Blog & News

A visit from Paul Krugman, our 2019 Gala honoree

Paul Krugman is not your typical economist. Ask him which books have influenced him the most, and he doesn’t name-drop John Maynard Keynes or Adam Smith. Instead he talks about James Baldwin and Isaac Asimov. “I was a middle-class kid from Long Island,” he said on a recent visit to some of our programs. “Books […]

The Right Fit: Tutoring at Star Learning Center

Susan with a young Christian Susan Galligan wasn’t interested in working with children. When she retired from her job as a lawyer, she wanted to volunteer in adult literacy. But an advisor at a volunteer clearinghouse encouraged her to check out the Star Learning Center anyway. As soon as she saw Star’s cheerful book-lined space […]

The Book Fair and Book Bash are Back!

Goddard Riverside’s longest-running and most popular fundraiser, our annual Book Fair, will take place this year on November 23 and 24 at the Bernie Wohl Center. The Book Fair is made possible by our longstanding partnership with the publishing industry, which generously donates brand-new bestsellers every year to be sold at half-price. The proceeds fund […]

Appreciating Single Stop – and Its Clients

As program Director Wayne E. Tyre stood in front of a crowd in the patio at Single Stop, he took the mic and confessed. When the idea of a client appreciation day was first presented to him, he wasn’t sold on it. That changed after the program staged its first such event in 2018. This […]

Book Giveaways Bring Smiles

What’s more fun than giving free books to children? Well, nothing we know of, really! Goddard Riverside partnered with the federal department of Housing and Urban Development, NYCHA, the New York Public Library and other agencies to give away thousands of books to public housing residents at two events in June. One giveaway was at […]

Celebrating Students and Their Dreams on Decision Day

Oumou Bah has a plan. First, she’ll get an undergraduate degree at New York University Ð “the perfect school” Ð in international studies and political science. Then, law school. She can tell you exactly why, in her quiet, rapid-fire way. “I grew up in Harlem and I observed how the prison system works in America,” […]

From School to Work

Angel Valerio wasn’t just looking for a job—he was looking for a role model. He found one through our newest program, Learning to Work. “I wanted to work for a company that’s black-owned,” said the 17-year-old Bronx resident. “I’d like to go into business myself so I wanted to learn the steps.” The program placed […]

Friends Across Generations

A couple of times a month Steven Schmidt spends lunchtime with his friends at our Senior Center on Columbus Avenue. “There’s a table of Spanish-speaking ladies and I often sit with them,” he says. He likes to practice his language skills while catching up on what’s happening in their lives. What’s unusual is that Schmidt […]

Susan Matloff-Nieves Honored as Human Services Leader

Susan Matloff-Nieves, Goddard Riverside’s deputy executive director for youth and aging services, was inducted into the Notable Women in Human Services Hall of Fame on March 5 in Albany. Matloff-Nieves is “a tireless networker and mentor who brings people together for the common good,” wrote the Hall of Fame on its website. “She has been […]

Pride and Prejudice: A New Take on a Classic Tale

Goddard Riverside’s Hudson Warehouse is debuting a brand-new adaptation of the Jane Austen classic Pride and Prejudice as part of Goddard Riverside’s Women History Artist Month (WHAM) festival. The novel has enchanted readers — and movie audiences — for generations with its tale of Elizabeth Bennet, her sisters, and the arrogant and alluring Mr. Darcy. […]