Natalie Rebeyev, Bukharian Teen Lounge Alumna, Inspires Other Teens
Natalie spent three years as an active participant in the Bukharian Teen Lounge, JCCA’s after-school program that helps immigrant teens integrate into the American community while maintaining their rich cultural heritage and traditions. “I honestly don’t know where I...
Coming Full Circle — 120 Years Later, Four Generations Give Back to JCCA
I am a retired social worker whose roots are on the Lower East Side. In the late 19th century, my grandmother, Anne, and three of her four siblings were placed in an orphanage. My father had died and his death left their mother widowed, destitute and with five young...
The Spirit of Giving Back at The Cottage Schools
Two years ago, for his mitzvah project, Brett Rosenberg decided to become a Junior Tutor at The Cottage Schools, JCCA’s residential programs in Pleasantville, NY. His mother, Ali Rosenberg, was delighted, and, in the spirit of “giving back,” she became a mentor and...
Summer internships bring new friends and new confidence
JCCA’s Compass Project helps young people on the Autism Spectrum (or with other learning differences) make a successful transition from high school or college to the workplace and independent adulthood. Young adults on the Autism Spectrum are often challenged by such...
START Residents Raise Funds for Needy Students
For the past two years, Pleasantville START 3 Resident Supervisor Liticia McKnight and Jennifer Gluck have helped the girls in START Cottage 3 collect donations for the Community Center of Northern Westchester which provides food, clothing and other rescores for...
Entertainment Icon LL Cool J Speaks to Teens at Pleasantville Cottage School
Entertainment icon LL Cool J gave an inspiring talk to 100 teenagers today at the Pleasantville Cottage School which serves at-risk and vulnerable youth. In his speech to the rapt audience, he said, “You may come from a tough life, but you have to believe in yourself....
Proving That One Person Can Make a Difference
For 17-year-old Ari Klafter, who spent the last two summers volunteering at The Cottage Schools, it was simple: he felt that kids who didn’t have what he and his friends took for granted—a safe home, parents who cared for them, a familiar neighborhood to live...
Tyreek Hallett
Brooklyn Democracy Academy (BDA), a partnership between the New York City Department of Education and JCCA, is a transfer high school for students who have dropped out or fallen behind, giving them a second chance to earn their Regents diploma. The school provides...
Sonya’s Summer Internship with Assemblyman Hevesi
Sonya, a personable and vivacious 16-year-old who is a participant in JCCA’s Bukharian Teen Lounge, an afterschool program helping immigrant teens integrate into American life while retaining their rich cultural heritage, hadn’t expected to have a summer internship in...
JCCA Helps a Promising Student Heal Wounds, Beat the Odds, Graduate to College and Plan for a Nursing Career
Brooklyn Democracy Academy is a transfer high school (a partnership with the Department of Education and JCCA), which supports older, under-credited students who have dropped out or fallen behind. It uses specially-trained Advocate Counselors who give the students the...