INCLUDEnyc 2015 Annual Report

2015 ANNUAL REPORT

OUR MISSION INCLUDEnyc promotes positive futures and enhances the quality of life for New York City children and young people with disabilities, from birth through 26, and their families.

DEAR FRIENDS, 2015 was an important year of transition for INCLUDEnyc. After 31 years as Resources for Children with Special Needs (RCSN), we changed our name to reflect our mission — meaningful inclusion for children and youth with disabilities in our broader community.

We also bid farewell to our Executive Director, Rachel Howard, and welcomed the third in our history, Barbara Glassman.

Central to our work are parent and family services. Providing up-to-date resources and information is critical to families and professionals. Tens of thousands of people each year continue to view INCLUDEnyc as the primary source of disability information and advice in New York City.

Through partnerships and collaborations with a broad array of organizations, INCLUDEnyc is working to provide more parents and professionals than ever with the training and information they need to create more positive futures for children and young people with disabilities.

Our youth and transition services, started four years ago, provide self-advocacy skills to teens and young adults with disabilities through direct service projects in schools and community organizations. This program area developed significantly in 2015 driven by strong community need.

INCLUDEnyc is entering 2016 positioned for success. Building on our strong foundation of parent and family services, a thriving youth services program, and a dynamic new brand, INCLUDEnyc will continue to make New York City a more inclusive and positive place for young people with disabilities in the years to come.

Thank you for being our partner in this critical mission.

ELLEN MILLER-WACHTEL

Chair, Board of Directors

RACHEL HOWARD

Executive Director (Jan 2008 - Nov 2015)

BARBARA A. GLASSMAN Executive Director (Dec 2015 - Present)

THE NEED

350,000

YOUNG PEOPLE IN NYC WITH DISABILITIES ¹

1 in 3

LIVE IN POVERTY ²

59%

DO NOT GRADUATE FROM HIGH SCHOOL ³

4 in 5

ARE UNEMPLOYED ⁴

2X

MORE LIKELY TO BE A VICTIM OF A VIOLENT CRIME ⁵

Parents need help more than ever "navigating this often adversarial

system. I am grateful to INCLUDEnyc for helping me to sort through a lot of information and focus on the most important talking points, with a realistic approach.

"

- INCLUDEnyc PARENT

¹ Preliminary Mayor's Management Report, Feb 2016 ² Annual Disability Statistics Compendium, Rehabilitation Center on Disability Statistics and Demographics ³ NYC DOE Graduation Outcomes Highlights ⁴ Demographic Labor Force Information Report, Bureau of Labor Statistics ⁵ Crime Against Persons with Disabilities, Bureau of Labor Statistics

In New York City, young people with disabilities face an uphill climb. While resources exist and are available to those who have the tenacity and savvy to secure them, many families are unaware that help is within their reach.

INCLUDEnyc is here for all young people, including those who might otherwise fall through the cracks. When a child is identified with a disability, many parents do not know where to turn — and navigating the city’s complex network of services can be a challenge.

For parents who are non-native English speakers, or who are working hard to build a better life for their children and families, these challenges can be even more overwhelming.

WHAT WE DO

INCLUDEnyc provides one-on-one support, training, and information to young people with disabilities, their families, and the professionals who work with them.

LEARNING & SCHOOL

We help parents navigate the complex education system to get the services they need for their child to succeed in school, in areas such as special education programming, school applications (kindergarten, high school, and college), and busing and specialized transportation.

FAMILY SUPPORT SYSTEMS

We guide families of young people with disabilities to a safety net of support, including community programs, disability services, and financial, health, and legal resources.

PARENTING & ADVOCACY

We foster self-advocacy by providing families advice on social skills, communication, behavior and bullying, friendship, and understanding their child’s disability.

WORKING & ADULT LIFE

To help students transition into adult life, we consult with families on adult systems and services, housing, employment, health, and independent living.

