Correctional Library Services > Connections 2008 > Women

Women

Organizations for Formerly Incarcerated Women

WOMEN'S PRISON ASSOCIATION

175 Remsen Street, 9th Floor, Brooklyn 11201
Telephone: 718.637.6800
www.wpaonline.org
Offers a range of services and referrals to women who have been involved in the criminal justice system, with a special focus on the needs of HIV-positive women. Outreach staff provide pre-release planning and counseling at five city and state correctional facilities. The Sarah Powell Huntington House, a shelter at 347 East 10th Street, 212.677.0949, serves women who are homeless, involved with the criminal justice system, and trying to reunite with their children. An independent skills building progam, Neighborhood Based Services, is located in East New York. Hopper Home is the WPA's Alternative to Incarceration Program. Re-Entry Services assists women with pre-release planning, assistance accessing health care and benefits, employment readiness, mentoring and more. Call or write for more information. Orientations held every Wednesday at 11am. Accessible to people with disabilities.

CENTER FOR COMMUNITY ALTERNATIVES

39 West 19th Street, 10th Floor, Manhattan 10011
Telephone: 212.691.1911
25 Chapel Street, 7th Floor, Brooklyn 11201
Telephone: 718.858.9658
www.communityalternatives.org
Operates Crossroads, a substance abuse treatment program offered as an alternative to incarceration, and Women's Choices, an HIV/AIDS harm reduction program. Call Mon.-Fri. 9-5 for more information. Spanish, French and Haitian Creole also spoken. Accessible to people with disabilities.

WOMEN IN PRISON PROJECT

The Correctional Association of New York
135 East 15th Street, Manhattan 10003
Telephone: 212.254.5700
The Women in Prison Project is the arm of the Correctional Association of New York dedicated to addressing the effects of the state's criminal justice policies on women and their families. It oversees ReConnect, a leadership training program for women who have recently returned home from prison or jail. ReConnect participants develop leadership and problem-solving skills, identify issues that affect their lives and communities, and build their own support networks while involved in various community initiatives. Call or write the Correctional Association for more information.

Alternative-to-Incarceration (ATI) Programs

PROJECT GREEN HOPE: SERVICES FOR WOMEN, INC.

448 East 119th Street, Manhattan 10035
Telephone: 212.369.5100 x10
www.greenhope.org
An alternative-to-incarceration residence for women that offers personal counseling, individual and group therapy, vocational workshops, assistance in vocational placement, substance abuse support groups, parenting information, and advocacy in areas such as foster care. Ages served: 18 and over. Call Mon.-Fri. 9-5. Spanish also spoken.

STEPS TO END VIOLENCE PROGRAM

Edwin Gould Services for Children
1968 Second Avenue, Manhattan 10029
Telephone: 212.410.4200
www.egscf.org
For women who have been abused as children or adults and arrested on charges relating to this abuse, the STEPS Program helps provide alternatives to incarceration. For those women already incarcerated and ready for release, the program provides educational workshops on family violence (both in prison and post-release) at the agency's office. Also offers weekly support groups and a parenting group for women who are survivors of abuse and have young children. The program works with children of all ages, providing therapeutic play groups and individual counseling. Call Mon.-Fri. 8:30-5. Spanish also spoken.

Housing

PROVIDENCE HOUSE

Transitional Housing Program
703 Lexington Avenue, Brooklyn 11221
Telephone: 718.455.0197
www.providencehouse.org
A community-based residential program for women who are on New York State parole and cannot return to their places of residence after they are released from prison. Each of the two houses, one in Brooklyn and one in Queens, has a core community of volunteers who live permanently in the house and who participate in the communal life of the residents. Paid staff assist with referral services and housing. Length of stay: from 3 months to a year. Write to Providence House before you go up before the parole board or ask your parole officer for a referral. Spanish also spoken.

