Professional Development

ACS is committed to offering our staff and provider agency staff the learning, coaching, and support necessary to provide the highest quality services to the children and families in our care.

The Office of Training and Workforce Development is housed within the Division of Policy, Planning, and Measurement, and includes the ACS James Satterwhite Academy, the ACS Workforce Institute, and the ACS Institute for Leadership Development. Together they provide foundational and continuous learning for child welfare and juvenile justice direct service staff and supervisors.

Learn more about the Office of Training and Workforce Development.

James Satterwhite Academy

The James Satterwhite Academy (JSA), named for its founder and first Executive Director, focuses on establishing the foundations of fundamental practice for newly hired direct service staff and supervisors. JSA supports NYC child welfare and juvenile justice staff as they begin their careers to deepen the knowledge, skills and values needed to fulfill the ACS mission of ensuring the safety, permanency, and well-being of New York City's children and to strengthen families.

Workforce Institute

The Workforce Institute (WI) provides ongoing professional skills development of direct service staff and supervisors at ACS and its many partner agencies across the child welfare and juvenile justice sectors. WI provides professional development opportunities and coaching to support a culture of continuous learning among direct service staff and their supervisors so they can deliver services that build on family strengths and reflect the unique needs of each child. The Workforce Institute also houses the Professional Development Program, which provides all levels of support, including two scholarship programs, to ACS employees who are considering or actively pursuing undergraduate or graduate-level studies.

Institute for Leadership Development

The Institute for Leadership Development (ILD) supports leaders working within public and private child welfare and juvenile justice agencies in New York City to foster psychologically safe work environments that embrace equity, transparency and innovation while supporting the workforce. It is rooted in a leadership competency framework — developed by the National Child Welfare Workforce Institute — that defines the standards of performance excellence to guide child welfare and youth justice leaders as they advance effective practice. ILD's vision is to establish one workforce of visionary and empathetic leaders who can navigate challenges, inspire their teams, ignite positive change within New York City's child welfare and juvenile justice sectors, and support children, families, and communities to flourish.