FRIENDSHIP & SOCIAL SKILLS

We direct families to community resources, cultural and arts programs, summer camps, and other recreational and social opportunities to support young people with disabilities in connecting to their community.

EMPOWERING FAMILIES We believe that parents and young people are their own best advocates.

We help families find the skills, knowledge, and confidence to make a positive difference in their child's life.

5,835

INCLUDEnyc’s diverse staff of parents, educators, and social workers know New York City’s unique landscape of services. We understand that navigating the world of disability systems can be a demanding, 24/7 job, and we are here to help.

PARENTS SERVED

LEARNING & SUPPORT

580

Our Resource Line specialists provide in-depth, one-on-one help and referral information to parents in English and Spanish, with translation to 200 additional languages available.

PROFESSIONALS TRAINED

We provide on-site help to parents through our many partnerships, in locations throughout the five boroughs, so that families can get assistance in their own community.

181

WORKSHOPS LED

Our expert staff teach workshops at schools and neighborhood organizations citywide. The workshops cover a wide range of disability topics and are designed specifically to meet parents' most pressing needs.

WORKSHOPS BY LANGUAGE 111 52 6 5 5 2

IN ENGLISH IN SPANISH IN CHINESE IN AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE IN KOREAN OTHER

2 5

5

6

52

111

In 2015, tens of thousands of people relied on INCLUDEnyc for disability information.

INFORMATION RESOURCES Our print materials are distributed to parents, schools, community centers, pediatricians, libraries, and at outreach events citywide, allowing us to reach families who may not have access to the internet or social media.

Our website offers online videos, tip sheets, and useful contacts and links created and curated by our expert staff – organized in an accessible, family-­friendly way.

Our weekly Navigator and monthly ACCESS news aggregates keep families and their communities up to date with news, opinions, resources, and events for the disability community.

Our Facebook and Twitter presence is a key resource for sharing information with our families and partners. Through shares and reposts, many of our Facebook posts reach over 15,000 users in a single day.

68,613

PRINT MATERIALS DISTRIBUTED

10,168

ONLINE RESOURCES ACCESSED

16, 879

YOUTUBE VIEWS

19, 853 NAVIGATOR SUBSCRIBERS

is the home "of INCLUDEnyc experts who can guide

me as to my child’s rights, what the law states, and how I can access appropriate services. I don’t know what I’d do without them.

"

- INCLUDEnyc PARENT

MRS. SANTIAGO WAS IN A PANIC Her 8-year-old son Miguel, who has ADHD and is on the autism spectrum, was struggling in school.

She knew he needed different help in his classroom, but she didn’t know her son's rights and wasn’t receiving materials in Spanish, her primary language.

We helped Mrs. Santiago initiate a mediation meeting with his school, intervened to request translation services, and coached her on what to expect. Miguel now receives the services he needs to be successful in school, and Mrs. Santiago feels confident that she can advocate for her son’s education.

EMPOWERING YOUTH Every young person has the right to be included — in school, in the workforce, and in community life.

INCLUDEnyc is here to make that vision a reality for young people with disabilities in New York City.

In working with youth directly, INCLUDEnyc served more than 5,500 students in 2015.

We strive to empower these young people with meaningful information, strategies, and self-advocacy skills.

VALERIA WAS STUCK AT HOME

YOUTH SERVICES

Valeria is a patient, hard-working, and extraordinarily kind 23-year-old. She has a traumatic brain injury and an intellectual disability. When she first came to INCLUDEnyc, her mother didn’t know about the services available to her daughter in New York City and had been adamant that Valeria not be let out of her sight.

Project Possibility provides referral and intensive services that help young adults with disabilities, aged 16 - 26, create and implement a practical plan that will lead to employment, higher education, job training, or other community involvement. The program enables young people to take concrete steps toward a more meaningful adult life.

High School Match helps middle school students with disabilities navigate the complex and confusing high school application process. Our direct work with students, parents, educators, and administrators aims to help students complete their applications more thoughtfully and improve rates of first-round high school placements.

