NewYork-Presbyterian Collaboration Provides Opportunity for Job Seekers
By Henry Street Settlement
In January 2022, lifelong Henry Streeter Lavender Texidor, 22, began a receptionist position at NewYork-Presbyterian in the Weill Cornell Internal Medicine Associates (WCIMA) department on the Upper East Side after spending nine months as a patient greeter in the hospital’s neurology division. She is one of 20 Employment Services participants who have started jobs at NYP through the Settlement’s relationship with the health care system, which has grown during the pandemic, from the Lower East Side Mobile Market collaboration to workforce recruitment.
For Lavender, the job represents a big step up professionally. She is one of many young adults who have used the resources of Henry Street’s Jobs Plus program to advance her career. Over the last three years, the program has helped her gain experience working in diverse environments while acquiring a set of skills that have allowed her to move up—one of this program’s key goals.
The collaboration between NYP and Henry Street began in 2018 with a community health worker program that empowers adults with chronic conditions to better manage their health and well-being. Then, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, NYP and Henry Street teamed up again in the summer of 2020 to create the LES Mobile Market, delivering food biweekly to 200 families in NYCHA housing. The Mobile Market serves a dual purpose – it provides resources for families in need and creates employment opportunities for young adults who make the deliveries. Most recently, in 2022, the two organizations have come together to activate a hiring initiative, of which Lavender is a beneficiary.
Living on the Lower East Side for most of her life, Lavender first encountered Henry Street Settlement by attending its afterschool program at P.S. 20. As a teenager, she worked briefly at a fast food restaurant, handling the register and drive-thru, and training her coworkers. But she soon realized that she wanted to grow her professional skills—and Henry Street came to mind.
Lavender’s connection with the Settlement is strong. Her grandmother was a receptionist for Henry Street’s Education Services building and put her in contact with the Jobs Plus team. It was a full-circle moment when, shortly after, Jobs Plus helped Lavender apply to a position as an afterschool specialist. She took on this role with joy and grew in the position until she transitioned into the role of a daycare site monitor through Henry Street.
“Jobs Plus has helped me with everything,” Lavender says.
From providing resume revisions and CPR training to financial guidance and support, Jobs Plus plays a pivotal role in the professional development of its members. Lavender says that without the program, she would not have been able to develop the leadership skills that allow her to effectively do her work.
At the onset of the pandemic, the daycare where Lavender worked began to run remotely. She missed daily contact with the children and decided that she wanted to make her next career transition. First, Lavender found a role with the Settlement’s Community Covid Response Team, where she delivered food and PPE to community members. After further thought she decided that she wanted her next role to be a clerical position, so Lavender revisited Jobs Plus to see whether openings existed in that field. Soon after, she was hired as a patient greeter at NY-Presbyterian.
For Lavender, the change in work environment was significant, but manageable. In her past roles, Lavender managed groups of children which, at times, could be overwhelming. She sought a slower paced work environment where her responsibilities were more focused. In her current role, she greets and checks in patients, manages phone calls, sets up patient-doctor appointments, and answers general inquiries about the medical practice.
Director of Ambulatory Care Services at NYP, Diego Arias, speaks highly of the partnership, “I could not be happier to be part of the Henry Street Settlement collaboration. We had many participants join our Ambulatory Care Network sites at a crucial time in healthcare and NYP hospital. Our participants were eager, motivated, and ready to assist our patient population. Lavender Texidor represents one of the many shining stars from the Henry Street Settlement that were provided opportunities to learn, explore career paths, and ultimately become part of the NYP family. I salute our Henry Street Settlement partners in making this a success.”
