Transcript: Mayor de Blasio, First Lady McCray, Chancellor Fariña Kick Off First Day of School with Launch of 3-K for All

September 7, 2017

Mayor Bill de Blasio: To all the parents, I want to say good morning. Congratulations, your kids are in 3-K.

[Cheers]

And to all, we’re going to talk to the media in a few minutes, but all the leaders who are here with me join me in saluting you because this is the beginning of something wonderful for your kids. The only problem we had this morning was getting all my colleagues to stop playing with the Play-Doh because they were having a little too much fun.

[Laughter]

But I want to say to everyone I know we have a new principal in this school. Congratulations to you, too. But parents here’s what I want to say to you – for Chirlane and I, we’re having beautiful memories today of when our daughter Chiara and our son Dante first went to school. And it is the beginning of something magical. They went – our kids went at four years old for pre-K, but this is a whole new day now where three year olds are going to get this great chance, and you’re going to see these wonderful children blossom before your very eyes. You see already they are already engaged. They love their play do. They have a great teacher right here. I can tell she’s going to be great.

[Applause]

And you’re going to see what children can learn at the age of three is unbelievable. I always use the example. If you send any of us as adults to another country, we’re going to often struggle to learn a language, but a three-year-old can learn another language like instantly. Their minds are so open to growth and learning. Now we’re going to have an opportunity to really tap into that, so they can learn right now starting at three – they can start to learn and grow, and it’s going to make a huge difference in their lives. So you’re going to see your children just in the course of the next few months, they’re going to be able to do so many more things than you ever could’ve imagined, and this is going to give them a big head start in everything up ahead in their education and in life. And one of the greatest things about 3-K – and you’re already starting to see it here – is kids learn to work with each other. They learn to listen. They learn to share. It makes all the difference in the world.

So you parents, you are the very first New Yorkers to ever experiences 3-K. You are the very first wave.

[Applause]

And it’s something your kids deserve. It’s something you deserve. And you know what was important to us? That it be for free, so everyone could actually take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.

[Applause]

It’s for everyone – every child. So my friends, I just – from the bottom of my heart, congratulations to all of you. I said to Chirlane when we were walking down the street, I said I wish I could be in your shoes today because later they become teenagers.

[Laughter]

Okay?

So, really enjoy this time. But it’s a magical, magical day, we’re so happy for all of you. Congratulations.

[…]

First Lady Chirlane McCray: Thank you, Jessica. This is an exciting day for everyone, isn’t it? Especially for little ones like Joshua, Noah, and Joelle who let us walk them to school today.

For children, the first day of school is all about change. New friends, new adventures, new routines, and all of the endless possibilities of a new year. And with maybe a new backpack and a healthy dose of nervousness as well. For parents, especially those marking the first, first day of school, it’s a bit more emotional. It’s exciting but also tough to see your little ones leave your side and grow up. But then there’s so much about being a parent that’s very tough, and that’s very true even without all the stresses of daily life – with the paychecks that just don’t stretch far enough to cover the rent, the clothing, the childcare, and all of the mental and physical gymnastics it takes to make sure that your child is safe and that they’re able to take advantage of all of the opportunities that are ahead of them.

In New York City, we want to make it easier not harder to raise your children, and that’s what programs like 3-K and Pre-K for All are all about. And not only do they make life easier on parents. They give our littlest New Yorkers the skills they need for good emotional health like how to make good choices, handle conflict, or cope with change and stress. The man by my side has joined me for so many first days of school over the years. In fact, just took Dante back to Yale a couple of weeks ago, and I have to tell you – those feelings? They don’t end.

They really don’t. It changes, of course. It’s different when they’re older, but we still feel it. Like me, Bill is so proud of what New York City schools did for our children over the years, and he’s deeply committed to making sure we help every child lay the foundation for a healthy and successful life.

Mayor de Blasio?

Mayor: Thank you so much, Chirlane. 

