The Children's Aid Society was founded in 1853 by Charles Loring Brace and a group of social reformers at a time when orphan asylums and almshouses were the only "social services" available for poor and homeless children.

The Children’s Aid Society fills the gaps between what children have and what they need to thrive. We have been serving children for more than 150 years, a longevity that is a testament to our ability to adapt to the always changing needs of today’s youth. After all, you don’t succeed for 150 years by being old-fashioned.

Today Children’s Aid serves more than 100,000 children and their families at more than 45 sites throughout New York City. Our caring begins even before birth, through prenatal counseling and assistance, and continues through the high school years with college and job preparatory training programs. All aspects of a child’s development are addressed as he or she grows, from health care to academics to sports and the arts. And because stable children live in stable families, a host of services are available to parents, including housing assistance, domestic violence counseling and health care access.

Throughout Children’s Aid’s history, programming has been driven by the needs of the children we serve. This proactive approach started in 1853, when Children’s Aid founder Charles Loring Brace established the Orphan Train Movement in response to an epidemic of homeless children. This approach, which moved children from New York City streets to the homes of farm families out West, has been deemed the beginning of the modern foster care system.

Children’s Aid has continuously been at the forefront of children’s services. The first free school lunch program, the first industrial school for poor children, the first day care program for working mothers and the first visiting nurse service were all Children’s Aid initiatives.

Even today, Children’s Aid remains on the cutting edge of children’s services. The Carrera Adolescent Sexuality and Pregnancy Prevention Program has been replicated or adapted at over 50 locations in 21 different states. The community school model has been adapted by public schools throughout the U.S. and as far away as Vietnam. Children’s Aid’s concurrent planning approach to foster care became the basis for the federal 1996 Adoption and Safe Families Act, which defines today’s modern foster care system.

Children’s Aid accomplishes all this while maintaining a commitment to fiscal integrity. Children’s Aid commits an admirable 91 cents of every dollar donated directly to children’s services. This has earned Children’s Aid a four-star “Exceptional” rating for nine consecutive years from Charity Navigator, which rates the financial responsibility of non-profit organizations.

Children’s Aid’s ability to adapt to the changing needs of children and their families has kept us a relevant and vital component in the lives of New York City’s children for over 150 years. Our future, and the opportunities we will provide, are truly limitless.