Ground Truthing

Debora Barrios, a housing consultant at the Community Resource Center in Mamaroneck, speaks about her experience as a volunteer in WCA’s Court Watchers Program. Launched this summer, Court Watchers trains volunteers before sending them out to view landlord-tenant eviction courts in Westchester, and document their observations. The Court Watchers Program contributes to WCA’s continued advocacy efforts for child and family homelessness. WCA would like to thank all our Court Watchers, including our guest Debora Barrios, for their continued enthusiasm and dedication to the program.

Jasmine Cabrera and Ja'Quan Wallace from the Youth Shelter of Westchester speak about their experiences with discipline, alternative programs, and community advocacy alongside four NYS youth justice bills: Solutions Not Suspensions, Youth Justice and Opportunities Act, Right to Remain Silent, and Clean Slate. They speak with Westchester Children’s Association intern Gabby Nanna, promoting WCA and YSOW’s upcoming Youth Justice Rally on February 23, 2023.

Michael Randall of the Fellowship between Bronxville High School, Mount Vernon High School, Yonkers Public Schools, and Sarah Lawrence College invited our executive director, Allison Lake, along with teachers from Mount Vernon and Yonkers to participate in a series of interviews about their investigation into the school-to-prison pipeline along with teachers from Mount Vernon and Yonkers. They graciously shared their podcast with us to send to you. Listen in to the "Separate and unequal" podcast featuring Allison!

Westchester Youth Speakers, Sandra Aderemi and Diego Rivera, speak about how they are active in their communities and striving for change for themselves and others during latest episode of Ground Truthing, a podcast by Westchester Children's Association. They speak about the importance of registering to vote, voting, and encouraging others to do the same. Listen in and subscribe to Ground Truthing for more! www.wca4kids.org/wca-podcast

Part 2 of our latest episode is full of important insight from our two guests, Dr. Lilian Reynolds and Karl Bertrand, child homelessness and race in Westchester County, New York. In part 1 of this episode, both of our guests discuss how data guides their homelessness work, why varying definitions lead to an inaccurate count of the homeless population, and how the history of race and racism impacts homelessness today. Dr. Lillian F. Reynolds is a social worker and homelessness liaison for the Mount Vernon City School District who is tasked with identifying and supporting students in temporary housing according to the McKinney-Vento Act. Karl Bertrand is the founder and President of Program Design & Development, LLC, (PD&D) which specializes in helping public and private organizations develop effective and innovative programs, with particular expertise in the development and management of multi-agency collaborations.

WCA Podcast Season 3 Episode 2 - 'Ground Truthing' interview of Dr. Lilian Reynolds and Karl Bertrand regarding child homelessness and race in Westchester County, New York. Hosted by Erica Ayala In part 1 of this episode, both of our guests discuss how data guides their homelessness work, why varying definitions lead to an inaccurate count of the homeless population, and how the history of race and racism impacts homelessness today. Dr. Lillian F. Reynolds is a social worker and homelessness liaison for the Mount Vernon City School District who is tasked with identifying and supporting students in temporary housing according to the McKinney-Vento Act. Karl Bertrand is the founder and President of Program Design & Development, LLC, (PD&D) which specializes in helping public and private organizations develop effective and innovative programs, with particular expertise in the development and management of multi-agency collaborations. Learn more about the gaps and issues affecting homeless children in our co

Interview with WCA's Advocacy Breakfast keynote speaker, Marc Dones, for our 1st episode of Season 3 for 'Ground Truthing'. Dones is the Executive Director of National Innovation Services that specializes in tackling complex problems and holding organizations and groups to bold solutions and outcomes. [Marc Dones' pronouns: They, Them, Theirs] Host: Erica L. Ayala

Welcome to Season Two of Ground Truthing, Westchester Children’s Association's monthly podcast where we offer policy insights from the ground up by featuring community voices from Westchester county. Hosted by Erica Ayala. This episode, we chat with Karen Blumenthal. Karen will soon retire after 25 years working as a policy advocate at Student Advocacy. Karen has been at the forefront of the code of conduct conversations happening throughout the county. We break down the history of codes of conduct, districts diligently working to make less punitive school environments, and what still needs to change at the state level. Karen also discusses the Cornell Blumenthal Internship, which she and her husband David created to promote paid internship opportunities in Westchester. Finally, Karen breaks down the status of the Every Students Succeeds Act (ESSA) and Solutions Not Suspensions and what we can do to support more positive and less punitive learning environments for all students. You can find all our gr

