Ivonne Rodriguez, Spanish Press Secretary, Mayor's Office: Hi everyone. Bonjour. Hola. My name is Ivonne Rodriguez. I'm the Spanish language press secretary, and we're very excited to have you all here. I know a couple of folks are running a little behind because there was apparently a medical emergency in the subway, but hopefully everyone can join us. Today, you'll be hearing from Mayor Mamdani, who will be answering questions about the 2-K initiative that applications already opened. This program is going to impact communities across the five boroughs, so we're very excited to chat about what this means for all the different types of communities that encompass New York City.
Just as a reminder, we will only be taking one question per outlet, given the time that we have. We want to make sure that everyone gets time for their questions. If we have additional time, we can explore that. And later on, also, Emmy Liss, [the] executive director of the Office of Child Care, will be joining, and she can stay on to ask additional specific questions as well. I think we can go ahead and get started.
Question: So, I'm wondering, there's going to be more 2-K applications, how do you choose?
Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani: So, we are going to have 2,000 seats for this fall. These 2,000 seats will be across a number of districts across our city. The most important thing is this is the first step. We've talked about how next year we're going to have 12,000 seats, and then we're going to expand by the end of year four for a seat for every single two-year-old in New York City. And these applications are going to come in through the use of either myschools.nyc, where parents can apply using one of 13 different languages on offer, or they can call 718-935-2009 and apply over the phone or they can go to one of our 10 welcome centers. And then over the course of this month, we'll have applications open until June 26th. Then those selections will be made sometime in August.
Question: I've been speaking to parents in northern Manhattan, and they're incredibly grateful for the extended hours of the 2-K pilot, but they're already worried about its future. With applications open through June 26th, how is registration proceeding so far, and what concrete steps are you taking right now to secure long-term local funding before the state's two-year commitment runs out?
Mayor Mamdani: Thank you very much for your question, and please extend my gratitude for all of the excitement uptown. We have been in this process now for a little over a week at this point, and we're looking to use every single opportunity we have to spread the word. Just the other day, I was in Fort Tryon Park running a 2K for 2-K, and we're looking to get the word out because we want to make sure that every New Yorker who's eligible for this program, anyone who has a two-year-old living in these neighborhoods, knows that they have an opportunity to save more than $20,000 a year through this new program.
To your point, we've secured $1.2 billion in funding for this year and the next year. This is funding that allowed us to fix the issues that we were seeing with 3-K, where we were finally able to provide more seats to meet the demand in neighborhoods across the city, 2,000 additional seats to be specific, and to create, for the first time in New York City history, 2-K.
Now I'm very excited by the fact that the governor and I share a commitment to this program. She's spoken time and again about how this isn't just a two-year commitment; it's a long-term commitment. And so, we're confident as we go into next year of securing the future of this program.
Question: Mayor, we have such a big, high and growing Bengali population within District 10 and 27. So I wanted to know [what] other ways of modes of kind of outreach you are doing that are boots on the ground? Because a lot of our population does not really read a lot of the news and everything except for like the ethnic news and word of mouth. So, what other boots on-the- ground outreach is happening?
Mayor Mamdani: We are looking to use every possible form of outreach. So, one of the critical reasons that we're here today is that we also know that so many constituents living in these districts turn to each of you as their way of understanding the city around them. And this is a critical way to get the word out. Additionally, you know, the same day where I was running that 2-K for 2K, I then went to a church in the Bronx to speak about this program. We want to make sure that wherever New Yorkers are engaging with the world around them, we're also there.
And I think, to the point of the Bangladeshi population, which is an incredible thriving community in our city, we also want to make sure that this is a program that we make clear is one that is not only available to apply for in 13 languages online, but more than 150 languages through the phone number that I gave earlier. And that even the program itself will be taught in multiple languages, which is a flexibility that comes with home-based care. And that's one of the critical parts of our childcare infrastructure. And I'm proud to apparently have been the first mayor to have visited a home-based center.
