Local Resources Paper Assignment 2
In Brooklyn, New York there are many different populations, demographics and
communities that makeup our town. Out of the five boroughs of New York City, Brooklyn has
the second-highest population and greatest area. It shares the same boundaries as Kings County,
the second most densely populated county in the nation after New York County/Manhattan and
the most populous county in the state. Brooklyn is said to have a population of nearly 2.6 million
people. According to a 2010 census, the racial demographics are 49.5% White, 35.8% African
American, 11.3% Asian and 19.8% Hispanic or Latino. However, I am sure in our current year
of 2024 the numbers have increased due to many human services issues. (Brooklyn population
2024)
There are so many issues that impact many demographics in Brooklyn, NY such as
mental health, unemployment and education. According to “State Labor Department Releases
Preliminary December 2023 Area Unemployment Rates”, “New York State’s seasonally
adjusted unemployment rate increased from 4.3% in November to 4.5% in December 2023.”
(Department of Labor, 2024). As far as education, in an article with Mayor de Blasio and
Chancellor Carranza announcing the High School graduation rate, the dropout rate in 2018 was
said to be 20,566 (Mayor de Blasio and chancellor Carranza announce record high graduation
rate 2019). And Lastly, according to the Mayor's Office of Community Mental Health “One in
five New Yorkers experiences mental illness in a given year. That's about equal to 65% of the
residents in Brooklyn.”(Mayor's Office of Community Mental Health).
St. Nicks Alliance
The first local resource I will be speaking about is St. Nicks Alliance. Founded in 1975,
St. Nicks Alliance began when parishioners of St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church attended to
assist their neighbors after 18 families faced homelessness due to a fire which destroyed the
Local Resources Paper Assignment 3
building. After the traffic incident, St. Nicks Alliance became dedicated to changing and
remodeling the community in the North Brooklyn area. With this, they have been a part of the
increase of “affordable housing, economic development, student success, employment, training
and caring for the elderly.” (St Nicks Alliance, 2023)
This Non-for profit organization has the mission of changing the lives of the low-and
moderate income population. Their plan for this is to support them and assist them with many
resources such as “employment, education, housing, and health care”. (SNA) The best part of the
resources are they are all free. Certain programs require a certain criteria such as young adult
programs, recruit out of work students, who would like to obtain their GED between the ages of
18-24 years old. However, there are many other programs such as GED overall that recruit or
accept starting from the age 17. (St Nicks Alliance, 2023)
With the main location being 2 Kingsland Ave in Brooklyn, this organization has
different locations that focus on different areas of Affordable Housing, Elder Care, Workforce
Development and Youth and Education. The affordable housing department has created 2,000
affordable housing units and is in charge of over 1,700 apartments for families with low to
moderate incomes and those with special needs. Every year, the work of the Community
Preservation team keeps hundreds of families from being uprooted. The Elder care department
has assisted with the health and housing needs of seniors in North Brooklyn. This is supported
by offering senior housing, assisted living, home care, and senior center services. (St Nicks
Alliance, 2023)
Workforce Development has helped thousands of local residents to better their economic
chances. This has empowered and assisted people to transition from unemployment to careers
and jobs with livable salaries, mostly in construction, healthcare, IT and customer service. And
Local Resources Paper Assignment 4
lastly, the Youth and Education department strives to enhance the percentage of local children
who succeed in school by working with 2,500 children annually through a network of more than
20 summer camp and after-school programs. Overall, St. Nicks Alliance has assisted in
transforming the lives of many people in Brooklyn, NY. (St Nicks Alliance, 2023)
Brooklyn Public Library
The Brooklyn Public Library serves people from all walks of life and all neighborhoods,
making it one of the borough's most democratic civic institutions. With over 850,000 active
cardholders, the Brooklyn Public Library is one of the biggest public library systems in the
country, having been founded in 1896. The Brooklyn Public Library has many different locations
but the Central Library located on 10 Grand Army Plaza Brooklyn, NY is said to be not only the
largest but the home library.
In addition to being a good resource for books, the Brooklyn Public Library offers so
many resources that benefit all age groups and demographics in Brooklyn, New York. Some of
these resources are tutoring, free computer access, financial coaching, immigration services,
Resume assistance, Computer literacy for seniors, Stress relief workshops, justitive initiative,
health support and STEM activities.