Nicholas Kristof has been a columnist for The New York Times since 2001. Over his career, Kristof has won two Pulitzer Prizes, along with many humanitarian awards. This year, he will receive the Edith C. Macy Award for Distinguished Service at the Westchester Children’s association Spring Benefit. Ahead of our May 21st event honoring Kristof, he sat down with WCA executive director Allison Lake and Project Manager Erica Ayala to chat about his work, various policy issues impacting Westchester County’s children, and the relationship between advocacy and journalism. We discovered we both are in the business of changing minds. Kristof and Lake discuss our societal default to rally behind one spectacular story, while ignoring the decaying infrastructures that create child homelessness and other social and economic issues. The conversation begins and ends with the subheading of a recent Kristof op-ed Overcoming life’s basic truth: Talent is universal, but opportunity is not.

This month, our guest is John Tolomer, President and CEO of Westchester Bank. John has 40 years of experience in the banking industry and it all started with an internship. Since then, John has focused on paying it forward! In 2016, Westchester Bank became a key funder of the READI Campaign, a job readiness program for youth entering the workforce. We also discuss how Westchester Bank diversifies its community efforts by engaging its employees. Partners like John Tolomer are a vital part of our work at WCA. In addition to funding our efforts, John is the co-chair of the Westchester Companies for Kids of WC4K Committee. WC4K members help WCA build strong leaders and support our ability to ensure a strong future for Westchester children and youth from 0-24. For more on the READI Campaign: https://wca4kids.org/news/westchester-putnam-counties-prepare-youth-workforce-readi/ For more on Westchester Bank: https://www.thewestchesterbank.com/main/about/ For more on WC4K: https://wca4kids.org/support-us/westch

On Season 2, Episode 2 (Part II) of Ground Truthing, we welcome Reverend Dr. Jim Bostic to the show. Dr. Bostic is the co-chair of the Yonkers My Brother's Keeper initiative, one of 10 MBK communities recognized by the Obama Foundation as a National Impact Community, the highest tier of the first-ever MBK Community Challenge Competition. In Part II of this two-part interview, Dr. Bostic discusses the collaboration with Yonkers MBK and the Yonkers Basics model. In this episode, we also hear from MBK leaders from across Westchester County. This audio was taken from the Lower Hudson Valley My Brother's Keeper Alliance Youth Leadership Summit promotional video. The first-ever MBK Alliance Summit took place on October 25, 2018 at the Westchester County Center. The video was produced by Jamon Lewis, Steven Lewis, and the Greenburgh Central School District. To watch the full video clip, visit the Greenburgh CSD YouTube page: https://youtu.be/PUmCNHLsTdk To learn more about the Yonkers MBK initiative, visit t

On Season 2, Episode 2 (Part I) of Ground Truthing, we welcome Reverend Dr. Jim Bostic to the show. Dr. Bostic is the co-chair of the Yonkers My Brother's Keeper initiative, one of 10 MBK communities recognized by the Obama Foundation as a National Impact Community, the highest tier of the first-ever MBK Community Challenge Competition. In Part I of this two-part interview, Dr. Bostic talks about the Yonkers MBK initiative and its impact on the fourth largest city in New York State. A lot of the success of the MBK model in Yonkers comes from collaboration. From the Yonkers School District to other MBK Communities in Westchester County, Dr. Bostic strongly believes it takes many organizations working together to create a better Yonkers for boys and men, especially young men of color. In this episode, we also hear from MBK leaders from across Westchester County. This audio was taken from the Lower Hudson Valley My Brother's Keeper Alliance Youth Leadership Summit promotional video. The first-ever MBK All

In 2013, the Westchester Children’s Association launched the Vote for Kids campaign that aims to elevate Westchester’s children and youth to the top of the public agenda among candidates, elected officials, media and the general public during the upcoming elections. Vote for Kids provides tools to help child advocates, parents, caretakers or community members – keep children’s issues at the forefront of this election cycle. In the past, the campaign has reached out to politicians, asking how they will put children and families first. However, this year we put local student at the forefront. In a meeting at Berkley College on September 27, we spoke with 16 students between the ages of 14 and 17 who participate in the White Plains Youth Court. They told us what they like about their local communities, what needs to be improved, and what they wish politicians would speak about more often. Overall, the students implored politicians and other adults to listen to them and their peers. Much like Ever Mack at the

We are gearing up for the second season Ground Truthing, set to launch next month. Until then, enjoy a special BONUS EPISODE ahead of our Vision 0 to 3 Conference on Tuesday, October 16 at the Doubletree Hotel in Tarrytown, NY. Margie Orell, executive director of The Frog Rock Foundation (and WCA Board Member) joins us to discuss the upcoming event, and its importance on the zero to three population in Westchester County. To register for the event, visit http://bit.ly/vision0to3registration. Continuing education credits are available for Social Workers. The event is open to all. Ground Truthing is a Westchester Children's Association production. The show is edited by Eloise Sherrid. Original music is composed by Al Saniuk. This episode by Westchester Children's Association is licensed under a Creative Commons License.

