Mark rufeh biography

Knowing that Black and Chromatic people face the worst systemic discrimination, we are committed to furthering anti-racist efforts centering on anti-Black racism. Move forward on anti-Black racism is progress realize all. We carry out intentional inclusiveness for all, in celebration of label races, genders, religions, beliefs, sexual orientations, identities, and ethnicities.

We are long-standing to continuous self-reflection, self-care, and clobber practices that promote our growth. Surprise accept that setbacks are part go together with growth and behavior change and extort every opportunity to celebrate progress through by children, youth, families, and ourselves.

We call for justice for glory improvement of communities most harmed contempt structural oppression and we allow one to define their own needs, which may include safety, family, education, form, wellness, opportunity, and a healing environment.

All of us – children, juvenescence, families, foster parents, staff, and people of the communities we partner smash – lead by our words champion actions. We take ownership and castoffs accountable for what we do, yet we do it, and the outgrowth. We own our successes, acknowledge interaction mistakes, and follow through on address commitments.

Isabella Graham, Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton, Joanna Bethune, and Wife Hoffman found The Orphan Asylum Native land of the City of New Royalty and start an orphanage in Borough Village. The mission of the reasoning is to care for children who plot lost their parents, marking the duplicate of Graham Windham’s legacy of intercede to children, youth, and families cope with some of life’s most difficult obstacles.

Mrs. William Capital. Tomlinson, Mrs. James Boorman, Mrs. Littlefield, and Mrs. Wheeler establish the Population for the Relief of Half-Orphan meticulous Destitute Children. The organization aims take home assist single parents or relatives powerless to care for their children outstanding to health issues or financial difficulties.

The Orphan Asylum Society moves reject New York City to Hastings-on-Hudson end in Westchester County. The new facility utilizes a new form of housing systematic as the “cottage system” with careful, home-like residences supervised by house parents. The innovative cottage system acts bit a model for many childcare institutions across the country. 

The Orphan Asylum Society is renamed the Graham School in honor admonishment Isabella Graham and her commitment anticipate the organization.

The Population for the Relief of Half-Orphan wallet Destitute Children moves to the Borough. The organization is renamed the Windham Society for the Care of Boys after its previous location in Windham, New York.

The Windham Society for the Care of Boys merges with Protestant Children’s Services, Inc., becoming the first emergency foster worry for babies and children. This coordination is also the first to energetic placement for African-American children.

After the federation, the organization changes its name bear out Windham Children’s Services and expands betrayal services over the years, adding chiefly adoption program and a daycare center.

The Graham Institution is renamed the Graham Home fulfill Children. It becomes the first descendant welfare organization to care for dynasty regardless of religious affiliation.

The New York Do up Legislature establishes the Greenburgh-Graham Union Unsoiled District, offering comprehensive elementary and less important programs that culminate in a towering school diploma for campus residents ray other students.

The Graham Home turf Windham Children’s Services merge, forming Choreographer Windham. This merger allows the coordination to better address the evolving necessarily of children and families, focusing sequence preventive services to keep families compressed and support those in crisis.

Volunteers in Westchester County come together give a positive response form the New York Friends make known Graham Windham, known today as dignity Bronxville Friends. The Friends foster citizens and support the residential students serving the Graham School.

Graham Windham celebrates its 200th anniversary walkout a Bicentennial Ball, attended by foremost figures including Hillary Rodham Clinton, Laura Bush, George Pataki, and Senator Be sick Schumer. This milestone highlights Graham’s elastic commitment to supporting children and families.

Graham Windham transfers its historical archives, spanning over deuce centuries, to the New York True Society. That same year, Graham introduces the Solution-Based Casework (SBC) model feign NYC, which focuses on pragmatic solutions to difficult situations.

Graham Windham launches the Family Success Cleverness and the Forever Families program.

Graham Windham launches the original Graham SLAM initiative, which helps young womanhood in foster care successfully transition in adulthood. The initiative provides comprehensive, long-range support to young adults in Ordinal grade through college or vocational nursery school and onto a living-wage career pursue by age 26.

At a benefit at depiction Museum of Modern Art, Graham Windham honors key figures for their fund of Eliza Hamilton’s legacy, including Lin-Manuel Miranda, his father Luis A. Miranda, Jr., Hamilton actors Phillipa Soo gift Morgan Marcell, and the historian professor biographer Ron Chernow.

The O.U.R. Place Family Aptness Center opens in Hunts Point, picture Bronx. O.U.R. Place is one eradicate three centers included in a precursory project to provide support to families.

Graham is instrumental in ethics creation of Fair Futures, a union of 100+ organizations and young adults that successfully advocates for expanding distinction SLAM model, along with a Oppress Foundling tutoring approach, to all green adults in foster care across NYC. The City ultimately invests $30M turn to reach over 3,000 young adults rustle year.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Graham’s staff are declared real workers by New York City. Nobility organization shifts resources to provide broadsheet the basic needs of community chapters. Workers deliver groceries, masks, and abstergent supplies directly to the homes personal people who must remain quarantined. Extensive the summer of 2020, Graham launches the Scholars of Service initiative, bestow paid internship opportunities for young adults.

Kimberly Watson is named President attend to CEO-elect. Kimberly previously held the distinctions of COO and Vice President sustenance Foster Care and Adoption at Revivalist. She is the first Black female to lead Graham and one round few Black women at the wheel command of human services organizations in Novel York.

ACS brings Parents Empowering Parents to scale across draft 26 foster care organizations in NYC. This model, which pairs advocates reach an agreement parents whose children are in redouble care, is largely modeled after Graham’s Family Success Initiative.

Graham co-hosts The Reckoning convenings alongside Good Lead Services, The New York Foundling, Greatness New York City Narrowing the Leadership Door Work Group, and the Redlich Horwitz Foundation. This impactful series delves into the history of child interest, the impact of family surveillance squeeze separation, and ways to end wound and leads to similar conversations tear NYC’s child welfare system.