Question: The area of Corona, Jackson Heights [and] Elmhurst, that you know very well, was known during the pandemic, like ground zero. Many, many new immigrants. I'd like to know your opinion about those families there who really need help. There are many undocumented. How important are they and how do you want to include them in this program?
Mayor Mamdani: I want to make very clear that we are proud to continue longstanding New York City Public School policy, where we will provide these services for everyone, regardless of their immigration status. And I know that in this moment, especially, there are many immigrant New Yorkers who are fearful given federal policy. And we are proud to be a city that they call their home. And these 2,000 seats, are the beginning of a program that will expand to 12,000 seats and more neighborhoods next year. And then we'll expand to every single two-year-old in New York City. And we know that this is an issue where the cost of childcare is pushing people out of this city. It is prohibitively expensive.
And we also know that there are many New Yorkers who build their livelihoods as childcare workers in this city. And we're proud that alongside this push to expand access to not just universal childcare for three-year-olds, but [also] to create, for the first time, universal childcare for two-year-olds. We've also invested $40 million in additional support for childcare workers across the city so that they can continue to do this work, all of it just as the first step that we're taking.
Question: So, what happens to the families who apply this year, and they don't receive a seat? Is there a wait list? Will they be communicated with ongoingly? Maybe there's a subprogram, something else that they can use for their kids or send their kids to?
Mayor Mamdani: So, I think, and this goes a little bit to the first question, that we are hopeful of the fact that there will be even more applications than there are seats. And we anticipate that as a reflection of the incredible demand there is for affordable childcare. We're going to do everything we can with the 2,000 seats we have to ensure that we're able to meet that. But then going beyond that, I think there will likely be a wait list, but I'll be sure to give you some additional information on that.
Jenna Lyle, Deputy Press Secretary, Mayor's Office: Our goal is ultimately to serve as many families as possible. And so, we are looking forward to being able to do that.
[Crosstalk.]
Question: As you know, Southeast Queens has some of the lowest childcare options in the city. Will your administration partner with local churches and nonprofits to hire local instructors skilled in the arts and STEM in the community?
Mayor Mamdani: I think, to your point, the importance of community organizations is critical, not just to the flourishing of life across our city, but even just to this program specifically. 2-K, universal childcare for two-year-olds, is something that we are going to be able to deliver in partnership with community-based organizations. And one of the things that we were so proud of doing was we put out a solicitation of interest, not just from the organizations that have been working with the city, but for the first time in many years, organizations that haven't been working with the city, giving them a chance to join this.
And what we have found is these are the neighborhoods where we are able to deliver this new childcare for free at this speed and then next year to expand that. So, we're proud, for example, in Queens, that these 2,000 seats will be for Ozone Park, South Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Woodhaven, Howard Beach [and] the Rockaways, and then thinking about how do we expand that year over year.
Rodriguez: I also just wanted to note that Emmy Liss, [the] executive director of the Office of Child Care, is here.
Question: How has the application response been so far? Can you give us numbers or even a temperature check? Is it overwhelming or is it tepid?
Mayor Mamdani: I would say that at this early point, we don't yet have numbers, however, the excitement that we're seeing is immense. Just being there on a Sunday morning running with hundreds of New Yorkers to celebrate this moment, it is indicative of the fact that childcare is a necessity for people across the city. It's not a nice to have. For a family that is looking to build a life here, that they would be able to save more than $20,000 a year, it would be transformative. Emmy, I'm not sure if there's anything you'd add to that.
Emmy Liss, Executive Director, Office of Child Care and Early Childhood Education: It's also, I will note, it's the first year, so there's a lot of work we need to do to make sure, as much as we've been enthusiastic about 2-K and have folks coming out to the race, that now it's our job to get out and make sure families in these communities know to apply. Because it's the first year of 2-K, we're building awareness at the same time that we're encouraging families to come out and fill out their applications, so would agree with what the mayor shared. The enthusiasm has been wonderful. We are seeing applications come in, and we want to make sure we're leaving no corner of these districts untouched as we try to make sure families understand this is available for them.