Rising Ground
A human services group called Rising Ground helps people and families in lower
Westchester County and New York City by giving them the tools and resources they need to take
charge of their life. Originally established in 1831 as an orphanage, Rising Ground offers
therapeutic interventions and trauma-informed services to address the physical, emotional,
psychological, and educational needs of children and people dealing with a wide range of
difficult issues. Inspired by the idea that everyone can flourish in life when they have chance and
Local Resources Paper Assignment 5
hope, Rising Ground offers compassionate assistance and tried-and-true routes for constructive
transformation, assisting kids, adults, and families in overcoming hardship. ( Rising Ground,
2024)
Located in Downtown Brooklyn, 151 Lawrence Street, Rising Ground helps with specific
services that fall under Family Stability, Education and Early Childhood Services, Youth
Development and Health Community Support. These different services are housed in different
locations throughout the city of New York. Fortunately, these services are completely free to
everyone. Some programs have certain age criteria and limits that an individual must fall in to
receive services. They also recruit people by doing workshops, informational sessions, partnering
with organizations that may benefit from their services and promotion.
For their Family Stability programs, they offer assistance with Intimate Partner &
Gender-Based Violence Prevention as well as assist with Foster care and adoption, preventive
services and fatherhood services. Their programs for intimate partner violence are dedicated to
promoting healing for victims and preventing new cases of abuse by educating, advocating, and
offering support to families and survivors of intimate partner violence. They also offer
specialized assistance to survivors who have been criminalized. Their Family stability services
support and uplift families by assisting adults and children in resolving conflicts and establishing
stability.
Secondly, they also offer Education and Early Childhood services, which includes a
Learning center, home visiting early childhood program and Head Start programs for children
who aren’t the age requirement for Public School. In addition to education, they offer Youth
Development as well. With this component, they include various things such as Residential
Treatment centers, Homeless & Runaway Youth Services, Aftercare & Mentoring Programs
Local Resources Paper Assignment 6
Alternatives & Prevention, JustUs Diversion For Girls & LGBTQ+ Youth Relationship Abuse
Prevention Programs and Community Schools.
A major resource this organization they offer is assistance with Health and Community
Support. The residential, day, and community-based programs offered by Rising Ground's
Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities Services are tailored to meet the unique needs of the
people we serve, giving them opportunities to engage with the outside world in a way that is
appropriate, safe, and enriching, enabling them to lead fulfilling lives. Their Health and Mental
Health Care consist of promoting the development of healthy children, a balanced diet, exercise,
and prenatal nutrition. With a strong sense of community, they provide compassionate care
through their clinics, wellness programs, healthcare navigation, and much more. They also
provide care for unaccompanied immigrant children in their homes and in approved foster
families through our Immigration Services. Children participating in their Passage of Hope
program receive educational, medical, therapeutic, and clinical assistance while they wait to be
placed permanently in the United States with family members or other adult sponsors.
Conclusion
In conclusion, I do feel as though there are a lot of great resources that are in the city of
Brooklyn, especially some being free. However, I feel as though a lot of the people in the city are
not aware of these organizations or maybe the services they provide. Some of these services are
not easy to find unless you hear it from someone else or stumble upon it. There are alot of
marketing strategies these organizations should and can use to spread the word due to it being a
new generation of technology.
Local Resources Paper Assignment 7
References
Brooklyn population 2024. (n.d.). https://worldpopulationreview.com/boroughs/brooklyn-
population
Brooklyn Public Library. (2024, January 23). Homepage. Brooklyn Public Library.
https://www.bklynlibrary.org/
Department of Labor. (2024, January 23). State Labor Department releases preliminary
December 2023 area unemployment rates. https://dol.ny.gov/news/state-labor-department-
releases-preliminary-december-2023-area-unemployment-rates
Mayor de Blasio and chancellor Carranza announce record high graduation rate. The
official website of the City of New York. (2019, January 30). https://www.nyc.gov/office-
of-the-mayor/news/064-19/mayor-de-blasio-chancellor-carranza-record-high-graduation-
rate#/0
Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health . (n.d.). Mayor’s Office of Community
Mental Health: Data Dashboard. Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health | Data
Dashboard. https://mentalhealth.cityofnewyork.us/dashboard/#:~:text=One%20in%20five
%20New%20Yorkers,of%20the%20residents%20in%20Brooklyn.
Rising Ground. (2023, September 1). Helping children, adults, and families rise above
their challenges. https://www.risingground.org/
St. Nicks Alliance . (n.d.). We provide the opportunities our community needs to thrive. St.
Nicks Alliance | New York NY. https://stnicksalliance.org/
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