Make An Impact In Our Community & Volunteer At Ditmas I.S. 62

Photo via New York Cares

Maybe your New Year’s resolution is to volunteer or get more involved with the community, or perhaps you’d like to get to know your neighbors better – whatever the case, the folks at Ditmas I.S. 62 (700 Cortelyou Road) let us know about a couple upcoming events you may be interested in.

Ditmas I.S. 62 has just partnered with New York Cares, a group that helps hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers every year through various volunteer initiatives, to offer free English language classes and tutoring services for middle school children at its 700 Cortelyou Road site.

As part of the English language program, Ditmas and New York Cares will offer parents and community members alike the opportunity to practice conversational English with We Are New York – an Emmy Award-winning series run by the city’s Office of Immigrant Affairs that teaches individuals language skills by discussing real life topics, including health problems (such as asthma), domestic violence, hospitals, and schools.

The second New York Cares project at I.S. 62 will include tutoring for the children of parents who take the English language course.

They’re aiming to begin offering these services in February – but they need volunteers to help with the programs that will be held on Saturday mornings.

To volunteer, you’ll need to first sign up with New York Cares and then attend an orientation. You can sign up online here. If you cannot create an online account, call 212-402-1140.

Once you do that, there are two upcoming orientations you can attend. Both will be held at Ditmas I.S. 62 at 700 Cortelyou Road.

• On Thursday, January 8, there will be a volunteer orientation from 6:30pm-7:30pm. Then, from 7-8pm there will be a training on how to help English language learners practice their skills, as well as an optional tutor training on how to tutor middle schoolers.
• On Saturday, January 10, there will be a volunteer orientation from 10:30-11am and an optional English conversation and tutor training from 11am-12pm.

If you have any questions, please contact Kathy Edouard from New York Cares by emailing kathy.edouard@newyorkcares.org or calling 212-402-1140.

For more information, you can also visit Ditmas I.S. 62’s website.