NY Center Job Opportunities - Help Us Find the Right People for These Positions

Do you know anyone who might be interested in one of these positions? Pass this information on, please.

Personal Advocate – Full Time

To succeed, every student needs someone who takes an active interest in whether they attend school, complete assignments, set goals for their life after high school, and learn to manage themselves in the world. The NY Center personal advocates at the Staten Island YABC provide that attention for high-risk high school students.

If playing that role for young people speaks to your personal mission, this may be the position for you.

The best candidate will have experience engaging and working with youth, a B.A. in social work, human services, or a related field, and the ability to facilitate workshops for students and parents. Salary - $35,000 - $40,000. Please send resume and cover letter to: Cherise Cooper-Matos, director of YABC at 130 Stuyvesant Place-5th floor, Staten Island, NY 10301 or via email to: ccmatosnycid@hotmail.com

Executive Administrative Assistant – Full Time

Seeking a well organized, self-motivated, mature individual responsible for a variety of administrative duties for the executive director and administrative staff. The best candidate will be able to multi-task, handle staff, the board, and the public with skill, and work in a highly visible, multicultural environment. The candidate should possess a BA and at least 3 years experience working in a busy office environment. Salary - $35,000 - $45,000. Please send resume and cover letter to: Candace Gonzalez, director of programs at 130 Stuyvesant Place-5th floor, Staten Island, NY 10301 or via email to cgonzalez@nycid.org

Director of Community Development – Full Time

The NY Center seeks an individual to manage our community development initiatives including three school based after school programs. This position requires excellent communications, organization, and analytical skills. We are seeking a person with 3 years experience working with youth, at least one year of management experience, solid computer skills, and demonstrated experience in program development, implementation and evaluation. A masters degree in social sciences, education or a related field preferred. Salary - $50,000 - $60,000. Please send resume and cover letter to: Candace Gonzalez, director of programs at 130 Stuyvesant Place-5th floor, Staten Island, NY 10301 or via email to cgonzalez@nycid.org

Social Worker – Full Time

The NY Center seeks an MSW who loves working with at-risk youth. This is a full time position in an alternative high school co-sponsored by the NY Center and the NYC DOE. Candidates will have at least 3 years experience working with at-risk youth. You must be able to engage and counsel students and families and possess excellent communication and outreach skills. Salary - $35,000 to $42,000 Please send resume and cover letter to: Michael Candella, Director of New Beginnings center at 120 Stuyvesant Place, Staten Island, NY 10301 or via email to mcandella@nycid.org

Development Associate – Full time

New York Center is seeking a high energy, positive, can-do development person committed to our mission of ‘strengthening relationships and building community.’ This is a new position responsible for building an individual and corporate donor base. The development associate will also provide the leadership for special events and our annual giving campaign.

The best candidate will have a 3-5 year track record of successful fundraising and development experience; possess a masters degree in related discipline or comparable additional experience; work comfortably in a highly visible and culturally diverse environment; and possess strong communication skills. If this describes you, we would like to talk with you. Salary range - $45,000-60,000, commensurate with experience. To apply, e-mail your resume to Candace Gonzalez.

When Parents and Teens Have Problems

When a problem arises ...

Don’t ignore it! And, don’t fan the flames!

Sit down together.

Think before reacting.

Listen to your teenager: to understand, not to respond.

Reflect on your own role in this conflict.

Think about what you really want and need,

not what you are “out to get.”

Look for common concerns.

Focus on the future, not the past.

Work it out.

Make your home a
more comfortable place.

Try Parent/Teen Mediation—It Works!

For more information on Parent/Teen Mediation contact Liz Bonici at (718) 947-4036

The Silver Lining in MySpace?

Has cryptic online 'computer speak' caused kids to forget how to write?

Joe Bellacero explains why he thinks popular social networks might just be a boon for students -- and how teachers can tap their hidden value.

A veteran New York City English teacher, Joe is now the associate director of The New York City Writing Project, a professional development organization that stresses teachers teaching teachers. As you can imagine, he knows a thing or two about the language arts.

Well, you could take that view. On the other hand, they are writing. And they're reinventing writing. If you take a broad view, it's similar to when English was coming into existence back in the days when German and French were being amalgamated, and people were unselfconsciously creating a language. I don't look at what's happening on the Internet with language as if kids are losing something. I think they're developing something. They're developing something new -- and don't forget, they'll be taking over after you and me.

Read Joe's thoughts and suggestions about to use My Space productively:
The Silver Lining in MySpace? - Visual Thesaurus Online Edition:

Preventing Drug Abuse among Children and Adolescents

If you have children, or work with children, you should take a look at this updated publication from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. They offer both a brief pamphlet and a complete edition useful for program planning. Both are free for download.

Preventing Drug Abuse among Children and Adolescents

"This In Brief Web edition provides highlights from the Preventing Drug Use among Children and Adolescents: A Research-Based Guide for Parents, Educators, and Community Leaders, Second Edition booklet. It presents the updated prevention principles, an overview of program planning, and critical first steps for those learning about prevention."Preventing Drug Abuse among Children and Adolescents - Index:

Learning what to do when your Landlord Tenant relationship goes south....

Each week, we receive inquiries from individuals who are having major problems in their landlord tenant relationship. Issues include unpaid rent, lack of repairs, breakdown in communication. Unfortunately, many most people don't approach these issues in a cooperative way, but rather avoid, stonewall or harass, thereby escalating the conflict. Part of the reason is false assumptions about what rights landlords and tenants possess in New York State.

If this describes YOU, consider attending a free Seminar put on by the Unified Court System on "Tenant Rights and Responsibilities", April 25th, from 1 to 2 pm at Richmond County Civil Court. Click here for more information.

