Jessica Aaron Fund for Youth Transitioning from Foster Care
The Jessica Aaron Fund for Youth Transitioning from Foster Care was established in 2024 to support CASA-NYC’s advocacy for young people aging out of NYC foster care.
Jessica Aaron, CASA-NYC’s former board president, has devoted her career to bettering the lives of vulnerable children and youth, and has had an indelible impact on CASA-NYC and the people we serve over the past two decades. Jessica’s greatest passion in her work with CASA has always been to advocate for young people transitioning from foster care and ensure they have the resources and support they need to succeed as young adults.
Through the generosity of Jessica and her husband Todd, this fund was established to celebrate Jessica’s legacy and provide ongoing support for youth transitioning from foster care in NYC.
The Jessica Aaron Fund supports programs and initiatives that ensure better outcomes for youth as they navigate the many challenges of aging out of care, such as securing housing and employment, furthering education and career training, accessing health and mental health care, and providing stable futures for their own families.
We invite you to join the Aaron family and have an impact on young lives by making a charitable donation to the Jessica Aaron Fund for Youth Transitioning from Care. The Fund will remain in perpetuity for donors who wish to designate their gifts to CASA-NYC initiatives for older youth. Our team at donorservices@casa-nyc.org is available for more information about how to give to the Fund.
About Jessica Aaron
Jessica first served as a CASA volunteer in Charleston, South Carolina, and was inspired by that experience to pursue a degree in social work at Columbia University. She joined CASA-NYC as a social work intern in 2005 and went on to found our Associate Board, which still thrives today. Upon graduation from Columbia, Jessica accepted a temporary position on CASA’s staff before joining the NYC Administration for Children’s Services where she held roles in policy and planning and as a Special Assistant in the Commissioner’s office. After leaving paid employment to raise her children, Jessica joined the Board of Directors of CASA-NYC where she served for 13 years, including as president from 2016-2020. Jessica also served on the board of the Citizens’ Committee for Children, including as chair and president. Since returning to live in Charleston full-time, Jessica has resumed her role as a CASA volunteer there, and joined the Board of Directors of the Dee Norton Child Advocacy Center.
Facts about older youth in care
Every year, approximately 500 young adults “age out” of the NYC foster care system between the ages of 18-21
*Courtney, Mark & Brown, Adam & Katz, Colleen & Love, Kara & Klodnick, Vanessa. (2011). Midwest Evaluation of the Adult Functioning of Former Foster Youth: Outcomes at Age 26.
CASA-NYC programming for older youth
CASA’s Youth Transitioning from Care (YTC) Project provides specialized training, resources, and support for volunteers who serve as advocates and mentors for young people aging out of the foster care system from the time of case appointment up until age 26. CASA volunteers serve as mentors, confidants, and tireless advocates during this crucial period in a young person’s life.
Pregnant youth and young parents who are in foster care or have aged out of care face significant challenges. These challenges stem from a lack of stable support networks, financial instability, and histories of trauma and neglect. Their children are at extremely high risk of next-generation foster care placement. CASA-NYC trains a cohort of volunteers to specialize in supporting, mentoring and advocating for young parents with the ultimate goal of ensuring they provide their children with safe, stable and nurturing homes where they will thrive. CASA-NYC also runs a support group for young parents to give them the information, resources and support they need to care for and nurture their children.
CASA-NYC's Youth Advisory Board (YAB) was established in 2018 (formerly the Youth Leadership Council.) The YAB is made up of extraordinary young adults with lived experience in the NYC child welfare system. These individuals lend their voices and expertise to helping CASA-NYC strengthen its services and support for the young people we serve. YAB members serve as advisors to CASA-NYC on policy and program issues and advocate for improved child welfare services on the local, state, and national levels.
The Youth Speaker’s Bureau (YSB) provides comprehensive training in trauma-informed storytelling for young people with lived experience in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. The goal of this initiative is to empower young people to speak out about their experiences without being re-traumatized or otherwise harmed in the process. The YSB curriculum was co-designed and is facilitated by former CASA-NYC Youth Fellow Brie Hayes, who grew up in foster care and has been serving on CASA-NYC Youth Advisory Board since 2018. YSB members provide training to all CASA-NYC volunteer advocates on engaging and supporting youth in foster care.
Our Youth Fellowship is a one-year, paid fellowship for a young person with lived experience in the child welfare system. This program was started in 2022 and funded by Brooklyn.org. The Youth Fellow works closely with the Director of Youth Services, co-facilitates our Youth Advisory Board, represents CASA on external committees, and participates in several internal committees, including all hiring committees. The Youth Fellow also serves as an advisor to the executive director and senior management on matters related to older youth.
Through our new Foster Care to Prison Pipeline Diversion Project (“Pipeline” Project) CASA-NYC is scaling our support for “crossover youth,” who are involved in both the child welfare and juvenile or adult criminal-legal systems.