Support 80 Kids At A Concrete Safaris Learning Lab In The East Harlem Health Action Center

Support 80 Kids At A Concrete Safaris Learning Lab In The East Harlem Health Action Center

Started
September 16, 2020
Petition to
NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene and 2 others
Signatures: 119Next Goal: 200
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Why this petition matters

Started by Mac Levine

The East Harlem Health Action Center has been closed for programming since COVID-19. We propose that the Action Center resume serving the East Harlem community, which is in dire need of services. In particular, PS 57 students and their working families need an indoor, accessible blended learning space to allow for a mixture of in-school and off-site education. The Action Center is an ideal location to make a Learning Lab possible.

Concrete Safaris’ model includes indoor virtual education with school teachers, outdoor experiential education on NYC streets and in local parks and Concrete Safaris’ gardens, and referrals for wrap-around services. We want to support 80 children at a Concrete Safaris Learning Lab at the East Harlem Health Action Center for the 2020/21 School Year.  The Lab would be hosted from 8AM – 3PM for school and from 3 - 5:30PM for after school between October 2020 and June 2021. Concrete Safaris has prepared youth in East Harlem and beyond to lead healthy lives and shape their environment through outdoor education, play, exploration, and community engagement since 2008. Carrying out our mission is vital to families during this pandemic school year. 

This proposed partnership between PS 57, the Action Center, and Concrete Safaris is crucial to addressing the social determinants of health during the pandemic:

Health & Healthcare: All eighty families will meet with our education coordinator to discuss and secure wrap-around services.

Education: Kids will come to a safe space for virtual learning on days when they are not in school at PS 57. Staff will be dedicated to making sure that they are paying attention, doing their homework, and improving language and literacy skills.

Social and Community Context: Children and parents need cohesion within their community and routine, particularly during this pandemic. Concrete Safaris is a familiar face. The Action Center is a familiar place. 

Economic Stability: Parents need to be able to go to work, and this Learning Lab will provide the safety net of childcare.

Neighborhood and Built Environment: The East Harlem Health Action Center is right next door to PS 57, so parents and children will find it easily. Children will have access to adventures on local bike trails and in our gardens, and a school year of programming all in their neighborhood.

Children in East Harlem need a safe, accessible place like the East Harlem Health Action Center to attend the virtual component of blended learning. After spending months indoors, they will benefit tremendously from high-quality academic supports and experiential education in outdoor play, gardening, photography, and public health offered by the Concrete Safaris Learning Lab at the East Harlem Health Action Center. 

Please sign our petition to support 80 children and their families by transforming the East Harlem Health Action Center into a Concrete Safaris Learning Lab. Thank you for your attention to this matter.

In Health!

Mac Levine & The Concrete Safaris Team

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Signatures: 119Next Goal: 200
Support now
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