Source
The Collaborative for Advancing Youth Development (CAYD)
Summary
New York City has committed to increasing universal access to afterschool. NYC Department of Youth and Community Development Commissioner Sandra Escamilla-Davies named the underlying challenge at a convening with more than 270 practitioners, nonprofit leaders and policymakers: “Universal afterschool depends on a stable, supported workforce.”
The recommendations in the “Investing in the Workforce to Sustain and Expand Youth Services in NYC” report, released in July 2026, grew out of the April 14 State of the Sector convening, hosted by CAYD at the CUNY Graduate Center. Participants gathered for the day to answer one question: How do we center the experiences of the people doing this work to build a workforce that can thrive?
“We brought practitioners and nonprofit leaders to the table because the people doing the work should shape the agenda,” said Marc Fernandes, senior director of programs at Youth INC, one of CAYD’s partners.
“Participants didn’t just name the challenges facing our workforce, they built concrete blueprints,” said Kim Sabo Flores of Hello Insight, a CAYD partner.
Recommendations
The report describes a workforce driven by creativity, relationships and deep community connections, yet also hemmed in by part-time roles without benefits, chronic understaffing, heavy compliance burdens and inconsistent funding.
CAYD reviewed the “NYC Commission on Universal After School 2025 Interim Report” as it developed recommendations. The report splits its recommendations into two groups. “Quick wins” that organizations can act on now include stronger 90-day onboarding, clearer career ladders and peer-led learning. Longer-term “systems investments” call on the city for centralized hiring and clearance systems; credentialing pipelines through NYC Public Schools, CUNY, SUNY and the Summer Youth Employment Program (SYEP); higher pay; coordination across NYC agencies to cut duplicative paperwork; and making the sector financially sustainable through better compensation, city-funded healthcare and retirement supports, more full-time roles, and stable, predictable contracts.
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The Collaborative for Advancing Youth Development (CAYD) is a committed partnership driven by a shared mission to strengthen and amplify the impact of youth development across New York City. Partners include Change Impact, CUNY School of Professional Studies Youth Studies Department, ExpandED Schools, Hello Insight, New York State Network for Youth Success, Partnership for Afterschool Education (PASE) and Youth INC.
Sarah Zeller-Berkman, Ph.D., developed and is academic director of the Youth Studies Department at City University of New York School of Professional Studies.
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