Hello Andrew,

Recently folks have asked… “So does ENP change much when the school year starts?” 

You have NO IDEA! We are like a bunch of busy bees around here!

We got students to hire, train and place in schools… (100 to be exact!)

We got parent groups starting back up… (Olmos & Columbia)

We have more outreach or tabling events than we can handle…

We are working on adding new church partners…

Oh did I mention that we are doing our banquet on September 22nd! Love to have you join us.

But honestly, in all the work I am so grateful for the fantastic new staff we have, the deep community engagement we are doing, and the support of our friends, partner organizations, and this community.

By way of updates, we are also working on our first strategic plan which includes an update to our mission, vision, and values. More details coming in October! Enjoy these updates and the good work you are supporting…

Can’t wait to see you at our Fall in Love with Fresno Banquet!

Hiring for ENP Reads

Schools are back in session (fully in-person and open to volunteers!) and our School Support team is feeling the increased pace! So far we’ve hired and trained about 40 ENP Reads College student interns who will work in classrooms as Literacy Mentors, run Read Fresno after school reading intervention programs and lead Saturday Sports. Many of our college students are first generation and have shared their desire to pay it forward and be a mentor to kids who are growing up in similar situations. We’re grateful to have their heart and passions on the ENP team. (P.S. We still have about 60 slots still to fill! Eligible college students welcome to apply.)

ENP Reads College Student Training

Church Partners and Looking Ahead

We met with four new/returning church partners in the past month. So thankful! We’re starting to see our vision of college students and church members serving alongside each other come to fruition. We’re still looking for more churches – especially one for Olmos Elementary in SE Fresno. Email Justin@everyneighborhood.org to chat more.  As grateful as we are for a “normal” school year, we remain cognizant of the fact that many of the kids who we’re working with have not experienced “normal” in a long time. Our schools are ramping up the mental health support on campus, but the need is great. We’re one small drop in a bucket, but we know every hug, high-five, story read, or game played matters. As Martin Luther King Jr said “If I cannot do great things, I can do small things in a great way.” May we all live that way.

Kings Canyon Corridor – Transit Oriented Development

Neighborhood Development is currently working with the City of Fresno’s Planning Department to gather input through canvassing, setting up at the Q bus stations, and sharing at community events from community members who live, work or play near the Ventura/Kings Canyon Corridor, with an opportunity to speak into the development and city design process co-creating and dreaming up the future of that corridor.   All of this community engagement has been possible because of a fantastic team of interns, who are students from Fresno State and Fresno City College.

Intern team tabling and canvassing for KCC-TOD

August 22 Workshop discussing the corridor

Parent Groups

ENP is excited to be able to be back on school grounds to lead Parent Groups.Parent Groups are a space for parents and community members to gather and build relationships with the school principal, staff, and other parents. This semester we will be at two school sites. Christian Gonzalez, Community Engagement Specialist, will be leading the groups at Olmos Elementary in Southeast Fresno and at Columbia Elementary in Southwest Fresno.

Parent Groups at Columbia Elementary School

King Elementary Mural

Over the summer, ENP was made aware of a local muralist who was interested in blessing schools with a free mural of their choice. The only criteria was that it had to be of an iconic figure. Without hesitation, and while on vacation, the principal of Martin Luther King Elementary, Mrs. Summer Gaston-Gehris, responded to the opportunity. ENP is proud to share that because of Omar “Super” Huerta’s heart and desire to give back to the community, King elementary students returned to school with another reason to smile, a new mural on campus.

Fitness Classes

Neighborhood Health and Wellness is kicking off the Fall by launching our fitness program at two different FUSD sites! Olmos Elementary and Winchell Elementary will have two classes a week at each campus in the mornings. The fitness program consists of 60 minutes of dance fitness cardio for parents of students and community members. These classes provide a safe space to connect with others, and exercise in a fun way! We hope to see you there!

Women’s Alliance

This Fall marks two years since Neighborhood Health and Wellness launched a Women’s Group called “Women’s Alliance”. Women’s Alliance is an online class for women that addresses different health and wellness topics each month. We provide education on topics such as mental health, trauma, chronic diseases, women’s health, and nutrition. After a short summer break, we are happy to announce that we will relaunch this group on September 8th from 4:00pm-5:30pm. This will be a free ongoing class that will take place every Thursday. Please contact Suzzy Pinal for more information: susana@everyneighborhood.org

Farm to School

This Fall, Neighborhood Health and Wellness will be piloting a new Farm to School program at Kepler Charter School and King Elementary School that will prioritize food sustainability and cultural diversity with the emphasis on creating a sustainable and scalable garden plan that will include classroom-integrated curriculum.  This is made possible through a Farm To School Grant awarded by the US Department of Agriculture. The purpose of this grant is to provide agricultural education and healthy produce to students at low-income schools in Fresno Unified School District and Fresno County Office of Education. This is an exciting addition to Neighborhood Health and Wellness as we continue to expand our department.  We look forward to the Fall as we strive to build healthier communities in underserved neighborhoods in Fresno.

Boys and Girls Club

ENP was invited to present workshops at the Boys and Girls Club’s Central Valley Training Conference in July.  Christian Gonzalez and Gabrielle Piceno facilitated a workshop on Race and Diversity and Jennifer Saldivar presented a workshop on Trauma-Informed Care.  Our team was encouraged to be able to share some of ENP’s frameworks and tools with Boys and Girls staff as they invest in youth throughout the Central Valley this academic year!

City of Fresno

ENP was also invited to facilitate a Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion training with an emphasis on Race and Race Relations with the City of Fresno’s Long-Range Planning Team. We were thankful for the opportunity to share with their team and join the conversation about considerations for plans for the city.

Tickets and Sponsorship Opportunities are still available for ENP’s 6th Annual Fall in Love with Fresno Banquet!  Join us for a fun and uplifting evening held at Arte Américas at 6pm on Thursday, September 22. The evening will include:

• Dinner – Mexican food cooked by community members
• Dessert – Ampersand Ice Cream 
• Silent auction
• Inspiring stories and updates
• Special interactive activities

Grants

In the last few months, ENP is excited to share that we have received the following grants. We are thankful for these organizations’ partnership in our work.

• USDA Farm to School Turnkey Edible Gardens Grant
• Kaiser Permanente Northern California Community Benefit Programs
• CalViva Health
• Golden 1 Credit Union