New York Life Foundation Grants $450,000 To The Children’s Aid Society’s Next Generation Center

Grant Funds Expansion Of Services For Teens Aging Out Of Foster Care

The Children’s Aid Society announced today that it has received a two-year, $450,000 grant from the New York Life Foundation. This grant will increase the number of 14-to-24-year-olds served to 700 per week by the Next Generation Center in the South Bronx. The Next Generation Center offers services to youth in foster care who are facing the transition into adulthood, including educational help, financial management training and leadership in a safe environment.

This is the second grant The Children’s Aid Society has received from the New York Life Foundation, which funded the Next Generation Center in 2006 with an initial grant of $102,000. As a result, membership grew to 300 from 20 youth per week.

“We are delighted that the New York Life Foundation has continued to fund our program, which will now provide more youth who are ‘aging out’ of the foster care system with the information and skills to become responsible, self-sufficient adults in a safe environment,” said C. Warren Moses, chief executive officer, The Children’s Aid Society. “The support these young adults receive is life-changing and not simply a quick fix. They will use the skills they learn for the rest of their lives.”

“We are pleased to continue this gratifying partnership and help more young people obtain the services they need to overcome the challenges that come with transitioning out of the foster care system,” said Chris Park, president, New York Life Foundation. “The Next Generation Center provides an extensive range of services to make a successful transition to independent living.”

The Children’s Aid Society’s Next Generation Center assists youth through educational workshops and financial management and leadership training designed to help them complete their educations, gain employment, find housing, get health and mental health care, and learn life skills.

According to the Administration for Children’s Services, every year 1,100 young people “age out” of New York City’s foster care system when they reach the age of 21. Without family or responsible adults to lean on, these youth are left to make the transition to adulthood alone and unsupported, often without basic skills.

In fact, one in four will be incarcerated within the first two years after they leave the system; over one-fifth will become homeless at some time after age 18; and there is only a 58 percent chance of their even graduating from high school.

Because of the urgent need and high demand for these services, The Children’s Aid Society moved the Next Generation Center to a new, 10,000 square-foot facility in 2007. With the increased space, the Center now has double its previous capacity.