Over the course of several months, an INCLUDEnyc bilingual advocate helped Valeria and her mother apply for the state-funded job training program ACCES-VR, Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, Access-A-Ride, and a reduced-fare MetroCard. Valeria now receives SSI benefits and is thriving in a jobtraining program, where she has been placed with a retail store to learn hands-on job skills.

have somewhere to get "help.I now With INCLUDEnyc, I have a community that cares and is on my side. " - INCLUDEnyc STUDENT

PARTNERSHIPS

INCLUDEnyc is proud of our partnerships with community-based organizations, schools, advisory groups, and issue-focused coalitions throughout the five boroughs and beyond.

These partnerships allow us to be an important voice in disability issues citywide, and empower more families with the information they need to be their own advocates.

30

48 3

22

38

1

142 PARTNERS IN 2015 48 38 30 22 3 1

IN MANHATTAN IN BROOKLYN IN THE BRONX IN QUEENS OUT OF NYC IN STATEN ISLAND

INCLUDEnyc works with a wide variety of partners, from nationally-recognized organizations, to government agencies, to small grassroots nonprofits.

PARTNERSHIP HIGHLIGHTS NYS PROMISE (Promoting Readiness of Minors in Supplemental Security Income), in collaboration with Cornell University and the NYS Office of Mental Health, is a research study designed to demonstrate the positive effects of transition support and services on the lives of young people with disabilities who receive SSI and their families.

In 2015, as a Parent Center provider in New York City, we recruited nearly 1,000 families for a program that will provide increased educational, financial, and social independence and stability.

PARENT CENTERS We are a member of the federally-funded Parent Training and Information Center (PTIC) Collaborative, providing disability services for New York City and Long Island, along with three other leading organizations.

We are the NYS-funded Special Education Parent Center for four New York City boroughs: Manhattan, the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens. We were awarded the most contracts of any nonprofit in the state to provide these services.

We are the federal Rehabilitative Services Administration Parent Training and Information Center for New York City, and for New York State in partnership with two other nonprofits in upstate New York.

PS 35 is an elementary school in the Bronx with a rapidly growing population of students with disabilities. In order to help these students succeed in school, we provide on-site workshops, coaching, support, and information to educators, parents, community service providers, and local businesses.

INCLUDEnyc is the resource "I use to help children at my social service agency. I send many parents to you, and they would be lost without you.

"

- INCLUDEnyc PARTNER

INCLUDEnyc’s Summer Fun & More is the largest resource fair for providers of disability services in New York City.

In 2015, we evolved from the Special Camp Fair into Summer Fun & More in response to a need to provide year-round social and recreational opportunities for young people with disabilities.

Convening world-famous cultural institutions, camps, independent nonprofits, and government organizations makes an important statement about inclusion in our city, and demonstrates the growing access for young people and their families who may not have known these programs existed or welcomed them.

95%

EVENT GROWTH 82 VENDORS IN 2015 42 VENDORS IN 2014

42

82

FINANCIALS

REVENUES 69.1% PUBLIC FUNDING

13.2% FOUNDATION SUPPORT

TOTAL REVENUES $2.85 MILLION

15.1% INDIVIDUAL GIVING

2.6% OTHER

EXPENSES 82.9% PROGRAM

6.5% FUNDRAISING

10.6% MANAGEMENT & GENERAL

Unaudited Financials

TOTAL EXPENSES $2.82 MILLION

THANK YOU TO OUR VALUED DONORS $75,000+ Elizabeth and John J. McGuire, Jr. New York Community Trust Taft Foundation Joseph LeRoy and Ann C. Warner Fund, Inc.

