Advocates for Children of New York

08/25/2026

It's almost the start of a new school year! Join AFC advocates for a free webinar about the issues families frequently experience at this time. We'll talk about advocacy tips you can use to troubleshoot issues with busing and transportation changes, special education services and placements, and much more.

Learn more and register: https://advocatesforchildren.org/events/back-to-school-2026-troubleshooting-and-live-qa/

08/13/2026

💭 Reflecting on lessons learned from a summer of interning at AFC. We’re so grateful for the hard work of this year’s legal interns, and we can’t wait to see what they do next!

07/29/2026

AFC’s own Betty Baez Melo on Spectrum News NY1 talking about NYC’s investment in preschool special education, which will help ensure more preschoolers with disabilities receive the support they need & have a legal right to receive.

Child care can only be *truly* universal if every child has access to a program that meets their needs.
https://ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/the-rush-hour/2026/07/28/city-officials-launch--67-5m-expansion-for-preschool-special-education

Betty Baez Melo, the director of the early childhood education project at Advocates for Children of New York, joined "The Rush Hour."

07/26/2026

Today marks the 36th anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), a landmark civil rights law that helps ensure people with disabilities can access schools, transportation, workplaces, and other public spaces. But the ADA has always been about more than just ramps and elevators: it protects the right of people with disabilities to fully participate in their communities.

Thirty-six years later, the ADA's promise remains unfulfilled. Too many people with disabilities still face barriers to equal access, opportunity, and belonging, and we are continuously reminded that progress cannot be taken for granted.

At AFC, that means fighting every day to ensure students with disabilities receive the education, services, and opportunities they need to thrive.

Today, we celebrate the ADA by honoring its legacy and recommitting ourselves to the work that remains.

❓Considering a school and want to know about its physical accessibility? New York City Public Schools has information on their website about Building Accessibility Profiles, with ratings and details about entrances, ramps, hallways, classrooms, restrooms, pathways, and more: https://www.schools.nyc.gov/school-life/space-and-facilities/building-accessibility

07/21/2026

Mid-year moves and unreliable school bus service keep foster youth out of class for days at a time, Advocates for Children found.

06/25/2026

📢 We're joining education and disability advocates across the country in a national call-in TODAY to demand that Congress speak up: keep special education oversight in the U.S. Department of Education.

We want to be clear: students and families, your rights 👏HAVE NOT CHANGED 👏

The IDEA is still law, your child’s IEP is still legally binding, and schools are still required to provide accommodations and services.

But this proposed restructuring will create confusion for districts, schools, and families already struggling to navigate the education system. It will weaken accountability, and further stigmatize students who need additional support to learn.

Shifting responsibility for special education to the Department of Health and Human Services also reflects an outdated view of disability as a medical condition to be managed, rather than a natural part of the human experience. It wrongly treats special education as separate from education for all learners. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Take action today. Find your members of Congress, and use our script to demand they speak out against this proposed restructuring.

06/22/2026

🆕 We looked at data on the 6,650 New York City Public Schools students in foster care last year show and found stark disparities that highlight the critical importance of school stability for this population -- and the need for NYC to ensure these students get timely transportation to & from school.

Students in the foster system transfer schools mid-year more than 3x as often as their peers. One reason for all the transfers? It can often take weeks or even months to arrange bus service when a student enters foster care or changes foster homes.

This group of students are less likely to score proficient on the state tests, less likely to graduate high school, and more likely to drop out than their peers not in foster care—and outcomes are especially bleak for those who transfer schools mid-year.

Busing might seem like a minor logistical issue, but for students in the foster system—for whom school can be a safe haven—it’s a lifeline. We’re calling on Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani New York City Council to invest $3M to provide interim transportation for students in foster care awaiting bus service.

Read the report and learn more: https://advocatesforchildren.org/policy-resource/foster-system-educational-indicators-2025

06/18/2026

This season, the New York Knicks reminded us what’s possible when a community rallies behind a shared goal.

Every day, AFC helps students overcome barriers to learning, from securing special education services and school transportation, to supporting students experiencing homelessness and those in foster care. But we can't do it without supporters like you.

Make a gift to AFC this month, and we'll send you a limited-edition Knicks-inspired sticker as our thanks: https://advocatesforchildren.org/donate/

Together, we can help ensure every student in New York City has the support they need to learn, grow, and thrive.

For New York kids. Forever. 🧡💙🧡

06/15/2026

Forty-four years ago, Plyler v. Doe affirmed every child’s right to an education, regardless of immigration status.

Every day, AFC serves the children and families Plyler was meant to protect: newly arrived immigrant students and families navigating an unfamiliar system in search of a brighter future. These students deserve schools that are prepared to welcome and support them.

Plyler recognized that children don’t choose the circumstances of their birth or their families’ journeys. Denying them access to education is unjust and harmful.

We’re grateful to our elected leaders in New York who uphold the promise of Plyler, and we're calling on the City to go even further: let's strengthen the guidance for schools on protections for immigrant students, restore funding for multi-faceted immigrant family communication and outreach, and establish dedicated instructional specialists for English Language Learners to ensure they receive the academic instruction and support they need to thrive.

Today, Plyler is more than just a legal precedent. It is a promise of our shared duty to all children. AFC remains committed to defending every child’s right to a quality education — no exceptions, no conditions.

06/13/2026

We’re at brooklyn_pride! Come say hi, get an AFC tattoo, and chat about your educational rights in NYC Public Schools!