Thursday, May 2, 2024

Erie Neighborhood House: 150 Years as a Home with No Borders Presbyterian Historical Society

erie neighborhood house

Superior St., a move that move enabled the agency to greatly increase its early childhood education program capacity from 40 children to 180 children. Erie House administrative offices were also moved to this location. Erie Family Health Center renewed ties with Erie House to co-purchase the building, formerly a cardboard box factory, and moved their headquarters and clinic services to occupy the third and fourth floors. We work with young people from infancy through high school graduation to equip them with tools and resources to build a bright future, including educational programs and activities, mentoring, and family support. We’ve been an incubator for other community-based organizations, including Erie Family Health, which began as a clinic operated by Northwestern University medical students at Erie House in 1957.

Erie Neighborhood House Spent Its 150th Year Helping Chicago Immigrants Through Pandemic — And You Can Help ... - Block Club Chicago

Erie Neighborhood House Spent Its 150th Year Helping Chicago Immigrants Through Pandemic — And You Can Help ....

Posted: Mon, 28 Dec 2020 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Programs for Children & Youth are Open

Erie's Neighborhood Art House has a new executive director - GoErie.com

Erie's Neighborhood Art House has a new executive director.

Posted: Fri, 17 Dec 2021 08:00:00 GMT [source]

She also spent 14 years teaching in the Early Childhood Education department at Morton College. Cheryl Philip oversees development and communications and is responsible for sustaining and increasing private, institutional and public funding to support the agency's objectives. Her background is in individual giving, specifically mid-level and major gifts.

Esther Nieves becomes executive director

erie neighborhood house

In the morning, Erie House’s newest neighbors dropped off their pre-schoolers. After work, they picked them up, along with their older children who went to Erie after school. Monday through Thursday evenings, and twice on Saturday, the adults studied English or enrolled in citizenship classes. Through foundational academic and professional programs like English as a Second Language (ESL), civics education, workforce development, and more, we provide the tools adults need for long-term success.

In our Proyecto Cuídate program, we provide nearly 500 counseling sessions per year to survivors of domestic violence.

“All backgrounds” represents our commitment to inclusion across race, gender, age, religion, identity, ability and experience. We’re committed to working to unify our communities behind the shared goal of justice and equity. By contributing to PHS, you keep the stories and lessons of American Presbyterian history alive.

Erie House begins providing daycare in response to growing demand during World War II as the American workforce evolves. By equipping you with the right tools and resources, we can help you thrive in the face of adversity. With greater access to well-being comes the chance to build proud, powerful communities together. By providing your family with quality education and holistic support, we can help shape a brighter future.

During the past 150 years, change has been constant for Erie House, Executive Director Kirstin Chernawsky said in a press release. She became executive director at age 24 and was the first Spanish-speaking director of the agency. Erie House's Legal Services program grows into its own department, expanding its mission of keeping families together and allowing them to achieve a greater sense of security in the U.S. Superior St., sharing a renovated factory building with Erie Family Health Center. This new space allows Erie House to expand early childhood education programming and serve more of the West Town community.

Our Proyecto Cuídate community wellness and safety program expands its footprint in providing critical mental health services to our community, ultimately becoming a standalone department within Erie House. Erie House believes in the importance of diversity, equity, access and inclusion. We stand in solidarity with those fighting against injustice, oppression, and systemic racism in all its forms. Our mission is to empower our community — Latinx immigrants and individuals and families of all backgrounds. AAnn Grecek directs a NAEYC-accredited child care program that provides care and instruction to 175 children and their families. She came to Erie House in 2019, having invested two decades working within Early Head Start and Head Start programs throughout Chicagoland.

Second site in West Town

By the 1980s, Mexican Americans were recognized as Chicago's largest group of immigrants, and the rising influence of Latin Americans in Chicago was reflected in the changing makeup of Erie House program participants as well as its staff members. Rafael Ravelo, an immigrant from Cuba, became the agency's first Latino executive director in 1985 (all three Erie House executive directors who have served since Ravelo's tenure have also been Latino, representing both the Puerto Rican and Mexican American communities served at Erie House). The demographics of the West Town community began to transition at the turn of the 20th century as Italian and Polish immigrants populated the area near and around Erie Chapel. By 1915, Erie Chapel consisted of three staff members and an annual budget of $6,400 (roughly $150,000 when adjusted for inflation), at which point it incorporated and renamed itself Erie Chapel Institute.

Leadership Team

erie neighborhood house

Bickerdike Redevelopment Corporation was also founded by Erie House in 1967 to create affordable housing opportunities for members of the community. And in 2005, Erie Elementary Charter school was founded out of Erie House to provide a bilingual school option for neighborhood families. In 1893, we offered one of twenty flagship programs in Chicago’s Free Kindergarten Association, and in 1942 we began providing daycare in response to growing demand during WWII as the American workforce evolved. In 1984, we launched TEAM, a groundbreaking mentoring program that supports the growth and development of neighborhood youth. We work with young people from infancy through high school graduation to equip them with tools and resources to build a bright future, including educational programs and activities, mentoring, and family support.

A home with no borders, impacting lives to create powerful communities. Check out our list of volunteer positions with our programs — including virtual opportunities to get involved. We empower the people we work alongside to build powerful communities. Eventually, the Erie Chapel Institute became Erie Neighborhood House, adopting this as its name in 1936, when the current structure at 1347 W. Since the time of Holland Presbyterian, it responded to five generations of immigrants that passed through its doors at the same address for 150 years, giving it a unique perspective on this port-of-entry neighborhood called West Town. As a deep admirer of Jane Addams, and aware of the many books written by and about her, I felt it was time for the story of a place that was influenced by her, and has actually surpassed Hull House in its longevity.

One such story, a Chicago story, that has always grabbed my attention, pertains to the birth and growth of the settlement house movement before, during, and after Hull House and Jane Addams. My view is that it was a faith-based movement – not necessarily church-based, although churches were involved. Nor was it religious, but rather, as Eleanor Stebner describes it in her book, The Women of Hull House, “a study in spirituality, vocation and friendship.” It is a gospel story about being a good neighbor. We are a diverse community of passionate individuals, bound together by a shared commitment to building proud, powerful communities across the city.

Alvin Schexnider supervises the day-to-day operations of human resources, facilities and information technology and has a strong background in human-centered design. He arrived at Erie House in 2018, having worked previously as the director of operations at Greater Good Studio. Those of us who take an interest in history are generally drawn to it because it is full of good stories.

Our in-house team of attorneys and legal representatives help their clients navigate the US citizenship and immigration system, keeping families together, and allowing them to achieve a greater sense of security. Paul Kasper is responsible for directing the activities of facilities, management and engineering, strategic planning and energy management for all Erie House sites. Prior to joining Erie House in 2001 as executive assistant, he was manager of workforce development for economically disadvantaged adults at Association House of Chicago. With an annual budget of approximately $8M,[14] the organization employs a diverse workforce of 150 full- and part-time employees.

Its programs operate on a blend of federal, state and private foundation funding. The organization also relies on a generous donor base in addition to an active volunteer corps. While Erie House serves Chicagoans of all backgrounds, clients predominately include Latino immigrant families, including documented and undocumented immigrants. These communities have been among the hardest-hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Farmhouse Cafe

Table Of Content Welcome To Farmhouse Thai Restaurant Grilled Alaskan Wild Caught Salmon  * Great Farmhouse Salads and Soups We invite y...