Rebecca has an extensive background in education, leadership and
program administration, specifically with regard to adolescent
development and youth programming. For the past seven years she
utilized these skills as Director of Opening Doors and Building Bridges
youth development & after school program at the Martin Luther King
Educational Campus in New York City. Since 1999, she has successfully
provided vision, supervision and effective program management for a
start up grant from The After School Corporation (TASC), which has
grown to serve more than 3,000 high school students cumulatively. No
longer ‘just’ an after school program, Opening Doors and Building
Bridges provides programming to students and their families year-round.
A visitor to her program once said, “It’s as if you are the principal
of a small high school!” In 2004, the Program was awarded a highly
coveted 21st Century Community Learning Center grant totaling more than
$1.2million over five years. A long time champion of the program, New
York City Council Member Gale Brewer honored Rebecca in July 2006 with
a New York City Council Proclamation of Exemplary Public Service to
Youth in the Community. Additionally, in 2005, CitiGroup honored
Rebecca with a Promising Practice for her submission of a “Professional
Documents Binder”. Under Rebecca’s leadership, in 2003, New York City
recognized the outstanding nature of Opening Doors and Building Bridges
through a Neighborhood Development Achievement Award. Recognizing
Rebecca’s ability to relate effectively with business professionals and
youth, the New York Knicks asked Rebecca to serve as a consultant to
reorganize and revitalize their summer internship program in
partnership with Merrill Lynch. In 2003, Rebecca was selected as a
Robert Bowne Foundation Fellow and participated in a yearlong
fellowship to conduct research about after school programs. She
documented her findings in a paper called: Developing Social Capital in
Youth Programs. In 2000, Rebecca contributed a chapter titled:
“Teaching out of One’s Field” to Teacher Training, A Reference
Handbook, by Dave Pushkin.
Rebecca is a former high school teacher, and prior to teaching in the
pubic schools, Rebecca held the position of Senior Staff Trainer of the
Adolescent Education Program/Teens Helping Each Other, part of the SUNY
Research Foundation. In this role she guided program planning and
implementation, curricula development and staff training for adult and
adolescent peer educators. She contributed to the development of Core
Peer Educator Training curriculum: Building Ourselves to Give back:
Peer HIV/AIDS Education. Rebecca has been an HIV educator for nearly 15
years and in 1999 she earned her certification as a Community Health
Education Specialist (CHES). In 1997, she was invited to speak during
Black History Month at Kingsborough College, in Brooklyn, about
HIV/AIDS in the Black community.
An accomplished educator and trainer, Rebecca excels in her ability to
communicate information in a direct and effective manner. She has been
asked to provide training for several national conferences including:
Center for Summer Learning Conference (2006); Hamilton Fish Institute
(2005); 21st Century Community Learning Centers National Conference
(2004); American School Health Association Conference (2004); TASC/Citi
Group Promising Practices Conference (2002); the Metro TeenAIDS
Conference (1998) and Advocates for Youth Conference (1997).
An entrepreneur at heart, in 2002, Rebecca founded Scramble T’s, Inc.
“changing the world one t-shirt at a time.” Scramble Ts™ are designs
created by the acronym of common phrases, concepts for living, and
political statements. For more than 10 years, Rebecca has worked as a
consultant providing training in the areas of leadership, staff
development, and technical assistance.
The word that describes Rebecca is amazing!
Nominated by M.G.
Norma is inspiring! First, she just returned from weeks in Bali! I so
love someone who lives her dreams! She is a successful real estate
agent who knows her stuff and brings a high level of care to those she
serves! She takes her real estate career seriously and is always
looking for ways to add to her expertise and effectiveness. She earned
the SRS (Senior Residential Specialist) designation this year in an
effort to have more tools and skill in serving seniors! Thanks for the
inspiration.
