Geriatrics Career Development
The Next Generation of Healthcare Professionals
Since 2006, Geriatrics Career Development (GCD) of The New Jewish Home has supported New York City youth from under-resourced schools in pursuit of careers in health care. GCD is training the next generation of high-quality, culturally competent health care professionals while generating excitement and enthusiasm for career opportunities in health care serving older adults.
Youth participants are fully immersed into the long-term care setting and provide more than 8,000 hours of companionship, activities and clinical care to older adults each year. The comprehensive curriculum trains young people to appreciate and gain a deep respect for older adults.
OUR PROGRAMS
HEALTH CARE EXPLORERS (HCE) PROGRAM
(10th-12th grade, 14-19 years old)
HCE serves 225 students annually in its three-year high school program in Bronx housing and the Manhattan division. HCE provides college readiness, health career exploration activities, internships, professional/older adult mentors, and clinical training. Youth can graduate with as many as five allied healthcare certifications (e.g., Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA), Patient Care Technician), allowing them to immediately seek employment and have supplementary income while attending college.
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
- 708 graduates since 2006
- 99% high school graduation rate
- Over 150 college graduates
- 5 medical school enrollees
- 2 PhD enrollees
- Over 270 internships awarded
- Graduating classes averages $1,000,000 in scholarships/aid annually
WHAT HCE OFFERS TO HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS
- Scholarships/Stipend for regularly attending participants
- Paid internship during senior year
- Free certification (Certified Nursing Assistant/Patient Care, Technician), SAT Prep, College Counseling/Trips, and Supper/Snack at each location
- Summer Program
- Academic Tutoring
- Professional development
- Mentors
- Skills training/Clinical Experience
Interested in joining the HCE Program?
Applications are now being accepted:
Apply online here >>
Roll-in applications are accepted based upon availability.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT OUR HEALTH CARE EXPLORERS PROGRAM:
Please reach out to Nicole Cash, Assistant Director, HCE Program at ncash@jewishhome.org.
HCE 19-20 SURVEY RESULTS
Family (PDF)
Student (PDF)
HEALTH CARE EXPLORERS NEWSLETTER
February 2019 (PDF)
January 2019 (PDF)
December 2018 (PDF)
November 2018 (PDF)
YOUNG ADULT (YA) PROGRAM
(18-24 years old)
GCD’s Young Adult Home Health Aide (YAHHA) Program, was launched in 2014 to address the needs of young people who are out-of-school, unemployed, and faced with multiple barriers. This free three-month program engages, trains, and supports disconnected young adults ages 18-24 to begin meaningful career paths in geriatric healthcare.
Successful participants receive training to become certified Home Health Aides (HHAs). GCD’s partner, the Stanley M. Isaacs Neighborhood Community Center, supports participants with case management and referral services. GCD’s Young Adult program provides on-boarding services, professional development training, one-on-one coaching, and paid internships, as well as no-cost HHA training and certification followed by an opportunity for employment through The New Jewish Home’s home care agency, HAPI.
PROGRAM HIGHLIGHTS
- 195 young adults have graduated from the GCD Young Adult program
- 76% have been hired by The New Jewish Home
- 54% are either enrolled in and/or have completed further education or training programs post-GCD
YA PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS BENEFIT FROM
- Hands-on clinical skills training
- Contextualized professional development
- Paid internship in a skilled nursing facility
- Daily MetroCards
- Allied healthcare training (CNA/HHA)
- One-on-one coaching
- Motivational professional speakers
- Long-term employment opportunity
- Transitional support for alumni
Feel free to post and share!
Are you interested in a career in healthcare?
Are you an NYC resident between the ages of 18-24?
Are you out of school & unemployed?
If you answered “yes” to these questions, contact Casey Linder, Program Manager, Young Adult Program
clinder@jewishhome.org
or
or apply here.
ALUMNI (WORKFORCE PROGRAM)
Both the Health Care Explorers and Young Adult Programs feed into GCD’s Alumni Program, which offers support to GCD Alumni in meeting their academic and career goals. Services include ongoing check-ins and tracking, career services, direct connections to professional opportunities at The New Jewish Home, and referrals to outside resources such as free trainings, and professional development programming. Individual sessions are also provided on request to resolve personal issues, to establish and support educational goals, and to support Alumni in marketing themselves and obtaining employment.
All GCD Alumni benefit from the following free services
- Resume and cover letter guidance
- Application assistance (work & college)
- Interview preparation
- References and recommendations
- Support with FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid)
- Direct access to employment opportunities at The New Jewish Home
- Referrals to employment & educational opportunities
- One-on-one life/school/career-planning sessions
- Volunteer/internship/shadowing opportunities at The New Jewish Home
- Public speaking opportunities
- Network-building and mentoring
- Alumni events and workshops
STUDENT: High School GCD (2016)
Jimmy Perpina
“Stay committed; this program will help you in the long run. My family is very proud.”
FUNDER: Pinkerton Foundation
Laurie Dien
“GCD is such a unique grantee of ours. It’s the most supportive and all-encompassing program. The outcomes get better every year.”
PARTNER: Stanley M. Isaacs Center
Gregory Morris
“The support is consistent and thoughtful so they get the coaching they need to be successful… I hope the GCD program, going forward, can influence other cities.”
RESIDENT: The New Jewish Home
Dominga M.
“The kids from GCD help us in many ways. They call me their mentor. I love them very much.”
GCD BLOG
A High School Internship Opens Doors to a Health Care Career - Patients and residents at The New Jewish Home’s Manhattan facility know Edianna Reyes Ovalle as a caring and talented Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN). What they don’t know is that this hard-working and dynamic health care hero had to overcome many obstacles to get where she is. And the support she got from The New Jewish Home’s Geriatrics Career Development (GCD) program made it possible. GCD, The New Jewish Home’s workforce development program, helps promising under-served young people of color overcome obstacles… …Read More
More Than a Job — for Staff, GCD is a Family - Three GCD alumni, who now work as program staff, have discovered a passion for working with teens while developing deep bonds with the students and with each other. …Read More
Conquering Enormous Obstacles, a Young Mother Becomes a Certified Nursing Assistant - Tiana attended her online classes from a homeless shelter, with her toddler on her lap. From personal challenges to a global pandemic, nothing can stop her from pursuing her goal of becoming a health care professional. And thanks to The New Jewish Home’s Young Adult Program, she just reached her first milestone. …Read More
FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT THE GCD PROGRAM:
Contact John Cruz, Senior Director, Workforce Initiatives at (212) 870-4759 or jcruz@jewishhome.org.
(212) 870-4759
120 West 106th St,
New York, New York
(map view)
FUNDERS
The New Jewish Home and GCD are grateful for the funding provided by:
Foundations | Government |
The Achelis and Bodman Foundation Altman Foundation Phyllis Backer Foundation, Inc. David Berg Foundation The J.E. & Z.B. Butler Foundation Carl Marks Foundation The John P. & Constance A. Curran Charitable Foundation George Link Jr. Foundation, Inc. Hagedorn Fund Hyde and Watson Foundation Pinkerton Foundation Price Family Foundation Rudin Foundation Shippy Foundation UJA-Federation Teen Council |
Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. Manhattan Borough President Gale Brewer NYC Council Member Mark Levine NYC Speaker of the New York City Council Melissa Mark Viverito NYC HRA Work Progress Program NYS DOH Child Nutrition Reimbursement NYS Education Department 21st Century Community Learning Centers |