Question: Just on, I guess, the interest, I know obviously we're talking about 2-K, you released those figures for Pre-K and 3K, and it was kind of plateaued in terms of the interest. As you said [and] as Emmy said, we're in the first year of this, so you're kind of getting the word out. From speaking to a couple of parents, I think, because it's in its first year, there's maybe an apprehension, I guess, just in terms of what the quality of service might be. So, I guess for those kinds of holdouts, in terms of people who may qualify and want to apply. What necessarily, particularly, as you look to build it out and add more seats next year? What will kind of be the process in terms of ensuring that quality if there for parents who are looking to sign their kids up?
Mayor Mamdani: We have long sought to ensure that this is a program that is not only universal in its access but also incredibly high quality in terms of what it actually delivers. And some of that is through a rigorous quality control process that occurs throughout the implementation of these childcare programs. The other piece I would say is that I understand family's apprehension after having seen years of City government cutting back its investment in outreach, cutting back its commitment to these kinds of programs. We knew we were inheriting a 3-K system, free childcare for three-year-olds, and yet we also knew that for too many families the distance between the site they were offered and where they lived was so prohibitive that it felt as if the promise was solely technical.
Yes, they were being offered a seat, but could they even use it? And so, one of the key things that we wanted to do was not just create a new program but fix an existing program, and we were able to cut down the commutes for families across the five boroughs for 3-K while also offering these new seats for 2-K. I cite all of this to say that the best way to convince a family about this program is through the power of example, and we are excited at the fact that we are going to start this program this fall, and we believe that in this program, in these 2,000 seats, parents will see exactly the kind of childcare that they have wanted and finally see it at a price point that won't require them to actually even dip into their pockets.
Executive Director Liss: I can jump in and talk a little bit about some of the specific steps we take to ensure that all programs are high quality. So first, the programs that we are partnering with to offer 2-K this fall are existing childcare providers, many of whom have been operating in their communities, serving their communities for decades. These are center-based and home-based providers who have rich, deep experience and are licensed and in good standing with all of the regulatory bodies. Once they come into the 2-K program, they are also gaining access to very regular coaching and professional development from New York City Public Schools, so there are instructional coaches and social workers who come out to the site to make sure that the teachers and program leader have what they need to continue building a quality program and building on what's already in place.
They are offered professional development throughout the year. They are expected to implement a high-quality curriculum and offered support to make sure that they're doing so. We also have many programs that, particularly our home-based programs, are offering instruction in a language other than English, which we know is something for families who speak another language at home, something they might be looking for as their child is transitioning into a formal care setting for the first time or just because they want to make sure their child is learning in the language they speak. Like our Pre-K and our 3-K program, we believe, as we enter 2-K, that young children learn best through play. So, if a parent goes into a 2-K program, they'll see children with blocks and in centers. They'll see them exploring sand and water and what happens when they mix them together. They'll be going on neighborhood walks and looking at all of the interesting things around them and beginning to use language to describe what they're seeing. They'll be learning to share and take turns for the first time sometimes and not always easily and well. And I think we anticipate that across all of our programs, quality will look different. You can have high quality that is adaptive to the setting.
Our center-based programs will have 12 two-year-olds and two teachers in a classroom, and it will look for somebody who's been in a formal daycare program, like a classroom. We also will have two-year-olds in mixed-age home-based settings where the two-year-olds will be learning alongside infants and older children as well. And again, they may be learning in different languages, but all of those things can be high quality, and our goal is to build a system where we are meeting providers and families where they are, ensuring that everyone has a high quality experience but that it's responsive to how different communities might prefer their program to look.
Question: How many kids are being born in the City of New York?
Executive Director Liss: There's about 80—
Question: Those are your clients.
Executive Director Liss: There are about — I mean, it changes year to year, but the last couple years, the birth cohort has been about 85,000 kids or so.