Everyone, this is just a beautiful morning in every way. And it is – it really does bring us back for Chirlane and I – to remember that magic of the first day a child goes to school. It’s an amazing, amazing thing. And she’s right – it never ends. You feel it every first day, but there’s nothing like the very first day. And as I say to everyone, later on they become teenagers, so you really want to enjoy these days, and I’ve got to say walking Joelle to school this morning was a joy. I want to encourage parents that if your child is hesitant about going to 3-K, give them a firefighter hat because it really worked with Joelle.

[Laughter]

He changed his mind immediately and decided he wanted to know all about this 3-K thing because you get a hat with it. So he was very excited.

But I want to say to Jessica, I really appreciate everything you said, and I want to specifically say to Joshua and to Noah – Joshua, Noah, your mom is up here, and she’s speaking to this whole crowd of people, and she’s doing such a great job. So you have a lot to be proud of. You have a very special mom. She’s doing a great job, and I can tell you two are really great children as well.

[Applause]

And Jessica, I really appreciate that you told a story that is true for hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers – that if you don’t have a good option for your kids, you end up turning to a friend, a neighbor, a relative, and you know they’re going to be there for you, but it’s not the same thing as a child getting an education and for so many parents they just didn’t have a choice. They needed someplace safe for their child to be. There was no way they could afford a proper early childhood education. We wanted to right that wrong, and we wanted to do it in every part of the city. And 3-K, you know, when you think about it – the typical New York family is paying $10,000 or $15,000 to get something like this for their child, and there’s so many families who could never afford that. And so what happened, really over the years was, educational opportunity was determined by economics. If you had resources you could give your child the right kind of start. If you didn’t have resources, it’s not your fault, but your child didn’t get to realize their full potential. That’s not right. That doesn’t create the kind of society we look forward to.

So what we’re seeing here today is a beginning. Here in this district in the Bronx and also in Central Brooklyn. We’re seeing the beginning of something very big where a whole generation of our children are going to get that great education from the beginning.  Every single one of them will have the same opportunity, and for parents – and here’s a great example – Jessica has already benefited from having one child go through pre-K, now Noah is going to go through 3-K and pre-K. That’s, right there, $30,000 or $40,000 or more that she would’ve had to spend for that for her children. And imagine the heartbreak that parents feel when they know that’s out there? They know that opportunity is there, but they can’t reach it economically. We don’t want parents to feel the stress. As Chirlane said, there’s enough challenges being a parent in New York City. We don’t want them to feel that stress. We want them to know that’s going to be there for them. So this is the beginning of something that will stretch out over the next four years. Today, this morning, over 1,400 children will be starting 3-K in the Bronx and Brooklyn. That number is going to grow over the next few weeks. Here at P.S. 277, 30 kids starting 3-K. This is literally where history is being made right here in this school.

[Applause]

And I just want to say there have been so many people who contributed to this. You’re going to hear from some of them who made this day possible. Look – this never existed before! Never existed. It was a dream. When we started pre-K, we knew that would be tough to put together, and everyone worked so hard to achieve it. And then we started dreaming some more. We said what would really be the next step if we want to reach every child, give them the strongest possible start? And we said 3-K – and, you know, of course some people said ‘is that possible? Can that actually be done?’ Well, the beautiful thing about these dreams is people put themselves to work, and they start applying themselves, and look – something that was not even conceivable just four years ago, there’s 30 kids here who are going to live that dream today. So there’s something really powerful happening here, and I want to thank everyone who has been a part of this. I want to give a special thanks to our colleagues at the Administration for Children’s Services and thank Commissioner David Hansel who’s played a leading role in helping us bring all of this together.

[Applause]

And I’ll conclude before turning to the Chancellor – I’ll conclude by saying this is part of a package of things we’re doing to change the school system. People have asked me all the time – how are you going to change something that needs to be better? Our educators have worked so hard. Our parents have worked so hard. But we need to do better – how do you make it better? You do it better by starting early and making sure everyone has the same opportunity, and then all the other things that we plan up ahead – all the ways we’re going to help kids be on grade level by 3rd grade in reading, all the things we’re going to need to do to strengthen middle school including giving our kids algebra, which will not be popular but will be very good for them.

