Through Essential Support and Investments, Adams Administration and Administration for Children's Services Keep Children Safe and Enhance Supports for Children, Youth & Families
December 16, 2025
ACS Implemented Initiatives That Increased Calls to Our Dedicated Support Line, Expanded Access to Child Care Assistance, Doubled the Number of College Students in Foster Care, Secured Permanent Housing for Over 100 Young People and More
New York, NY: As the Adams Administration comes to a close, the Administration for Children’s Services (ACS) is highlighting the progress the agency has made to keep children safe, and families and youth supported. In particular, ACS strengthened its efforts to keep children safe; increased and strengthened supports for families and communities; expanded initiatives that promote youth safety and success; and enhanced the ability for staff to get their work done.
"We took office with a simple promise: to 'Get Stuff Done,’ and, four years later, our administration can say we delivered that every day for working-class New Yorkers," said Mayor Adams. "We drove shootings to record lows and pushed jobs and small businesses to record highs. We rewrote the playbook on homelessness and mental health to finally get New Yorkers living on our streets the help they need, and, after decades of half-measures, passed historic housing legislation to turn New York into a 'City of Yes.' We overhauled the way our students learn to read and do math, cut the cost of child care, and forgave medical debt. We eliminated taxes for low-income families, launched free universal after-school programming, and invested $163 million to reach 8,000 participants across five programs at the Administration for Children Services aimed at supporting youth. We got scaffolding off our buildings, trash bags off our streets, and opened up new public spaces for New Yorkers to enjoy. The haters may have doubted us, but the results are clear. On issue after issue, we brought common-sense leadership to create a safer, more affordable city, and our work has changed our city for the better; it will stand the test of time because we made New York City the best place to live and raise a family."
“Over the past four years, ACS has continued to strengthen the work we do to keep children safe and we’ve implemented new strategies to better support children and their families,” said ACS Commissioner Jess Dannhauser. “By investing in resources and services for families, and initiatives that help improve outcomes for young people, this Administration has continued to help make New York City the best place to raise a family.”
The data shows that these efforts are making a difference. Over the past 4 years, ACS has:
- Reduced the average child protection caseload from 1 to 6.3 as of October 2025.
- Increased the percentage of youth in foster care living with family or close friends (kin) to 44 percent.
- Reduced repeat maltreatment from 2% in FY22 to 13.2% in FY25.
- Increased low income non-mandated child care vouchers issued by ACS from 9,393 in FY22 to 56,931 in FY25.
- Increased the number of youth participating in the Fair Futures coaching and tutoring program from 3,172 in FY22 to 4,330 in FY25.
- Increased safety and security in juvenile justice detention centers despite increased census with youth on youth assaults per 100 avg daily population in detention dropping from .29 in FY22 to .17 in FY25 and youth on staff assaults per 100 avg daily population in detention dropped from .21 in FY22 to .12 in FY25.
- Reduced the foster care census from 7,100 in January 2022 to an all-time-low of fewer than 6,400 children.
Made New York City’s Children Safer
Strengthened CPS Work to Keep Children Safe. Our top priority is the safety of New York City children and we continue to strengthen our work to keep children safe. In 2025, ACS hired 361 child protection specialists; we now have 2065 active CPS handling responses to reports of abuse and neglect, compared to 900 just two years ago. We have significantly reduced average CPS caseload to 7.6, much less than the national standard of 12. We have also strengthened our work with the NYPD, trained CPS on Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs) to better support new moms, launched the new Clinical Support Program and more.
Expanded the Family Preservation Program (FPP). In the summer of 2024, ACS added additional staff and units for FPP, which is an intensive child protection and prevention model that enables children to remain safely at home, while ACS works with families to address immediate child safety concerns. The program is citywide and there are currently 131 families receiving FPP services. FPP helps families by accompanying families to community appointments (medical, public assistance, therapy, etc.); helping families navigate other systems such as housing and school; supporting the family as they transition to prevention services; and arranging for services such as homemaking, respite or heavy duty cleaning.
Launched New Clinical Support Program. Our mission to get it right for every families requires that we tailor our approach to support their specific strengths. In 2025, ACS launched a new "Clinical Support Program" which builds off the current program where licensed professionals support frontline child protective staff with their expertise in mental health, substance use, and intimate partner violence. Through this newly enhanced program, this team of experts will also engage directly with families themselves and offer hands-on support and connections to services specific to each family’s needs. This initiative will help meet the unique needs of families and strengthen the agency's ability to keep children safe. The providers recommended for awards include: University Behavioral Associates, Inc. (Bronx), Rising Ground, Inc. (Brooklyn), The Child Center of NY, Inc. (Manhattan), MercyFirst (Queens) and Safe Horizon, Inc. (Staten Island). The program will begin in January.