Question: I know my colleagues have really asked all the questions that I wanted to, but I wanted to make the point again about the community outreach. And how does your administration going to maintain that this program is really in touch with the community? Because again, community, these services are very much needed. So, how does the community stay engaged with this?
Mayor Mamdani: I think one way is to ensure that we are out in the community and that we are making it as simple as possible. You know, earlier, Anisha was asking about the Bangladeshi population, and I was referring to the 13 languages on the website, one of which is Bangla. We need to be able to meet these needs. When you're talking about the community — and you know, I was at a church in the Bronx on Sunday after the race, and we had what is called a treat truck right outside of the church. The point of that truck is that you could go there and sign up for the childcare immediately. Right after the race, we had a number of DOE employees there with us, as well as volunteers who were signing parents up after they finished running this race. So, to me, it is always how do we make it as easy as possible to sign up for this program? Because too often, government programs, they feel like you're jumping through five hoops, and then you find out if you're eligible.
We're telling everyone that everyone is eligible. These are the neighborhoods we're rolling this out in, and we want them to apply. And then it's our job to make it as easy as possible for them to know that and for them to do that. And so, whether it's the 10 welcome centers, whether it's the phone number, whether it's myschools.nyc, or whether it's us out there in the community, that's going to be a critical thing. And I think, to the earlier points, the prior administration cut funding for outreach over years. And what that did was also diminish trust in the program itself, alongside cuts in funding for the program. So, we are having to reverse a lot of what we're inheriting, and we're hopeful that — might not be in a day, might not be in a week, might not be in a month — but the more that we do, the more people understand this is a long-term commitment to the City of New York. Thank you, Vernon.
Rodriguez: I just want to make sure, is there anyone who hasn't asked a question? No? Okay.
Mayor Mamdani: Do you have a question, sir?
Question: So far, no.
[Crosstalk.]
Question: Just in terms of — you have been, you're very good, your office is very good on marketing and outreach. And we love what we see because it's fresh and it's new and we want to get in. Everybody wants to be a part of it. Is there a particular ad spend for the newspapers here so that we can get the message out? And when they come to our websites, they click on a button and it's easier for them to get to, because a lot of times, they're not out in the community. Hardworking parents are working. When they get off, sometimes, they may not be on their phones, they may click on our papers. Is there a particular ad spend that you guys, that you have?
Mayor Mamdani: I think there is a broader ad spend. Let me just ask — do we have?
Executive Director Liss: So, because we were, you know, coming in kind of mid-year with this program, we didn't necessarily have a full ad spend budget committed for this first year of 2-K. I think that's — as we rebuild our outreach arm, something we are looking at doing for the future years as well.
[Crosstalk.]
Question: I'm concerned, mayor, that what you're looking at is a small allotment of seats. And again, I apologize if this has been touched on and that the need is so great. Are you satisfied with this number? And to the end — to the extent that you're going to continue to advocate for more, what guarantees do parents have that there'll be continuity of service?
Mayor Mamdani: You know, Senator Warren describes childcare as infrastructure. And I think it's a critical way of understanding what enables a city to provide childcare. It's the community-based organizations, the centers, the home-based learning, the childcare providers and the educators themselves. And these 2,000 seats that we're offering this fall; they are the first step. The next step is 12,000 seats next year, where we expand to more neighborhoods, more boroughs. And then our commitment is to get to every single two-year-old by the end of four years. Now, as I was sharing earlier, we have secured a $1.2 billion commitment from the governor for this year and the next year.
However, the governor and I share a longer-term commitment to childcare. And she has made clear in no uncertain terms that her commitment to this program is one that goes beyond those two years. And that is something that we are excited about. Next year will be a year where we secure that longer-term future of this program. And what I would say is, we take very seriously that when we raise parents' expectations, that we have to continue to meet those expectations. And we take that seriously because there's a responsibility when you ask someone to hope and when you ask someone to believe, you have to be able to meet that. And we're going to do that.
