Tag Archive for: Womens Empowerment Center

CRT’s Lena Rodriguez Co-Moderator for Latinas in Leadership Panel Discussion

In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, Lt. Governor Susan Bysiewicz along with OPM Secretary Melissa McCaw hosted a Women in Leadership panel discussion this week. A recording of that important conversation is now available online.

The session was co-moderated by CRT’s President and CEO Lena Rodriguez, and it also included several Latinas in leadership positions throughout Connecticut:

  • Dr. Leslie Torres-Rodriguez, Superintendent of Hartford Public Schools
  • Evelyn DeJesus-Trinidad, Nurse Manager for the Medical-Surgical ICU at Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center
  • Dr. Elsa Núñez, President of Eastern Connecticut State University
  • Dr. Zulma Toro, President of Central Connecticut State University.

Give a listen to the full conversation now.

 

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CRT’s Women’s Empowerment Center Works to Help Women In Need Find Meaningful Jobs During COVID-19 Pandemic

Nationally, first-time unemployment claims topped 840,000 people last week. And despite the start of Phase 3 of the reopening of businesses here in Connecticut, the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a hard toll on many women in the workplace locally, many either choosing to leave jobs to stay home with their family, or out of work due to business closures.

It has been reported that in September, 865,000 women left the labor force.

Christine Stuart from NBC Connecticut spoke with CRT’s Director of Women’s Services, Tenesha Grant, about the work of the agency’s Women’s Empowerment Center in Hartford to help women in need find meaningful employment during these extremely difficult times.

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CRT Renaming Women’s Empowerment Center in Honor of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Following the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the Community Renewal Team (CRT) announced that to memorialize Ginsburg’s lifetime of service to our nation, and her fierce commitment to protecting the rights of women throughout her legal and judicial career, it is officially renaming its Women’s Empowerment Center in Hartford in her honor.

The Center, which serves the needs of women throughout Central Connecticut, will be renamed the “Ruth Bader Ginsburg Women’s Empowerment Center.” Get more details in this report from Ann Nyberg at WTNH News 8.

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To Honor Her Legacy and Lifetime Commitment to Women, CRT to Rename Women’s Empowerment Center for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Hartford – This week, as Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg lies in repose at the Supreme Court and then at the United States Capitol, the Community Renewal Team (CRT) announced today that to memorialize Ginsburg’s lifetime of service to our nation, and her fierce commitment to protecting the rights of women throughout her legal and judicial career, it is officially renaming its Women’s Empowerment Center in Hartford in her honor.

The Center, which serves the needs of women throughout Central Connecticut, will be renamed the “Ruth Bader Ginsburg Women’s Empowerment Center.”

“The passing of Justice Ginsburg came as a shock to all of us this past weekend. We know that her lifetime of work has created lasting and critical changes to the law that benefit women nationwide, and we can think of no better way to honor her legacy than to ensure that her memory lives on in the work of CRT’s Women’s Empowerment Center in Hartford,” said CRT’s President and CEO Lena Rodriguez.
“We are grateful that Ginsburg’s work and her legal opinions in support of women will be felt for decades to come, and we know that all women in our community today – especially the next generation that is coming of age now – are better off because of her work on behalf of all of us.”

Known as an advocate for women, Justice Ginsburg’s dedication to the disempowered extended still further. She wrote, “Whatever community organization, whether it’s a women’s organization or fighting for racial justice…you will get satisfaction out of doing something to give back to the community that you never get in any other way.” As the oldest community action agency in the state, we could not have said it better.

A formal renaming ceremony at CRT’s Women’s Empowerment Center in Hartford to celebrate the legacy of Justice Ginsburg and her lifetime of work will be held in the coming weeks – exact date to be announced soon.

About CRT’s Women’s Empowerment Center:
The Community Renewal Team (CRT) is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit community action agency and Connecticut’s largest human service agency. Since 1964, CRT has been fulfilling its mission of “Preparing Our Community to Meet Life’s Challenges” by providing more than 60 programs and services designed to positively impact the lives of individuals and families from the City of Hartford and the 40 surrounding towns. As it has for decades, CRT continues to help tens of thousands of people each year; and the data demonstrates that the organization continues to reach Connecticut’s most vulnerable, low-income population.

Historically, more than half of the clients CRT serves have been female. For many of them, the services they received are a true lifeline. In keeping with Ruth Bader Ginsberg’s lifelong goal of uplifting all U.S. residents regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, age, economics and sexual preference, CRT inaugurated its Women’s Empowerment Center (WEC) in 2019. It is the Center’s objective to give women, including the most vulnerable in the Greater Hartford area, access to the opportunities through which they can benefit themselves and their families. In addition to counseling and case management, the WEC offers introductions to different occupational fields and educational programs, workshops on job exploration, even access to mentorships with some of the region’s most successful women. It provides a vision for women who may not have seen their varied (albeit hard-won) options before entering the Center’s doors.

The WEC meets a critical regional need. Over 60% of households in the capital city are headed by a single parent, most of whom are single mothers or grandmothers. Nearly one-third (31.6%) of women In the City of Hartford live in poverty. CRT has a history of offering female-centric initiatives (e.g., helping women gain employment skills, leave abusive circumstances, decrease substance use and recidivism, and enabling grandparents, particularly grandmothers, to raise their grandchildren). Our Ruth Bader Ginsburg Women’s Empowerment Center is the culmination of these effort.

The Center at 330 Market Street, Hartford, is easily accessible via public transportation, and includes space for workshops, private rooms for case management and one-on-one counseling, socialization space and a children’s play area.

For more information about this advisory, please contact: Jason Black, Communications Director @ 860-230-4535.

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