$25,000 - $74,999 Jacob Friedman Charitable Fund Milbank Foundation William J. and Dorothy K. O’Neill Foundation

$10,000 - $24,999 Barker Welfare Foundation Frances L. & Edwin L. Cummings Memorial Fund Lida and Michael Exstein Kenneth W. Hitchner Michael Koester Takashi Murata Poses Family Foundation Julian Salisbury Fred Towfigh

$5,000 - $9,999 Gareth Bater Bucks Creek Foundation Mary Byron Anthony H. Carpet Andrew Chisholm Martha and Albert Driver Ferriday Fund Charitable Trust Dubose and Dorothy Heyward Memorial Fund Altria Group, Inc. Robert E. Dineen, Jr. Alison and Owen King Jamie and Howard Klein Lord & Taylor/Hudson’s Bay Company Peter J. Lyon Charles Manby Monica and John Sganga Kat Trimble and David Morse

$1,000 - $4,999

$500 - $999

Joan and Mark Abramowitz Laurie Abramowitz and Robert Doherty Carrie and Leigh Abramson Rob Adler Jesse Baker Tracy and John Barakat Elissa and Albert Benchimol John N. Blackman Sr. Foundation Lisa Opoku Busumbru David Chou Carolyn and Neil L. Coplan Ben Crane Helene and Mitchel Craner Nancy Crown and Sam Weisman Katharine and Peter Darrow Sarah Dearmont and David Kronenberg DeLaCour Family Foundation Deborah and Ronald Eisenberg Family Foundation, Inc. Matthew T. Fremont-Smith Janice Gabrilove and Michael Dirzulaitis Michael Del Giudice Stefanie and Shon Glusky Goldman, Sachs & Co. Sally Gottesman Louise Grunwald Hertog Foundation, Inc Fran and Richard Hofstetter Alexandra and Russell Horwitz Margaret Johnson and David Bartz Diane Katzin Renee Khatami and John R. MacArthur Seth Kramer Barbara Leff David Ludwig Luminescence Foundation Sophia McCrocklin and William Isaacson Ellen Miller-Wachtel and Alan Wachtel, M.D. Abby Modell Emilie Murphy and Byron Nimocks NYU Community Fund Paula J. Omansky and Mordecai Rosenfeld Ovation Travel Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, P.C. Sheila Patel Carl and Lily Pforzheimer Foundation, Inc. Reckless Productions, Inc. Linda Riefberg and Lee Perlman Elizabeth and Samuel Robinson Karen Schlesinger Barbara and John Shaughnessy Shepard Family Foundation Catherine and Rony Shimony Iriss Shimony Jeanne Straus Students & Parents Information Network Support, Inc. The Donald J. Trump Foundation Betsy and Ted Wheeler Audra Zuckerman and Mitch Rubin

AHRC New York City Rhela and Joel Aragona Scott A. Carlson Lynn McGuire Carroll and John McGuire, Sr. Carter Ledyard & Milburn LLP Jonathan L. Cohen Alexandra M. Dalpan and Peter J. Cummiskey Judith and Robert DeIasi Carin Van Der Donk Bayle and Richard Drubel Glen Gannon Barbara Gehring Gillett and John Gilbert Howard Glaser Barbara Glassman and Arthur Rubin Arin and Daniel Gornstein Andrea and Robert Greene Karesse Grenier Amy Habie Leslye and Gary Katz Audrey and Mehmet Kirdar Guy Lander Linda Lucardi Jack S. Lusk Dave Park Tiffany Pollack Gene Pope Aram Rubinson Elly and John Rufer Stephanie Schueppert Lesley and Richard Seitchik Stephen Gaynor School Anne Turner and Alan Riffkin Ricky Zegelstein

$100 - $499 Shari Abramowitz Ellis Arnstein Young Seh Bae Joan Beranbaum Victoria Berger-Gross Nicole Berman Mark Bezos Mindy Birnbaum BNY Mellon Community Partnership Carol Boboris Rochelle Borsky and Alan Wiesenfeld Lisa Broder Alexander Ciampaglia Marya Cohn Ellen Coletto Andrew Craner Katharine and Matthew Craner Gerard Curran David D’Alessandro Treva and David De Leeuw Denina DePool Todd Eagle