Rodriguez: Great. I just want to note that the time with the mayor — yes. But Emily Liss will be available for additional questions for the next couple of minutes if folks have more questions about the program.
Mayor Mamdani: Thank you all so much. Thank you.
[Crosstalk.]
Question: So, when you reached out to the operators to set up the first phase of this program, what were they telling you as feedback? As in, we need this in order to make this first phase successful. Like what were their needs?
Executive Director Liss: So, as you know, we're building this first year of 2-K in partnership with existing childcare providers. Many of them already have a relationship with the city. They've been offering Pre-K and 3-K for years. And I think many of them were really encouraged and enthusiastic about the idea of — because they already serve two-year-olds, but those families are paying out of pocket — being able to bring the program to families for free. And for some programs, they've had an empty classroom for years, and they haven't been able to bring kids in because families can't afford to pay what they would need to run the program. And so, this is giving them an opportunity to turn those empty classrooms into spaces that will be full of children. I think as we prepare for the fall, what we've heard from programs is they want to make sure they have the workforce in place to support these programs.
Many of them have already had teachers and want to make sure that they can retain those teachers. For programs that are bringing in new teachers, they wanted the support and assurance to be able to onboard new staff programs. Some programs have a really strong outreach arm themselves and are able to bring families in because of their reputation in the community. But others are really excited to have the support as we do outreach and make families aware that they are there. I think above all, our childcare providers and partners want to be recognized for the work they've been doing tirelessly and often under-recognized in their communities. And so, I think a big part of what we are trying to do as we move this expansion forward, and frankly, in all of the work that we do in this administration, is recognize the incredible labor and commitment of our childcare providers. And doing that requires really being in deep partnership with them, recognizing the costs they face to run high-quality programs and working to meet those.
Question: Do you have to live in the district to be eligible for the program?
Executive Director Liss: Families who live in the five districts where we're launching 2-K have priority for the program. Families who live outside of those five districts are welcome to apply, though the priority will be for those who live in the district.
Question: And I apologize if this has been touched on, but I do know that Tom Honan, among others, have started to sound the alarm, if you will, about wanting to up ICE enforcement in the city. And I know that that trickles down to concerns that any parent would have, but particularly immigrant families, would have about enrolling in a municipal program. Can you speak to that and the concerns that they are now, yet again, sort of having refreshed?
Executive Director Liss: This is something really on our minds as well, as we think about the experiences of immigrant families who deserve to participate in these programs just as much as every other New Yorker. Families who apply for 2-K will never be asked about their immigration status. There are no requirements at all, and we will never ask them for information about their or their children's status. As we do outreach to encourage families to apply to the program, we recognize that for families — particularly those who are fearful of immigration enforcement — government is not the most trusted messenger. And so, we are doing outreach to leaders of faith-based institutions. We are working with trusted community organizations and partners and asking them to share messaging about the 2-K program with their community members and constituents so that they hear it from someone other than government, that this is a program that is open and welcoming and safe to them.
Question: Just thinking about my readers. So, if they ask me, how can I apply? So, what is the best way? Because I say, "Oh, there are 10 centers." They don't know.
Executive Director Liss: So, the easiest way to apply is families can visit myschools.nyc. The application is available in 13 different languages. It's accessible on a mobile device. And having used myschools.nyc myself to apply for my own children for 3K and Pre-K, I can promise you it's pretty easy and straightforward. But that said, families who may want a little bit of additional assistance or may need help navigating the website or may want to apply in a different language beyond the 13 available, they can call 718-935-2009 and get help in more than 200 languages to apply over the phone. And they can as well go to any of the 10 family welcome centers where there is support available in 200 plus languages.
Question: Can you repeat the telephone number?
Executive Director Liss: 718-935-2009.
Question: Yeah, I just wanted to follow up just in relation to immigration. I was curious, like, as you guys were reaching out to particularly home care providers, did immigration come up at all as a reason why a provider might not want to participate in terms of putting their home or their business kind of more or so on the map, as you will? Has that come up at all for you, for providers?