[Laughter]

Making sure every high school – every high school – has Advance Placement courses, the ultimate example of opening the doors of opportunity for college is Advanced Placement courses, but they’re not just supposed to be for some. They’re supposed to be for everyone. That’s what Equity and Excellence is all about. So we’re well on the way to a whole new reality for the children of our city, and Noah is going to be part of the vanguard here changing this city – the first wave of kids who go to 3-K.

Jessica, a proud, proud day for you and thank you for all you are doing.

And let me say a few words in Spanish before turning to the Chancellor.

[Mayor speaks in Spanish]

With that, it’s my pleasure to turn to the leader of our school system who’s done an outstanding job making all these changes – Chancellor Carmen Farina.

[Applause]

Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña: Well, good morning. First of all, this is the first day of the rest of their lives for many children in New York City, and as a teacher I understand that the first day of school is special on so many levels. We do not sleep the night before because I dread the thought of rain. Any principal in New York City knows you don’t want rain the first day because you haven’t set up the routines yet, you haven’t set up the structures. You also have teachers who are worrying about am I going to be the right fit? I mean I have talked to one of the teachers this morning for 3-K, “have you ever taught three year olds before?”, “No but I am very excited”. The sense of joy, the sense that anything is possible, the sense of hopefulness, which is very, very important, important in some parts of our city more than others, is crucial to the success of our children. Also the principal who greeted us this morning, Natasha, this is her first September. This is her first opening day. 

[Applause]

She did what any good educator does. She brought her mother with her. Mom, would you please stand up?

Mayor: Give mom all the credit.

[Applause]

Chancellor Farina: And the reason that I mention this is that for those of us who love teaching know my father who came to school with me the first day, all the time. Just so I could tell him what I needed him to do in the classroom to help me with the kids. Teaching involves everyone. It involves parents, grandparents because if we are going to have successful students, successful children, they need to feel comfortable. They need to send a sense of confidence. I met the parent coordinator in this building today, and she is already ready. I suggested one of the children is a little shy and needs a little extra attention, but that is what we do every single day, but the first day of school all of us believe that we can be the magic ingredient for every single child in front of us. We don’t ever want to lose that sense of hopefulness because that is what is going to get the next step.

Also in this specific school and this district, you already have literacy coaches. That means Joshua is also going to have something to work with his teachers to ensure that every child in second grade is reading by the end of this year. That to me is just another layer because you have the 3-K, the pre-K, the second grade, and this also a district that has a single shepherd program. That means starting in sixth grade, in this district, there is either a guidance counselor or social worker assigned to every family to follow the family because if we are giving them the foundation for learning, we want to make sure they go to college and beyond, and this to me Equity and Excellence is about. It is about fulfilling the dreams of our parents who really want what is best for their children, and it should not be decided by economic status. I sent three – my daughter sent three grandchildren off to school today. I called all of them to see how it was going and wish them well, and one of them said to me, he doesn’t want to go to school, the five year old, because he thinks he knows everything already and doesn’t think he has to go to school to learn more.

[Laughter]

And the reality today the one of the messages I’ve given teachers – make sure every child at every school learns at least one new thing today and tomorrow, so they’ll know there is a reason to come the day after and the day after. I really wish everyone the best but I am really excited about this year, I always love September, but I am particularly excited with all the extra scaffolding that we put in all of our schools so that every one of our students is successful.

And you’re going to say it in Español, right?

Mayor: In Español. Also – explain the scaffolding, doesn’t mean physical scaffolding, it’s an education term.

Chancellor Fariña: It’s all the support a family needs. It’s all the support that a school needs and a child needs to be successful in school. Yes, we have too much jargon in the Department of Education, but that is what that means.

[Chancellor Fariña speaks in Spanish]

Chancellor Fariña: It wasn’t an exact translation, but you know.

Mayor: You get to – you get to be creative. We are thrilled to be here in the council district of the Speaker and a district that has deserved a lot more support and 3-K starting here is a great example of the changes that are needed all over the city and it’s happening right here. We welcome SpeakerMelissa Mark-Viverito.

