York Foundation that SNAP received last fall. “Receiving this grant allows SNAP’s Education Committee to partner with the many organizations, churches, schools and individuals who are concerned about the effectiveness of our elementary schools,” said Dr. Glose, SNAP’s executive director. SNAP looks forward to building this initiative and forming a coalition to support Fort Greene’s public school students and their families. We plan to continue our work in the education arena for years to come.

We want to hear from YOU! All parents, grandparents, and community residents are welcome and encouraged not only to get involved with the Education Committee, but also to utilize SNAP’s services, including free computer lab access, entrepreneurship support, financial literacy workshops, grandparent caregiver support groups, and much more.

For more information on the committee, or to find out the date of our next meeting, please call SNAP at 718-694-6957 and ask for Dr. Glose, or email me at teresa@fortgreenesnap.org.

Bad Conditions Continue at Auburn Shelter

Craig Hughes

In November of 1985 the city sheltered just under 4,000 families. That same month, in the midst of a deepening crisis of homelessness, the Human Resource Administration announced that floors of Cumberland hospital would be converted to temporary shelter for homeless families. That was the birth of Auburn shelter.

Today there are over 9,000 families in New York City’s shelters. Auburn family shelter towers 10 stories, providing temporary shelter to over 100 families, including over 100 children. For years, Auburn has been cited for substantial violations. But there has been a major void in advocacy since 2002, the last time SNAP worked with residents to organize at the shelter.

In response to complaints of harmful conditions, SNAP has continually outreached to residents and advocated for them since the Fall. Because of the need for advocacy for Auburn residents, we have initiated the Auburn Independent Monitoring Committee (AIMC), involving local elected officials, community activists and community members. We welcome new participants! To get involved, please email craig@fortgreenesnap.org

Residents Deserve Adequate Heat

Since temperatures started to become cold this Fall residents have complained about cold rooms and a generally cold shelter. Comments on the temperatures inside include descriptors like “freezing.” In their rooms, windows are drafty, and the plastic that shelter staff places over them doesn’t stop the cold from entering. Heaters don’t provide adequate heat.

For years inspections have shown that rooms were cold. New York State’s 2006 inspection found that about “90% of the apartments were…excessively cold.” Residents placed “mattresses in the windows in order to prevent cold air from penetrating the room.” The 2007 inspection found that “16 rooms were off-line due to the lack of heat due in part to drafty non-storm windows.” On a sunny 60-degree Monday in late December 2008, a Department of Homeless Services (DHS) inspector summarized his observations on the heating: “Heat not working properly throughout building.”

In February, DHS Commissioner Robert V. Hess told the New York Times that “The air infiltration through the windows has been a battle we’ve battled for many winters.” Recently, window replacements finally began as part of a Department of Design and Construction project that began in 2007. The anticipated project completion is June, though it will likely run into next Fall and possibly beyond — by early February only 89 of 616 windows had been replaced. During replacements, which continued throughout the winter, families are shuffled to alternate floors and the flow of cold air into the building increases. Auburn’s heating system is connected to Cumberland Diagnostic and Treatment Center. The state has recommended separating the heating system, but DHS has waffled on committing to the change.

In late February, Commissioner Hess wrote to SNAP and stated that DHS feels “it is the windows, not the heating system, causing the problem.” Residents report otherwise, as does the most recent DHS inspection. Last year DHS stated that it expected a new heating system would be installed by January, 2010. In his letter to us, Hess wrote that after window placements DHS “will also re-assess the viability of the heating system to ensure the best outcome.”

It’s about time that DHS does something about the windows and heating system inadequacies at Auburn; these are substantial improvements that will make life at Auburn a less terrible experience than it currently is. While DHS has waited years to see these changes through, residents have consistently experienced cold winters, outside and inside the shelter. This year has been no different, and next year is also likely to see cold rooms, unless DHS acts to ensure adequate heat. This would require changing the heating system and ensuring adequate provisions for heating rooms if window replacements are not completed by the time cold weather starts. If you’re interested in working with SNAP to advocate for adequate heating at Auburn, please email us!

