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HASTINGS-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. Joy G. Dryfoos, a former longtime resident of Hastings-on-Hudson, died March 18 at her home in Brookline, Mass. She was 86.
The author of seven books on collaborative social service models and teen development, Dryfoos is credited with originating the concept of full-service community schools, 5,000 of which are operating today, according to the Coalition for Community Schools.
In a review of her book, Full Service Schools: A Revolution in Health and Social Services for Children, Youth and Families, the late Sen. Edward Kennedy wrote: "As Joy Dryfoos makes clear, more services under the school roof mean better education too. Putting real social services in schools means more teachers can stop being part-time social workers and start being full-time teachers again."
She received a bachelor's degree from Antioch College in 1951 and a master's in urban sociology from Sarah Lawrence College in 1966. Married to the late George E. Dryfoos, they were residents of Hastings-on-Hudson for most of their adult lives.
Dryfoos was a co-founder of Coalition for Community Schools and Full Service Schools Roundtable in Boston, Mass. From 1969 to 1981, Dryfoos was director of research and planning for the Alan Guttmacher Institute in New York, the research and policy affiliate for Planned Parenthood.
She led landmark studies documenting teen pregnancy, contributing 100 articles to various publications regarding adolescent development. In 1981, Dryfoos became an independent researcher and writer under the support of Carnegie Corporation of New York.
Surviving are her son Paul Dryfoos, daughter-in-law Cindy Rodgers and two granddaughters, all of Brookline. She was predeceased by her brother Louis Gidding.
Funeral services were held at Levine Chapel in Brookline, followed by interment at Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson.
In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be sent to the Children's Aid Society, 105 E. 22nd St., New York, NY 10010.
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