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Julian’s Story
Julian is a 3-year-old preschooler with delays in his language skills, but the DOE failed to provide recommended services.
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04.23.2013 | Today AFC submitted comments on the New York City Administration for Children’s Services’ proposed plan for limited secure placement of youth as part of phase two of the Close to Home juvenile justice reform initiative. View comments [PDF]
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04.26.2013 | Today AFC testified before the state Office of Children and Family Services hearing on the child care plan for 2014-15, arguing that our leaders must provide more funding to increase access to quality early childhood education programs and ensure that children with disabilities have...
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06.05.2013 | Today AFC testified before the City Council Committee on Finance, urging city leaders to reject shortsighted proposed cuts to early childhood education and after-school programs. Read testimony [PDF]
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06.06.2013 | Today AFC testified at the Discipline Code hearing, which offers the opportunity for students, parents, teachers, and advocates to offer input into the draft of the discipline code which will go into effect during the 2013-2014 school year. AFC called for the discipline code to include...
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06.18.2013 | Today AFC testified before the New York City Council Committee on Juvenile Justice on the educational needs of students transitioning back into the community from detention and placement. View testimony [PDF]
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10.23.2013 | Today AFC is testifying before the New York City Council Committee on Juvenile Justice regarding the educational needs of students in the custody of the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) in non-secure placement through Close to Home. Our testimony expresses concerns about...
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08.02.2013 | Today AFC's Early Childhood Education Project submitted comments on proposed revisions to the federal Child Care Development Fund regulations. Our suggestions are largely focused on two overarching goals that are of vital importance to the clients we serve: making it easier for low-...
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08.29.2013 | We have updated our four fact sheets on charter schools and school co-locations. Questions and Answers about Charter Schools [PDF] (also available in Spanish [PDF]) provides an introduction to charter schools, questions to ask as you consider applying to charter schools, and...
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05.06.2014 | Today AFC staff attorney Paulina Davis testified before the New York City Council Committee on Education on the need to improve charter school accountability and oversight, particularly with regard to discipline policies and the recruitment, enrollment, and retention of students with...
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09.26.2013 | J.G. et al. v. Mills is a 2004 federal court case brought by Advocates for Children of New York and the Legal Aid Society against the New York City Department of Education (DOE). The settlement requires the DOE to assist students going and coming from court-ordered facilities and the...
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10.02.2013 | AFC submitted testimony to the Education Committee of the New York City Council supporting a one-year moratorium on school closings and additional community notification, but opposing a resolution giving Community Education Councils veto power over proposed co-locations. Read our...
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10.08.2013 | AFC has a new guide to college! The guide provides information on the application process, financial aid, accommodations and services for students with disabilities, and resources for support. View the guide [PDF]
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10.21.2013 | AFC has a new guide for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer or questioning (LGBTQ) students in New York City public schools! It answers common questions about LGBTQ youth in public schools and lays out LGBTQ students’ rights and what to do if these rights have been violated....
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10.25.2013 | This afternoon, AFC is testifying before the Education Committee of the New York City Council regarding the Department of Education's special education reform. Our school system needs to change how it educates students with disabilities; however, change will not yield positive results...
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10.28.2013 | This afternoon, AFC is testifying before the General Welfare and Women’s Issues Committees of the New York City Council regarding the implementation of EarlyLearn NYC. We are discussing the importance of increased funding to ensure that every child can participate in a high-quality...
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10.31.2013 | The implementation of a new system for evaluating the 75,000 teachers who work in New York City’s public schools is a massive undertaking – one that will change how principals use their time, how teachers direct their efforts in the classroom, and, ultimately, how students experience...
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11.25.2013 | Today AFC testified before the New York City Council Committee on Education, arguing that high-stakes standardized exit exams create unnecessary barriers to graduation. Without a high school diploma, students are denied access to college and careers. Our testimony recommends that the...
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12.04.2013 | Children born in 2009 are eligible to enter kindergarten in September 2014, and there are steps that families should take starting now to prepare for this important milestone. We hope these resources will help families navigate the transition to kindergarten! Kindergarten...
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12.09.2013 | While all students, with and without special education needs, may apply to any NYC public school, there are some things students with special needs and their families should be aware of regarding the processes of applying to middle schools in choice districts and high schools around...
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01.28.2014 | Today Kim Sweet, Executive Director of Advocates for Children of New York, submitted testimony for the New York State Education Budget Hearing. In her testimony, Kim Sweet applauds the Governor’s call to make pre-kindergarten truly universal, but points out that the funding in the...