New York City announced the launch of the Early Childhood Education 10-Point Plan on August 29th, investing $3 billion to improve the quality of early childhood education in all five boroughs and address long-standing systemic issues. The plan aims to increase the availability of Pre-K and 3-K slots, as well as conduct outreach efforts to improve enrollment rates.
Mayor Eric Adams and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams held a press conference to unveil the Early Childhood Education 10-Point Plan. Since Adams took office, the city has seen a record-breaking enrollment of 150,000 students in the early childhood education system. The number of 3-K slots in public schools has increased by about 17%, reaching over 53,000 slots, with every school district having 3-K programs to facilitate local enrollment. The plan, developed by a joint working group of the city government and city council, includes an additional $100 million budget for the 2025 fiscal year (from July of this year to June of next year), bringing the total budget for early childhood education to over $3 billion. The initiative aims to overhaul the early childhood education system comprehensively, building on current achievements and further enhancing education quality.
The 10-Point Plan will be implemented through collaboration between public schools, the Mayor’s Office of Early Childhood Education, and various city agencies in partnership with the City Council. The key components of the plan include:
1. Allocating $20 million for the 2024-2025 school year to increase over 1,500 3-K slots in public schools. Children who apply on time before the deadline will have a guaranteed admission rate of 100%.
2. Investing $5 million in outreach efforts to communities with low enrollment rates to increase the number of children entering 3-K and Pre-K programs.
3. Adding special education classrooms to Pre-K programs, providing an additional 450 special education slots with a goal of increasing a total of 700 slots throughout the school year.
4. Extending the school day for 3-K and Pre-K programs at no additional cost. An extra $25 million budget will be allocated for the new school year, bringing the total budget to $40 million to increase thousands of enrollment slots.
5. Expanding assistance to undocumented children through Promise NYC, increasing funding from $16 million in the 2024 fiscal year to $25 million in the 2025 fiscal year, providing childcare services to approximately 1,000 undocumented children.
6. Allocating a budget of $485,000 to the Mayor’s Office of Early Childhood Education to oversee citywide early childhood education efforts and execute the 10-Point Plan.
7. Expanding support for child care and early childhood education institutions and programs.
8. Establishing the Child Care Advisory Group to oversee policy planning and implementation.
9. Holding bi-weekly meetings between the city government and city council to review plan implementation progress and address any issues.
10. Ensuring that city agencies have adequate manpower and resources to support the city’s early childhood education system.