Summer 2014 Newsletter
The Brighton Park Neighborhood Council (BPNC) offers summer programs for people of all ages in the Brighton Park community. BPNC has served over 3000 young people and parents this summer and we hope that number continues to grow. With all this growth and progress, Brighton Park has become a safer, healthier, wealthier, and a more successful community. We would like to thank everyone in the BPNC family, lets' keep growing together for a better Brighton Park.
FRESHMEN CONNECTION
BPNC partnered with Kelly High School to organize the Freshmen Connection (FC) program, a high school transition program for incoming freshmen that introduces college culture at an early age and provides the social and academic tools needed to succeed and graduate high school. Our FC program serviced 227 incoming students that were given Math, Science, and English courses that prepared them for high school material. The students also had field trips to the Shedd Aquarium, the University of Illinois at Chicago, Northern Illinois University, and Loyola University. The program ended with a celebration outside of Kelly High School that provided the students with food, snacks, sports, and several fun activities to reward them for their hard work and commitment.
YOUTH SUMMER JOBS
BPNC employed 85 youth this summer to work in the Brighton Park area and help the economic and academic progress of the Brighton Park neighborhood. Through grants from DCEO & After School Matters, BPNC's Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) offered 75 positions to in-school and at-risk youth to work in the community and offered professional and economic skills that will help them succeed as young adults. SYEP youth were placed in different worksites in the Brighton Park area, including: partner schools, offices, and local businesses. The workers assisted their work sites for the summer and gained valuable work and career readiness skills that will assist them in their future careers. Several youth within the program have already received offers from their worksites to continue working for them, we would like to thank all of our youth workers for making the program a success.
VOTER REGISTRATION
The Brighton Park Neighborhood Council spent 4,367 hours this summer encouraging community residents to register to vote. BPNC enlisted 40 workers and an average of five volunteers per day that helped canvass highly populated areas in Brighton Park and the surrounding area. There were over 50,000 conversations between BPNC workers and community residents. The end result was 5,724 new registered voters. BPNC would like to thank everyone that helped registering new voters for all their hard work.
COMMUNITY SCHOOLS
During the summer, BPNC served 681 students and 221 adults in school based summer programming. Students were engaged in programs that promote academic achievement, physical activities, art, and theater. Students in the summer 'Drama Club' at Shields Middle School performed in front of parents, peers, and high school students at the Kelly High School auditorium in July. Through BPNC summer programs, students had the opportunity to develop their leadership skills, receive social-emotional support, explore their artistic side, continue to improve their academics, and learn about teamwork and cooperation. Summer programs also gave students a safe and accessible space to be engaged in critical programs that develop their self-esteem and sense of belonging in the community. BPNC offered summer programs at James Shields Elementary, Shields Middle School, Nathan S. Davis Elementary, John C. Burroughs, and Thomas Kelly High School.
VOYCE
Youth Leaders BPNC youth leaders that were part of Voices of Youth in Chicago Education (VOYCE), helped create, draft, and lobby for legislation that would require schools and districts that disproportionately suspend, expel, or arrest students to report this information to better understand the issue and create a plan for improvement. BPNC youth leaders lobbied in Springfield several times to push SB2793 out of the House and Senate and address the serious problem affecting students of color all over the city, state, and country known as the school to prison pipeline. Congratulations, youth leaders!
MINIMUM WAGE
KELLY PARK RENOVATION
On August 9, 2014 BPNC held the 2nd annual Brighton Park Festival at Kelly Park. Over 1,300 Brighton Park residents attended the event which helped raise over $4,000 for the renovation of the park. This project began this summer and will be finished by May of 2015. The main attraction will be a new turf football/soccer field that was badly needed for the community and the sports teams that are currently playing on the flooded, muddy, and pothole-riddled field. Other improvements to the park include a new playground and a new lighting and drainage system that will ensure no more flooding on the field. This will be a welcome change for all, especially for the three-time city champion Kelly High School soccer team. About $1.5 million is still needed for the complete renovation of the park, and BPNC is working hard to raise additional support from funders and the Park District to completely fund the project. BPNC would like to thank everyone that has supported the Kelly Park renovation and a special thanks to: Senator Martin Sandoval, the Chicago Bears and the National Football League, Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), Chicago Public Schools, the US Soccer Foundation, Alderman George Cardenas, Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, and the Chicago Park District.
PLAY STREETS FESTIVALS
COMPRANDO RICO Y SANO
Through a partnership with the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), BPNC began its 'Comprando Rico y Sano' program to promote healthier lifestyles for families by encouraging healthier shopping and cooking habits for their household. In May, June, and July, health promoters organized and presented 13 'Charlas' (meetings) in the community and have gone on 5 grocery tours. Families have also participated in cooking classes to learn how to cook and prepare healthy delicious meals. BPNC has also participated in four events in the city of Chicago that promote the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Comprando Rico y Sano programs. As of September, BPNC has enrolled 518 families in SNAP.
COMMUNITY VIOLENCE PREVENTION PROGRAM (CVPP)
CVPP SUCCESS STORY
My name is Guadalupe Hernandez, I was working with CVPP over the summer of 2014. I was part of the 'Cafe Para Padres' group, I would like to share my experience with this group. It was great to socialize with everyone in the group, I found we had a lot in common. The group helped me develop as a person, mother, and wife. It made me happy to give and receive help from other people. With each meeting, I came to understand the 5 factors of protection more, and I saw how they were impacting my life and family. It helped me make some changes in my life and for my family without impacting how I treat others in the community. Everyone in the community is a neighbor, and we all share the same problems of insecurity, but I hope we have made a positive impact in peoples lives and in the community through the 'Cafe Para Padres' group.
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