More than 2,000 children received offers for New York City's inaugural 2-K class on Tuesday, and Zohran Mamdani said the demand shows families need free child care now. More than 5,700 families applied for just over 2,000 available seats, giving the city its first read on how quickly the program filled.
Officials said each free seat saves families an average of $26,000 a year. They also said 82% of families who got initial offers were matched with one of their top three choices, and more than half received their first-choice program.
Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday
"The overwhelming demand for 2-K shows what families across the city have known for years: New Yorkers need free, universal child care, and they need it now," Mamdani said Tuesday in response to the results. He also said, "More than 5,700 families applied because affordable child care allows New York families to stay in the city they love."
He added, "That's how government should work, and this is only the beginning. Together with Governor Hochul, we'll keep expanding 2-K until every family that wants a seat can get one."
Kathy Hochul and funding
Kathy Hochul said, "Thousands of families across NYC are applying for childcare for their two-year-olds, making clear that this is the kind of opportunity that families have been waiting generations for." She also said, "Starting a family while working full-time was nearly impossible for me, which is why I've made it my mission to make sure no parent has to choose between their career and their children."
Hochul said, "I am committed through the program next year. I can't commit future budgets at this time, but I can tell you right now I'm excited about the growth of this. This is just the very beginning." Earlier this year, she made a $1.2 billion, two-year commitment to get the effort rolling.
Center for New York City Affairs
The program launched earlier this year through a partnership between the city and state and made more than 2,000 free seats available at child care centers and family child care homes across five school districts. Officials said the majority of seats will be full-day and full-year, and families who did not receive an initial offer will be contacted directly about waitlist options as additional seats become available in the coming weeks.
A new study by the Center for New York City Affairs estimates the 2-K program will cost $3 billion more than the mayor has projected, a gap that puts the next phase of expansion behind the arithmetic already on the table. Families may continue to join waitlists regardless of whether they applied during the June application period, but how the city and state will secure enough money to expand 2-K beyond the initial rollout is not answered.
