|| Home Page | Welcome | Contents | Staff | Support Us ||

 

Opportunity at East Harlem Center
Written by Jean Charles
Interview by
Shem Rajoom, and Jordan Gonzalez.

 

 

The Building that Houses the East Harlem Center 

In a town where often only negative issues of the poorest neighborhoods are highlighted and people are pasted as worthless and incorrigible, Jose Salgado stands out, disproving those prejudices. After several years in prison and a long time member of the gang Latin Kings, he has turned his life around through the Universal Business and Media School, founded by Dr.Georgina Falu and her son, Ray Yawlingsworth-Falu.

In the late 1980s, Dr. Falu opened the UBMS in East Harlem. Dr.Falu also runs the Falu Foundation and chairs the East Harlem Technology Coalition.

At the Universal Center, computer and graphic skills are taught to those who may normally not receive such training. Not only are students trained professionally, Dr. Falu has established working relationships with many corporations that place her trainees in full time jobs.

The school is now training over 200 underprivileged Puerto Rican/Hispanics, Blacks and other minority students. It's goal is to uplift the economic opportunities for members of this community. The majority of the students choose Universal as a means to achieve the education and training necessary to get a good job and develop a sense of self esteem.

Dr. Falu worked at SUNY Old Westbury, in Long Island. SUNY Old Westbury was one of the only schools, in the New York area, to service black and latino people, in the technological field. Dr. Falu went searching for schools, in the New York area, who serviced Black and Latino people. She did not find too many.

Dr. Falu then came up with he idea of starting her own school. She called it the Universal Business and Media School. The curriculum was designed by her son and executive vice-president, Ray Yawlingsworth-Falu. Mr. Falu says one of the main goals of the school is to help Black and Latino people find jobs. He also encourages his students or anyone seeking to start their own business and be their own boss -- to do it! Moreover the school has also done well by the students. The school is servicing about 300 students in Computer science (Data entry, Word processing, etc). The school helps people who have problems speaking and understanding English.

The Universal Business and Media school has a high success rate. An estimated 88% of Dr. Falu's students pass the GED and about 90% are employed after graduation. Mr.Salgado, now student body president, says the UBMS, has changed his life and has made him more responsible. Salgado states," This is one way we (Blacks and Latinos) can better ourselves. If we communicate, nothing can stop us." He also adds,"We are never to old to learn."

Mr. Falu also has big plans, ahead, for the school. He wants to expand the internet cafe' ,which currently houses five PC'S, add more courses to the current curriculum. He also wants to institute long distance learning, where people take classes over the internet, into the curriculum.

The East Harlem Center is at 220 East 106th Street. The phone number is 212 - 360 - 1210 and their web address is http://www.ubms.edu.

 

|| Home Page | Welcome | Contents | Staff ||

Back to the top

 

editor@harlemlive.org