Advocates for Children of New York
For more than 35 years, AFC has worked in partnership with New York City's most vulnerable families to secure a quality public education for every child in New York City.
Information
Founded:
1971
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Advocates for Children of New York

 

Basic Info
 

Founded:
1971

Detailed Info
 

Website:
http://www.advocatesforchildren.org
http://www.insideschools.org
http://www.nysteachs.org
http://arisecoalition.org
http://twitter.com/AFCNewYork
Company Overview:
Advocates for Children of New York addresses the needs of children most at risk of academic failure or school-based discrimination due to such factors as poverty, disability, race, ethnicity, language barriers, immigration status, homelessness, or involvement in the child welfare or juvenile justice system. Ninety percent of those we serve come from low-income families, 80 percent are people of color, and the majority of families we serve have children with disabilities.
Mission:
AFC’s mission is to promote access to the best education New York can provide for all students, especially students of color and students from low-income backgrounds. AFC uses integrated strategies to advance systemic reform, empower families and communities, and advocate for the educational rights of individual students.
Products:
• The ARISE Coalition: AFC partners with over thirty other stakeholders to press for policy change that benefits children with disabilities in the NYC public schools.

• Immigrant Students’ Rights Project: AFC’s bilingual staff advocates on behalf of individual parents and their children; trains parents and community-based organizations on education-related rights; monitors language access in DOE offices and schools; and collaborates with other groups to support communities seeking to improve outcomes for new immigrants and English language learners.

• Impact Litigation: AFC advocates for systemic reform through impact litigation when individual casework reveals trends and problems in the NYC public education system.

• InsideSchools.org: The website InsideSchools.org helps New York City families navigate the largest public school system in the nation, supplying independent advice, school reviews, information on school applications, and news alerts.

• The Jill Chaifetz Education Helpline: Accessible from 10 am to 4 pm every Monday through Thursday, the Helpline serves as AFC’s principal intake vehicle and provides thousands of callers every year with information, guidance, or referral to an AFC attorney for individual case representation. If you or someone you know needs an education-related question answered, please call 1-866-427-6033.

• The Juvenile Justice Education Advocacy Project (JJEAP): provides in-depth and extensive case advocacy to court-involved youth to help resolve education-related issues and keep them in school.

• The New York State Technical and Education Assistance Center for Homeless Students (NYS-TEACHS): is a state-wide project that works to build the capacity of school districts to improve educational opportunities for students in temporary housing; TEACHS staff respond to requests for assistance via a helpline, distribute information on the rights of homeless students, and conduct trainings for parents and professionals.

• The Out-of-School Youth Project: addresses the needs of older students who have been, or are likely to be, illegally excluded or pushed out of the NYC public school system.

• Parent Training and Information Center and the Center Without Walls: AFC collaborates with Resources for Children with Special Needs on a state funded project called the Center Without Walls, which provides training, information, and assistance to parents of children with disabilities and the professionals who work with them.

• Project Achieve: works to improve the educational outcomes of children in or at-risk of placement in foster care while building capacity in the agencies that serve them; AFC staff represent students at foster care agencies and provide advice and training to caseworkers, birth parents, and foster parents.

• Project Thrive: provides legal representation and in-depth case advocacy to low-income students with disabilities struggling to obtain a free and appropriate public education.