|
Have an idea for the next newsletter?
| Do you have a program, volunteer, or program achievement that you would like to feature in the next newsletter? Would you like to write an article or have any ideas for articles to include in the next newsletter? Please contact CPC Newsletter at newsletter@cpc-nyc.org
|
|
About Us
| Founded
in 1965, the Chinese-American Planning Council, Inc. (CPC) is one of
the largest nonprofit providers of educational, social, and community
services for Asian Americans in the United States. It now serves over
8,000 people daily through some 70 programs in 29 locations citywide.
CPC's mission is to improve the quality of life of Chinese-Americans in
New York City by providing access to services, skills, and resources
toward the goal of economic self-sufficiency and integration into the
American mainstream.
CPC Central Office
150 Elizabeth Street
New York, New York 10012
(212) 941-0920
|
|
|
| Facing Challenges Head-On | |
This year proved to be full of challenges for CPC. Despite a rather stagnant economy and numerous constraints in obtaining government grants, CPC remained committed to delivering much needed services to the community. None of the programs could be possible without the help of dedicated staff, volunteers and donors. We thank those who have given to CPC in the past year and hope that you will continue to give back to the community and CPC in the new year.
|
| 2010 Walkathon | | |
"The Community Walks Today for the Youth of Tomorrow"
CPC organizes their biennial Walkathon to raise awareness for one of their service divisions. The theme for the 2010 Walkathon was "The Community Walks Today For the Youth of Tomorrow," in support of CPC's Youth Services because they were faced with drastic budget cuts from the state and local governments. Due to those budget cuts, CPC Youth Services projected they would not be able to serve 2,000 youth this summer. However, with the support of 3,000 walkers and community & corporate sponsors, CPC was able to raise $120,000 for their Youth Service programs. Although the amount raised is a fraction of what was lost, at least 900 youth were served this past summer.
Giving Back to the Community and Developing Leadership Skills
Although the primary focus of the CPC Walkathon is to raise money for a program in need, it has now grown to become a chance for college and high school students to learn about community outreach and develop their leadership skills. The CPC Summer Internship Program has grown from a handful of interns and volunteers to a class of 7 interns, 5 fellows and 80+ daily high school volunteers. The Walkathon Team saturated the Flushing, Sunset Park and Lower East Side communities with information about the Walkathon and the programing cuts that the youth in their communities were facing. Outreach to all three communities provided the Walkathon Team with an invaluable opportunity to learn about the distinct cultures of each neighborhood and empowered them to speak out about the cuts to Youth Programing in those communities and amongst their peers.
|
Appreciating Our Volunteers
| | |
Nothing Can Happen Without The Help of Volunteers
CPC has 70 programs that provide services to over 8,000 community members daily. Many of these programs depend on the help of volunteers to efficiently provide services. Whether it is volunteering weekly at one of CPC's ten childcare centers or with our Food Services program providing meals to daycares and home bound seniors, volunteers are the silent backers of CPC programing.
This summer alone CPC Central deployed over 80 volunteers to various areas of Chinatown, Sunset Park and Flushing to help CPC promote the Walkathon, raise awareness for the budget cuts and staff the Walkathon. Without the help of our youth volunteers the Walkathon would not have been a success.
The endless energy and enthusiasm of volunteers make large events such as the Walkathon possible. The Volunteer Program also provides high school youth with the chance to develop as young professionals as they take on leadership roles and plan community service events for themselves and their peers at school.
During the school year the Volunteer CORE will be planning a series of events to fundraise for the Volunteer Program, which has been drastically cut in the CPC budget, and Community Service events that address the interests and needs that the youth see in their communities and schools. The Volunteer CORE youth will also be participating in a series of leadership and character development workshops which will help prepare them for the professional world as well as understand themselves and how they are developing as a leader and active member of their community.
If you would like to help the youth in the Volunteer CORE continue to be active members of the Asian American community please donate to the Volunteer Program.
|
| Motivating Youth to be Involved in the Community | | |
Providing Youth with the Opportunity to be Involved with Community Service and Educational and Sporting Events
One of the primary focuses of the Youth Division is encouraging youth involvement in their communities while also providing them with opportunities to participate in educational and sporting events to keep them engaged and active.
One of the biggest collaborative projects for the Youth Division this year was the hosting of a NY Citywide Badminton Tournament for youth between the ages of 15 to 21 years old. The tournament was held for 2 consecutive Saturdays at Sunset Park Recreation Center in Brooklyn with over 100 youth participants. CPC successfully collaborated with 10 sponsors to raise close to $2,500 for the youth.
