Grandfamilies Alliance is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the economic security, housing stability, health, and wellbeing of grandfamilies \u2014 grandparents and other relatives who are raising children when parents are unable to do so due to incarceration, substance use, death, mental illness, economic instability, military service, or other family crises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We are a demonstration organization<\/strong>. We design, launch, and rigorously evaluate pilot programs that produce replicable, scalable models \u2014 then translate those models into policy reform and national adoption.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Across the U.S., an estimated 2.4 million grandparents<\/strong> are raising grandchildren. In New York City alone, roughly 250,000 children<\/strong> are being raised by relatives outside the foster care system \u2014 and in the Bronx, that number may reach 50,000\u201370,000 children. These families are largely invisible to major institutions and vastly under-supported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n When grandparents and relatives have stable income, stable housing, and access to coordinated supportive services, children can remain safely within their families \u2014 preventing foster care placement and improving long-term outcomes for both children and caregivers.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n Our approach is distinctive because it addresses income, housing, and services simultaneously<\/strong>, in one organizational model. Existing national organizations produce reports and policy tools. We build the proof.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Two national organizations address grandfamilies in a limited way: Generations United (which provides technical assistance and policy reports to institutions) and Grandfamilies.org (a legal database and information clearinghouse). Neither develops housing, runs income pilots, or directly serves families in a sustained demonstration model.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Grandfamilies Alliance fills a gap that has existed for two decades:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Over a five-year horizon, Grandfamilies Alliance aims to:<\/p>\n\n\n\n The children in these families deserve the same stability as any child in foster care \u2014 and the grandparents raising them deserve recognition, resources, and a genuine partnership with the systems they are already holding up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\n\nThe Scale of the Need<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nLong-Term Vision<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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\n\n\n\nLeadership<\/h2>\n\n\n\n