NeON in Brownsville

This morning saw the official launch of the New York City Probation Department's Neighborhood Opportunity Network initiative (or NeON for short) in Brownsville. It was a feel-good event, headlined by Mayor Bloomberg, Deputy Mayor Linda Gibbs, Probation Commissioner Vinny Schiraldi (pictured above in a grainy shot taken on my cell phone). Along with the Brownsville Partnership, we will be core partners in the NeON initiative: in the days ahead, our Brownsville Community Justice Center team will be located side-by-side with a team of probation officers dedicated to serving Brownsville residents. Together, the hope is that we can improve service delivery, making it easier for probationers to get the help they need to get their lives back on track. In his remarks, Commissioner Schiraldi was particularly gracious toward the Center for Court Innovation, saying that the idea for neighborhood-based probation was partly inspired by our community courts.