Advocates for Children of New York works on behalf of children who are at greatest risk for school-based discrimination and/or academic failure due to poverty, disability, race, ethnicity, immigrant or English Language Learner status, sexual orientation, gender identity, homelessness, or involvement in the foster care or juvenile justice systems.
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Spotlight
New Report Shows Racial Disparities in NYC Children’s Access to Early Intervention Programs
12.5.19 | Today, Advocates for Children of New York published a new report in partnership with Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York (CCC) entitled Early Inequities: How Underfunding Early Intervention Leaves Low-Income Children of Color Behind [PDF], which shows that State disinvestment in New York’s Early Intervention program has... Continue reading
Advocates for Children of New York Commends the City’s Efforts to Reduce the Number and Length of Suspensions and Urges the City
11.4.19 | On November 1, 2019, the City released 2018-2019 school year data showing that, since the 2013-2014 school year, suspensions are at an all-time low, having declined by 38.5%. The City reported that major crime in schools declined by 31.9% during the same period. The school discipline data, which the Department of Education is... Continue reading
29,000 NYC Students with Disabilities Failed to Receive Required Special Education Instruction
11.01.19 | Today, Kim Sweet, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), issued the following statement in response to the release of the New York City Department of Education’s special education data report for the 2018-19 school year: New York City continues to fall short when it comes to educating its... Continue reading
School Transportation Demands Urgent Attention
11.01.19 | Today, Kim Sweet, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), issued the following statement in response to the release of the New York City Department of Education’s transportation data report for the 2018-19 school year:Last year, we joined many others in calling on the DOE to take bold action to build a school bus... Continue reading
AFC in the News
NYC Has a Family Homelessness Crisis. Who are the Families?
12.10.19 | City Limits | City public and charter schools identified 114,085 kids — one-in-10 students — who experienced homelessness at some point during the 2018-2019 school year, according to state data published by Advocates for Children of New York; 85 percent of the homeless students were Black or Latino.Homeless children often become... Continue reading
New study highlights high number of homeless students in NYC area
12.6.19 | News 12 | New data from a recent study highlighted the shocking number of students across the Bronx who suffer from homelessness.Advocates for Children of New York say that 114,085 students identified as homeless during the 2018-2019 school year.The say the Bronx is the borough that is most affected by the crisis. Read article Continue reading
Report shows racial, socioeconomic disparities in access to early intervention services
12.6.19 | Albany Times Union | The analysis, released Thursday by Citizens’ Committee for Children of New York (CCC) and Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), finds that children under the age of three with developmental delays or disabilities are less likely to receive critical services that could help them reach their full potential if they... Continue reading
Access to Child Services Link to Race, Neighborhood and Income, Analysis Finds
12.5.19 | THE CITY | A new analysis building on city health records previously obtained by Measure of America and THE CITY finds that kids referred to special education evaluations are least likely to get screenings in low-income neighborhoods where most residents are people of color.Those neighborhoods are also overrepresented among those where... Continue reading