September 22, 2022 – Urban CNY

Education Health

The use of $24 million in federal American Rescue Plan funds by SUNY to expand student mental health and wellness services and improve campus resources is supported by the SUNY Student Assembly

by Urban CNY News
September 22, 2022

The SUNY Student Assembly states the following: The utilization of $24 million in American Rescue Plan money to increase mental health and wellness programs and improve campus resources was announced by senior administrators during the Board of Trustees meeting in Albany, NY, on Wednesday, September 21st, 2022, according to a press statement from SUNY. In addition to other timely interventions, expanded on-campus programming includes after-hours care, the development of well-being spaces, the hiring of new staff, suicide prevention programming, emergency mini-grants to students seeking off-campus support, and expanded staff training for counselling centres. SUNY Student Assembly encourages students to use the platform to enhance their emotional wellness while supporting the actions done by SUNY to increase Mental Health resources and lessen associated stigma. Campuses throughout the SUNY system are concentrating on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives to support and enhance overall student mental health. Recognizing the link between the mind and body and overall wellness, they are also investing in bolstering peer-to-peer counselling opportunities and physical wellness initiatives, including group exercise. The SUNY-wide expansion follows numerous reports of mental health issues made worse by the coronavirus pandemic. The percentage of adults with symptoms of anxiety or a depressive disorder rose from 36.4% to 41.5% between August 2020 and February 2021, according to research from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with the largest increases occurring among young adults between the ages of 18 and 29. Through the recently formed SUNY Mental Health Repository, which is accessible here, SUNY System Administration and its campuses have also collaborated to raise awareness of mental health and well-being services throughout each college and university. During September, which is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, the repository and other SUNY-wide mental health services will be promoted on social media. The mental health resource finder has been accessed more than 1,100 times since the repository’s soft launch in July when SUNY students and other system stakeholders evaluated the resource. The repository is made to make information about mental health services more easily accessible and to reduce feelings of information overload, especially in times of emergency. To prevent students from feeling underrepresented in mental health care, the resources under the Universal Resources category are tailored to particular experiences and difficulties. Group-specific resources are available in this area, including those for student parents, LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, students with disabilities, students in the military, and student-athletes. For more information about SUNY’s mental health resources, please visit https://www.suny.edu/mental-health/.

Business News City Scuffle News

Mural Dedication at Schiller Park: More than 2,000 National Grid Employees Volunteer Across New York to Celebrate Company’s Day of Service

by Urban CNY News
September 22, 2022

Activities are part of Project C, company’s continuing commitment to customers and communities On September 16th, National Grid marked the first anniversary of its Project C initiative with a Day of Service as more than 2,000 employees make positive impacts by donating their time at more than 200 volunteer events in communities across the company’s 26,000-square-mile New York service area. With a focus on strengthening communities and making a difference today and every day, volunteer efforts are taking place at food banks, senior centers and veterans’ service facilities. In addition, National Grid employees are building homes through Habitat for Humanity and beds for children in underserved areas, cleaning up and landscaping neighborhoods and parks, providing various levels of assistance at nonprofits, and more. Project C is National Grid’s Community Commitment to: Build a better future by Connecting our communities to clean and sustainable energy. Care for our neighborhoods and their revitalization. Compassionately address the challenges our customers face, including environmental justice and social equity. Create the workforce that will help build New York’s clean energy delivery system. Collaborate with our customers, partners,stakeholders and so many others to deliver the clean, fair, resilient and affordable energy future. Since launching Project C in September 2021, National Grid has supported 9,000 businesses, launched 100 community partnerships, planted 1,700 trees, trained 1,400 workers to grow the clean energy workforce, and adopted 20 parks to revitalize gathering spaces. In addition, employees have volunteered more than 15,000 hours in their New York communities over the last year. “From training clean energy workers to aiding local businesses, the past year has been filled with love and support for our New York communities,” said Rudy Wynter, National Grid’s New York president. “Thanks to the hard work of our employee volunteers, partners, and other stakeholders, we have already accomplished so much. There is more work to be done, and we are more motivated than ever to continue to deliver for our customers and our communities.” Wynter shares more about Project C’s impact in this short video. Dedicated groups of National Grid employees spent months planning and partnering with nonprofit organizations, schools, community centers, parks and other groups to deliver the activities that are taking place today across the company’s New York footprint. Mural Dedication at Schiller Park In Central New York: Local community leaders unveiled a series of murals painted by local artist Ally Walker at Syracuse’s Schiller Park. The murals celebrate the generations of new Americans who have populated the surrounding neighborhoods for more than 100 years. Company volunteers also will conduct a cleanup and tree planting at Schiller Park. Additional Central New York Day of Service activities include working with A Tiny Home for Good on two different construction projects to address homelessness in Syracuse, packaging non-perishable food to help fight food insecurity across the region, and beautification projects at Morningside Cultural Trails and Upper Onondaga Park in Syracuse, Fall Island Park in Potsdam, Higley Flow State Park in Colton and the Utica Zoo. National Grid employees also will prepare and serve food at local shelters and for Meals on Wheels, deliver property improvement projects at local senior living facilities, and work on property maintenance projects at a veterans organization. “National Grid has been a mainstay in the Central New York community for decades,” said Lynn Hy, chief development officer for the Food Bank of Central New York. “Food Bank of Central New York is proud to partner with National Grid throughout the year on food security initiatives throughout central and northern New York. From monthly Project C volunteer activities to food and fund drives initiated by employees, National Grid is helping to make a difference in the lives of neighbors in our community in partnership with the Food Bank.”

