Mission

THE POINT Community Development Corporation is a non-profit 501 (c)(3) dedicated to youth development and the cultural and economic revitalization of the Hunts Point section of the South Bronx.  We work with our neighbors to celebrate the life and art of our community, an area traditionally defined solely in terms of its poverty, crime rate, poor schools and substandard housing.  We believe the area’s residents, their talents and aspirations, are THE POINT’s greatest assets. 

THE POINT offers a multi-faceted approach to asset-based community development.  It’s programming falls within three main headings - Youth Development, Arts and Culture and Community Development - all aimed at the comprehensive revitalization of Hunts Point.

Community

THE POINT serves the Hunts Point community on the peninsula of the South Bronx of New York City.  The targeted population of students and their families reside within Community Board #2 in the Bronx at the southern tip of Congressional District #16.  According to the 2000 census, the Bronx has the third lowest median income in the nation at $29,228 and remains the poorest urban county in the country.  In the same year, the median household income in Hunts Point was $17,040.  Hunts Point is a community of color.  Nearly two-thirds of its residents are of Latin American descent and almost one-quarter of Hunts Point's population identifies themselves as African-American.  In 2008, Advocates for Children listed Hunts Point as one of the highest risk areas for youth.  In this community, 50.5% of children under 18 live below the poverty level compared to the national average of 17.6% (The Citizen's Committee for Children of New York, Inc.).

Methodology

Each of THE POINT’s programs is based on the principles of asset-based community development.  Our programs and projects embrace our belief that the residents of the South Bronx, especially the young people, have the inherent vision and ability to transform their neighborhoods.  For THE POINT, at-risk children and teens are not bundles of problems – they are wellsprings of solutions.

THE POINT’s Youth Development Program employs a Transformative Philosophy, defined by the Ford Foundation report Urban Youth Programs in America as: “the integration of opportunities through programming for positive change outcomes at both the individual and community level."  Through justice-based arts and service learning activities, THE POINT engages young people as active participants in community development.  THE POINT was included in Urban Youth Programs in America for its grassroots, asset-based approach to youth and community development.  The report also states that justice-oriented youth programs go a step beyond positive youth development programs to focus on “engaging youth in transforming the root causes of youth and community marginality via critical analysis of youth/society relationships" (Sutton et al. 2006, p. 107).  At THE POINT, young people have the support to build the social, emotional and academic tool kit they need to embrace success and take charge of their lives and their future.

Theory of Change

In 2008, THE POINT affirmed its Theory of Change to be: "People in the community create the community they want to live in."  THE POINT's Theory of Change is the guiding principle behind all of its programs and projects.