The New York Junior Liberty League—Powered by DYCD—all girls basketball league will kick off its second season in July. The league will consist of 400 players, in two divisions. The Junior Varsity will be for 8th-10th graders, ages 13-15, and the Varsity will be for 11th-12th graders, ages 16-18. This season, players will engage in skills and drills clinics, women in sports leadership workshops facilitated by NY Liberty coaches and players, and complete community service projects across the five boroughs. The goal of the league is to develop players who are ready for college basketball, thereby using sports as a pipeline to college. The league develops coaches who can train young women on the technical aspects of the game while incorporating social-emotional support. On May 11, DYCD and the New York Liberty held a launch event to announce the Junior Liberty League Powered by DYCD and celebrate the WNBA’s 20th anniversary. Check out DYCD’s Facebook page to view photos of the event.

On April 27, hip-hop legend Darryl “DMC” McDaniels and dozens of NYC middle school students teamed up with DYCD for an exhibition of the “DYCD Heroes Project.” In partnership with Darryl Makes Comics and The Comic Book Project, the project is a literacy-focused comic creation initiative that challenges middle school students in all five boroughs to develop stories about heroes—real or imagined—in their own communities. Images highlighting the event can be found on the DYCD Facebook page.

May 20, 2016, 5:00pm – 8:00pm
The Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 5th Avenue, New York, NY 10028
Free for teens
Grab your friends and take over The Met for the night! Drop in for teen-only activities across the Museum including art making, performances, gallery activities for teens by teens, music, dancing, and more. Co-organized with over 40 community partners! Please use the entrance at Fifth Avenue and 81st Street or 82nd Street; doors will open at 5 pm. Teens Take The Met! is free and open to all teens 13+ with a middle or high school ID. No RSVP - just show up! For more information, visit metmuseum.org.

May 22, 2016
MCU Park
1904 Surf Avenue (at West 17th Street), Brooklyn, NY 11224
New York City’s police officers and firefighters square off on the gridiron at Coney Island’s MCU Park. The agencies’ on-field rivalry dates back to 1973, and this game marks the first time in eight years they’ve played one another in the City proper. Every ticketholder will also get discounts to Coney Island rides and a free seat at a Brooklyn Cyclones game this season. Admission is $20.00; please visit the event page for more information.

May 24, 2016 – August 14, 2016
Delacorte Theater
Mid-park at 80th Street, Manhattan, NY 10024
Free for all ages
Shakespeare in the Park is a consummate New York City institution, one that has drawn more than 5 million people since it was first staged in the park’s Delacorte Theater in 1962. This year the production will include an all-female interpretation of The Taming of the Shrew, starring Cush Jumbo and Tony winner Janet McTeer, from May 24 to June 26. The park will also host performances of the bard’s Troilus and Cressida, July 19 – August 14. Tony winner Daniel Sullivan, who helmed productions for the last two years (of Cymbeline and King Lear), returns to direct. For more information, visit publictheater.org.

May 25, 2016 – May 31, 2016
Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum
One Intrepid Square, Twelfth Avenue and 46th Street,Manhattan, NY 10036
Thousands of men and women from the US Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard touch down on dry land during Fleet Week, a New York City tradition since 1984. The public can tour ships docked along Manhattan’s Pier 92 and the Homeport Pier in Stapleton, Staten Island; view military demonstrations; see firsthand the current capabilities of the maritime services; and enjoy musical performances from the sailors and marines themselves—with many events held at the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum. For more details, check fleetweeknewyork.com.

May 27, 2016 – May 30, 2016
BAM - Brooklyn Academy of Music
30 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11217
BAM’s 39th annual celebration of African and African-American dance, music, art and film brings together dance companies from around the world. This season will be helmed by new artistic director Abdel R. Salaam and features the “spirit of Senegal past and present.” Dance troupes performing include Les Ballets de la Renaissance Africaine “Waato Siita”, from Senegal; Compagnie Tenane, which mixes contemporary styles and traditional Senegalese movement; BAM/Restoration DanceAfrica Ensemble; Germaine Acogny; and Dyane Harvey-Salaam. As part of the program, BAM will host a Memorial Day weekend bazaar, with more than 150 African, Caribbean and African-American vendors selling food, crafts and clothes along the surrounding streets. For more information, visit BAM.org.

May 28, 2016 – September 13, 2016
Various Locations
Free for all ages
Memorial Day weekend marks the official start of beach season in the City, and there are plenty of sunbathing and swimming spots open for public recreation. Head to Brighton Beach and Coney Island to people-watch; Rockaway Beach to surf; and Orchard Beach to observe its range of wildlife. Starting on May 28, lifeguards are on duty daily from 10:00am to 6:00pm. The season ends on Labor Day. For more information, visit nycgovparks.org.

June 1, 2016 – June 5, 2016
Various Locations
Launched in 2008 as a vehicle for informing and inspiring the general public, the Word Science Festival brings together a just-right mix of star power, from various disciplines of science and further-flung fields (Edward O. Wilson, Stephen Hawking, Oliver Sacks, Daniel Dennett, Philip Glass and Charlie Kaufman have all appeared in past years) for a tasty smorgasbord of panel discussions, lectures, film screenings and other activities, some of them hands-on. The 2015 lineup will feature more than 50 events, including mainstage programs and those on a more intimate scale where top scientists discuss big ideas. Festivalgoers can also look forward to Street Science on June 5, when the festival takes over Washington Square Park with science-related activities, demonstrations, live shows and experiments. Check worldsciencefestival.com for more details on this year’s schedule of events.

