Behavioral Health

Identity & Acceptance Program

Adolescent Health Education Initiative Children's Care Management Identity & Acceptance Program Circle of Security Parenting Program Mental Health Services for Children in Foster Care Health Services for Children in Foster Care The Children’s Health Center of The New York Foundling School Based Mental Health Services School Response Teams Supportive Housing

LOCATIONS SERVED:
All 5 NYC Boroughs (Manhattan, Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Island)
AGES SERVED:
Young people 0-21 years old and their families
HOW TO ENROLL:
Complete the referral form.

Every young person deserves a community who respects and understands them. The Foundling’s Identity & Acceptance program offers an array of clinical services for LGBTQIA+ youth across New York City, with the aim of creating a more equitable and inclusive world.

Nationally, LGBTQIA+ youth experience high levels of discrimination, and are at higher risk for depression, anxiety, eating disorders, experiencing homelessness or placement in the foster care system, substance use and attempted suicide. Our trained staff works to prevent these negative outcomes, through providing psychoeducation, therapy, and resources around sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression to children and young adults, their caregivers, and youth-facing professionals.

Based within The Foundling’s Home of Integrated Behavioral Health, the program uses a holistic approach to assist people at all stages of their journey – from children starting to navigate their identity and looking for safe spaces, to families who want to better understand their children or repair a strained relationship. Acknowledging the intersectional identities of the young people that enter the program, our staff offer support to directly address all forms of trauma that our participants may experience, including sexual, gender, racial, and ethnic discrimination. Through individual, group, and family therapy, The Identity & Acceptance Program helps LGBTQIA+ youth and their families thrive in a loving, affirming environment.

The program serves youth ages 0-21 and their families across New York City.

Services offered include:

Free individual and family therapy (for birth, foster, or chosen families)
Access to free Psychiatric Services and Consultation
Free youth and Parents Support Groups (groups are offered in the Spring & Fall, topics vary)
Free community youth events
Letters to support of gender-affirming medical intervention
Resources on Non-Medical TGNCNB interventions
LGBTQIA+ job support and connection to LGBTQIA+ affirming summer camp opportunities

Questions? Contact Identity@NYFoundling.org.

Click here for additional LGBTQIA+ Resources.

Download the Flyer (English)

Download the Flyer (Spanish)

Complete Our Online Referral Form

Prefer to complete the form offline? Click here to download.

Watch the video below to learn more:

Success Stories

From the hospital room to a happy home

Marina was thrilled to learn she was pregnant for the second time. But when she discovered she was expecting twins, the excitement quickly shifted to anxiety. It had been nearly 13 years since she had her first child, and she worried that having twins would be a completely different experience. With guidance from The Foundling’s Healthy Families Program, Marina refreshed her parenting skills and learned about community resources available to her and the new babies, Amaya and Ayden. From the hospital room to today, The Foundling's family support specialists have been there every step of the parenting journey. “The program has given me confidence in being a mom,” she says.

Full Story