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.
Find out more here
Need Help?
Call AFC's Education Helpline
(866) 427-6033
Monday to Thursday
10 am to 4 pm
Donate Now
Help Advocates for Children assist more New York City students!
Stay connected
Sign up for AFC's email updates and find other ways to take action.
Spotlight
New Data Show Number of NYC Students who are Homeless Topped 100,000 for Fifth Consecutive Year
12.03.2020 | Today, the New York State Technical and Education Assistance Center for Homeless Students (NYS-TEACHS), a project of Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), posted new data showing that more than 111,000 New York City students—approximately one in ten children enrolled in district or charter schools—were identified as homeless... Continue reading
AFC Testifies on Foster Care Task Force Progress
11.24.2020 | Today, AFC is testifing before the New York City Council Committee on General Welfare on the City’s progress toward advancing the recommendations of the Interagency Foster Care Task Force, including the three recommendations focused specifically on education, and the need for DOE staff focused on the unique needs of this population.... Continue reading
AFC Files Class Action Against NYC DOE on Behalf of Students with Disabilities to Address Losses During Remote Learning
11.23.2020 | Today, Advocates for Children of New York (“AFC”) and Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP filed a class action complaint in federal court against the New York City Department of Education (“DOE”) and New York State Education Department (“NYSED”) on behalf of students with disabilities who have not received an appropriate education... Continue reading
AFC Testifies on Examining Social-Emotional Learning and Support Staff in Schools
11.20.2020 | Today, AFC is testifying before the New York City Council Committee on Education’s hearing about the critical need for social-emotional and mental health support for students, and the City's commitment to remove police from schools and craft a new vision of school safety that ensures all students are truly safe and supported. Read our... Continue reading
AFC in the News
NYC’s staffing crunch takes a big toll on students with disabilities, report finds
12.01.2020 | Chalkbeat NY | Maggie Moroff, a disability policy expert at the non-profit Advocates for Children, which primarily works with low-income families, said the lack of live instruction appears to be a widespread issue.“We are definitely hearing from families who are reporting on the lesser end of live instruction,” she said. “Most... Continue reading
Elected officials, parents call for another chance for New York City students to opt into in-person learning
11.30.2020 | City & State | It’s also currently unclear how many schools will be able to offer five days of in-person instruction. “We have already heard from a number of schools that they are not able to offer five-day in-person instruction at this time,” said Randi Levine, policy director at Advocates for Children of New York, an... Continue reading
Parents Of Special Education Students Sue City For Not Addressing Learning Loss During Pandemic
11.24.2020 | Gothamist | Advocates for Children filed the lawsuit on behalf of seven parents and one legal guardian of special education students in federal court on Monday, noting that learning loss began back in March, when the onset of the pandemic triggered a systemwide shutdown of public schools across New York City. This shifted all... Continue reading
Lawsuit claims special-needs students are not receiving adequate education through remote learning
11.24.2020 | Bronx News 12 | The lawsuit was filed last week against both the city’s Department of Education and the state Education Department by a nonprofit called Advocates for Children. It claims that students with special needs have not received an appropriate education."I want to get him as much help as I can get - tutoring, extra services... Continue reading