ADVOCATES FOR CHILDREN OF NY INC

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. Over the past 40 years, we have touched the lives of over half a million students and families. We serve children and youth, from birth through age 21, in all five boroughs of New York City. Approximately 90 percent of our families are low-income, the majority are persons of color, and more than 75 percent of the families we serve have children with disabilities. We focus on securing an appropriate education for New York City’s most vulnerable children, including those who are in foster care or involved in the juvenile justice system, face homelessness, have special education needs, or lack proficient English language skills. We provide disadvantaged students and their families with the one-on-one guidance and advocacy they need, while at the same time, pressing for system-wide reforms that benefit all students, even those who are most challenging to educate. Our efforts on the individual and policy levels inform and strengthen each other, increasing our effectiveness for the communities we serve.