Provided families with more information at the door: ACS seeks to protect children and protect the rights of families, and we firmly believe both can be accomplished together. After a successful pilot in 2023, in May 2024 ACS completed the citywide rollout of providing parents with plain language information in their preferred language regarding their rights when ACS comes to their home to respond to a report of alleged abuse or neglect.
Trained ACS and provider agency staff on how to support maternal mental health: ACS identified a need for staff to better understand Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders (PMADs) and assist pregnant and birthing people experiencing or at risk of experiencing PMADs.
Throughout 2024, ACS has focused on raising awareness on the signs and symptoms of PMADs and the appropriate referrals for those experiencing PMADs by disseminating information through our new landing page on our web site https://www.nyc.gov/site/acs/for- families/pmads.page; sharing best practices and resources at a convening, developing a resource guide for staff; and expanding ACS’s Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Unit participation in team meetings and other case conferences.
Convened New Multidisciplinary Review Panel. ACS convened a new Multidisciplinary Review Panel to bring experts external to ACS into our fatality review process to help identify systemic solutions that will enhance ACS’s ability to protect children and deliver high quality services. The Panel includes a group of esteemed experts and child welfare stakeholders, including those with lived experiences and experts in the fields of child abuse, pediatrics, mental health, law enforcement, accident prevention, parent advocacy, community- based services, and more. The Panel gives us a formal pathway to incorporate their expertise and strengthen practice, policy, information sharing and more. The Panel also aims to help New Yorkers better understand our work as we promote systemic transparency and system accountability. Their work and recommendations will be incorporated into our annual public fatality report.
Increased and Strengthened Supports for Families and Communities
Dramatically Expanded Innovative Family Enrichment Center Model. Informed by national research, ACS developed the Family Enrichment Center model as a homegrown approach to strengthening families and communities. FECs are welcoming, family-centered spaces co- designed with parents, caregivers, and community members. They are places where families with children can come together to build relationships; share resources, experiences, and expertise; and participate in or lead activities to strengthen their families and communities. No two FECs are alike. Each reflects the culture, strengths, and identity of its neighborhood. In 2018, the first three FECs launched, and now, eight years later, there are 29 FECs, with the contract for the 30th FEC set to be registered in January 2026.
Opened New Food Pantries Across the City. ACS has opened food pantries to serve families experiencing food insecurity. These pantries serve all families known to ACS and accept referrals from prevention services and other partners. There are currently four pantries located in ACS borough offices in Bronx South, Bronx North, Manhattan, and Brooklyn.
Developed Partnership with NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) Focused on Early Childhood. ACS and DOHMH have initiated a planning process to determine ways to enhance maternal health, early childhood development and attachment, family stability and wellbeing with an additional aim of preventing families from becoming involved with child protection. We are discussing options to expand eligibility effective services, hiring additional staff with expertise in perinatal mental health and/or substance use disorder, bolstering non-clinical supports (e.g. peer advocates, childcare during appointments) for families served in DOHMH clinics, and expanding training opportunities.
Expanded Access to Subsidized Child Care. Beginning in 2022, ACS rapidly expanded child care assistance for low-income families, providing vouchers that cover most or all of the cost of child care. This initiative has made child care affordable for thousands more families across NYC. Between the Summer of 2022 and the Summer of 2025, the number of children enrolled in care with the support of an ACS-issued low-income voucher climbed by 900% from 7,400 to more than 75,000. During this period, ACS also focused on expanding access in communities historically underserved by the program– namely the 17 community districts with the highest poverty and unemployment rates that have faced inadequate access to child care. The number of children from these neighborhoods enrolled in care with a low-income voucher increased from 1,500 to nearly 22,000, a 1300% increase. Based on funding limitations in the State Budget, ACS has ceased this expansion. While we continue to ensure State officials are aware of the need to fully fund this program, we are prioritizing providing continuity of care to families that currently use vouchers, namely families that have income below 300% of the State Income Standard, are unhoused, or have a child with special needs.
Continued to retrain Mandated Reporters on when to call the child abuse hotline and when families can be better supported without an investigation. Child protective investigations are traumatic to children and families, so should not be used as a way to connect families to services when children are not at risk or in danger. ACS and our sister agencies are committed to reducing the unwarranted involvement of Black and Latino families in the child welfare system. Through training and conversations with mandated reporters throughout the city, ACS is working to achieve a better balance: fewer unnecessary reports to the SCR, continued reports when necessary, and more supports accessed by families across the board. Since 2023, ACS has conducted more than 380 presentations and trainings reaching more than 24,000 mandated reporters including staff from schools, homeless shelters, hospitals, after- school programs, and ACS providers.