Events

Annual Sportsmen’s Days – This Weekend

by Urban CNY News
September 22, 2022

Presented by the Onondaga County Federation of Sportsmen The Onondaga County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs will be holding the 2022 Sportsmen’s Days at Carpenter’s Brook Fish Hatchery, this weekend, Saturday & Sunday, September 24 & 25 from 11am-5pm. The Onondaga County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs annually holds this event in celebration of National Hunting and Fishing Day. National Hunting and Fishing Day focuses on raising public awareness about the importance of the wise use of natural resources, promoting wildlife conservation and outdoor sports. Sponsors of Sportsmen’s Days include, Onondaga County, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Bass Pro Shops, Wegmans and the NRA Foundation. Visitors will see a variety of demonstrations throughout both days including fishing, trapping, hunting, cooking, orienteering, birds of prey, fly tying, game calling, taxidermy, and more. Participants will be able to experience many hands-on activities including fly tying, fishing, canoeing, orienteering, trap shooting, muzzleloader shooting, archery, including crossbows, air rifles, axe throwing and more. Several member clubs will provide information about their organizations and their will be vendors offering their wares and sharing their knowledge. Event goers can meet local wildlife artist,Tom Lenweaver and representatives from New York State DEC, New York Sturgeon for Tomorrow, US Coast Guard Auxiliary, and more. Vendors include Iron Skillet Seasonings, Runnings, Gooseman Calls, Marsh Mills Ranch and more. Admission to the event, which includes all activities, is $5 per vehicle. Veterans, Active Military and their families will be admitted free. Carpenter’s Brook Fish Hatchery is located at 1672 Route 321 in Elbridge. For more information, visit www.OnondagaCountyParks.com or call (315) 689-9367

Brighton (south) Neighborhoods Syracuse - South

Apartment Fire at Brighton Towers

by Urban CNY News
September 22, 2022

Syracuse, N.Y. – On September 20, 2022 at 5:32 a.m., Syracuse firefighters were alerted by the 911 Center to an automatic fire alarm from a monitoring company at 833 E. Brighton Avenue, Brighton Towers, Tower II. While on the way, the alarm was upgraded from a fire alarm to a possible structure fire due to 911 calls reporting a 5th floor apartment on fire. A possible structure fire response adds significantly more companies to the response. Crews from Station 8 (S. Salina St.) arrived to the 18-story apartment building in just over 4 minutes. As firefighters made their way to the indicated 5th floor apartment, they were met with heavy smoke in the hallway. Firefighters stretched hose from the stairwell connections to the apartment. They entered the fire apartment to search for victims and to extinguish the fire. After the fire was extinguished, firefighters worked to ventilate the toxic smoke and gases from the building by systematic pressurization of stairwells and opening certain outlets. Smoke spreads through apartment buildings to different floors and after fire suppression it becomes SFD’s priority to clear it for other residents’ safety. Some residents in the vicinity of the fire were evacuated but most were told to shelter-in-place with their apartment door closed, as it is safer. The fire was successfully prevented from spreading from the fire apartment. One resident was transported to the hospital for smoke inhalation symptoms. One resident was displaced. The fire is under investigation by Syracuse Fire Investigators. We thank our partners at the 911 Center, Syracuse Police, AMR, and the American Red Cross. Fires in apartment buildings are particularly hazardous due to the number of residents concentrated in the structure. In general, do not prop-open apartment doors or stairwell doors. These act as lifesaving barriers to prevent the spread of deadly smoke and toxic gases, in addition to fire.

