Our Community-Based Approach
Our hyper-focused, community-based approach is rooted in collaboration with respected tenant leaders who help establish our trust with the residents of The Taft Houses and other local community groups that share similar missions from day one. By partnering with leading corporate, cultural, and educational institutions in the city and beyond, we’re crafting and curating successful learning strategies that will resonate and foster community with children aged 8-18.
We believe in early intervention; by creating intimate bonds with the children and families of Taft early on, we can have an even greater influence on their lives. Off the Block’s programs promote character development and mutual respect, providing young people the tools to confront and overcome adversity, ultimately changing the trajectory of their lives. By continuing to foster a sense of community, Off the Block programs will not only work to break the cycle of poverty in these communities but can provide a template for success that can be shared and reproduced in similar underserved communities across other NYCHA developments and beyond.
see it to be it.
1000+
Total Number
of Kids Impacted
23
Total Number
of Events Curated
What Sets Us Apart
Our core focus is experiential learning programs spanning the following event pillars
Nature & Outdoors
STEM
Health & Wellness
Arts & Culture
Financial Literacy & Leadership Development
Why Nature & Outdoors?
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The Nature Gap - People of color, families with children, and low-income communities are most likely to be deprived of the benefits that nature provides.
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Many underserved communities, are so insular, that most kids don’t have the opportunity to experience the majesty of the outdoors.
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Spending time in nature can build children’s confidence, while promoting curiosity, creativity and critical thinking; it is also linked with improved motor development lower obesity rates and myopia (nearsightedness) risk.
Why STEM?
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According to a study by the U.S. Department of Commerce, STEM occupations are growing at 6x the rate of other occupations, yet young people from underserved communities don’t have the same access to STEM Education.
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Creating informal STEM education opportunities within underserved areas and for underrepresented groups can reduce barriers, promote science literacy, and contribute to better representations in STEM careers.
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Off the Block curates educational, character- building and fun STEM-related events for the kids of the Taft Houses to instill a lifelong love of STEM and bridge the opportunity gap.
Why Health & Wellness
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Underserved populations are less likely to engage in sufficient moderate to vigorous physical activity, and are thus at increased risk of morbidity and mortality.
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Low-income and minority communities tend to have more convenience stores, which sell predominantly highly processed, energy- dense foods with little fresh produce. In addition, these same communities tend to have fewer supermarkets, which carry a greater variety of nutritious food, and often at a lower price.
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Exercise and healthy food access is critical to improve population health, including lower risk of heart disease, diabetes and childhood obesity, and to reduce social inequalities.
Why Arts & Culture?
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Exposure to the arts can help kids develop healthily in their relational and communication skills; Arts experiences positively impact children’s emotional, social, academic outcomes and enhanced compassion for others.
Why Financial Literacy?
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A persistent financial literacy gap exists in the United States. Young people that identify as Black/African American, Hispanic/Latino from low-income households remain more vulnerable to the consequences of low financial literacy than other Americans.
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Low financial literacy threatens the well-being of individuals and families, especially in underserved and low-income communities. Without a solid financial foundation, young people are more susceptible to predatory lending and costly errors in managing debts and expenses that can lead to lifelong financial inequity.
Founder
Richard Habersham
Richard Habersham built Off the Block from his commitment to giving children an opportunity to see the infinite potential in their lives. Off the Block was started with both a belief and a question. What if a community-based organization could increase the likelihood that children will grow into successful teenagers and adults by identifying and focusing on a successful set of character and community-building experiences and exercises? Our vision is to create a template for how to leverage the virtually unlimited world-class cultural, educational, scientific, and natural resources of our great city to create experiences that bring our community closer together.