Launched Family Support Line: Parenting is both rewarding and challenging, so it is critical that parents and caretakers in need of a helping hand know how to get it. In 2024, ACS was intentional about marketing our Support Line, through hundreds of over 100 training sessions, tabling in communities, participating in ACS and other city agency events, as well as in social media and the press. The Support Line can be reached at (212) 676-7667 or connect@acs.nyc.gov . The Support Line assists families by connecting them directly to ACS Prevention Services and addressing concrete needs (such as food, beds, etc.) all without the need for a child welfare investigation. The Support Line now receives an average of more than 300 inquiries per month, up from about 30 monthly in early 2023.
Launched New School-Based Early Support Prevention Model: ACS has a nationally- recognized continuum of prevention services. In September 2024, ACS launched a new prevention service model, aimed at providing families with services and supports as upstream as possible, preventing involvement with child protection, while keeping children safe. Each of the 16 new programs is working with at least three schools to help families address stressors that may impact a child’s well-being, help families in need of concrete items, and strengthen social connections within the school communities, all to help families thrive.
Expanded Initiatives that Promote Youth Safety & Success
Expanded Fair Futures to Include Youth in Care Ages 21-26 as well as Juvenile Justice involved youth. ACS is committed to improving outcomes for young people. First launched in 2019, Fair Futures has provided thousands of youth ages 11-21 in foster care with coaches, tutors and housing and educational specialists. This year, the Adams Administration took the program one step further by expanding the Fair Futures program to include youth in care ages 21 to 26 as well as youth in ACS juvenile justice programs. All youth in foster care over the age of 11, and youth in our juvenile justice programs, are connected with a dedicated coaches and/or tutors via Fair Futures.
More Than Doubled the Number of Youth in Foster Care Attending College by Launching the College Choice Program. ACS is committed to making sure youth in care have the resources they need to succeed. In 2022, ACS launched the College Choice program, which provides college students in foster care with greater support systems, including financial support, so they can attend the college of their dreams without having to worry about the hefty price tag. As part of the program, ACS helps pay remaining costs of college tuition in addition to any room and board not covered by a student’s financial aid package. College students in foster care also receive a daily stipend per year, which can be used towards food, clothing, transportation, and more. The program had more than 400 students in the fall of 2024 — up from approximately 200 just two years ago. In 2025, Mayor Adams announced the program will be expanded to serve over 500 students.
Launched Career Choice. In recognition of the fact that a traditional college pathway does not meet the needs of all youth, in 2025, the Adams Administration announced it would be launching a new program to provide financial assistance a stipend to youth in foster care enrolled in a vocation, trade or workforce development program. The program will serve approximately 400 youth.
Launched Partnership with Anthos|Home to Help Secure Housing for Youth. Safe and stable housing is critical for youth people leaving foster care. Through a partnership with ACS, Anthos|Home works hand-in-hand with young people in foster care – most of whom use vouchers – throughout the application and approval process and fill in the gaps as needed. Anthos|Home removes common barriers by covering moving expenses and handling minor repairs needed for inspection approval, ensuring a smoother transition to stable housing. The partnership has successfully placed more than 100 foster youth in apartments with a housing retention rate of 100%.
Invested in Programs to Prevent Justice Involvement. The Adams Administration invested resources to help prevent justice involvement through community based investments proven to work. Girls JustUs is a highly successful gender-responsive juvenile justice diversion program that currently operates in Brooklyn and will now be expanded to Queens and the Bronx to serve an additional 24 girls and LGBTQAI+ youth. ACES provides evidence-based services to high- risk youth with prior involvement in the justice system. The program provides social pathways away from gang and gun violence to young people ages 16-24, and is expanding citywide to serve over 400 young people annually.
Enhanced Programming in Secure Detention. Despite the marked increase in census, the rates of violence in secure detention have decreased over the last three years. The decrease in incidents has been a result of the implementation of a range of significant changes in programming and practice. The current programming menu includes incentive programming associated with the behavior management system, programming to prepare young people for the workforce and future vocations, and programming that supports personal development, in addition to diverse sports, arts, recreation, and entertainment options. Programs delivered by Program Counselors are offered more hours per day than in the past and vendors are on site more days per year than previously, in order to maximize opportunities for participation and minimize idle time.
