Stuyvesant Park Residents Celebrate the Fall Session with East Village Community School
On October 26, members of Stuyvesant Park Residence Hall community trekked to the East Village Community School, a pre-K-5 grade school, to help the school celebrate Halloween at its annual Fall Ball. Dressed in their Halloween finest, Area Coordinator Chasity Wilson, Resident Advisors Katie Tzivanis and Izzy Kostrzewa, and residents JD Ussery, Maiia Lysytska, and Oscar Wormuth assist with activities like the haunted house, face painting, and serving treats to add to the festive atmosphere.
For the past eight years, Wilson has maintained a relationship between the co-ed, first year undergraduate residence hall and the community school, which is located just a few blocks from Stuyvesant Park Residence. Wilson first started volunteering with East Village in 2011 when she was the Residence Hall Director at Loeb Hall. “When I was at Loeb Hall, there was a returning resident assistant at Loeb Hall who had a relationship with the local school. When that RA left, I took over the relationship and brought it over to Stuy Park when I became the Area Coordinator,” said Wilson.
Stuy Park isn’t the only residence hall that provides fun activities for local children. Last year, Kerrey Hall residents invited children from Homes for the Homeless into their dormitory to trick or treat in a welcoming environment. Kerrey Hall residents are currently working on additional volunteer projects with the non-profit.
“All of our residents are first-year undergraduate students, and most are new to the New York City area, so we look for ways to make the city more welcoming and accessible for them,” said Wilson. “Since so many of the students are passionate about social justice issues and community, volunteering is a purposeful way for them to become part of their new community.”