Donna Norris Wood Joins ACS
February 22, 2013 – Donna Norris Woods joins that Austin Children's Shelter as director of special projects.  See announcement in Austin Business Journal.

KVUE Interviews ACS and SafePlace Leaders About LIFT Alliance
February 5, 2013 – More than 18,000 Austin women and children are abused each year. And studies show domestic violence and child abuse often overlap one another. That's why two Central Texas organizations are joining forces to fight the problem.

CEO of Austin Children's Shelter Kelly White and Executive Director of Safeplace Julia Spann spoke to KVUE about the issue. See the full story on KVUE.

Austin Children’s Shelter and SafePlace Form the LIFT Alliance to Prevent Violence in Families and Intimate Relationships
January 15, 2013 – Austin Children’s Shelter and SafePlace today announced the formation of the LIFT Alliance to combat child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence. The purpose of the Alliance is to improve services for clients of both agencies, work to change the systems and assumptions that reinforce the cycle of violence in families, and allocate scarce resources more efficiently.

“More times than we could count, our hearts were broken by the eventual outcomes of our clients,” said Kelly White, CEO of the Austin Children’s Shelter. “We’re seeing a continuous cycle of abuse and violence: teen moms in foster care often lose their kids due to abusive relationships, and teen boys often wind up in the juvenile justice system. All too often, women leave SafePlace only to lose their kids because they could not protect them from further abuse.”  Read the press announcement.

Visit the LIFT Alliance website.

Dell Presented Baker Botts with 2012 Pro Bono Excellence Award
Firm’s Work for Austin Children’s Shelter, VLS of Central Texas Earns Special Recognition

Dell Inc.’s legal team presented its 2012 Pro Bono Excellence Award to Baker Botts L.L.P. for the law firm’s extensive work with Dell lawyers on behalf of the Austin Children’s Shelter and Volunteer Legal Services of Central Texas. 

"People ask me what I look for in an outside counsel," Dell’s General Counsel Larry Tu said during the ceremony. "I always respond that it is important for an outside counsel to listen to the client and align themselves with our commitment to the community in which we work. Baker Botts has always aligned itself with our interests in serving the community."  Press Relase

ACS Awarded Dell YouthConnect Grant for
Education Program
Thanks to a major grant from the Dell YouthConnect program, Austin Children’s Shelter’s foster youth will soon be equipped with technology skills to compete in academic and vocational settings, and to build advanced skills in creativity, communication, collaboration and critical thinking. Read about the program.

Unprecented Growth for ACS in 2010
The past year has been a time of unprecedented growth and change for the Austin Children's Shelter.  We have successfully weathered the associated challenges and stepped up to meet the needs of more youth than ever.  

In 2010, we dramatically increased our scope of service and client population... Read the full message from CEO Kelly White. 

KingsIsle Entertainment Donates $27K to ACS
KingsIsle Entertainment, creators of the award winning online game Wizard101, recently concluded its second annual charitable giving drive and presented the Austin Children's Shelter with a check for $27,591.  Read more here.

ACS Chef John Simpson Hit by Car
Early on Sunday morning, October 24, 2010, John Simpson, a chef at the Austin Children’s Shelter for the past two and half years, was riding his bike to work to bake his traditional Sunday morning blueberry muffins for the kids when he was struck by a car.  The driver fled the scene and a passerby found him lying in the street and called 911.  Read more..

ACS Expands Programming with Opening of First Long-Term Cottage
According to the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, 50 percent of youth “aging out” of foster care become homeless within 18 months of leaving care.  This is a heartbreaking story that can have a very different ending.

On June 28, 2010, ACS opened the Therapeutic Living Center for Boys sponsored by the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation.  For the first time in our 26-year history, the Austin Children's Shelter has begun a new program specifically designed to offer long-term care and transitional living services for older teens and young adults who have voluntarily returned to foster care. 

Kelly White to Be New CEO
The Austin Children's Shelter is pleased to announce that Kelly White will serve as the Shelter’s new Chief Executive Officer for ACS.  She will join ACS in July.

"Kelly’s leadership skills and experience will be tremendous assets as the Shelter enters an exciting expansion phase," says ACS Board Chair Ann Benolken. "We wanted to find a strong, visionary leader who understands the Austin community and has the knowledge and skills to successfully expand the continuum of care offered to Austin’s most vulnerable children.  We believe that Kelly is that leader." 
Read the press release.

If You Dream It, They Will Come
When we began planning the eight building, 13 acre campus that we now occupy, our technology team began designing a robust system for voice, data, security and audio/visual that would be advanced enough to be relevant for many years.