Residents Deserve Supportive Conditions

Legal A id’s Chief Lawyer recently stated that “Auburn is probably the worst shelter placement in the family shelter system.” The problems at Auburn go far beyond inadequate heating. For months residents have complained to SNAP about food at Auburn: people have become ill, they are served the same food over and over, and food boxes have been served months after they’re dated. There’s asbestos abatement. Security officers often treat residents without respect. Conditions are filthy. Caseworkers, who are likely overburdened, often don’t offer adequate assistance. There’s no child care. There are no separate bathrooms for children.

Those experiencing the daily pain and frustration of homelessness deserve to be sufficiently supported in their struggle to find affordable housing – a task that is increasingly hard in a city that has undergone such intense gentrification — as well as their other needs. They deserve the opportunity to live healthy and dignified lives. At the very least DHS can provide them with adequately heated rooms, decent food, respectful and helpful staff, and a supportive environment, which includes child care and age-separated bathrooms. What do you think? Let us know! Please leave a comment below or contact us!

The Auburn Independent Monitoring Committee

Auburn has not always been designated a family shelter. In 2002, when SNAP first began to organize around the shelter, one of our major concerns was that DHS shouldn’t have been holding families there at all — the shelter was only supposed to be holding adults. Accordingly, after substantial organizing, DHS responded in three major ways: (1) they transferred residents who complained; (2) they promised not to place families in Auburn any longer; (3) they created an “advisory board” that was stacked overwhelmingly with DHS staff, but also included advocates from SNAP.
In recent years DHS has evaded organizing meetings of the advisory committee. By 2005 the shelter was again classified as a family shelter; DHS did not notify community advocates. Inspections have since shown consistently problematic conditions.

In November, after speaking with residents, and after reviewing our past organizing efforts at Auburn, SNAP created an independent monitoring committee (AIMC). The committee involves local representatives, and community members and advocates, who work with SNAP to create a flow of information about conditions in Auburn and advocate on residents’ behalf. SNAP maintains a presence outside the shelter — even though the shelter Director and security have tried to remove us –  conducting outreach and gathering information. We also work with residents on a case management and advocacy level, and organize with them. Want to be involved? Please contact us!

Auburn and DHS Respond

In late January, SNAP held the first meeting of the AIMC. As a result of the meeting SNAP, Assemblyman Joseph Lentol and Council member Letitia James sent letters to Commissioner Hess about the issues mentioned above, among others.

Commissioner Hess’s response, nearly a month later, argued that DHS was already doing enough. He acknowledged that the drafty windows — which the shelter has had for years — were causing rooms to feel cold. He argued that the plastic placed over the windows was sufficient. We’ve heard otherwise from residents, who use words like “freezing” to describe nights at the shelter.

In regards to housing assistance and case management, Commissioner Hess argued that there has been increased oversight of case files, and that case managers have received “refresher courses.” While we applaud such efforts, we know that Auburn clients often experience a substantial lack of direction and assistance by their case managers. We also know from speaking with residents that they don’t receive adequate housing assistance. Since there are a total of 13 social service staff to assist over 100 constantly changing families, it’s very likely that social service staff are overworked.

Hess’s response reflects a substantial lack of sensitivity toward parents and children. He argues that case managers work with residents who require child care by referring them out. For years Auburn has been cited them for not providing childcare. Hess makes no commitment to hiring childcare providers at the shelter. This is a regulation that DHS, if it plans to run Auburn as a family shelter, should live up to. In his letter to us, Hess did not commit to creating age-separated bathrooms.

Overall, Commissioner Hess’s response reflects the insensitivity of DHS toward some of the City’s most vulnerable. New York City’s homeless endure enough oppression and barriers already. They need adequate heat, adequate provisions for children, and adequate assistance by those charged to provide it. SNAP’s goal is to see that they receive the support they need.

Moving Forward

AIMC will meet again in mid-April. We welcome new participants! Please get in touch if you’d like to participate. Please visit www.fortgreenesnap.org for more info.You can also contact Craig Hughes at craig@fortgreenesnap.org, or call us at 718 694 6957. Additionally, two short articles on the situation at Auburn have been published at: www.nytimes.com/fortgreene.

Weatherization Assistance Available!