Please remember that mediation is also an option to assist resolving landlord tenant disputes and as a process provides parties in dispute with much more control of the process and the outcome. For example, when a mediation occurs - at a time determined by the party, including during weekday evenings.

Interested in knowing more, please contact us at 718-947-4037 to request mediation.

Since when is changing your mind a bad thing?

Diane Levin has an interesting post over at her Online Guide to Mediation Blog-

"There is no greater insult in America today than 'flip-flopper', a label anyone with political ambitions is eager to avoid. It's as if the act of changing one's mind as the result of reasoned self-reflection is somehow as shameful, as, say, lying about sex with an intern, rather than a mark of maturity and character.

Certainly anyone who changes their views with the prevailing wind as a matter of political expediency deserves our condemnation, as do those who fail to keep their promises, both political and otherwise.

But as a mediator I have to ask, what's so great about consistency anyway? If you're going in the wrong direction, what's the problem with heading in a better one? When exactly did it get to be a bad thing... Read more at Online Guide to Mediation: Since when is changing your mind a bad thing?:

Photo by Patrick Boury

Blowing the Whistle on Non-Profit Fraud

Trent Stamp, CEO of Charity Navigator, wants to be an IRS whistleblower. He figures that there are several non-profits out there committing massive tax fraud and that makes it difficult for the rest of us to raise money.

Trent Stamp's Take: The IRS Owes Me Money!: "So, who do I know who is committing massive tax fraud? How about the Youth Development Fund of Memphis? They raised over $3 million last year and spent roughly the same amount ($363,000) on their CEO's salary as they did on program expenses ($400,000). And oh yeah, because they're a 'non-profit', they paid $0 in income taxes. How is this not tax fraud?

If the IRS wants more, I can give them the Firefighters Charitable Foundation, which raised over $5 million last year, using their IRS-provided tax-exempt status, and gave out $300K to firefighters. Or the Deputy Sheriffs' Fraternal Organization, which raised $500K in tax-deductible donations and promptly dispensed $20K of it. Or I could just rat out the American Ex-Prisoners of War Service Foundation. There can't be any way that the IRS is aware of the fact that they raised about $1.2 million from tax-payers last year, and then gave out under $50,000 of it in the pursuit of their work. The rest just disappeared, like a thief in the night."

Photo by Noah Coffey

Mediating the Aftermath of Terri Schiavo’s Death

Douglas Noll wrote a thought provoking article about the family conflicts over treating Terry Schiavo for Mediate.com

"Terri Schiavo’s death has dropped from the news. For the family, the news trucks, interviews, and spotlights have been turned off, but the hostility, anger, and unresolved conflict must remain. Considering the 12 year conflict played out in the courts, the Florida legislature, the United States Congress and the White House, could reconciliation between the family members be possible? As a peacemaker, I think so. I also believe that until the family reconciles, personal healing will be very difficult."

Read more: Mediating the Aftermath of Terri Schiavo’s Death:
What do you think?

Divorce is Painful Enough, Why Litigate?

Stop Dwelling on Blame & Conflict & Try Something New:

Consider Mediating Your Divorce...

Divorce Mediation is a confidential, informal dispute resolution process in which an impartial, third party mediator facilitates the discussion between the separating couple.

The mediator will help them:
o Identify the issues
o Reduce misunderstandings
o Clarify priorities
o Explore areas of compromise
o Find points of agreement

Mediation helps the parties
o Preserve relationships
o Avoid win-lose decisions
o Deal with multiple issues
o Maintain control over the process and its outcomes

Parties report high satisfaction because mediation
√ Deals with issues people feel are important
√ Allows people to be heard and participate fully
√ Increases their ability to understand and communicate with each other
√ Promotes the best interests of the children
√ Results in higher compliance
√ Reduces the monetary and emotional costs
√ Leads to speedier settlements

For more information call (718) 815-4557, and ask for the Mediation Department.

How Mediation Compares to Litigation: One State’s Experience

The results of a twelve-year Virginia study were astounding. The authors not only concluded that on average parents preferred mediation to adversary settlement and that mediation produces higher levels of satisfaction than the adversarial process, but also that parents who initially were unable to come to decisions on their own were able to cooperate for their children in the long run.

The study looked at parents who were unable to cooperate regarding custody decisions and petitioned a Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court in Virginia for a custody hearing. They were offered either mediation or the traditional adversary process. They were not given a choice. A sample set of thirty five mediation families and thirty six litigation families was established.

This was a true experimental design in which the parties were randomly assigned alternative conditions to overcome the likelihood that the more naturally cooperative parties would chose mediation over litigation.

The results?

The mediation group experienced significant benefits:

• Parents who mediated settled their disputes in half the time

• Parents in mediation were 80% more likely to make all decisions without a third party decision-maker.

• When unable to make all full agreements in mediation, many parties still settled out of court.

• Parents were more satisfied at three study points after agreement was reached: 6 weeks the initial settlement, 1 ½ years later, and 12 years later.

Long-term family relationships and psychological adjustment were better in the mediation group:

The study found that an average of 5 hours of mediation resulted in several significant differences in the amount of parent child contact over a period of 12 years.

• 30% of non-residential parents saw children once a week or more vs. 9 % of those in the adversary group

• 54% of non-resident parents spoke to their children once a week vs. 11% of those in the adversary group

These findings are published in the article, "Divorce Mediation: Research and Reflections" by Robert Emery, et. al., in Family Court Review, Vol. 43., pp. 22-37, (2005).

For more information about mediation services for divorce, please contact Sequoia Stalder, Esq., at (718) 947-4038.