Mayor Adams unveils $100M plan to make child care more affordable across NYC
NYC expands 3-K, parents say it's not enough
Mayor Adams announced that his administration has now offered 3-K seats to every family who applied on time. However, some parents are pushing back on this saying it’s not as good as it sounds. FOX 5 NY’s Linda Schmidt takes a closer look at the ongoing controversy.
NEW YORK - With school just around the corner, NYC Mayor Eric Adams and the city council announced a high-quality plan to make child care more affordable across all five boroughs.
NEW YORK, UNITED STATES - 2022/04/26: Mayor Eric Adams delivers State of the City address and reflection on the first 100 days of his administration at Kings Theatre. Mayor Adams also unveiled a balanced budget for the next fiscal year. Mayor reviewe
"All families deserve to live in a city with a safe, nurturing, and affordable place to leave their children, while being given the opportunity to pursue their dreams," Mayor Adams said.
A $100 million has been invested for early childhood education, early childhood education programming for children ages zero to five, and preschool special education.
Since the budget was announced and approved two months ago, New York City Public Schools added over 1,500 new 3-K seats in high-demand areas for the 2024-2025 school year.
Mayor Adams said that the number of 3-K seats has tripled in recent years. However, some parents are saying this plan isn't as good as it sounds.
"We started off with 94%. 94% never done before. We're now at 100%," Adams said.
Since May 2024, they have reduced waitlists and provided first-round offers to 100% of families who applied before the deadline for mid-August.
How are parents reacting?
"My reaction is it's not true," Rebecca Bailin of New Yorkers United for Child Care said.
New Yorkers United for Child Care is an organization that includes thousands of parents.
"The city keeps saying parents who applied on time got a seat. A: No they didn't. Every parent applied on time. It's the city that didn't get back to them on time," Bailin said.
Bailin said that some people received free 3-K seats that are far from home.
"We have people in Manhattan who got seats in the Bronx," Bailin said. "We heard from one family in Queens who got a seat in the Bronx."
About the education plan
Summer camp students crossing the street in East Broadway. (Photo by: Jeffrey Greenberg/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
The Adams administration and the city council are aiming to strengthen the city's early childhood education system, improve resource allocation, and better connect families with available seats.
"Our plan focuses on better allocating resources to meet needs, conducting robust family outreach, supporting providers, and expanding access for students with disabilities, as well as undocumented families," Mayor Adams said. "Every day, we will continue to build a city focused on supporting working-class people, that is safer, more prosperous, more affordable, and, most importantly, that invests in our children."
The plan focuses on:
- Increasing 3-K access for families this school year
- Expanding family outreach strategy
- Increasing preschool special education classrooms
- Free extended hours of early childhood education for children and their families
- Expanding support for undocumented children through Promise NYC
- Funding the mayor's office of child care and early education
- Providing more support for child care and early childhood education providers and programs
- Establishing the "Child Care Advisory Group"
- Convening bi-weekly meetings between the Adams administration and the City Council
- Ensuring that city agencies have the staff and resources to support the infrastructure of the city's early childhood education system
The first day of school for NYC students is Sept. 5. To access the 2024-2025 school calendar, click here.