Press Release
Carlos Jesse Receives NYC Bar Association Legal Services Award
The Community Service Society (CSS) proudly congratulates Carlos A. Jesse, Project Director of CSS’s Next Door Project (NDP), who today was honored as a recipient of the prestigious NYC Bar Association Legal Services Award.
Beloved by clients, community partner agency staff and colleagues alike, Carlos is a dedicated, creative, compassionate, and effective advocate for individuals with conviction histories. Over the nearly 14 years he has been associated with NDP, a project he now directs, Carlos has worked with thousands of individuals who face seemingly insurmountable barriers to full participation in the community and the life of this city.
Carlos joined CSS in 1988 as an organizer for our Voter Participation Project in Brooklyn, moved on to work with special projects for CSS’s Retired and Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), and in 2007 started work with the newly-created NDP. Thanks to dedicated professionals like Carlos, CSS is helping more than 600 New Yorkers annually understand and fix mistakes in their official conviction histories, obtain state-issued certificates of good conduct, apply for licenses, and get help with other conviction history related problems.
Carlos, we salute you, and celebrate this fitting tribute to the important work you do, and continue to do, on behalf of New Yorkers who are trying to move beyond their past to a brighter future.