What’s New at Power of Two: August 2023
August 30, 2023
WHAT’S NEW AT POWER OF TWO – JULY 2024
August 16, 2024What’s New at Power of Two
ABC FAMILY SPOTLIGHT
Jamila, a mother of four children, was recommended to Power of Two from a preventive care agency. Enrolling in the program with her two youngest children, 4-year-old Neyla and 1-year-old Bradley, Jamila was deeply interested in improving her daughter’s social skills and learning more about connecting with her children. Over the course of 10 weeks of the ABC program, Jamila grew to have a better understanding of her children’s behavior, improving her ability to handle power struggles and her reaction to behaviors she doesn’t like. The ABC program showed her the importance of remaining calm during tantrums and how to redirect and help her children cope with their big feelings. At the end of the program, Jamila expressed her hopes that her children would continue to grow happy and healthy, having the opportunities to pursue whatever paths they wish to in the future.
TEAM EVENTS
Power of Two hosted a “Fun in the Sun'' community outreach event on July 12th in an effort to connect with new families that could benefit from the ABC program. Held at Power of Two’s Brooklyn Office, the event featured tables from the Brooklyn Public Library and The Mayor’s Office to ENDGBV (End Domestic and Gender-Based Violence) as well as various activities such as arts and crafts, story time, dancing, face painting, and book, toy, clothing, and hygiene product giveaways.
EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION IN THE NEWS
As the city enters its new fiscal year, concerns regarding New York City’s early childhood education programs are at the forefront. In January, Mayor Adams’ proposed a budget for the 2025 fiscal year that included a $170 million cut from children's education programs. After months of New York City families, teachers, and community members protesting the proposed budget cuts that would impact education city-wide, a last minute budget agreement was announced on June 28. The agreement allocates $20 million to the city’s program for 3-year-olds, creating additional seats for families without 3-K placements, and $25 million to extend the days and hours at more preschool programs (Chalkbeat, 2024). However, this new agreement will not completely offset the cuts that early childhood programs have experienced this year.
These cuts threaten families and children across the city, as 80% of New York City families with children cannot afford child care or after school programs (ABC 7, 2024). There is also a growing concern of children not having a seat in their legally mandated classes. While in December 2022 Mayor Adams promised that every child would have a seat in their legally mandated class, by the end of the 2022-2023 school year more than 1,100 children were still waiting for a seat in a preschool special education class (New York City Council, 2024). This number has increased for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year, with over 2,000 children still waiting for a seat.
TEAM EVENTS
Power of Two’s program team partnered up with Bronx GreenUp in May. Team members planted trees, vegetables, and pulled weeds at Karol’s Community Farm in the South Bronx in an effort to give back to local communities. Founded in 1988, the Bronx Green-Up program is a community gardening outreach program of The New York Botanical Garden. The program empowers Bronx residents to improve their communities through horticulture education, hands-on training, and greening projects.
WHAT ARE WE READING
- Moving in Childhood Contributes to Depression, Study Finds (New York Times)
- 1-in-4 Children In New York City Are Living In Poverty, Study Says (ABC News)
- Adversity in Childhood is Linked to Mental and Physical Health Throughout Life (National Library of Medicine)
- Access To Child Care Improves Parent Mental Health, Reduces Stress (PR Newswire)
