Help NYC's Students in Need Catch Up at School

Thank you so much for supporting Children’s Aid’s fundraiser to help New York City’s students catch up at school. Your generosity allows us to provide academic interventions, tutoring, homework help, GED classes, and other supports to New York City’s students who fell behind during the pandemic, especially those living in poverty.

These kinds of services are critical for children who experienced profound learning loss as a result of the school closures, virtual learning, and other disruptions caused by the pandemic. And studies show that, even several years after the worst of the pandemic, learning loss continues to be profound. Math and reading scores are at a two-decade low, and the inequities in education between poor and wealthy students has only worsened. Many experts believe that this education gap will affect today’s young people for decades to come.

That’s why at Children’s Aid, we use the community schools model to provide students with critical services—from health screenings, to counseling, to after-school programs, and tutoring—all within the school building. By providing these services, community schools prioritize the major concerns that contribute to learning loss: chronic absenteeism, the mental and physical health of students, and after school academic support. Students spend more time at school when all their needs can be addressed in one place and they are being supported and cared for.

The community schools model is a groundbreaking and effective method of combating pandemic-induced learning loss head-on. Yet, New York City leaders are gutting the community schools budget by $10 million this fiscal year and plan to cut more than $75 million next fiscal year. That is why your donation is so critical and greatly appreciated. Through the support of people like you, we can ensure that New York City’s children can catch up at school and reach their full potential.