Created an Environment in Secure Detention that Embraces Education. ACS has embarked on an intentional plan to create an environment that embraces and supports education and, in the last two school years, 90 students in secure detention graduated, supported by an interdisciplinary team of committed staff within ACS, NYCPS, and a host of other supportive stakeholders. In the 2022-2023 school year, ACS recruited staff members to serve as school liaisons in both facilities to facilitate the focus on education. This school-based team is responsible for encouraging young people to attend and participate in school, which has significantly improved engagement and attendance across both facilities. In addition, it helped to change the culture, building facility-wide enthusiasm in support of education. ACS’s school- based team is responsible for encouraging young people to attend school and engage in other educational services, yielding significant improvements in student engagement, school attendance, exam completions, and graduation rates. As many youth enter detention with significant educational deficits, ACS’s workforce partners, The Children’s Village (CV) and the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI), provide on-site tutoring four days a week to youth during the school day and offers support during out-of-schooltime hours. ACS also entered into an MOU with the City University of New York (CUNY) recently and, through close collaboration with CUNY, the college offerings have expanded. Many graduates are now enrolled at either Hostos Community College (Horizon) or Borough of Manhattan Community College (Crossroads), completing live college courses while in the secure detention facilities, and earning transferable college credits.
Reached “Substantial Compliance” With Provisions in the Nunez Monitoring Agreement and, As a Result, Court Entered a Stipulation that Consent Judgement No Longer Apply to Adolescent Offenders. The most recent report issued by the Nunez Monitoring Team about conditions at Horizon Juvenile Center found ACS to be in substantial compliance with the remaining provisions in the agreement. Further, the monitor recommended to the Court that the voluntary agreement is no longer needed for ACS at the Horizon Juvenile Center, noting that “it appears that the Monitoring Team’s work with ACS is complete”. The Court then entered a stipulation that the Nunez Judgement no longer applies to ACS. The report states, “The various reforms implemented by ACS have decreased violence and improved safety and have showcased ACS’ and facility leadership’s commitment to design and sustain a durable vision for the facility’s operation that addresses youth’s individual needs and supports the staff who work at Horizon. Fundamentally, the Monitoring Team’s goal is to become unnecessary, and ACS has demonstrated its internal capacity to identify and address its problems and challenges without the need for external oversight…Now that ACS has achieved Substantial Compliance with the three final provisions in the Fourth Voluntary Agreement, it appears the Monitoring Team’s work with ACS is complete.” On December 9th, the United States District Court for the Southern District of NY entered a Stipulation and Order that the Consent Judgement no longer apply to Adolescent Offenders.
Enhanced the Ability for Staff to Get Their Work Done
Launched New Leadership and Professional Development Opportunities for ACS and Provider Staff. In 2023, ACS launched the Institute for Leadership Development (ILD), which provides executive coaching and leadership development to leaders at ACS and its provider agencies. It is a partnership between ACS and the Silberman School of Social Work at Hunter College. ILD is rooted in a leadership competency framework developed by the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute (NCWWI) that defines the standards of performance excellence to guide child welfare and youth justice leadership as they advance effective practice. Also in 2023, ACS launched the Provider Agency Scholarship Program which offers tuition support and continuous professional development opportunities to provider agency staff pursuing a Master of Social Work degree who are committed to working in New York City’s child welfare and juvenile justice systems.
Improved Our Infrastructure to Better Support Children, Youth and Families. In order to provide the highest quality of service to children and families, we refreshed many of our sites citywide and opened new, state-of-the-art spaces. The newly renamed Sabra Jackson Office of Advocacy and the Division of Child Protection's (DCP) downtown Manhattan office and other units across the agency moved to a new location at 110 William Street. The new site offers a workplace environment that will enrich the agency's work and interaction with the families we serve. For example, the new site has separate entrances, welcoming to both staff and clients. Entrances and amenities created solely for the public will allow for greater ease and efficiency in entering the building, and greater security for all. There are sufficiently sized reception areas, and many family meeting rooms, as well as other offerings for families such as: a children's playroom with toys and books, a "boutique" that will offer free clothes and accessories, a food pantry for families in need, and a designated area for older youth and teenagers with computer kiosks and Wi-Fi. We also opened a new child protection office in Co-Op City that offers a more modern and technologically advanced workspace that will better meet the needs of local families and ACS staff. The new site includes a food pantry to supply families with emergency groceries and clothing for immediate needs, family restrooms with changing tables, lactation rooms for families, a welcoming waiting area for children, and more. At the Nicholas Scoppetta Children’s Center, ACS overhauled the Family Visiting Center, installed a Wi-Fi café’ that provides a comfortable space for cell phone use and internet access for young people in our care, and created a Comfort Shop which is stocked with premium items that children receive upon arrival to promote healthy sleep.
For more detailed information on ACS’s work, New Yorkers can review the Strategic Priorities Fall 2025 Update.