[…]

Mayor: Alright, let’s turn to the media. Any questions about opening day first, and then anything else on your mind. Anything about opening day, 3-K, and then you can go to any topic.

Question: Thanks for having us and happy back to school.

Mayor: Yes, thank you.

Question: I’m curious, later today the State Chancellor Rosa is going to [inaudible] Success Academy just to sort of see how they run themselves, how they do things differently. I’m curious if you have any interest at this point in visiting a Success Academy on the inside to see how they get their test scores and the kind of achievements that they rack up?

Mayor: Well look, I’ll start and the Chancellor may want to offer as well. The – my broad view of the charter movement is it’s a very diverse movement. And there’s a lot of charter schools that we have been partnering with very, very effectively in this school system. And many that are doing a great job and many that are reaching kids in particular need, and I appreciate that especially. Our job is to make sure that every child is educated, and by the way you know, every kind of school we care about that deeply.

I’ve – it’s well established I have some differences with Success Academy. But, I have focused on visiting some of the charters that I think we see a lot of great work being done in and some examples to learn from. I’m going to be visiting a charter later today as part of our tour around the five boroughs. So I think my simple answer would be there are some that I certainly have been impressed by and I see as very kindred and that’s where I’ll put my focus. I have some differences with Success Academy but obviously I wish success for their children and their parents.

Yes?

Question: Mayor, some of your colleagues in government are meeting with President Trump today regarding the Gateway Tunnel. Governor Cuomo is going to be in Washington along with Senator Schumer and others; I was curious whether you were invited to that meeting? And, whether after your comments last night and at other times about you know how to deal with Trump, what kind of strategy do you think that lawmakers should be taking in meetings like that?

Mayor: Look, I don’t – I did not hear of an invitation to that meeting but it doesn’t surprise me because this city doesn’t have a direct role in funding the Gateway project. A very, very important project for this city, and as you know Governor Christie unfortunately threw a real curveball or real wrench into that process a few years ago. So, I’m very happy to see it getting back on track. But I think that is an appropriate topic for our federal representatives and certainly for State leaders.

My position have been consistent, we’ve seen unfortunately the same thing from the President from the beginning. There was not room to really find a place where we could work together because unfortunately his policies have been very divisive and very negative. If he’s suddenly changing who he is, you know, we’ll assess that, we’ll believe it in action not words. We’ll assess how to deal with that. But, I think in terms of Gateway, I’m very comfortable that the right people are handling that situation.

Yes?

Question: [inaudible]

Mayor: I was actually – you first, and then you. Did you have your hand up? 

Question: Mayor de Blasio, last night you called congestion pricing a regressive tax. How do you square that with the fact that 56 percent of New York households do not own cars and those that do own cars earn a median household income twice that of those that do not?

Mayor: Because, again, I want to start at the beginning. There is no congestion pricing plan on the table right now in Albany so it’s not wrong for people to talk about their philosophical views but I want to emphasize we literally did not have anything to assess from the Governor or anyone else. And I believe fundamentally the millionaire’s tax is the best way to go; the most sustainable, the most high impact in terms of addressing the issues of the MTA, and providing for the fair fare which is half price fares for low income New Yorkers.

But, on the question you raise, and I – it’s very simple, if you’re a wealthy person you’re not going to change your behavior one bit because of the presence of congestion pricing. If you’re a working class person, and there are plenty of working class people in New York City who have cars and need them for their work, or to go about their lives, or to go to hospitals or whatever, it’s going to affect your behavior in a different way. So, what I’ve said is. I haven’t seen a policy yet or a proposal yet that address those equity issues. I do know the millionaire’s tax is a progressive tax by definition.

Question: I know that you, the Attorney General, the Governor himself [inaudible] threatening litigation for President about DACA –

Mayor: Yes.

Question: – [inaudible] developments for that?

Mayor: We’re waiting to hear back from our law department on the specific actions we can take. We’re certainly going to pursue every litigation possibility to stop this horrible impact on 30,000 young New Yorkers.

