Partnering for a Brighter Future

On October 15^th, SCO Family of Services joined with Community Solutions, The Brownsville Partnership and the greater Brownsville community for a virtual Open House. The online event served to introduce local residents to our agency, our Brooklyn Youth Center (BYC), and other programs that focus on children, youth development, and strengthening families. It also provided an opportunity for young people who have benefited from SCO’s programs to share their personal stories of challenge and triumph over issues such as homelessness, foster care, and education and career-readiness on their journey into adulthood.

Located in the heart of Brownsville, SCO’s Brooklyn Youth Center offers a wide array of support services to at-risk, runaway, and homeless youth 14-24 years of age. Staff and youth create an individualized service plan that outlines goals and provides resources to ensure they achieve these goals.

The Open House also included updates from The Brownsville Partnership on the Livonia 4 Project, which in partnership with NYC, will transform vacant city-owned land into affordable housing and needed amenities for the neighborhood.

Building on SCO’s experience in providing supportive housing services for young adults, the agency was selected as a human services partner on the Livonia project’s 71-unit permanent supportive residence, designed to meet the housing and human service needs of young adults between 18 and 25 years old (with and without children) who have aged out of foster care and are experiencing homelessness. The BYC will relocate to Livonia upon its completion, continuing its long-standing service to young people in the community.

The Open House gave members of the community the opportunity to learn more open the project and SCO’s role of providing services for the residents who will live there. It also highlighted the importance of community partnerships and the impact they have had on the communities SCO serves, like Brownsville. We hope this is the first of many open forums with the residents of Brownsville.