Thirty social service organizations are receiving funding from Albany County.
County Legislature Chair Joanne Cunningham says more than $725,000 will support missions ranging from antibullying efforts in school districts in Cohoes and Voorheesville to the sensory gym Bring on the Spectrum in Albany. The Democrat says the programs are needed now more than ever.
“We can't take this for granted. We've got to make sure that we are advocating very aggressively with our federal lawmakers to make sure they understand the value of these programs. They are not, you know, they are not sort of theoretical programs. They impact people's health and care and lives on a daily basis,” Cunningham said.
Other programs supported by grant funding work to prevent evictions, treat substance abuse, and support women’s health initiatives.
Also CEO of The Partnership for Quality Home Healthcare, Cunningham says the funding is especially important with uncertainty at the federal level. Cunningham spoke at an MVP Arena ceremony Friday.
“To experience a week like we have just experienced where you had Medicaid providers, including providers in the state of New York, in Albany County, who were worried about the fact that hospitals, doctors, long term care facilities, home health providers were suddenly worried that they were going to have to lay staff off,” Cunningham said.
Deputy Legislature Chair Wanda Willingham presented a $20,000 check to the Albany-based Black Nurses’ Coalition, saying women like her continue to have far worse healthcare outcomes than their white counterparts.
“Black women have a 41-percent higher breast cancer death rate than white women; also Black women are 50 percent more likely to have triple-negative breast cancer, the most aggressive form of breast cancer,” Willingham said.
The organization will use the funding to train for screening mammogram patients.
Area school districts, including Menands, Guilderland, and the Albany Leadership Charter School for Girls, received funding for anti-drug education. Cunningham says it’s been a significant problem.
“During the 2023-24 school year, Guilderland schools had 54 discipline referrals related to tobacco, vaping and the use of marijuana, many of which resulted in suspensions. And I'm willing to bet that every single school district in Albany County had similar issues,” Cunningham said.
Other school districts getting grant funding are North Colonie, Voorheesville, Berne-Knox-Westerlo, and Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk, which will use the money for bullying prevention and anti-bullying education.
518ElevateED, an organization that helps students get workforce training, will collaborate with the DON'T WAIT Project, a non-profit focused on visual storytelling.
518ElevatED Executive Director Peter Gabak says $15,000 will put students behind the camera.
“They do anti-bullying script writing for students within our program, and then they actually produce a PSA, a public service announcement that's completely managed by the students. Of the students are, you know, the behind the scenes. They're the on camera at talent, and it all focuses on anti-bullying. So it's peers creating messaging for peers, which is the best possible message,” Gabak said.
Also awarded Friday were Albany County Improvement Grants, which aim to support public health and safety programs and develop community for seniors, people with disabilities, youth, and veterans. Recipients included Girls, Inc. of the Greater Capital Region, the GKNY basketball league, Jewish Family Services of Northeastern New York, and St. Peter's Hospital Crime Victim Services, among others.
Two more grants were funded through the Eviction Protections Intervention Collaborative. One went to the Alternative to Economic and Housing Displacement. Julia Long is the organization’s founder and CEO. She says the nearly $8,600 her group received is vital to confronting the county’s housing crisis.
“People seem to think that when tenants fall behind in their rent, it's ‘they’re deadbeat tenants.’ Most of the time, folks have an incident or a situation, you know, they're caring for unexpectedly, an aging loved one. And this at the same time, small landlords are the backbone of this economy…,” Long said.
Long attributes spiking rents to an exodus of New York City residents moving to the area.
“Affordable rent to me is $750 for a one bedroom, $850 for a two bedroom, $1,000 for a three bedroom. Am I dreaming? I don't think so, because although, you know, that seems low, the property taxes here are not as high as the rents would command,” Long said.
A full list of programs receiving awards is below:
15-Love
518ElevatED
Albany Damien Center
Albany Housing Coalition
Albany Leadership Charter School for Girls
Alternative to Economic Housing Displacement, Inc.
Berne-Knox-Westerlo Central School District
Black Nurses Coalition
Bring on the Spectrum
Cohoes Central School District
Community Caregivers
Delmar Rotary
Empowered Midwifery Care
Girls Inc. of the Greater Capital Region
GKNY Mentor Basketball League
Guilderland Central School District
International Youth Fellowship Albany
Jewish Family Services of Northeastern New York
Legal Aid Society of Northeastern NY
Lisha Kill Middle School (South Colonie Central School District)
McNulty Veteran Business Center
Menands Union Free School District
North Colonie Central School District
Noteworthy Resources
Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk Central School District
Saint Peter’s Hospital Crime Victim Services Supreem Sports
Upper Hudson Planned Parenthood
Voorheesville Central School District
Watervliet Civic Chest
Whitney M. Young, Jr. Health Center - Albany