$100 - $499 (CONT.) David Eder Brett Ehrlich Karen Elder Ann and Michael Faber Eliza Factor Brett Felsman Sandra and Jack Floyd Amos Friedland Meyer Frucher Scott Gannon Valerie Garten Michelle Gersen and Michael Zweig Lisa Beth Gerstman Foundation Julia Gewolb Judith Ginsberg and Paul LeClerc Jo-Ann and Joseph Giordano Paula and Steven Glusky Mary Golden Eileen Gould and Robert Dwyer Mara Greenberg Jane Greenman Sandra and Lawrence Greller Laura R. Harris Carolyn M. Harrs Eileen Hengel Emery Herman Robyn and Jeff Herman Diana and John Herzog Judith Hochman and Richard Fuchs Robyn and Larry Hollander Lynne Hyman and Caird Forbes-Cockell Margery and Everett Jassy Sarah Jensen Anne and Eugene Jones Brandon Joseph Eric Kahn Beverly Kalban Hedy Kalikoff Diana J. Kalman Brian Kane Giles Kemp Candice and Alan Kersh Ann Kirschner and Harold Weinberg Marion and Fred Kneip Haya Kramer Laura Shapiro Kramer and Jay Kramer Judith Steven Kunreuther Harold Lander John LaSalle Jennifer and Mark Leyton Jon London Wendy Lynch Patricia and John Maggio John Manning Elizabeth Margolin Alexandra McArthur Patricia McElhone

UP TO $100 Kenneth Meister Samantha Migdal Sharon Miller Jacqueline Monroe James Moss Kathrine L. Mott Sarah Moy Amy Neuhardt Kathleen O’Hara Cynthia O’Leary Laurie and Jim Oestreich Harriet Pearl John Pegram Shelley R. Perry Wendy and Jon Phillips Asahi Pompey PROMISE Project Poppy B. Quattlebaum Jane and Kevin Quinn Mary K. Rosano Fredda Rosen Law Offices of Neal Howard Rosenberg Neil Rosenhouse Nancy Sall Missy and Scott Schiller Phyllis and Paul Schlesinger Diane and Eric Schwartz Nancy Selling Shannon Shafiroff Heather Shamsai and Basil Williams Constance Shapiro Enid Shapiro Randi Sherman Carren and Dean Shulman Dian Smith Katherine and Kenneth Snelson Nancy F. Solomon Carly Stokes Jill and Dan Stolz Randy Stuzin David Sunkin Judith Sussman Susan Tofel Sophia Tu Cheryl Tuttle Tara and Theodore Tyberg Martine and Michael Tyson Donna Vitale Marcy and Tom Vogel Stephanie and David Wasserman Loretta and Morton Wasserman Earl Weiner Carol Weiss Cayle White Susan W. Williams Abigail Woodworth

Carolyn Adams Suzanne Auerbach and Matthew Kaplowitz Erin Blatti Brenda Britsch Matt Broggini Bruce Campbell Barbara Carren-Lesauter Martha Caust William Charron Sandra Contreras Diane Diamond John and Charlene Dorman Family Trust UAD Lisa Edwards Mary Flaherty Lanell Gardenhire Sara Goldschmidt Jane C. Greenspan and Allan M. Greenspan, M.D. Tiffany Lee Linda and Edward Levitt Law Offices of H. Jeffrey Marcus, P.C. Susan Merrill Troy Pinkney Asahi Pompey Tamar Rosenberg Bernadette Savarese Amy Schrank Ryan Skuro Shizuko Tadehara Florence and Lewis Tannenbaum Jill Totenberg Marie Weinstein

PUBLIC FUNDING United States Department of Education New York State Education Department New York State Assemblywoman Latoya Joyner New York City Council - Autism Awareness Initiative New York City Council Member Daniel Garodnick New York City Council Member Andy King New York City Council Member Peter Koo New York City Council Member Mark Levine New York City Council Member Rosie Mendez New York City Council Member Helen Rosenthal

landscape is ever-changing, "andTheis daunting even for the most

organized of people. Disability costs are prohibitively expensive, and having a free resource at my fingertips has been very helpful and saved me quite a bit of time.

