The Housing Project plans, organizes and directs the program providing in-depth counseling, detailed information and other assistance to minority groups and low-income families and individuals seeking to locate decent, safe and standard living quarters, rental or sales, and to assist low income families in preparing themselves for the responsibility of homeownership.

The objectives are to promote home ownership using workshops to outline the process working in conjunction with local housing authorities, the "American Dream" and Habitat for Humanity.

Establish a formal listing of vacancies in Bergen County with referral service to clients on existing housing opportunities such as rooms, apartments and houses utilizing rental agents for future vacancies.

Offer credit counseling including default and delinquency and mortgage assistance and home improvement programs thru existing agencies.

Opened Hearts Open Doors Program was established at the Urban League and has successfully found new living arrangements for displaced workers entering a field at entry level wages, college students and hard working people in shared housing.

The Housing Project seeks to assist clients with issues and concerns ranging from landlord/tenant to homeowners. The project is the oldest HUD certified continuous source of counseling in the County. The housing staff is knowledgeable in all facets of housing. The project offers pre and post purchase counseling for homeowners. Our mainstay has been the ability to intervene and negotiate on behalf of our clients. We have been consistently successful in mediating forbearance (payment) arrangement and amenable workout situations. We have been able to inculcate our availability of financial resources to augment our counseling capacity. Our involvement on the boards and advisory committees of lending institutions gives us increased ability to advocate on behalf of our clients as well as influence outcomes through total examination of the variables.

On a monthly basis, housing workshops are held either at our main office or in collaboration with other entities. The project strives to educate tenants on the need to uphold their tenant responsibilities as well as the rights available to them. The housing staff is visible in the housing court and makes visits to apartments. Our services are available 2 evenings per week in addition to the normal business day and on weekends by appointment.

The Housing Department is one of the most active program offerings of the Urban League. Our client profile runs the range from very low-income tenant to upper middle-income homeowner. The fact that the foreclosure process has been legislatively shortened, increases the volume of clients coming to the League for assistance. Conversely, first time homebuyers have also increased in number of applicants to the League. However, our ability to utilize other resources enables us to have numerous successful outcomes with this growing population. There has been a dramatic increase in senior citizens seeking our counseling to qualify for reverse mortgage loans. The League is 1 of only 2 providers (HUD) authorized in the county. Many of the applicants to be served by our program have credit problems ranging from slight to extremely severe.

The Job Bank program seeks to connect individuals of diverse background to employment opportunities that range from entry level to senior management. The Job Bank has established direct contact with well over 300 employers, which enables the project to conduct follow-up procedures with a greater degree of efficiency and accuracy. The project sponsors the county's largest Career Day annually and hosts monthly employment workshops at the Urban League headquarters. The agency is open two nights per week and weekend appointments are offered.

In addition to the preliminary screening and assessment of every client, resume assistance and work ethics are prescribed when case management review determines this as the appropriate action to be taken. The project boasts a 25% placement rate and 70% of all clients are referred. The project works through collaborative arrangements with all county agencies.

The typical client passing through our doors is a low to moderate-income wage earner (if employed). After careful data analysis and statistical review, it is very much apparent to this agency that many families in Bergen County fit the definition of the "working poor".

The objective of the Job Bank program is to considerably decrease the excessive rate of unemployment within the African American community as well as other minority communities and provide a referral and training source to all Bergen County residents. The primary activities are client recruitment, employment counseling, job placement, job development and referrals.

The purpose of this program is to assist employers and labor unions in the training, testing and retention of low/moderate income families with an emphasis on females and minorities in apprenticeship and non-traditional occupations.

The Urban League for Bergen County will demonstrate our ability to locate, recruit and pre-test those people who have interest in the program and by doing so, will promote a larger number of applicants for the union and trade organizations throughout Bergen County. This program represents an expansion of this organization's current profile and service area.

The Urban League will collaborate with churches, shelters and other establishments in the county that would be assisting women with dependent children to enter into the workforce.

Regularly scheduled monthly meetings will be held along with other activities to improve the lives of all participants and help boost self-image and confidence. Interviewing Participants learn to discuss their past work history, present themselves favorably and use body language to project confidence.

Applying for a Job:   Participants are taught to fill out a complete job application neatly and organize their work experience into a coherent resume.

Job Retention:   Participants will learn skills such as punctuality and reliability that will enable them to remain employed.

Money Management:   Participants will work one on one in groups to create budgets for themselves and develop strategies to improve their financial situation.

Parenting Skills:   Participants learn to understand and support their children's development states.

Health and Fitness:   Participants learn about health and nutrition and undertake activities such as regular walks to improve both.

The program site address is located at the Dwight Morrow High School at 274 Knickerbockers Road, Englewood, NJ.

The typical individual benefiting from the Safe Passage Program is a high school youth, ranging in age from 13 to 18 from a single parent family and or defined by federal income standards as low income. He or she is at risk for substance abuse, teen pregnancy, dropping out of school or becoming involved in the juvenile justice system and attends the public school with lower than average academic performance.

A daily intake log at the drop-in center is maintained for those served under the Safe Passage Program. Englewood, Teaneck and Hackensack are the three towns of residence for the majority of individuals.

Program evaluation questionnaires are used to evaluate seminars, workshops, group counseling and individual counseling and questionnaires measure the effectiveness of the sessions and client satisfaction. For individual clients, the counselor will maintain a report to track progress, referrals and if needed, additional counseling.

The program is open from Monday to Friday from 10 AM to 3:30 PM.

We continue to work with the Department of Youth and Family Services (DYFS) New Jersey Department of Human Services on the Adolescent Parenting Prevention Program that compliments the Safe Passage Program with workshops and seminars that relate to teens in the area of teen pregnancy, health care, education and career development. The program gives sound, unbiased information that will enhance decision making skills and support and increase in self protective behaviors. This also gives us the opportunity to make referrals to and call upon the resources from the many services in the Human Services Department.

Every Thursday evening from 6:30 to 8:30 PM classes are held at the training center of the Urban League for SAT preparation and tutoring in all academic subjects.

National Urban League Incentive to Excel and Succeed (NULITIES) meetings are held on a weekly basis also here at the training center and are students between the ages of 12 and 18. Participants must maintain good grades and exhibit enthusiasm and concern for others. Students are taught the attributes that will lead to a successful life in today's society. The main purpose is to promote and maintain high standards of well being, educational, character and leadership qualities. This is accomplished through the program goals, structure and required vocational seminars and community service projects such as participating in the Englewood Street Fair, Health Fair, feeding the needy and collecting and distributing toys for underprivileged children. The NULITES also work in conjunction with CPIP or the Community Parental Involvement Partnership, which is the Parent Support Group here at the Urban League.

Additional activities include participation in Red Ribbon Week, Women Fashioned for Today fashion show, driving permit registration and driving lessons, Time Warner Cable Vision studio training, drug awareness workshops, Today's Men, the Coalition to Prevent Adolescent Pregnancy, African American Scholarship Event and The Annual Urban League Awards Dinner.

Over the past two years, the Safe Passage Program has significantly increased student and faculty involvement at the high school. The counselors have better established the drop-in center as a place to find confidential assistance. Without this center, the youth would be at a disadvantage as this is the only program available to them at the school.