Dear NYFS Supporters,
As we close out August and welcome September, we are again in the rhythm of seasonal transition. It is the time of year that much of our programming ramps up again alongside the families that we serve. Our school-based mental health services welcome students back from summer breaks, our outpatient therapists adjust their schedules to match the new school and college schedules of many of our clients, and we settle into the structure that the school year offers. I too am in this liminal space, as a parent of school-aged children, with all the anticipation and excitement this school year brings.
In preparation for this transition, we just completed our annual staff training week and welcomed our 2024-2025 Internship Program cohort to the agency. We have new bachelor’s and master’s level providers, including those who are a part of our Steps Toward Equitable Practices Scholar (STEPS) program, which focuses on facilitating psychotherapy training for graduate level BIPOC interns. All are eager to begin their trainingand the energy they bring is palpable.
We are also pleased to have completed our FY2025 budget (July 2024 – June 2025), which boasts a small financial profit (40k) on a nearly 4.7-million-dollar budget. Just two years ago, when I started with NYFS in June of 2022, we were looking at a near $790,000 deficit on a $2.6-million FY2023 budget. This is the first time in many years that NYFS has projected a profit on our budget, and is representative of an incredible agency turnaround that we accomplished through deep investment in our staff, our model of care and organizational identity, and our trauma-informed space. Our financial sustainability is secure, and it represents an extraordinary investment in the organization by the board, the leadership team, and our exceptional staff.
Of even greater importance is the remarkable change in the impact on our community. This last fiscal year we served 895 clients over 24,083 appointments! This is a nearly 50% increase in clients served and more than a 100% increase in appointments over the prior year (605 clients in 11,630 appointments in FY2023). This is where we see the real story – we are serving more people in our community through more contacts over time; we are serving folks in deeper and more meaningful ways. We couldn’t be prouder.
With increased need in our communities, we look forward to continuing to deepen and broaden our impact with your support.
Best,
Angie
