College Bridge Cafe: Help to Create Better Futures in the Bronx!

The Bronx is experiencing a flurry of revitalization activity in many of its neighborhoods.  New businesses, housing, public spaces, shops and restaurants are being created in the borough at an unprecedented pace.  Current investment projects by public and private entities are rivaling other New York City boroughs that are contributing to an up-and-coming, thriving, urban community.

The mission of the College Bridge Cafe (CBC) is to support Bronx residents (kids and adults) through counseling, mentoring, workshops and referral services to attain post-secondary credentials that will increase their earning potential and quality of life.

What makes the CBC different? The CBC:

· Affords residents direct access to services and provides a support structure for participants throughout the full continuum of obtaining a degree or other credential.

· Caters to a diverse Bronx target population including high school students, college students and older adults looking for supplemental post secondary education guidance as they pursue a new or different career path in hopes of better opportunities for growth.

· Provides an inviting, modern and innovative gathering space for community members to engage in activities, receive information, and develop skills that can change their lives.

We need your help to raise start up funding for this initiative. Your support will serve to accelerate our implementation by enabling us to secure a functional incubator space and the hiring of staff to serve more residents sooner. This will facilitate our ability to receive other financial resources from a diverse array of funders whose criteria for funding includes evidence of performance outcomes and significant progress made towards goals.

• Identify incubator space for year one programming and service delivery;
• Recruit and train program manager and advisors;
• Build our network of partners with Bronx public schools, post-secondary institutions (locally and nationally), community based organizations, businesses, corporations and other stakeholders and prospective partners;
• Kickoff of fundraising strategy, leveraging funds raised in the campaign inclusive of grant writing;
• Survey and identify ideal location for the College Bridge Café for year 2-3 programming to include office space for one on one and group advisement, a college and career resource lab, meeting spaces and an informal pro bono coffee bar.

Bronx residents, both youth and adults, are underprepared to compete for and take part in the revitalization opportunities in their own community.  The Bronx struggles with:

1.      the highest poverty levels in NYC with high rates of unemployment and underemployment;*

2.      the lowest high school completion rates in NYC*

3.      the lowest rates of college completion in NYC*

*Based on NYC Statistics, US Census

Many of the available jobs and most promising careers in the modern economy require a degree, certificate or credential beyond high school. Furthermore, nearly four out of five children born in the Bronx are born into poverty; this statistic translates into parents not having the knowledge and resources to help their children aspire to higher education or other post-secondary education options that fit prospective students’ economic needs and find stable, fulfilling work; schools that are strained to the maximum to provide meaningful educational support and guidance for each and every child; and employers desperate for a skilled workforce. The CBC strives to be a cooperative community minded solution that aims to close the gaps outlined above. 

Thanks for your support! 

Isabel Pradas and Kevin Anthony- Co-Founders