NYC School Salad Bar Initiative (Department of Education and GrowNYC)

The NYC School Salad Bar Initiative aims to expand the number of salad bars in New York City public schools and provide healthy, nutritious and appealing options to students who may have limited access to vegetables. Salad bars have been shown to help increase consumption of fresh produce and could feature ingredients grown in a school garden (complimenting the Citywide School Gardens Initiative).

The Department of Education’s Office of SchoolFood has already installed salad bars in roughly half of the City’s 1,200 school buildings. The Mayor’s Fund is supporting the expansion of these efforts to provide lower-height, accessible salad bar units in targeted elementary schools throughout the five boroughs. There are additional sponsorship and branding opportunities for those who are interested.
  
Summer Youth Employment Program (Department of Youth and Community Development)

The Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP) provides New York City youth between the ages of 14 and 24 with important summer employment and educational opportunities for up to seven weeks. Research shows that the earlier a person has their first work experience, the more likely they are to complete school and earn higher wages as they enter adulthood.
 
SYEP participants work at camps, parks, government agencies, local non-profits, hospitals, senior centers, daycare centers, retail organizations, and small businesses throughout the city and earn minimum wage. Since 2010, the Mayor's Fund has helped to raise private donations to support the program and fund as many placements as possible to help meet the demand.

Hear Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott talk about his participation in the City’s Summer Youth Employment Program and its long-term impact on his career in this radio clip. 
NYC School Gardens Initiative

The NYC School Gardens Initiative aims to get New York City’s youth to eat healthier by helping schools build a garden or connect to an existing garden, and providing cooking and nutrition instruction to young New Yorkers. Studies show that when children grow and prepare their own food, their understanding of the relationship between food and health grows too. Studies also show that positive eating habits begun before 6th grade are more likely to last into adulthood. The initiative includes three “learning gardens” at City Hall Park, Gracie Mansion, and Randall’s Island; a mini-grant program to provide schools with resources to start a garden; programming to help schools use the food grown in gardens in cafeterias; cooking and nutrition programs at NYCHA sites to supplement garden programs, and a new website that lists available resources including technical assistance and curriculum guides. For more information and to apply for financial or technical assistance for a school garden, go to: www.nyc.gov/growtolearn. View a video on our NYC School Gardens Initiative. 
Youth Cooking and Nutrition Programs (Department of Youth and Community Development, NYC Housing Authority, Office of the Food Policy Coordinator)

As a part of the City’s efforts to combat childhood obesity and promote healthy eating among young New Yorkers, the Mayor’s Fund established partnerships between the Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD), New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) and selected non-profits, the Sylvia Center and Children’s Aid Society, to provide cooking classes for children ages 6-20 years old. The Fun Food, Smart Food pilot was launched at City-funded afterschool sites in 2008 and an enhanced program is now operating at NYCHA community centers. These programs aim to empower young people to develop knowledge of and love for cooking, become conscious consumers, and make healthy food choices. The classes focus on hands-on cooking and a stimulating nutrition discussion, as well as trips to greenmarkets or grocery stores to reinforce classroom lessons. In 2011 the program reached over 420 children and teens at four NYCHA community centers. In 2012 the initiative is looking to expand to additional NYCHA sites and to include components focused on engaging and educating parents and on-site food service personnel. 
NYCHA Youth Programs (New York City Housing Authority)

The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) is a vibrant and diverse community providing homes for low- and moderate income New Yorkers.  As the largest public housing authority in the nation, NYCHA serves more than 650,000 individuals and oversees a network of over 400 community facilities providing senior care, day care and afterschool services. Nearly 30 percent of NYCHA's residents are under age 18. NYCHA is committed to providing children with high-quality early care and learning opportunities for its residents, which are critical building blocks for lifelong success. Current projects include Partners in Reading (PIR), a collaborative effort of NYCHA, the NYC Department of Education (DOE) and the Mayor's Office to increase and strengthen the literacy skills of children ages 6, 7 and 8 years old (in grades 1, 2, and 3); New York City Early Literacy Learners (NYCELL) to strengthen language and pre-reading skills of toddlers; and the I Have a Dream (IHAD) program that offers second and third graders educational, social and culturally-enriched activities to increase their chances for success. NYCHA is implementing early childhood education models that will connect literacy and health programs for ages 1 to 3 and afterschool activities for grades K through 3. These programs are based on extensive research demonstrating that early childhood education has the best return on investment in terms of overall child development, school success and the long-term impact on creating a quality American workforce.
NYC Ladders for Leaders (Department of Youth & Community Development and the Commission on Women's Issues)

NYC Ladders for Leaders merges two of the city's most successful pilot youth development projects - the NYC GirlsREACH and BoysREACH program and CAPITAL (Corporate Allies Program of Internships, Training and Leadership). NYC Ladders for Leaders encourages a new generation of leaders by pairing high-school aged youth with strong professional role models in both the public and private sectors.

The goals of the initiative are to: orient high potential youth from areas of need to the importance of post-secondary education and help them prepare for a successful college admissions process; expose them to inspirational role models and provide access and resources to career pathways, networks, and mentors; and develop their skills, self-confidence, and knowledge.

NYC Ladders for Leaders participants are paired with professional mid-level managers at partnering corporations and organizations for a seven-week summer internship. Each Friday, participants attend workshops focusing on a range of topics including work readiness, college orientation, health issues and leadership development at a host company conducted by CWI and DYCD. Students in the program also receive a comprehensive Kaplan SAT and college preparatory course tailored specifically for them. This public-private initiative is reliant on companies and organizations interested in providing meaningful internship experiences, and support for program costs and a college scholarship fund for participants who complete the program in full and enroll in college.
Read remarks from a participant (in PDF)

Out-of-School Time (Department of Youth and Community Development)

NYC has invested over $694 million in out-of-school time programs over the past five years. The Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD), which is the lead agency for this initiative, operates 491 Out-of-School Time programs, as well as 80 Beacon and 25 Cornerstone programs that serve youth after school, on weekends and during summers. 

DYCD's Out-of-School Time (OST) program is the largest municipally-funded afterschool program in the nation, serving more than 73,000 elementary, middle, and high school students in the 2009-2010 program year.  In the 2010-2011 program year, DYCD expects to serve in excess of 58,000 youth.

In order to meet the needs of working parents, programs operate throughout all five boroughs, and are offered free of charge. In addition to collaborating with numerous community-based organizations, DYCD actively partners with more than ten City agencies on the OST initiative, including the Department of Education, Department of Parks & Recreation, New York City Public Housing Authority, Department of Cultural Affairs, and Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. In addition, the OST initiative works with cultural institutions and the City's three public library systems to deliver well-rounded, high quality programs to all participants.