WOMEN IN NEED, INC. (WIN)

115 West 31st Street, 7th Floor, Manhattan 10001
Telephone: 212.695.4758
www.women-in-need.org
Provides shelter for homeless women with children in the Bronx, Manhattan and Brooklyn. Also provides day care and summer camp for their clients' children. Their goal is to help clients overcome the major obstacles - lack of affordable housing, domestic violence, family problems, eviction, mental illness, drug and alcohol abuse, low self-esteem - that threaten to destroy their lives and the lives of their children. Provides job-readiness, survival skills, GED and ESOL classes, as well as computer training. Must be referred by the City's Emergency Assistance Unit at 718.402.6474 or the Department of Homeless Services Emergency Information Line at 800.994.6494. Spanish also spoken.

HOUSING + SOLUTIONS

3 West 29th Street, Suite 805, Manhattan 10001
Telephone: 212.213.0221
Housing Plus Solutions is a community-based non-profit organization providing housing and referrals to other needed services to formerly incarcerated women with or without children. Must be at least six months sober and working part or full time or in a program leading to work. Rent is the responsibility of the participant. Call Mon.-Fri. 9-5. Accessible to people with disabilities.

For information about intake into the New York City shelter system see the chapter "Housing".

Employment

WOMEN AND WORK PROGRAM

Queens College, Mid Manhattan Extension Center
25 West 43rd Street, 10th Floor, Manhattan 10036
Telephone: 212.642.2070
www.qc.cuny.edu/womenandwork
Fifteen week program helping women enter or reenter the workplace with the technological and social skills they need to remain employed. Microsoft Office and QuickBooks instruction, plus math, workplace reading and writing, resumes, dressing for success, and interview skills are covered. Includes post-program support. Applicants must have a high school diploma or GED. Computer experience is not required. Call for next orientation date.

STEPPING STONES TO SUCCESS
EMPLOYMENT READINESS PROGRAM

Edwin Gould Services for Children
1968 Second Avenue, Manhattan 10029
Telephone: 212.410.4200
www.egscf.org
Provides a 10- to 12-week job-readiness training program for women. Serves victims of domestic violence who have children and who have been incarcerated, in and out of the system, newly released, or arrested. Intake is through Community Linkage referrals, telephone, or walk-in. Call Mon.–Fri. 8:30–5. Spanish also spoken.

ACCESS FOR WOMEN: A CENTER TO PROMOTE WOMEN IN
NON-TRADITIONAL TECHNICAL EDUCATION AND EMPLOYMENT

New York City College of Technology
300 Jay Street, H-407, Brooklyn 11201
Telephone: 718.552.1131
Provides women with courses and counseling to assist them in entering nontraditional technical fields/trades. Focus is on upgrading math skills, preparing for entry exams, and learning about career options in technical fields. Call first, Mon.-Fri. 10-4. Accessible to people with disabilities.

NON-TRADITIONAL EMPLOYMENT FOR WOMEN (N.E.W.)

Judith P. Vladeck Center for Women
243 West 20th Street, Manhattan 10011
Telephone: 212.627.6252
www.new-nyc.org
An employment and training program for women interested in nontraditional blue collar and construction jobs, training, and apprenticeships. Must be between the ages of 18 and 50, have a high school diploma or GED, be interested in a blue-collar career, able to attend day or evening programs, and be in good enough health to participate in vigorous physical activity. Make an appointment to attend an information session: sign up online or call Mon.-Fri. 9-5.

NEW YORK CITY DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND MENTAL HYGIENE WOMEN'S HEALTHLINE

Telephone: 800.698.0411 (wait for Women's Healthline option)
Call Mon.-Fri. 9-6 for information and referrals addressing women's health care concerns, including breast care, prenatal care, fertility counseling, pregnancy testing, abortion or family planning, and HIV testing. Referrals can be made to clinics that offer free or low-cost services. Working families may be eligible for free or very low cost prenatal care under the Prenatal Care Assistance Program. Information is available in English, Spanish, French, and Creole, with interpretation service for 140 languages.

