Early Childhood Education
Mayor Zohran Mamdani is betting big on the program, which he hopes to expand to 12,000 seats next year and citywide by the end of his first term.
Erica Phillips, a nonprofit leader with a history of supporting family childcare providers, will take over the Education Department’s Division of Early Childhood Education at a critical juncture.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced $43 million in funding and other reforms to resolve chronic city payment delays to early childhood education providers. The backlog threatens the rollout of his signature 2-K program.
State officials say several initiatives underway will help ensure the program is high quality.
The mandate was first introduced as part of Eric Adams’ NYC Reads curriculum overhaul. Early childhood programs can now apply to use other options.
Under New York regulations, parents who receive the vouchers through a popular state-funded program are only supposed to get the benefit for hours when they're working or in school.
School districts must provide language support services to students, but implementation looks different from district to district, with no real way to track their impact on pre-K multilingual learners.
The rebates could cost the counties up to $700,000 in property tax proceeds, but a county commissioner called it an easy decision.
Eligible childcare workers can still claim the $1,200 credit even if they’ve already filed their 2025 taxes.
Republican Sen. Scott Bright said the bill represents an “outside the box” solution to the funding crunch.
Home-based childcare providers were largely left out of past efforts to provide free childcare to 3- and 4-year-olds, but Mamdani has promised an inclusive approach for 2-K.
A new study finds public education helps narrow resource gaps for children in poverty. But disparities persist in housing, health care, nutrition, and informal education
The full-day and full-year coverage sets 2-K apart from 3-K and pre-K, which in most cases only cover the cost of child care for six hours and 20 minutes a day from September to June.
State lawmakers cut funding for the program that mails free books to children, and First Lady Maureen Braun took over fundraising for it. Nearly a year later, the program has expanded access.
Colorado is among five Democratic-led states targeted by the Trump administration’s January funding freeze threat.
Pueblo 60 has lost thousands of students in recent years. It plans to repurpose several school buildings for new uses, including preschool.
A new analysis finds the academic payoff of starting kindergarten late petered out within a few years.
CUNY is renewing efforts across its 26 campuses to train the next generation of early childhood educators as New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani seeks to expand free child care.
Criteria include a child’s overall health and development, plus their attitude toward learning. But debate continues about whether children need to be ready for school or schools need to be ready for children.
Cities and states are funding preschool programs to give more students a good start on their education.