A New School Year Begins Across NJCDC

Fresh backpacks, new routines, familiar faces, and new classmates: across Paterson, a new school year is underway. Across NJCDC, that means another year of helping young people learn and grow — from preschoolers taking their first steps into the classroom and our Community Charter School of Paterson scholars returning to familiar halls, to a new Full Service Community School partnership at School 2 and Great Falls Youth Center members settling into a temporary home.

“A new school year reminds us that educating a child is something the entire community has a role in,” said NJCDC Founder and CEO Bob Guarasci. “Young people need great teachers and schools, but they also need safe places to go after school, families with access to support, and a community that believes in what they can become. Our job is to help bring those pieces together.”

Starting with Our Youngest Learners

At NJCDC’s Paterson Family Center, that work begins early. The entirely free preschool welcomed another class of young learners on September 8, beginning a year of new teachers and classmates, books and field trips, celebrations and discoveries.

For longtime teacher Ms. Jackie, those first days can be the beginning of relationships that stretch far beyond preschool. As we shared in our recent feature on her years at Paterson Family Center, former students still return to visit long after leaving her classroom.

For our youngest students, preschool isn't just preparation for kindergarten — it’s a place to begin building confidence, curiosity, friendships, and lasting relationships.

CCSP Scholars Gear Up for a New Year

At our Community Charter School of Paterson (CCSP), preparations started well before the first bell. CCSP’s August 20 Welcome Back to School Celebration gave scholars and families a chance to reconnect, pick up materials, and prepare for the year ahead — with volunteer professional barbers and hairstylists even helping students start the year with a fresh look.

On August 25, staff gathered to plan and reconnect. The next morning, teachers welcomed elementary and middle school scholars back to their classrooms, helping younger students through a few first-day jitters while middle schoolers reconnected with classmates and got to know their teachers.

NJCDC Launches a New Partnership at School 2

This year also marks a new chapter for NJCDC’s work within Paterson Public Schools. Beginning with the 2026–27 school year, NJCDC is leading the Full Service Community School (FSCS) program at Paterson Public School No. 2, building on our experience operating other FSCS programs in the district.

The model recognizes that what happens outside the classroom can have a profound impact inside it. At School 2, NJCDC will help connect students and families with health and wellness services, social supports, family engagement, enrichment opportunities, expanded learning, and other resources.

Our new FSCS staff got an early opportunity to meet families at School 2’s fourth annual Back to School Social and Bookbag Giveaway. The event distributed 120 backpacks alongside free hygiene products and socks, while families met new Interim Principal Ms. Rodriguez and Vice Principal Mr. Bien-Aime ahead of the September 8 start of classes.

The event also continued School 2’s partnership with Emergence Church of Totowa, whose congregation members helped pack the backpacks and volunteered during the celebration. Special thanks go to Lance, Susana, Lea, Rodney, Patricia, Aria, Sandy, Giselle, and Karina and her two children for helping students begin the year with supplies in hand and a community ready to support them.

A Warm Welcome Back at Taub Middle School

A few days before students returned to Joseph A. Taub Middle School, NJCDC’s FSCS team there welcomed students and families back with a BBQ. School staff, families, students, and community partners gathered for hamburgers, ice cream, bookbags, games, crafts, and a chance to reconnect before the new school year began in earnest.

It was also the FSCS approach in action: creating a school community where families know where to turn, students know there are adults invested in them, and community partners work alongside educators to support needs that extend beyond academics.

A Temporary Home for the Great Falls Youth Center

Support for young people doesn’t stop when the school day ends — and this year, our Great Falls Youth Center is starting the school year at a new, temporary address. Programming has moved to 59 Spruce Street for 2026–27, where young people can continue accessing homework help and tutoring, meals, workshops, recreation, and other regular activities.

The move is making way for something much bigger. At 54 Front Street, adjacent to the existing Youth Center, NJCDC and the City of Paterson are developing the new Great Falls Recreation Center, with a full-size gymnasium, performance space, STEM makerspace, e-gaming and animation areas, entrepreneurial suite, and college-access resources. When the Youth Center community returns next school year, young people and the wider community will have significantly more space — and more opportunities — to learn, create, play, and plan for their futures.

A Year Just Beginning

The school year is only a few days old. There are lessons still to be learned, friendships still to be made, challenges to navigate, and accomplishments students may not yet imagine. From a preschooler walking into Paterson Family Center to a family finding support at School 2, or a teenager heading to 59 Spruce Street after the final bell, NJCDC will be there throughout the year.

Because while September brings the backpacks, first-day photos, and excitement of starting fresh, the real work of a school year happens in all the days that follow.