BREAST AND CERVICAL CANCER DETECTION

Guttman Diagnostic Center
55 5th Avenue,12th Floor, Manhattan 10003
Telephone: 212.463.8733
Breast Examination Center of Harlem
163 West 125th Street, Manhattan 10027
Telephone: 212.531.8030
www.mskcc.org
Early breast and cervical cancer detection services available for all women. Breast palpation, instruction in breast self-examination, mammography, pap smears, referrals. Accessible to people with disabilities. Spanish also spoken. Incarcerated women seeking information on breast health can write to the American Cancer Society, Cancer Information Department, Eastern Division, P.O. Box 7, East Syracuse, NY 13057.

SAFE LANDING

809 Westchester Avenue, Bronx 10455
Telephone: 718.707.2600
Safe Landing provides transitional planning, counseling and intensive case management for women struggling with mental health challenges during re-entry. Available to women returning from Bayview Correctional Facility. For information contact the Osborne Association, 809 Westchester Avenue, Bronx 10455.

GOODWILL INDUSTRIES' PROJECT CARING COMMUNITY

4-21 27th Avenue, Astoria 11102
Telephone: 917.250.3986
Provides re-entry services to women with a history of mental illness coming home from Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. The program works with women from three months pre-release through six months post-release, connecting them to ongoing mental health care. Services include case management, advocacy, psychiatric assessment and group counseling. Write for more information. Contact person: Alexandria Lamari-Fisher.

Parenting & Family Planning

HOUR CHILDREN

Administrative Office: 36-11a 12th Street, Long Island City 11106
Telephone: 718.433.4724
Thrift Store: 12-06 36th Avenue at 12th Street, Long Island City
Telephone: 718.433.4724
www.hourchildren.org
Provides services to mothers inside and outside correctional facilities. Offers family reunification counseling, help with job searching, housing, a food pantry, and a day care and pre-school for toddlers of working mothers. Call (Mon.-Fri. 9-5), write the office address or drop by the thrift store for more information.

Parenting & Family Planning

INCARCERATED MOTHERS PROGRAM

Edwin Gould Services for Children
1968 Second Avenue, 2nd Floor, Manhattan 10029
Telephone: 212.410.4200
www.egscf.org
A program designed for incarcerated mothers whose children live in the five boroughs of New York and are not in foster care, or who are in foster care but are ready to be returned to the mother's custody. The program helps prevent placement of children in foster care and helps mothers regain custody of children. If foster care has agreed to give the child back, the program also helps facilitate this procedure. The Incarcerated Mothers Program also works with children and with incarcerated and post-release mothers by providing parenting skills and counseling. They will work with families directly in their homes. Call Mon.-Fri. 8:30-5:00. Spanish also spoken.

MATERNAL AND INFANT CARE (MIC) WOMEN'S HEALTH SERVICES

Medical Health Research Association of New York City
220 Church Street, 5th Floor, Manhattan 10013
Telephone: 646.619.6400
Provides free prenatal care, family care services, and post-partum care. Call 9-4:30 Mon.-Fri. for more information, and location of nearest local clinic. Spanish also spoken. Some clinics accessible to people with disabilities.

MARGARET SANGER CENTER FOR PLANNED PARENTHOOD OF
NEW YORK CITY, INC.

26 Bleecker Street, Manhattan 10012
Telephone: 212.965.7000
www.ppnyc.org
Offers gynecology services, screening for sexually transmitted diseases, contraceptive services including emergency contraception, and abortion. Provides free pregnancy testing. For other services, sliding-scale fees based on income are available. Call Mon.-Fri. 8-8; Sat. 8-4. Spanish also spoken. Accessible to people with disabilities.

Teenagers or low-income women who are pregnant or have children under five and who need to obtain referrals for contraceptives or a listing of services in their community for continuing a pregnancy, prenatal care, or counseling can call the Growing Up Healthy Hotline at 800.522.5006 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Spanish also spoken.