But I also am increasingly confident even since just a few days ago, I’m increasingly confident that there will be congressional action. So while we’re perusing all of the legal possibilities, I would say our number one focus now will be on working with mayors around the country both Democrat and Republican to move those Republican swing votes in the House and Senate to get to the critical mass to pass the DREAM Act. That’s the best solution overall.

And you know years ago you might have said that was impossible, I might have thought that myself, but so much has changed. The American people overwhelming believe that DREAMers should be allowed to stay, and I think a lot of Republican members of the House and Senate realize it would be immoral to not fix this problem. But we want to create more pressure on them to act from the grassroots up and that’s why I’ll be working with my fellow mayors. 

Way back.

Question: There was a police involved shooting last night, a person was killed. The first police involved shooting caught on body camera –

Mayor: Yes.

Question: Will you tell us what you learned about that?

Mayor: I’ve spoken to Commissioner O’Neill several times. I’m going to keep this very broad because obviously the matter is under investigation but to the best of my understanding this originally was a call for the police officers to come over that did not involve any information suggesting that there were weapons involved by the person who they would be meeting, nor even that it was an emotionally disturbed person.

And from what I understand our officers tried in many, many ways to address the situation and to avoid the use of force. Unfortunately, the emotionally disturbed person did have a weapon. And it – you’re exactly right, it is the first one I certainly remembered that has been captured on body cameras. We’ll have more to say about it as the investigation proceeds. There’s also going to be a question of our colleagues in government have to look at this too, including the District Attorney, before we can determine how to handle that footage.

But, I think it’s an important fact that the era of body cameras on our police has begun in this city, and it’s going to give people a lot more confidence in how things are handled. But, we’ll have a lot more to say as the investigation proceeds.

Yes?

Question: Amazon is currently taking bids for having new offices in different parts of the US, would you be interested in putting in a bid to have an office in New York City?

Mayor: Hadn’t heard they were doing that. We’re always looking for opportunities to get more businesses in here to employee more New Yorkers, especially if they’re good paying jobs that will help New Yorkers afford their own city. So I don’t know the details of what they’re trying to do, but we certainly want to have a conversation with them to see if they can have a bigger presence here.

Before I go on, I just want to welcome and thank for her extraordinarily good work on behalf of the children of New York City and New York State, and she’s a proud daughter of the Bronx, the Chancellor of the New York State Board of Regents, Betty Rosa. Welcome.

[Applause]

Thank you so much for being here. Any other questions, yes Lindsay.

Question: There was a group that has been pushing for investigations into yeshivas –

Mayor: Yes.

Question: – went to the steps of City Hall yesterday and released their own report saying that a lot of the schools are not teaching students secular studies, and for two years you’ve been investigating this. The latest we heard was a report was going to – an interim report was going to come out September 22nd. Now we’re getting vague – no date again. Do you know when a report will come out? Will it be before the election? Why has the delay been so long? Obviously there are critics saying that it could be politically motivated that you’re not putting this out before the election.

Mayor: There’s just more work to do, Lindsey. We gave an initial projection. We found that we have to do more work. We have a lot more schools to visit to get to a firmer conclusion. But look in the meantime there’s been a lot of dialogue with the Yeshivas. Very purposeful efforts to address these issues even as he overall situation is being assessed. I believe the message has been received that we need high-quality education for all of our kids and that we’re going to be consistent about that.

But I think the dialogue that’s going on is very productive. I think everyone is trying to find common ground. As soon as we feel we actually feel we have assessed the situation completely enough, we will come forward with that report but I do not have a date for you. But I do think progress is being made as we speak.

Who hasn’t gone? Go ahead.

Question: So, Mr. Mayor –

Mayor: Louder.

Question: I have a question regarding the free lunch program announced yesterday. So, I’m looking to clarify whether the City, specifically, took any action to expand the free lunch program to all students this year or was it expanded simply because the State did a better [inaudible]? 

Mayor This is – no, I appreciate the question. So, more funding became available to us and in a way that made it possible to do the universal program. And it’s something, obviously, we wish had been done by the State earlier but it’s a great thing. It’s something we’re really happy about and it’s going to allow us to provide free lunch for every child. So, we saw the opportunity and we grabbed it. Way back.

