Congratulations, Hudson! Scholarship Spotlight #1

Please meet one of our three 2021 recipients for the Ascienzo Family Foundation’s annual scholarship- Hudson Bucci! Hudson graduated from Red Hook High School the day after this interview, and is heading to Dutchess Community College in the fall. He was one of three 2021 recipients for the Ascienzo Family Foundation’s annual scholarship! Looking back on his senior year, Hudson says: “Senior year was pretty difficult because most of it was remote. I took about four classes [remotely] and two in-person. There were some easier parts to it - like it was way easier to keep track of assignments - but not being able to hang out with friends during lunch periods or having study halls to use the school’s resources was a disadvantage.”

In high school, Hudson was a fan of art, track, and cross-country -- but his perhaps most notable achievement was his recent Eagle Scout pledge. A Boy Scout since first grade, Hudson’s final Eagle Scout project consisted of building six benches at the three schools in the district. Donors provided financing and tools, and others volunteered their labor. “It was fantastic, the experiences that I got from going through the program,” says Hudson. “Really, it just stimulated a lot of growth for me as a person.”

Hudson’s plans to keep his major and career options, and is to start withtake general studies courses at Dutchess toand figure out from there what career is right for him from there. 

Congratulations, Hudson - and good luck on all future endeavors!

Kite's Nest: Partnership Spotlight #10!

Kite’s Nest is a center for liberatory education in Hudson, NY. Their mission to build the collective capacity of young people to bring about personal transformation, social connection, healing, and systemic change. Their programs engage experiential education, the arts, meaningful job training, and civic action as tools for building community power. Since the beginning of the Covid-19 crisis, Kite’s Nest staff members have stayed in daily contact with their teens and families,  care and support. They are also providing direct support to youth in crisis navigating the child welfare system, social services, and the court system during this time. The Ascienzo Family Foundation was able to grant Kite’s Nest $25,000! These funds will go directly towards supporting a new mental health project called the Starr Seed Healing Project. This project will serve 20 to 40 teens through group circle work rooted in indigenous restorative practices and integrate that practice with one-on-one virtual therapy sessions with licensed counseling practitioners. Group work will be enmeshed with Kite’s Nests’ current teen leadership program: the Social Justice Leadership Academy, which enrolls 15-30 teens.

Worker Justice Center of NY: Partnership Spotlight #9!

The Worker Justice Center of NY’s mission is to pursue justice for those denied human rights, with a focus on agricultural and other low-wage workers, through legal representation, community empowerment, and advocacy for institutional change. Originally founded in 1981 through Legal Services of New York, WJCNY was established in late 2011 through the merger of Farmworker Legal Services with the Hudson Valley-based Workers’ Rights Law Center. WJCNY is currently staffed with 20 full-time employees and 6 volunteer attorneys - and is able to reach 15,000 people per year, most of whom are migrant or immigrant families and individuals. The Ascienzo Family Foundation was able to grant the Worker Justice Center of NY $25,000! This grant will help WJCNY hire a full-time Worker Rights Advocate in the Hudson Valley. (Currently, only a temporary employee is employed.)  This full-time advocate will distribute “know-your-rights” material to 2,000 immigrant workers and advocates, conduct 25 virtual or in-person community legal education trainings or workshops, and facilitate access to legal support for 50 workers facing employment or immigration-related challenges, and so much more.

JARC: Ambassador Spotlight #7!

The Jane Addams Resource Corporation (JARC) was introduced to the AFF by Ambassador Isaac Reichman. JARC promotes strong communities, businesses, and households to ensure that people who work do not live in poverty. Going beyond basic skills training (math and reading skills), they also connect job seekers with good jobs in the manufacturing sector, and foster the life skills that create a path out of poverty. This year, the JARC requested financial assistance from the Ascienzo Foundation for advertising targeted to underserved communities, so that more people in need were aware of JARC’s services. collaborate with a coalition of free, alternative newspapers throughout the city whose circulation is in the West and South sides of Chicago. The Ascienzo Family Foundation was able to grant JARC $5,000 this year to help with this outreach! JARC is aiming to achieve 3,672,000 marketing impressions (one impression = one time content shows up on a screen) throughout the city of Chicago and its suburbs. These impressions would be seen by over 600,000 Chicago metro area residents, insuring awareness of their mission with an average of six impressions per person.

Sister2Sister: Partnership Spotlight #8

Sister-2-Sister (S2S) is a student-led mentorship program, based at Bard College, that provides guidance and opportunity to young women of color in Kingston High School, Bard High School Early Colleges, and other nearby communities. S2S began in 2018 as part of Bard CCE and as a Trustee Leader Scholar program, which is a program at Bard College that supports leadership development in the context of hands-on, student-initiated, community engagement projects. S2S is modeled on the successful Brothers@ program (which the AFF has provided grants to in multiple years), with a unique focus on art as a vehicle for expression. The fundamental mission of Sister2Sister is to foster self-worth and, through mentorship, encourage young women of color to explore educational and artistic excellence. S2S “provides space where young women of color feel they are a priority instead of a minority, and they are offered the necessary skills and information to succeed in the world while sharing love, peace, and wisdom from one sister to another.” The program currently works with 15-20 young women of color from Kingston High School. Now, Sister2Sister is planning to scale up their model and influence the way high schools and colleges provide support to young women of color. These plans include a bonding retreat, weekly meetings, mentorship retreats, and affirmation boxes for participants. This year, the Ascienzo Family Foundation was able to grant $25,000 to Sister2Sister to further support their endeavors!