www.wpaonline.org Fall 2014 WPA Opens Transitional Shelter for Homeless Women

This August, WPA re-opened its historic brownstone, Hopper Home, as a 38- bed transitional shelter for single, homeless women with criminal justice histories. Hopper Home is a landmarked Greek revival townhouse where WPA has continually operated for 140 years. Hopper Home was originally operated as a halfway house and more recently was the site of WPA’s residential alternative to incarceration program. The Hopper Home program provides safe and supportive transitional housing; promotes immediate stabilization and long-term self-sufficiency; and helps women identify and move into permanent housing. The program’s approach reflects a thorough understanding of the life experiences of criminal justice-involved women. Accounting for the intersection of mental illness, substance abuse, histories of abuse and trauma, and economic marginality that underlie a woman’s criminal behavior and housing instability, Hopper Home provides services that are gender-responsive and based on research with this specific population. At Hopper Home, residents have the opportunity to define their goals and learn, practice, and integrate independent living skills in a structured, supportive, and safe environment. Hopper Home Restoration

WPA wishes to thank the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission for the generous grant which made possible the restoration of Hopper Home’s portico. WPA is also grateful for the generous planning efforts of Easton Architects and the exceptional craftsmanship provided by Progeny Restoration Corporation.

Women’s Prison Association | 110 Second Avenue, New York, NY 10003 Phone: 646.292.7742 | Fax: 646.292.7763 | Email: [email protected] WPA Graduates 11th Class of the Women’s Advocacy Project For more than a decade, WPA has run the Women’s Advocacy Project (WAP). WAP is a leadership training program for formerly incarcerated women. WAP was created by WPA in direct response to a desire among clients to share their experiences and contribute to efforts to strengthen their communities. WAP provides women the opportunity to harness their personal experiences to work toward reform of the systems they have come to know from the inside including the criminal justice, child welfare, and housing systems. While contributing a voice to local and national criminal justice 2014 WAP Graduates policy discussions that is too often missing, participants also gain self-confidence and new perspectives on their past experiences. Through their involvement, participants build valuable leadership, writing, research, communication, and analytical thinking skills that open up new opportunities and contribute to their long-term success. This August, the 11th WAP class completed coursework and produced an original public service announcement about employment rights. The group explored different leadership styles, public speaking and communication skills, and spent time identifying their own leadership approach. They learned about branches of government, policy analysis, and forms of advocacy. Throughout the course, participants explored areas of social change important to them and discussed the ways in which they could effect change as individuals and as a group. The Women’s Advocacy Project is funded by Eileen Fisher as part of their “Activating Leadership” grants program. Back to School Appeal Update

WPA’s Back to School Appeal funds the purchase of backpacks, school supplies, and services for over 500 children per year. These services improve educational outcomes for children and strengthen families. Thanks to your support, children whose mothers have criminal justice involvement can enter the classroom with a sense of possibility, equality, and the tools needed for academic success. This year’s appeal featured a special edition newsletter from the kids at WPA’s Huntington House and raised $7,720. Thank you to all who gave to this important campaign. Our last newsletter, the Back to School edition, highlighted a visit from Kira Kazantsev (then Miss New York) to Huntington House for a day of painting with the kids who live there. In September, Kira became Miss America and has been advocating for women with domestic violence histories. Kira is mindful that 75% of incarcerated women, or 3 in 4, have experienced severe physical violence by an intimate partner and remains a great friend to WPA. On October 21st, WPA’s Emerging Philanthropists will host a gallery event featuring the artwork that Kira and the children created this summer.

Kira Kazantsev, Miss America, completes her interpretation of Van Gogh’s “Wheat Field with Cypresses.” JusticeHome Celebrates First Class of Graduates

“My case: it closed doors. JusticeHome opened them back up again. The program doesn’t expect you to do a 360, it expects you to do a 180 - to change.” - Tamika, 2014 JusticeHome Graduate

