Press Release
February 11, 2009
Glen Cove IAC Offers Itself as a Model for County Plan
The Glen Cove InterAgency Council held its general membership meeting on Wednesday, February 11, 2009 at the Glen Cove Senior Center. The theme of this month’s meeting certainly reflected the mission of the IAC, “to enhance the delivery of human services through collaboration and communication, and to provide mutual support among community agencies through sharing and networking.”
Dr. Daniel Vogrin of the Melillo Center spoke on the success of the Senior Advisory Board in leading the effort to identify Glen Cove’s strengths and weaknesses regarding senior items. The Senior Advisory Committee is a group composed of volunteer members appointed by Mayor Suozzi. These individuals come from a variety of local organizations that deal directly with seniors, making this group an ideal venue for understanding and addressing senior citizen concerns. The group serves the Mayor’s Office in an advisory capacity. The past few years have yielded a number of tangible results. The City has installed a new crosswalk and traffic light in front of the Senior Center and a new crosswalk in front of the Regency, which is painted with bold lines and collapsible signs. The Senior Advisory Committee continues to work with the Glen Cove Housing Authority to provide enhancements for the Butler Street apartments.
Dr. Sharon Harris, Executive Director of SAFE Agency and Cathy Samuels, SAFE’s new PRIDE Project Coordinator have been working closely with Laurie Lynn, Chairperson of Guidance for Glen Cove School District and the Glen Cove Police Department in planning “Family University”, an event scheduled for Thursday, March 26 at Glen Cove High School. Family University will offer a series of workshops for parents and students on cyberbullying, depression, alcohol abuse, social host liability and stress. Members of the community will be participating in a variety of ways. Senior citizens have volunteered to work the registration tables, the Glen Cove Police Department and Judge Richard McCord will hold their own workshops and a representative from the Melillo Center will speak to participants of the evening.
The highlight of the meeting was a joint presentation by Dr. Daniel Vogrin and Dr. Sharon Harris on their current work with Nassau County as part of County Executive Tom Suozzi’s new initiative to move toward a “No Wrong Door” policy for local service organizations to address unmet needs. The county’s mission to create multiple interagency councils throughout several local areas will provide relief to people who are no longer served because agencies have been disbanded due to the current economic state. These two Glen Cove community leaders attended a meeting with the county and offered the structure and mission of the Glen Cove InterAgency Council as a model for other communities to follow. The Glen Cove IAC was established in 1971 to improve the delivery of human services through cooperation, communication and coordination of community agencies. Through the years the council has met regularly to identify and address the changing needs of the community. The IAC has proven to be a remarkable success and twenty of the original agencies continue active participation. The Glen Cove IAC has offered itself as a model for other communities in the past, including the City of Long Beach and the organization is proud to have the opportunity to assist Nassau County with this new plan.
The next IAC meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 11, 2009 at 9 a.m. at the Glen Cove Library.