Executive Director Liss: So, the providers we are working with are all licensed by, if they're home-based providers, they're licensed by the state. Our center-based providers are licensed by the city. So, they are on the map already in a sense. So, we haven't heard that as much from providers. Certainly, we do hear from providers on behalf of their families. They represent the fear and they've seen, especially in certain immigrant communities, enrollment down in their programs because families are fearful about enforcement. And we know that it's an issue staff and the teachers and programs may be fearful about for themselves or their families as well. So, I think we want to just continue to reinforce that this is a program that's open to everyone. We will make sure that anyone who is offering 2-K, enrolling in 2-K, knows their rights and knows that they are safe in these programs.
Question: I don't know if this is outside of your expertise here, but I wanted to ask about the 2-K Jingle Contest. Obviously, I think that a couple of the entries have been put online and obviously it's in the kind of end phase. One of the requirements was the non-use of AI. And obviously this competition comes at a time when AI is so accessible. I was just curious how was the entries being kind of fielded for AI usage and had that come up a lot at all in the entries, do you know?
Executive Director Liss: I think broadly I'll say we were very delighted by the enthusiasm around the 2-K Jingle Contest and it really brought out the creativity in a large swath of New Yorkers. And the entries were all screened to make sure that they were original, that we were lifting up the original talents of our fellow New Yorkers. And so there were, yes, there was a screening process to make sure that the final contestants all were fully original.
Question: Can I just ask what exactly is that screening process like? Is it a software or how is it done?
[Crosstalk.]
Question: As you ramp up in scale, what can providers who perhaps — potential would-be providers — who are looking at the landscape and going, "I think I want to do this." How can they best align with the goals to come so that they can sort of join in the program and begin to build capacity?
Executive Director Liss: Yeah, that's a great question. So, for this first year we're working with providers, center-based providers and home-based providers, in these five districts who are already licensed and operating. As we look to years two and beyond in 2-K, we will continue to tap our existing childcare provider base. We will also have a little more of an on-ramp and more time for folks who may be considering opening a business or considering expanding business in their community. All programs will have to meet the licensing standards, the rigorous health and safety requirements that are set by the city and state depending on their setting type. And then programs who are new to partnering with the city will go through a procurement process in order to enter into partnership with the city.
Question: [Inaudible] perhaps help to mentor budding programs so that they more closely align and meet those standards?
Executive Director Liss: That's something that we are looking at, especially for home-based providers, for those who might be interested in partnering with the city, haven't done so in the past. And so, looking at some of the direct supports, whether that's coaching, licensing support for those who are currently informal providers and want to become formal providers. Yeah, so we're looking at all of that. And I would say sort of broadly zooming out a little bit, even just from 2-K, the work that my office — the Mayor's Office of Child Care and Early Childhood Education — does is at its core centered on [the question]: How do we make it easier for child care providers to open, operate and sustain their businesses in the city? So, we've been engaging in a broader set of activities to understand what childcare providers need. Where are they getting stuck in the city's processes?
We had a roundtable last month with Deputy Mayor Su and members of her team to think about what are the small business service applications, fees, processes where childcare providers get stuck? How are the city's agencies working at odds with each other in a way that makes it harder for providers? And we walked away from those sessions with really specific ideas and suggestions. We're also, we just kicked off a listening tour with home-based childcare providers where we are similarly gathering feedback about the particular aspects of government bureaucracy that just make it hard and take time out of a provider's day. And that's time we want her to be spending with her children, building and putting herself into her business, not navigating 10 different government websites. And so, my team is spending a lot of our time and energy thinking about how we make this a city where it's easy for childcare providers to do the work that they love.
Question: In the press release that we received, I believe yesterday, it was mentioned that in August the city is going to announce the new seats. Is that true?
Executive Director Liss: So, families who apply for 2-K between now and June 26 will receive their offers the first week in August.
Question: Oh, the application?
Executive Director Liss: Yes. Thank you.
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