Success Stories - New Community Corporation

New Community Corporation has steadfastly remained true to its mission of improving the quality of life for inner city residents since 1968. Take time to learn more about some of the people whose lives have been positively impacted by New Community:

New Community Career & Technical Institute Trained Cook Now Works at Extended Care

Stephanie Bere was studying business administration at Essex County College when she realized she didn’t want to work in that field. She has always loved cooking and decided to investigate it as a career option. New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) helped Bere pursue her passion through training in the Culinary Arts Specialist program. She had a friend who was in NCCTI’s Patient Care Technician program who recommended the accredited school. Bere called NCCTI for more information and enrolled. She was in class from March to September 2021. Bere excelled in the Culinary Arts Specialist program and upon completion, was offered a job at New Community Extended Care Facility. She started in a part-time position in October of 2021

Harmony House Relocation Case Manager Started as a Volunteer with New Community

Emily Coote has a passion for helping others which she has turned into a career. She first came to New Community as a volunteer while in college, assisting at the Family Resource Success Center. She continued volunteering even after graduation and became a temporary Case Manager at Harmony House, New Community’s transitional housing facility for homeless families, on July 11, 2022. She was made a full-time employee and currently serves as a Relocation Case Manager at Harmony House. Coote focuses on finding permanent housing for Harmony House residents in her current role. She goes out in the field to find apartments and researches as much information as possible about subsidized housing, low-income housing, affordable housing and market rent rates in

New Community Career & Technical Institute Culinary Arts Students to Focus on Businesses After Graduation

Shawnette Maxwell and Zariyah Derrick both have a passion for cooking that they are hoping to turn into full-time careers. Both have started businesses where they sell their food and both decided to enroll in the Culinary Arts Specialist program at New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) to enhance their skills and earn a certification to prove their culinary knowledge to future clients. Both women are serious about their culinary careers. They quit their jobs to attend NCCTI and pursue their passion. They both got their start cooking early in life, learning the basics of cooking as children. They found joy in it and knew they wanted to take their skills to the next level. Derrick’s sister and cousin

From New Community Student to Adult Learning Center Director

Cristhian Barcelos can relate to the students he serves as Director of the New Community Adult Learning Center. He was in their shoes in 2001 when he was a student taking English classes at New Community. From there, he became a volunteer, a computer teacher and ultimately director. In his current role, Barcelos oversees the Adult Learning Center, which offers educational programs to individuals who are 16 and older and out of the school system. Courses include English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), Adult Basic Education (ABE), Pre-High School Equivalency (HSE), HSE, Computers and Citizenship. Day, evening and Saturday classes are available for students. In addition to the classes, the Adult Learning Center invites outside agencies to provide services

Former New Community Client Now Full-Time Employee

Muharrar Beyah is well suited for her role as the receptionist for the Supportive Assistance to Individuals and Families (SAIF) program at New Community. She not only has transferable skills from experience in customer service, but she knows how the SAIF program works because she was previously a client. Beyah was participating in the SAIF program, which provides intensive case management to individuals and families who have received public assistance for 48 months or more. She was searching for employment, but nothing was working out, mainly because many of the positions required hours that she couldn’t work because she has to care for her school-aged son. Although at times she was frustrated, Beyah continued applying and interviewing because she wanted

New Community Career & Technical Institute Student Uses Building Trades Specialist Program to Launch Career After Incarceration

New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) helps students of all ages and circumstances reach their goals. Andre Moore is 47 years old and is currently residing in a halfway house. While others living in the facility were looking for jobs, Moore decided he wanted to enroll in a trade school to learn valuable skills that could help him launch a career after his release date. Moore is currently enrolled in NCCTI’s Building Trades Specialist program with aspirations to use the knowledge and skills he gains to become a business owner in the construction industry. He began the program in October and is on track to graduate in the spring. His release date from the halfway house is Oct. 27,

New Community Career & Technical Institute Helps Student Prepare for Medical Career

Christopher Clement has always had an interest in science and decided while in high school that he wanted to pursue a career in the medical field. He is currently enrolled in the Medical Assistant Clinical (MAC) program at New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) to kickstart his career. Clement considered joining the U.S. Air Force to become a medical professional but decided to attend NCCTI instead. His older brother previously completed the MAC program at NCCTI and is currently employed at University Hospital in Newark. He urged Clement to enroll at NCCTI because of his positive experience. Clement, who is 22 years old, is happy with his decision. “Everyone is here to help you,” he said of the NCCTI

New Community Helps Young Woman from Homelessness to a Medical Career

Ilene Villanueva has always wanted to work in the medical field. She said even as a child, people would seek her out for help translating or other tasks when she would go to doctor appointments or the emergency room. Her hopes of becoming a doctor seemed out of reach when she became a mother at a young age and was unable to finish high school. She worked for a catering service and at a pharmacy in New York before moving to New Jersey. She found herself in a situation where her landlord only wanted rent payments in cash and he wouldn’t provide a lease. He changed the locks and she ended up homeless with her children. Villanueva then found Harmony

From Interns to Licensed Professional Counselors: Two FSB Clinicians Share Their Journeys

Alexander Arici and Kimberly Lipari started their careers in mental health services as interns at Family Service Bureau of Newark (FSB), an affiliate of New Community Corporation. Both were earning master’s degrees at Montclair State University when they became interns at FSB and both recently became licensed professional counselors (LPCs) working at the agency. New Jersey requires counselors to be licensed. There are two levels of licensure: licensed associate counselor (LAC) and licensed professional counselor (LPC). Both Arici and Lipari obtained their LAC after completing the graduate program at Montclair State University and passing the National Counselor Examination. Those with an LAC must work under supervision for 4,500 hours, or approximately three years, before becoming eligible to apply for an

New Community Career & Technical Institute Graduate Excelling in Health Care Field

Christina Thornton has always wanted to pursue a career in the medical field. When she saw an acquaintance posting about her experience at New Community Career & Technical Institute (NCCTI) on Instagram, she decided to learn more. After contacting school staff and receiving additional information, she enrolled in the Patient Care Technician (PCT) program. Thornton was impressed with the employer connections NCCTI offered to its students and liked that it was a short-term program. “It was definitely something that I was able to do at the time,” she said. Thornton graduated from the PCT program in 2020 and started working at Cooperman Barnabas Medical Center (formerly Saint Barnabas Medical Center) in Livingston shortly after as a patient care technician. In