Women Creating Change and University Settlement Team Up
(July 23, 2024, NEW YORK)—Women Creating Change (WCC), a nonprofit dedicated to fostering a more just and equitable New York City where all women are civically engaged, today announced its partnership with University Settlement, America’s first settlement house, which partners with more than 40,000 New Yorkers annually. This collaboration will bring civic engagement and advocacy training to University Settlement’s staff and participants.
“WCC is honored to partner with this historic organization to empower its staff and participants to become civically engaged and effect change in their communities,” said Sharon Sewell- Fairman, President and CEO of WCC. “Reaching tens of thousands of New Yorkers each year, University Settlement’s focus on ‘building community strength’ aligns perfectly with WCC’s vision and mission.”
The inaugural advocacy cohort will comprise University Settlement staff and meet over six months, aiming to launch subsequent cohorts that will engage with University Settlement’s program participants. At the conclusion of the first phase, which will run through February 2025, participating staff will create personal action plans for civic engagement on issues of importance to them.
“Partnering with the WCC will empower our staff and community members to make an even greater impact through civic engagement,” said Jennifer Vallone, Associate Executive Director for Arts, Adults, and Advocacy at University Settlement. “Our teams and the neighbors we work with have unparalleled knowledge of how policy decisions affect our communities – knowledge that should be considered by our policymakers and representatives. Women constitute 70% of the human services workforce, and we are thrilled to leverage WCC's decades of civic engagement expertise to cultivate our current and future community leaders.”
About
About Women Creating Change:
Women Creating Change (WCC), formerly known as the Women’s City Club of New York, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan activist organization dedicated to advancing women’s rights and shaping the future of New York City. Founded in 1915, WCC works to advance gender and racial equality by equipping women of color, women experiencing financial hardship, and gender-expansive individuals, with the knowledge, tools, and resources to advocate for the issues that matter most to them. WCC collaborates with partners, policymakers, and advocacy groups to drive real change in economic opportunity, education, healthcare, safety, reproductive rights, and environmental justice. WCC connects women with key stakeholders to learn, act, and engage. We empower women to lead change, shape policy, and strengthen communities, redesigning systems for a more equitable New York City. At WCC, we believe every woman has the power to make a difference. Visit wccny.org.
About University Settlement
University Settlement partners with 40,000 New Yorkers on the Lower East Side and in Brooklyn every year to build on their strengths as they achieve healthy, stable, and remarkable lives. For over 135 years, we’ve collaborated with our neighbors to pioneer highly effective programs that fight poverty and systemic inequality. Established in 1886 as the first Settlement House in the United States, we bring the values of that movement into the 21st century by meeting New Yorkers where they live, listening deeply to all perspectives, engaging with every individual holistically, and creating space for people to organize. Joining together with our neighbors to advocate for justice and equality, we help build community strength.
We work with New Yorkers of all ages. We infuse a commitment to civic engagement, equity, and communal action into each of our programs, which include early childhood education, mental health and wellness, benefits assistance and eviction prevention, adult literacy and education, healthy aging, community and recreation centers, performing and visual arts, and youth development.
Learn more at www.universitysettlement.org.
Media Contact
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