June 1, 2016 – June 30, 2016
Washington Heights, Inwood, West Harlem, NY (Multiple locations)
Take part in the Uptown Arts Stroll, a monthlong showcase of visual and performing arts organized by the Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance. Throughout the month of June, see concerts, plays and art shows in West Harlem, Washington Heights and Inwood. Highlights include performances of Shakespeare’s Two Gentlemen of Verona in Inwood Hill Park, Music in the Garden at the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum and, over the last weekend of the month, a variety of artists opening up their studios to the public. For more information and a full calendar of events, visit artstroll.com.

June 12, 2016
Fifth Avenue and 44th Street,Manhattan, NY
Free for all ages
The parade up Fifth Avenue celebrates Puerto Rican community and culture, which connects the millions of Puerto Ricans living in the New York City metropolitan area and across the United States with their compatriots in the Caribbean. “Lively” doesn't even begin to describe this event, which attracts tens of thousands of marchers and millions of spectators every year and includes energetic musical performances, floats and a host of Puerto Rican celebrities. For more information, visit nprdpinc.org.

June 14, 2016
Fifth Avenue between 82nd and 105th Streets, Manhattan, NY
Free for all ages
The annual Museum Mile Festival offers free admission to some of the world’s finest art collections during extended evening hours. The 23-block stretch of Fifth Avenue is home to seven participating institutions—El Museo del Barrio, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Cooper-Hewitt, the Jewish Museum, Neue Galerie and the Museum of the City of New York. In addition to all the art to see inside, there are plenty of outdoor festivities: face painting, chalk drawing, live music and other block-party-type events. The festival kicks off at 6:00pm, rain or shine. For more information, visit museummilefestival.org.

The Council recognizes excellence in economic education by honoring three outstanding educators form the New York Metropolitan area with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Teaching Champion Award. The Award promotes economic education at the K-12 levels by recognizing and honoring teachers who effectively deliver this important content in and out of their classrooms and achieve results. The Council seeks applicants who instill in students an understanding of economics and the tools to make informed and responsible decisions that they will carry with them as they grow into successful and productive adults. Award winners will receive a cash award of $5,000; a cash award for their school of $2,500 to support economic and financial education; recognition at the Council’s Visionary Awards, recognition on the Council’s Web site as well as in the Council’s digital assets and related communications as well as additional recognition. Applicants must teach in one of the 12 New York state counties (New York, Kings, Bronx, Richmond, Queens, Nassau, Suffolk, Westchester, Putnam, Rockland, Orange, or Dutchess), eight New Jersey counties (Bergen, Passaic, Essex, Hudson, Middlesex, Union, Morris, or Monmouth), or two Connecticut counties (Fairfield or New Haven). Additional information can be found on the website. The Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Teaching Champion Award has a deadline of June 15, 2016. For more information, please visit the foundation website.

The Foundation concentrates its grantmaking on enhancing the quality of life in New York City. Its funding interests include contemporary visual art, preservation, and community programs, which serve to enrich the lives of the people of New York City. Funding is awarded to organizations located within the five boroughs of New York City—Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and Staten Island. The Foundation only accepts online applications, which can be accessed through the website. Online applications are available from July 15-August 15 and proposals are reviewed in September. All applicants are contacted during the month of October. Final decision are made in December. For more information, please visit lilyauch.org.

The Hebrew Free Loan Society administers three scholarship programs for the UJA-Federation of New York and provides approximately $1 million to students with financial need. The UJA -Federation of NY Rose Biller Scholarship Fund is open to Jewish residents of the New York metropolitan. The UJA -Federation of NY Jean and Albert Nerken Scholarship Fund is open to international students studying in the New York metropolitan area. The UJA-Federation of NY Rachel and Selim Benin Scholarship Fund is open to Israeli graduate students studying in certain STEM fields. The scholarships have a deadline of June 27, 2016. To learn more information about about each scholarship, please visit hfls.org.

The New York Community Trust make grants in the five boroughs, to nonprofits large and small, to those the organization has worked with over the years and those who are new to the organization. The Trust is committed to sticking with significant issues that don't lend themselves to quick or easy solutions, and look for projects that take fresh approaches to long-standing issues and that tackle emerging problems and opportunities. The Trust provides funds in four broad areas: Children, Youth, and Families; Community Development and the Environment; Education, Arts, and Human Justice; and Health and People with Special Needs. The New York Community Trust also manages several joint funders' programs, including The New York City AIDS Fund and the Donors’ Education Collaborative. Each has its own application procedures and often issues request for proposals. Each program is unique; for further information, please visit the NYCommunityTrust.org.

Looking for an afterschool program in your neighborhood? Need information on improving reading skills or finding the nearest community center? The new web application discoverDYCD allows you to search in multiple languages for DYCD-funded programs. You can search by borough, neighborhood or zip code, and discoverDYCD provides contact information, activities offered, and a mapping feature with navigation.
Categories of services include: Afterschool Programs, Family Support, Literacy Services, Youth Services and so much more! We hope you find discoverDYCD useful as you take advantage of the diverse resources and opportunities that New York City has to offer.