the newspaper of Harlem rbi | dreaM Charter School
written by Harlem rbi and dreaM youth
volume 20 issue 2 Spring 2013
a new HoMe baSe! HarleM rbi and dreaM CHarter SCHool break ground By Giselle henriQUez, 11th Grade
tion and/or renovation of a building. In this case, the objective of the capital campaign is to build the new home base for Harlem RBI and DREAM. This campaign is called, “Level the Field, Build the Future.”
new york yankee Mark teixeira joins dreaM scholars to dig the first shovels into the future site of Harlem rbi and dreaM on February 7, 2013.
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any people are aware of Harlem RBI and DREAM Charter School’s construction project on 104th Street and Second Avenue. However, many are unaware of the process that takes place in order to make the project a success.
This construction project is part of a capital campaign. What is a capital campaign, you may ask? It is a timelimited effort by a non-profit organization to raise money for a specific project. Often, the money raised is for the acquisition, construc-
The goal for this campaign is to raise $20 million. Harlem RBI has already raised $15.3 million and the remaining $4.7 million will be raised over the course of 2013. Half of the money raised came from the Harlem RBI Board of Directors. The other half came from New York Yankees First Baseman, Mark Teixeira and his fundraising efforts. In an interview with Harlem RBI and DREAM’s Director of Development Megan Hodges I asked
about the most challenging aspect of this project. Megan replied, “It was tough to begin fundraising in a rough economy.” But Megan has also welcomed this challenge saying, “I loved meeting new donors. The real joy, however, comes in watching the progress. My favorite part is watching the building go up.” “We wanted the building to be in close proximity to the current Harlem RBI office and Field of Dreams,” said Liza Gray, Capital Projects Manager. “This was a requirement when Harlem RBI selected a location to build on. The space on 104th Street and Second Avenue was the best option.” Construction will finish in Fall 2014. The groundbreaking ceremony took place in February. This celebration gave the community a chance to come together and see the beginning of Harlem RBI and DREAM’s future home.
tigerS and StarS unite to provide relieF aFter Sandy By isaaC yearWood, 7th Grade
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n October 29, Hurricane Sandy greatly affected New York City and neighboring states such as New Jersey and Connecticut. The super storm left many people without power. Some people even lost their homes. East Harlem was not hit very hard, and the boys from the Tigers and Stars teams decided to help the relief efforts.
Many Tigers and Stars teammates chipped in to plan this project. The TeamBuilders staff devoted workshops just for preparation. This was a time where the group strategically planned the battery drive to make it a huge success. To aid the drive, Harlem RBI staff posted a letter written by the Tigers and Stars on Facebook to ask the Harlem RBI and DREAM Charter School community for help.
On the first day of the drive, a Harlem RBI alumna donated 200 batteries. It was a great The Tigers and Stars decided to start a Harstart. At the end, the team collected over lem RBI battery drive to help those who lost 1,000 batteries, making the drive a huge power. These batteries could help people use success. All donations collected in the flashlights, radios and other electronics. The battery drive were sent directly to The Red idea came up during a program workshop, a Cross. The Red Cross then went out to differweek after the hurricane, while discussing the ent areas, like Far Rockaway and Red Hook effect it had on the tri-state area. The batterto distribute the batteries. The Tigers, Stars ies were collected at the Harlem RBI offices. and the rest of the Harlem RBI family hope Later, Deals, a store across the street from that the batteries made at least a small differHarlem RBI, also helped collect donations. ence for those who needed it.