The first season of Ground Truthing has focused on creating positive learning environments for children in Westchester County. We would be remiss to omit the issue of  gun violence before closing out this season. Earlier this year, students across Westchester County organized several rallies in support of the national March For Our Lives movement. Westchester Children's Association staff and board members were on-hand to support and learn more about the rally from the student speakers and student organizers. In this, our final episode of Ground Truthing for the season, we bring you the voices, concerns, and proposed solutions of local youth on the issue of gun control. Ground Truthing is a Westchester Children's Association production. The show is edited by Eloise Sherrid. Original music is composed by Al Saniuk.

Listen to a short interview with Daniel Marshall, rising senior at Irvington High School and rally organizer. Daniel talks to GPS4Kids Project Manager Erica L. Ayala about organizing the June 20th March for Refugee Children, using social media to mobilize his peers, and the importance of voting to enact change.

This month, we are joined by Katie Pfeifer, the Director of Programs & Evaluation at Volunteer New York. Katie brings a strong professional and volunteer service background to Volunteer New York!. In her current role, she ensures the organization is on track to meet grant deliverables and evaluates program impact. Katie also oversees the Job Readiness Through Volunteerism program, a program designed to increase awareness of job seekers of the valuable role volunteering can have on the community. Prior to joining Volunteer New York!, Katie was the Program Coordinator for Back on My Feet in Philadelphia. Her responsibilities included outreach and recruitment of volunteers, analysis of program trends, strong collaboration with other staff and partners, and more. Katie has a Master’s in Public Policy from George Washington University and a BA in Economics and International Relations from Bucknell University. Join us next month as we bring you clips from the #MarchForOurLives Westchester County. The rally fo

This month, we are joined by Danny Bernstein, the Executive Director of Backyard Sports. Backyard Sports was created to bring these powerful youth sports experiences to today’s aspiring young athletes. In 2010 Danny launched Backyard Sports Cares, a not for profit 501(c)3 which brings youth based sports development programming to at risk and special needs children in the Westchester community. In 2011, the program received the Rosemarie Siragusa Award for Youth Activity Achievement from the Westchester County Youth Board. In addition, the activities have been recently cited by the cities of White Plains, Elmsford, and Mount Vernon for contributing to community life and the advancement of young people through sport and play. In addition to the sports programming at Backyard Sports, Danny has partnered with Frank Williams of the White Plains Youth Bureau, and Fred Goldberg, retired assistant principal from Scarsdale High School, to host the Keepers of the Dream dinner and discussion group. The group provid

Welcome our third episode of Ground Truthing, a Westchester Children’s Association podcast where we offer policy insights from the ground up. For the month of March, we are joined by Cheryl Hunter-Grant. Ms. Cheryl Hunter-Grant, is a lifelong child advocate who has worked in the field of Maternal, Child and Family Services for more than 35 years. Cheryl earned a Masters of Social Work degree from Hunter College School of Social Work in New York City, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts. Presently she serves as the Executive Director of the Lower Hudson Valley Perinatal Network and Vice President of Perinatal Programs for the Children’s Health and Research Foundation, the parent company of the Lower Hudson Valley Perinatal Network. Through advocacy and education, with a life course perspective, the Lower Hudson Valley Perinatal Network works with its partners to achieve health equity in birth outcomes striving to ensure all babies within the region are born healthy.

We are joined by author and Raise the Age advocate Jim St. Germain on the latest episode of Ground Truthing. At the age of 15, Jim found himself in trouble with the law, just months away from his 16th birthday. Had he been a few month older, he would not have received the rehabilitative services that he did. Today, Jim is a college-graduate, father, author and chairperson of a nonprofit organization called Preparing Leaders of Tomorrow (PLOT). On this episode, Jim tells his story and why he continues to advocate for court-involved youth. Ground Truthing is a Westchester Children's Association production. The show is edited by Eloise Sherrid. Original music is composed by Al Saniuk.