Youth Division's Project Gateway hosted their 2nd Annual Asian American College Fair; another citywide event for NYC youth. With close to 300 attendees and nearly 30 colleges and universities from both public and private, city and non-city schools, Project Gateway has helped to broaden the academic horizons of many NYC youth.
Many youth also participated in meaningful community events such as the CPC Walkathon, the Hati disaster relief fundraiser, Asthma Walk, American Cancer Society Breast Cancer Walk, March of Dimes and Keeping Flushing Clean project. These community events brought awareness and funds to the causes important to the youth participating.
|
|
Enriching School Age Children While Facing Challenges | | |
Bringing Enrichment To Children's Learning Experience At School While Exploring The World Around Them
While CPC has many Childcare Programs who are still facing financial challenges in their mission to provide the best education and care for their students, the students and program directors have not forgotten to give back to their communities.
One of CPC's many Childcare Program's, the Queens School Age Child Care Center at PS 20 successfully received a grant that allowed its students to participate in an English Signature Project. To improve relations in the community,
sixty 4th & 5th graders canvassed over 100 ethnic stores and made about 400 bilingual signs. As a result, 20 Asian storeowners agreed to post signs in both English and their respective Asian languages (Chinese and Korean) so that
non-Asian language speakers would be better able to make purchases at their stores. |
| Citywide Census Outreach | | |
Be Counted
The 2010 Census was a major undertaking for the CPC Community Service Division and CPC Brooklyn and Queens branches. Their work was focused on conducting a series of community wide outreach and mobilization activities in the Chinese community. Particular attention was paid to hard-to-reach populations such as nondocumented immigrants, home bound seniors, monolingual clients and multi-dwelling resindents throughout NYC.
In collaboration with the U.S Census Bureau, CPC sites in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens all served as Questionnarie Assistance Centers and Be Counted Sites. Community members with any questions about the purpose or the process of filling out their Census forms were able to bring their forms to any of the three CPC locations to seek assistance. These efforts resulted in members of the Chinese communities of Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens to learning about the Census, filling out their forms and encouraging others to do so as well.
With the help of the U.S Census Bureau and dedicated CPC staff members and volunteers, we were able to host over 24 informational sessions about the Census, encourage 30 collaborating community agencies to also provide Census materials, and provide Census information in over 20 tabling booths and street events to reach out to the community.
|
| Adjusting to the New Economic Climate | | |
New Shfit in Job Seekers and Employers
The Workforce Development Division has observed new shifts in the populaton of job seeks and employers that it is working with. Their current job seekers tend to be more educated and have fewer language barriers compared to clients served in the past. Employers the Workforce Development Division recruits for are also diversifying to include more industries and a broader range of positions. Hence, one of their many challenges this year was to bridge the gap between what employers are seeking and the skills and qualifications of the current job seeking clients.
In 2009-2010, over 700 clients a quarter have attended Workforce Development information sessions. The CPC Workforce Development divisoin sees about 2800 to 3000 walk-in clients annually. These sessions are an introduction to the ensemble of services the Workforce Development Division provides to those seeking jobs, English language training, or to enter the hospitality industry. Through intake screenings, case management and career counseling, we were able to place over 350 job seekers into jobs with employers that include Best Buy, Century 21, Verizon and Bob's Discount Furniture. Our Hotel and Hospitality
program enrolled over 180 students with over 110 of them placed in various hotels throughout New York City. |
| Older Adults Facing the Digital Age Together | | |
Seniors Connecting Seniors to the Internet
Although we live in a digital age where we increasingly depend on technology for our everyday interactions with one another, not everyone is connected. Seniors are one such group who are faced with the challenge of functioning in a digital environment that they are not familiar with.
CPC Queens Branch helps seniors face this challenge head on by participating in the Digital Inclusion Initiative (DII), a community service initiative sponsored by Senior Service
Older Adults Facing the Digital Age Together America Inc. (SSAI). The goal of the program is to help older adults who do not know how to use a computer to be able to and want to use
a computer. To empower and engage computer literate
older adults, CPC offers them a chance to participate in the DII as Peer Coaches. Peer Coaches help other older adults who are not as computer literate develop basic computer literacy
and Internet skills, such as learning how to surf the web
and send out emails. Older Adults also learn about how to access
free computer and Internet resources such as the public
libraries. With 8 seniors in the DII serving as peer coaches, CPC has served over 100 older adult learners throughout Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens. |
| How Can I Help? | | |
Would you like to support the programs that provide necessary resources to the community?
Please visit the CPC Website to Donate to CPC or a specific program of your choice.
You can make a donation on behalf of or in dedication to a person or a specific CPC program.
At the bottom of the donation form please remember to select which fund you would like your donation to go to. |
|
|