"

- INCLUDEnyc PARENT

OUR TEAM

BOARD OF DIRECTORS ELLEN MILLER-WACHTEL, CHAIR SHON E. GLUSKY, PRESIDENT OWEN P.J. KING, TREASURER FREDDA ROSEN, SECRETARY LAURIE ABRAMOWITZ MICHAEL B. EXSTEIN RICHARD HOFSTETTER JAMIE H. KLEIN JOHN J. MCGUIRE, JR. SETH J. KRAMER

STAFF

EXECUTIVE

PROGRAM

Executive Director (Dec 2015 - Present)

Director of Parent and Family Services

RACHEL HOWARD

JEAN MIZUTANI

BARBARA A. GLASSMAN

Executive Director (Jan 2008 - Nov 2015)

MARIKO SAKITA

Senior Education Specialist

ANISHAH CUMBER

COMMUNICATIONS & OUTREACH TODD DORMAN

Senior Director of Communications and Outreach

LORI PODVESKER Senior Manager of Disability and Education Policy

GENNAROSE POPE Manager of Communications and Outreach

MANDA CARLILE Design Coordinator

CARLY WOLFF

Communications Coordinator

Manager of Youth and Transition Services

MEGAN DAPISA-KEITA

Manager of Program Operations

LINNETTA DE LA CRUZ Family Educator

RUTH DIROMA Family Educator

CESAR FUENTES Family Educator

LORI GOBIOFF

Family Educator and Intern Manager

ALFONSO GUZMAN Family Educator

DEVELOPMENT

KPANA KPOTO

Senior Director of Development

ALBERT MARTINEZ

JOE MILOSCIA

LILLIAN MURPHY

Manager of Development and Operations

Family Educator Youth Educator

RENEE BECERRA

Program Training Coordinator

FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION STEPHEN STERN

Senior Director of Finance and Administration

VICTORIA GARWOOD BURTON

Finance and Administration Coordinator

MYRIAM JOSEPH

Program Intake Coordinator

LAMAR BEEKS

Information Assistant

GEORGIE EVANS Program Assistant

*Staff as of March 2016

BUILDING A MORE INCLUSIVE CITY Meaningful inclusion for young people with disabilities is possible. The journey can begin with a simple act: a click, a phone call, a workshop, or an INCLUDEnyc flyer that comes home from school in a backpack. We help parents and young adults with disabilities gain self-advocacy skills that can lead to a lifetime of independence.

The most powerful advocates for equity and access for people with disabilities are parents and young people themselves. When their voices are heard, the result is a more inclusive, welcoming city for all.

WE ARE INCLUDENYC For 31 years, Resources for Children with Special Needs worked on behalf of young people with disabilities and their families to have equal opportunity and access to schools, the workforce, and cultural life in New York City. Yet our name no longer represented the type of city being built in the homes, schools, hearts, and minds of New Yorkers.

We needed a name that guided us towards building a more inclusive city. We needed a name that reflected a future where people with disabilities are loved and valued — where all people are included.

THANK YOU There are 350,000 young people with disabilities in New York City.

Through your support, you can make access and inclusion a reality.

A special thanks to our photographer JOSHUA GREENE

LOVE, EQUITY, AND ACCESS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES FORMERLY RESOURCES FOR CHILDREN WITH SPECIAL NEEDS

116 EAST 16TH STREET, 5TH FL. NEW YORK, NEW YORK 10003 PHONE • 212-677-4650 RESOURCE LINE • 212-677-4660 INCLUDENYC.ORG