Lynne Serpe, The Community Environmental Center (CEC)

“They did such a great job. It is so much warmer and it’s not drafty anymore. I couldn’t have my son stay with me before because he has diabetes and he would be freezing, but now he can.” – of weatherization services in New York

With recent articles in the New York Times (Focus on Weatherization Is Shift on Energy Costs) and Time Magazine (America’s Untapped Energy Source: Boosting Efficiency), many homeowners are realizing the benefits of weatherization but are worried about how to pay for the necessary renovations, especially in this precarious economic environment.

That’s where groups like the Community Environmental Center come in. The Community Environmental Center (CEC) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1994. We have helped over 300,000 people save more than $270 million in utility costs. Our work on over 100,000 apartments and homes has prevented the emission of over 750,000 tons of carbon dioxide.
Our Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP) delivers free or low-cost energy efficiency and conservation services to low and moderate-income households, particularly the elderly, families with children and the disabled. Our work can help building owners and landlords upgrade their buildings, offer health and safety testing, reduce energy consumption and can result in immediate cost savings to owners and tenants – all while improving quality of life. Some of the services we provide include: replacement, retrofitting, or repair of your heating appliance system, including boilers; testing for gas leaks, installing smoke and carbon monoxide detectors; installation of high-efficiency cellulose insulation in walls and attics; installation of low flow shower heads, aerators and energy saving light bulbs; superior weather-stripping and air-sealing.

WAP is administered by the NYS Division of Housing and Community Renewal and is funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and Health and Human Services. The program has specific income requirements: currently, at least fifty percent of tenants must have an income below 60% of state median in order to be eligible for this program (i.e. below $45,312 for a four-person household).

“I believe they saved our life,” said a 76 year old client who received a new air-conditioning/heating unit last year and is now feeling the benefits for a second summer in a row.

The benefits of weatherization can be enjoyed year-round so please call CEC today at 718-784-1444 or visit www.cecenter.org for more information.

What Does it Mean to be a Man? SNAP holds mens discussion group!

Alex Morales, SNAP Staff Associate

What does it mean to be a man? With that question SNAP has organized an on-going discussion group for male-identified individuals to discuss masculinity in their lives. “We intend the group to be a space for discussing how gender roles affect men in their relationships, parenting and work lives,” said SNAP staff member Alex Morales. “They are based on the understanding that masculinity is something that can be good and bad, as well as something that can cause men to hurt or help themselves and others.”

What kinds of things do we want to discuss at these group meetings? Here are a few topics we are considering:
What is the relation between being a man and holding healthy relationships?
What does work mean in a mans life?
Can trying to live up to a standard of maleness lead to harmful life decisions?
Can “being a man” lead to abusive relationships with others?
How do different cultures see masculinity similarly?
How might they see it differently?
Can we envision positive masculinities – masculinities that help us to create healthy relationships, help us to build healthy communities and help us to make healthy choices?

Georgianna Glose, SNAP’S Executive Director, commented on the group, “We are very excited to offer workshops that allow men to discuss their experiences with gender,” she said. Glose continued, “Too often those who identify as men are socialized to abuse themselves and others, and we think that dialog on this subject will help to open space for thinking about healthy and compassionate forms of masculinity.”

The group originated during a discussion between two male staff members at SNAP. Our first meeting was held for two hours at SNAP’s office and was a great success. We welcome new participants! To attend out next meeting, please contact alex@fortgreenesnap.org for more information!

Upcoming Workshops

Beginning 5/7/09, 1-3pm ($2 materials fee per session): Computer Basics: This 5 session , 2 hour class, meets every Thursday. This is a basic computer class, and when I say basic I mean BASIC! It means we’ll start with a review of hardware, then continue with how to log on, how to use the start menu and the free programs that come with the Windows operating system, including Internet Explorer. For the complete beginner – learn in a safe, patient environment.

Beginning 5/8/09, 1-3pm ($2 materials fee per session): Internet & Social Media
5 week class. Continuing our workshops on using the Internet and all the cool stuff you can find there! Email will be our focus, as it relates to social bookmarking, podcasting, videos, ways to make money online, VOIP (voice over internet telephony)

4/4/09, 2pm-330pm: People’s History Story Circles: Share your personal story!