Our Mission: Strengthening Relationships, Building Community
The NY Center is located in Staten Island, NY and provides services throughout the Metro-NY region.
In 1970, the NY Center opened as the Rap Center on New Dorp Lane – a place for young people to congregate and explore their personal issues. Those were years of social upheaval. The NY Center’s founders wanted Staten Island youth to have a place to go that was safe and responsible adults to guide them.
In 1982, the NY Center added the Community Dispute Resolution Center. We began training community volunteers in mediation and other methods of conflict resolution.
In the years since, we have added peer mediation, after-school and out-of school programs, alternative schools (in partnership with the NYC Department of Education), parenting classes, and supervised visitation services.
These two themes – youth development and conflict resolution – are the threads that tie all our services together. They are fundamental to our mission of strengthening relationships and building community
We incorporate conflict resolution into all of our programs and teach conflict resolution and mediation.
The Community Dispute Resolution Center has expanded to mediate cases from Civil, Family, Housing, and Supreme Courts. We also provide workplace, education, Lemon Law, and custody and visitation mediation.
We provide school-based peer mediation services and consult with schools who want to establish their own peer mediation programs.
You can call us for help with workplace, neighborhood, and home-owners association disputes, family disputes, and for teen/parent mediation.
The Mosaic Coalition builds bridges across the diverse populations that make up our community.
Our Training Institute offers both community education and professional development opportunities.
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You can reach any of our programs at 718-815-4557.
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Board Members
Sam Panepinto, Chair
John Minardo, Co-Chair
Verna Lauria, Co-Chair
Joe Ambrosole, Treasurer
Ruth Wahtera, Secretary
William Orlando
Joan Rannie
Mohammed Khalid, DDS
Senior Staff
Dominick J. Brancato, Executive Director
Candace Gonzalez, Senior Director of Operations
Robert Busan, Director of Community Programs
Sequoia Stalder, Director of Alternative Dispute Resolution Services