Archive for the ‘Video’ Category
WCC Advocates Air Concerns About Lack of P.E. in Interview
To illuminate the widespread lack of physical education (P.E.) in NYC schools, two representatives of the Women’s City Club of New York (WCC) taped an interview for the January 29, 2012 edition of “Getting Your Money’s Worth.”
Amy J. Schwartz and Dr. Katherine S. Lobach, respectively Chair and member of the WCC Task Force on Physical Education in City Schools, pointed out that one of the many benefits of physical education is its positive association with academic achievement. Kids who get adequate P.E. perform better in school.
According to a NYC Comptroller October audit prompted by the WCC, although New York State mandates specify amounts of P.E. time for each grade, most of the principals in the 31 audited schools were unaware of the State requirements, and none of the schools provided the expected amount of time in all grades. In some cases the time was used to prepare for reading and math tests, although there is good evidence that when P.E. time is maintained, test scores remain the same or improve.
In the taping, Dr. Lobach said, “We need more school administrators to recognize the academic value of physical education and more parents to insist that their children get it.”
“Our schools are falling down on the job of ensuring the health and well-being of our children” said Ms. Schwartz. “They are being denied the opportunity to reach their full academic potential and personal best.”
The WCC Task Force on Physical Education in City Schools works to ensure that all the city’s schools are in compliance with state-mandated requirements for physical education. In 2010 it issued a policy paper, “Physical Education in New York’s Public Schools: A Missing Ingredient for Academic Success”, and the New York Times recently published its letter to the editor.
The “Getting Your Money’s Worth” interview is posted on www.gettingyourmoneysworthnyc.com, and will air on Sunday, January 29 at 8:30 am on Time Warner Cable channel 34 and RCN channel 82. It will also stream online at MNN.org, on Brooklyn Access TV, and on and www.GoodNewsBroadcast.com.
A full press release is available here.
Candidate College Video Now Available
On September 18, good government groups the Women’s City Club of New York, Common Cause/New York, NY Civic, and the New Roosevelt Initiative presented “Candidate College,” a free, all-day special event, open to the public, aimed at training citizens of all backgrounds, ages and political beliefs, about how to mount a serious bid for elected office.
Consisting of a series of nonpartisan, non-ideological panel discussions focusing on different aspects of campaign craft, the program inspired people to get involved in the political process in the most direct way possible: by becoming a candidate. The conference aimed to teach future candidates how to run a clean, above-the-board, effective campaign as well as illuminate some of the pitfalls that often ensnare first-time candidates.
The distinguished roster of speakers included Senator Gustavo Rivera, Councilmember Eric Ulrich, Councilmember Letitia James, District Leader Lincoln Restler, Bradley Tusk, Emma Wolfe, Krystal Ball, Roger Stone, Jimmy Vielkind, Steven Cohen, Doug Forand, Oona Chatterjee, Patrick Jenkins, and many, many more.
For those unable to attend, video of the Candidate College series is now available online. View the trailer for the Candidate College series below, and explore extensive, in-depth video. These videos are engaging, useful, and serve as an enduring web resource for candidates.
Photos and Videos: UNH Neighborhood Houses Program
Please click here to view photos from the WCC’s February 10, 2011 program “Contemporary Settlement Houses – Innovative Models,” featuring Nancy Wackstein, Director of United Neighborhood Houses of New York (UNH) and Stephan Russo, Executive Director Goddard Riverside Community Center
Scattered throughout the City’s five boroughs, NYC’s Settlement Houses currently serve upwards of a half million New Yorkers. While trying to retain their traditional values, the 39 member houses of UNH seek to become effective advocates for the delivery of innovative social services in their communities. They do this in a world where privatization, governmental restrictions, and fiscal cuts are becoming ever more challenging.
Nancy Wackstein
Stephan Russo
Photos and Videos: Public Transportation Issues in NYC with Gene Russianoff
On February 15, 2011, Gene Russianoff, staff attorney for NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign, discussed public transportation issues in NYC. To view photos from the program, please click here.
Since 1978, Gene Russianoff has been a mass transit and government reform advocate for the New York Public Interest Research Group, a student-directed social change organization. His work as staff attorney for NYPIRG’s Straphangers Campaign has helped revive transit as a key engine for the city’s vitality and economy with subway ridership at its highest level in more than 50 years. He discussed the public transportation issues NYC is being challenged to address.
Gene Russianoff Part I
Gene Russianoff Part II
Photographs and Video from the 95th Anniversary Opening Celebration
The photographs from the WCC’s 95th Anniversary Opening Celebration are now available! Please click here to view them.
Opening Celebration Program:
New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn
Professor Emeritus Elisabeth Israels Perry
President & CEO of the Partnership for New York Kathryn Wylde