Alternatives to abortion are offered by Catholic Charities. Manhattan:212.371.1000, Brooklyn: 718-722-6070.

The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Food Program provides vouchers that can be used at neighborhood stores to buy WIC foods such as milk, cheese, juice, formula, cereal, and eggs. Eligibility criteria include being a woman who is pregnant, breast-feeding, or postpartum, having children under the age of 5, at nutritional or medical risk, and being income eligible. Verified Public Assistance, Medicaid, and/or Food Stamp participants are automatically WIC income eligible. For referral to a local WIC program, call the New York State Department of Health at 800.522.5006 any time. Spanish and many other languages also spoken.

Additional resources of interest to mothers can be found in the chapter Counseling and Family Services.

Violence, Safety & Self-Defense

SAFE HORIZON

2 Lafayette Street, 3rd Floor, Manhattan 10007
Telephone: 212.577.7777 or 800.621.4673
www.safehorizon.org
For women who are victims of domestic violence, help can be obtained by calling Safe Horizon 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Offers crisis counseling and information on or referral to a wide variety of resources, including the Crime Victims Compensation Board and domestic violence shelters. Can provide new locks. Spanish and other languages also spoken.

The Mayor's Office to Combat Domestic Violence also has a 24-hour hotline: 800.621.4673 and TTY 866.604.5350.

SEX CRIMES REPORT LINE

Telephone: 212.267.RAPE
Maintains a hotline staffed by female detectives for sex-crime victims. Takes police reports over the phone, conducts investigations, and provides information and referrals. Call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

RAPE CRISIS PROGRAM

St. Vincent's Hospital and Medical Center
41-51 East 11th Street, 9th Floor, Manhattan 10003
Telephone: 212.604.8068
Rape crisis intervention counseling, information and referrals, counseling for family members and friends, and court and police advocacy. Also offers support groups, counselor training, and community education. Literature is also available in Spanish and Chinese. For men, women and transgender people ages 12 and over.

CRIME VICTIMS TREATMENT CENTER

St. Luke's/Roosevelt Hospital Center
411 West 114th Street, #2C, Manhattan 10025
Telephone: 212.523.4728
Provides immediate hospital emergency room care and crisis intervention to survivors of sexual assaults and domestic violence, follow-up counseling for all survivors of crime and their significant others, and legal advocacy assistance in applying for crime victim compensation. For females and males of all ages.

GIRLS EDUCATIONAL AND MENTORING SERVICES (GEMS)

Telephone: 212.926.8089
www.gems-girls.org
Works with girls and women 12-21 years old who have experienced sexual exploitation and abuse. Provides counseling; therapeutic and recreational groups; referrals to legal, educational and other resources; and peer mentoring. Call Mon.-Fri. 9-5 for more information. Spanish also spoken. Accessible to people with disabilities.

Victims of domestic violence or a parent or relative of a child in foster care can call the South Brooklyn Legal Services Family Unit Hotline for advice on family law issues. Call 718.237.5563 Tue. and Thu. 12-1. Spanish also spoken. For other family issues, call 718.246.3265.

CENTER FOR ANTIVIOLENCE EDUCATION/
BROOKLYN WOMEN'S MARTIAL ARTS

421 Fifth Avenue (between 7th & 8th Streets), Brooklyn 11215
Telephone: 718.788.1775
www.cae-bklyn.org
Offers classes in karate, self-defense, and tai chi. All women and transgender people are welcome, regardless of age or physical ability. Free child care provided. Day, evening, and weekend classes. Also offers an afterschool program in self-defense and violence prevention for boys and girls ages 6-14. Programs for survivors of sexual abuse, domestic violence, or child abuse are free. Programs to teen girls and trans-youth are also free. Other programs require sliding scale fee based on income. Call Mon.-Fri. 10-6.

For counseling programs oriented to male abusers of women, see the chapter on Counseling and Family Services.

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