News

Katko Bill to Help New Americans Find Skilled Employment Heads to President’s Desk

by Urban CNY News
September 22, 2022

Inspired by InterFaith Works, Katko Legislation Will Eliminate Barriers Preventing Immigrants & Refugees in Central New York From Fully Utilizing Skills Washington – U.S. Rep. John Katko (NY-24) today announced the passage of the Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act, a bill that will help legal immigrants and refugees with professional certifications from other countries fully utilize their skillsets in the United States. Rep. Katko was inspired to introduce this legislation in 2020 following conversations with InterFaith Works, a refugee resettlement agency located in Syracuse. The bill received prior approval from the U.S. Senate and it now heads to the President’s desk to be signed into law. Watch Rep. Katko’s remarks on the House Floor in support of this legislation here. According to the Migration Policy Institute, an estimated 2 million immigrants with college degrees in the U.S. are relegated to low-wage jobs or left unemployed, even when they have professional experience in understaffed fields like the healthcare sector. This phenomenon, commonly referred to as ‘brain waste’, comes at a significant cost to our economy and to immigrant families in Central New York. On an annual basis, ‘brain waste’ is estimated to result in more than $10 billion in unrealized tax receipts at the federal, state, and local levels and over $39 billion in unrealized wages for college-educated immigrants across the nation. Many factors contribute to ‘brain waste,’ including language barriers, limits on the recognition of international degrees and credentials, the accessibility of relicensing processes, and the availability of professional networks and assistance in finding suitable employment. The Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act addresses these challenges by requiring the Department of Labor to conduct an interagency study on factors that impact employment opportunities in the U.S. for work-eligible immigrants and refugees with professional credentials from other countries. The Department of Labor is also required to issue policy recommendations to Congress to help these individuals unlock their full potential and find high quality jobs in critical sectors of our economy. “Three years ago, I heard from Interfaith Works of Central New York about legal immigrants in our community who have valuable professional backgrounds but consistently experience underemployment or unemployment due to arbitrary barriers,” said Rep. Katko. “This trend puts the American Dream out of reach for countless families and has a detrimental impact on our economy, costing billions of dollars in unrealized wages each year. That’s why I was proud to introduce the Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act, and I am excited to see it pass the House and head to the President’s desk. This bill will enable new Americans to fully utilize their skillsets and is especially important in the midst of a nationwide workforce crisis.” “At least 2 million New Americans with college degrees from their home countries are unable to work in their field or are unemployed due to barriers in licensing, acceptance of their credentials, or prejudice. These refugees and immigrants often enter our country with the same hopes and aspirations for starting their lives over that many of our ancestors had, and America is better served when we utilize the strengths that each of us has to contribute,” said Beth A. Broadway, President & CEO of InterFaith Works of CNY, a refugee resettlement agency located in Syracuse. “InterFaith Works applauds Congressman Katko’s longstanding efforts to study this issue through the Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act which will put forward solutions that will reduce the barriers to full employment, and we are excited to see it pass the House. Communities will be stronger due to this legislation and the ability to utilize all available talent without needless barriers.” “Ensuring that immigrants and refugees who hold credentials from other countries have access to meaningful opportunities to meet their career and educational goals in the U.S. is fundamental to creating an inclusive, equitable economy—and a vibrant, resilient workforce,” said Esther Benjamin, CEO and Executive Director of World Education Services (WES). “With more than 45 years of experience providing credential evaluations in the U.S. we know that too often credentials earned in another country are not fully recognized. WES is proud to support the Bridging the Gap for New Americans Act.”

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The use of $24 million in federal American Rescue Plan funds by SUNY to expand student mental health and wellness services and improve campus resources is supported by the SUNY Student Assembly

Mural Dedication at Schiller Park: More than 2,000 National Grid Employees Volunteer Across New York to Celebrate Company’s Day of Service

Stabbing Reported on Park Street

Annual Sportsmen’s Days – This Weekend

Child Passenger Safety Seat Event September 24 at Target in Liverpool

Rep. Katko to Hold Telephone Town Hall with Federal Trade Commission To Help CNY Seniors Avoid Scams & Fraud

Apartment Fire at Brighton Towers

Katko Bill to Help New Americans Find Skilled Employment Heads to President’s Desk

Black Voices