Our Culture

Play, Learn, Grow

Play

Staff at DREAM meet high expectations, but we don’t forget about having fun. We place importance on giving our all to our youth but we also believe in building a sustainable culture for our staff.

From summer-time barbecues on our inspiring Field of Dreams to our monthly staff newsletter, we take time to recognize and celebrate success with one another. Check out our unique benefits below to learn more.

Learn

Individuals join DREAM to learn and to share their expertise. Our internal training includes weekly professional development for school staff, a library of over 200 functional and competency-based training and plentiful external learning opportunities - you are bound to develop your professional skill set while working at DREAM!

Grow

Annual goals allow for individuals and teams to stay focused on outcomes. All staff at DREAM set yearly professional goals. We work with our supervisors to set benchmarks and receive structured support to push ourselves toward success. We believe in a set of core and leadership competencies and use them to identify and develop our growth areas. Every week, staff check in with supervisors to address successes and potential challenges at DREAM. At DREAM, all teachers have weekly Professional Development and individual feedback sessions based on personalized goals with Academic Deans and Principals.

Highlights of our workspaces
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We love baseball! Hold meetings in the “Dugout” and print on "Slugger". Even if you don’t know the game, baseball lingo is scattered throughout - from the name of meeting rooms to our printers.

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Find us for lunch out on the Field of Dreams, take a break to play catch or cheer on a REAL Kids baseball game during the summer months.

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We work in collaborative workspaces so that you can do your best work with your grade team, department and external guests.

Our expanding team

Founded in 1991, DREAM (formerly known as Harlem RBI) currently serves over 2,200 Newark, East Harlem and South Bronx youth by providing free, high-quality summer and after-school programs to youth, ages 4-22.

WHAT WE DO

Using a unique blend of youth development principles and sports, we provide youth with opportunities to Play, Learn and Grow. Staff use the power of teams to coach, teach and inspire youth to recognize their potential and realize their dreams.

Our programs are designed to ensure that all youth graduate high school and matriculate to college. DREAM graduates are:

  • Physically and mentally healthy, able to avoid risky behaviors
  • High school graduates
  • College graduates
  • Work-ready, with the basic knowledge and skills to find and maintain a job
  • Good teammates, friends and family members, cultivating
  • positive relationships with peers and adults
  • Confident, competent and caring members of their communities
  • Active citizens, who participate in their community’s social and political life.

WE BELIEVE IN TEAMS

We use the power of teams to challenge staff and volunteers to meet high standards of performance, to seek meaningful results from our work and to constantly improve the services we provide.

As a team, we are committed to personal and organizational growth. We work together to reach a high standard of professionalism, fulfill our commitment to youth and make our organization a model learning community.

Collaborative relationships are at the core of our work and we are dedicated to seeking out diverse voices to inform our decisions. We are committed to communicating openly and optimistically.

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Our Benefits

We are committed to providing top-notch benefits for our employees. Our Human Resources team continuously studies benefit trends and implements the most competitive benefits program in the non-profit and charter school sector.

With health and family as priorities, we take pride in offering great benefits, tools and the resources needed to manage health and well-being.

Health & Wellness Benefits

  • Three Health Plan and Two Dental Plan Options
  • Vision Insurance
  • 403(b) Retirement Savings (with 4% matching after one year of full-time service, fully vested after one year)
  • Flexible Spending Accounts: Health, Dependent Care, Commuter
  • Employer-paid Long Term Disability and Life Insurance
  • Employee Assistance Program
  • Gym Membership Discount
  • Optional Aflac Plans

Other benefits at DREAM:

  • Summer Fridays
  • Staff and family events
  • Surprise staff lunches
  • Summer Staff Outing
  • Thanksgiving Potluck
  • Festivus Fun
  • Holiday Event