JusticeHome is a unique, community-based program designed specifically for women who are facing a minimum of six months of incarceration as a result of felony charges. WPA staff assesses a woman’s specific risks and strengths, promotes healthy coping strategies to address histories of trauma, and employs evidence-based cognitive behavioral group interventions. The program features additional opportunities to benefit families and communities including intensive home-based interventions, ongoing assessments of child and family well-being, and the promotion of positive parenting skills. All of these efforts lead to increased family stability and cost much less than sending a woman to prison. The program builds upon WPA’s years of experience in providing intensive home-based preventive child welfare services under contract with the NYC Administration for Children’s Services. In August, JusticeHome celebrated its first class of graduates with a picnic in Prospect Park where they shared their challenges and successes. After six months in the JusticeHome program, a woman’s risk of committing a crime is reduced by 45%. Rather than serving time in prison, WPA’s JusticeHome graduates are home with their children and embarking upon new jobs, school, and continuing support services. To date, not one JusticeHome participant has reengaged with the criminal justice system. “I was going home with information in my pocket. It had me going home and saying to my family, ‘this is what we have to do, this is what works.’” - Sabrina, 2014 JusticeHome Graduate Ask a New Yorker, “who makes the best burgers and shakes in New York City?” and they will likely tell you, “Shake Shack.” On July 28th, a group of kids from WPA kicked off summer vacation with a trip to Shake Shack in Battery Park City. They were treated to a special kids’ menu which included cheeseburgers, french fries, homemade lemonade, and milkshakes. Afterward, volunteers from Goldman Sachs chaperoned the kids on a private tour of the National Museum of the American Indian. The tour started inside a traditional teepee and included a visit to the interactive storytelling and dance room. The kids had a ball imitating the ceremonial dances and learning about diet, clothing, weaponry, and artwork. Corporate Partnerships Thank you to our new friends at LexisNexis, the world’s largest electronic database for legal and public record-related information. This September, 22 volunteers from LexisNexis packed Welcome Home Kits, weeded our garden, made food deliveries, and helped us prepare for our Art Gallery event on October 21st. To learn more about corporate volunteerism at WPA, please visit: www.wpaonline.org/about/ corporate-partners.

Photo credit: Antoinette Isable-Jones for the Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies The Florence Roberts Memorial Fund Florence Roberts spent much of her career at Legal Services NYC serving low-income families, incarcerated women, and victims of domestic violence. She headed the family law units of two Legal Services NYC offices, first in Brooklyn and later in Queens, promoting the parental rights of mothers and domestic violence victims at a time when family services received little funding or resources. She started one of the City’s first uncontested divorce programs; it prioritized domestic violence victims as its clients. In retirement, Florence volunteered with the Incarcerated Mothers Law Project of Volunteers of Legal Service, often visiting women in prison to advise them on their parental rights. She also served on the advisory board of the New York Asian Women’s Center, which helps women and children escape domestic abuse. Florence received several awards throughout her career. In 1994, she was honored with the New York City Bar Association’s Legal Services Award, and in 2001 she received the “In the Trenches” Award from the Lawyers Committee Against Domestic Violence. The purpose of the Florence Roberts Memorial Fund is to alleviate the day to day hardships that burden women returning to their communities, and their families. In accordance with the wishes of the Roberts family, the funds will be distributed to women who demonstrate financial need for a particular purpose, including but not limited to emergency rental assistance, educational activities, and furniture and clothing needs. Whenever possible, assistance will be given in the form of payment for the goods or services needed rather than cash assistance. All donations to the fund will be used for these purposes. To contribute, please visit www.givlet.org/FlorenceRoberts or send a check payable to “Women’s Prison Association” to 110 Second Avenue, NY, NY 10003. Please include “Florence Roberts Memorial Fund” in the memo. Emerging Philanthropist Spotlight: Lily Warnke WPA’s Emerging Philanthropists (“EPs”) are a group of young professional New Yorkers who help WPA raise the awareness and funds necessary to ensure brighter futures for criminal justice-involved women, their families, and our community. Lily Warnke is an inaugural EP and Chair of the Partnerships and Awareness Committee. Lily has a long-standing interest in social justice, with a particular focus on criminal justice reform and prisoners’ rights. She currently works at the Council on Foreign Relations as a program assistant. She recently completed an internship with the Clinton Global Initiative. Lily previously served as a social media and policy aide for the Christine Quinn for New York campaign. Prior to the campaign, she worked as the Strategic Litigation paralegal at the Innocence Project. She has done reentry work with Providence House, a women’s transitional residence in Brooklyn Running for WPA and with the American Friends Service Committee in Newark, NJ in On November 8th, Lily is running the the Prisoners Resource Center. She was the co-director of a youth Rock’n’Roll Half Marathon in Savannah, empowerment program in Philadelphia, working with juveniles who Georgia. Lily is running to raise were being tried as adults for non-violent crimes, and she worked as awareness for WPA and has raised over a Public Diplomacy intern at the U.S. State Department in Sri Lanka, where she wrote speeches for the Public Affairs Office and organized $700 in sponsorships to date. Thank educational exchange programs. She has her BA in anthropology and you, Lily and best of luck! political science from Haverford College. Save the Date: Thursday, December 4 WPA’s Emerging Philanthropists to host winter fundraiser at Webster Hall More information to follow at www.wpaonline.org WPA Concludes #2ndChances Campaign Concluded on September 30th, the 2nd Chances Campaign brought attention to WPA’s work to support justice-involved women and their families. It featured a video series of personal second chance stories shared by women at WPA, staff, community members, and celebrities. It also featured a series of celebrity experiences with cast members from the Netflix original series, . On August 27th, WPA raised over $9,000 when it auctioned three celebrity experiences featuring cast members from Orange is the New Black. The experiences included a coffee date with Lea DeLaria, a shopping trip with the “Spanish Mamis” (, , Laura Gomez, and ), and a private lunch with Piper Kerman and . The campaign received media attention via several sources including the Huffington Post, Gothamist, and Remezcla and WPA enjoyed a significant increase in social media impressions during its run. The 2nd Chances video series will remain online and can be viewed at vimeo.com/wpanyc. Special Thanks: Adrienne Moore, , , Cathy Curtin, Chris Brown, Diane Guerrero, Holly Fink, Ian Paola, Jackie Cruz, Jessica Pimentel, Joe Plummer, Kira Kazantsev, Laura Gomez, Lea DeLaria, Leah McLaughlin, Piper Kerman, , SheSpeaks, Suz Somersall, Taylor Schilling, and

