The closing of the National Center for Schools and Communities at Fordham University

Since 2005, Kids Creative has built a partnership with the National Center for Schools and Communities (NCSC) at Fordham University. They have donated space and other resources to help us run summer programming at the University for students from the surrounding communities. We are greatly shocked and saddened that NCSC announced that it is closing its doors due to the ripple effects of the financial crisis. NCSC has been a key player in helping Kids Creative grow and serve more youth in New York City. While we certainly hope that the connection between Kids Creative and Fordham will continue, more importantly, we are losing an institution uniquely focused on improving the lives of impoverished youth around the country.

Below is an excerpt from the letter written by NCSC Executive Director John Beam announcing the organization's closing (you can read the full text here):

"Established in 1992 and first led by Dr. Carolyn Denham, NCSC began with fostering the integration of education and social services at the school-site level by developing a national university network to promote inter- professional education and university-community partnerships to benefit low-income children and families. This network catalyzed and supported collaborative initiatives among 12 public schools and nine universities. These initiatives served over 1,500 low-income children annually and brought supportive social services into the schools to increase readiness to learn; to provide after-school cultural, recreational, and academic enrichment programs; and to strengthen the role of the local public school in the community it serves."

Read more here.