“We applaud Governor Cuomo and the New York State legislature for reaching an agreement on the Fiscal Year 17-18 budget that maintains, and in some cases expands, investments in critical supports for children and families at a time of great uncertainty for our country. New York will only grow stronger as it expands after-school programs in districts where they are needed, increases investment in community schools statewide by $50 million, and embarks on the monumental path of raising the age of criminal responsibility for youth,” said Phoebe C. Boyer, president and CEO of The Children's Aid Society. “We are excited to see that the state has invested $1.2 million for technical assistance to support the capacity of school districts implementing community schools. We also extremely pleased to see that the state will provide $4.5 million for the Fostering Youth College Success Initiative, in continuing efforts to remove barriers to college accessibility for foster care youth.”

“Yet, we are concerned that cuts to foster care services for special needs children and child care support for low-income families will result in setbacks for the communities we serve. We look forward to working with the state to ensure that families with the most to lose aren’t left behind.”

The Children’s Aid Society is an independent, nonprofit organization established to serve the children of New York City.  Our mission is to help children in poverty to succeed and thrive. We do this by providing comprehensive supports to children and their families in targeted high-needs New York City neighborhoods. Founded in 1853, it is one of the nation’s largest and most innovative non-sectarian agencies, serving New York’s neediest children. Services are provided in community schools, neighborhood centers, health clinics, and camps. For additional information, please call Anthony Ramos at (212) 949-4938/ (917) 204-8214, email anthonyr@childrensaidsociety.org, or visit www.childrensaidsociety.org.