In Kind Donation Spotlight

Thank you to Womanly Journey Jewelry and founder Kristin Springfield for the donation of beautiful charm bracelets. Each bracelet contains three charms symbolic of Kristin’s message to our clients: butterfly (believe), wings (freedom), and heart (love). We look forward to sharing these bracelets and inspirational messages with the women and girls in our programs. Please visit www.wpaonline.org/content/how-to- support-wpa to learn how you or your business can support WPA.

Current In Kind Needs: 1. Toiletries (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, toothbrushes, toothpaste, lotions, shower caddies) 2. Book lights (so women can read at night in the Hopper Home dorms) 3. Toys *must be new* (for our year end toy drive)

Please contact us to make a donation at [email protected] or 646.292.7742. Support WPA This Holiday Season The holiday season may be the happiest time of year for most families – but for the nearly 200,000 women who will spend it behind bars, it can be the most heartbreaking. More than 75% of WPA clients are mothers, most of whom had custody of minor children at the time of their arrest. For these families, the holiday season is when family separation is felt most acutely. As the primary caregiver, a woman’s experience with incarceration differs substantially from that of incarcerated men. A study at Rikers Island showed that male inmates get twice the number of visitors compared with their female counterparts. The lack of visits and extended isolation from families can lead to a sense of hopelessness that can linger even after release. Even coming home can be very difficult: women face strained connections to family and many barriers to independent living—employment, housing, education—as a result of their conviction, often making reunification with children a long and painful process. Help make this festive season special by sponsoring a Halloween, Thanksgiving, or Holiday Party for our families. At Huntington House, WPA’s homeless shelter for formerly incarcerated women and their children, we provide services designed to promote long-term health, stability, and self-sufficiency. WPA staff works with families to achieve goals such as securing safe and stable housing, enrolling in school, seeking employment, finding a healthcare provider, and managing the full range of day-to-day household and family challenges. Kids get homework help and recreational activities through WPA’s youth services. Your sponsorship will help pay for a special holiday meal, decorations, and gifts for kids. Other holiday party sponsors include Eileen Fisher, The Body Shop, and The New York Junior League. Sponsorships start at $200. Become a Holiday Sponsor at www.givlet.org/holidaysponsor and enjoy special recognition on WPA’s website. To further discuss sponsorship opportunies, please contact Rebecca Pak, Manager of Foundation and Corporate Relations, at [email protected] or 646.292.7744. WPA in the News

Miss America, Kira Kazantsev, on her win, domestic violence, and her work with WPA: HuffPost Live

Hang out with Orange Is the New Black cast and help support real women in prison: Huffington Post

Win a shopping trip with the mamis of Orange Is the New Black to support WPA: Remezcla

WPA’s Emerging Philanthropists host a sold-out Orange Is the New Black Season 2 Premiere Party: Remezcla

Taylor Schilling on how WPA has made her work on Orange Is the New Black more meaningful: Huffington Post

Taylor Schilling on how Orange Is the New Black gives women in prison a voice: Gothamist

To view these mentions and more, please visit www.wpaonline.org/media/wpa-in-the-news.

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