Question: Mayor de Blasio, why do you believe that marijuana should be illegal?

Mayor: I believe the laws we have now are the right laws when I look at everything, when I look at public safety, when I look at the complaints that we get from a huge number of New Yorkers about marijuana smoking in their buildings, and when we look at something my wife has spoken about, you know, the development, the mental development, brain development in young people and what exposure to marijuana could mean.

There’s a lot of reasons why I believe the current laws are right but I also think they have to be implemented in a balanced way which is why we decided with the NYPD not to arrest for low-level possession only to do a summonses.

But I’ve said, look, we’re getting more and more information from other cities and states as they implement their new laws and it’s going to tell us what all the ramifications are in terms of safety, in terms of health. And that’s going to give us more of an opportunity to decide if we want to take a different path going forward.

Yeah behind you, Jillian. Go ahead.

Question: I was just going to ask, with the ramp-up of 3-K whether you guys are staffed up, whether there are any vacancies that you’re still looking to hire – where that stands?

Mayor: Thank you. I’m here with – in addition, I should introduce him – Deputy Chancellor Josh Wallack. He’s played a leading role in this effort. And you know, this is a ramp up in two districts and then we’re going to keep expanding each year going forward. So, as to staffing today –

Deputy Chancellor Josh Wallack: As for the new 3-K program, we’re completely staffed up and filled all those vacancies. And we’ve been working both in the district schools and with our partners at the Administration for Children’s Services and our own community-based organizations to help them fill vacancies as well.

Question: [Inaudible] starting today?

Deputy Chancellor Wallack: All in all when you look at the full offering of seats between the Administration for Children’s Services and the Department of Education – together we’re offering about 1,600 seats in the two districts.

Mayor: Go ahead, Jillian.

Question: Just a follow up on an earlier question about congestion pricing. In the first debate you said you thought that Move NY would be unfair to residents of Brooklyn. Do you think –

Mayor: And Queens.

Question: And Queens. Do you think that the current tolling structure is fair to residents of say Staten Island who have way fewer connections to the city but they’re the burden of an MTA toll, and their one bridge that connects them to [inaudible]?

Mayor: Look, I think what is something I appreciate about the Move NY idea which obviously was put out four years ago, is we should rethink all of this in a fairer manner. But my point is simply this – you’ve got two boroughs that have not had tolls on those bridges since those bridges have existed. They, between them, are almost five million New Yorkers. 

And no plan that I have seen has responded to the fact that those five million New Yorkers will be paying for something they did not have to pay for in the past. How is that going to be fair to them? What will they get back in that equation? How is the regressive tax reality going to be addressed? How are equity questions going to be addressed about hardship for people? For example, if you’re a low-income person and you have to go to a hospital in Manhattan, what is going to be done in your case?

So, there’s a lot of outstanding issues which is why I’m not comfortable with the concept to-date. I haven’t seen a proposal that addresses those issues. Again, there is no actual proposal in Albany. 

But if you know there is bigger movement on all of these issues, it is an opportunity to rethink tolls all over the city.

Question: [Inaudible] today, that people in Staten Island or in Whitestone or way out in the far reaches of Queens have to take the Gil Hodges. Should those people – why should they pick up the tab for Brooklyn residents who have like 12 subway connections to Manhattan?

Mayor: Again, I think it developed over time. I think there’s real equity questions for sure for Staten Island but I think the best way to address is to look at the whole piece. If we’re going to make adjustments, it should be done in a fair manner. So I would prefer to discuss this as a whole and again to-date I have not seen a plan that addresses the whole.

Question: Thanks. Just to follow up on Lindsey’s question. Can you tell us a bit more about specific evidence of progress you’ve seen at these yeshivas you’ve been looking at?

Mayor: Again, I will keep it broad. If the Chancellor wants to offer anything, feel free obviously. But my view is there’s been a very productive dialogue. We are making sure that people understand the standards. We’re making sure they understand how committed we are to the standards. And every yeshiva is different just like every charter is different, right, like every traditional public school is different. But I think the question is – how do we get to the right outcome? And this dialogue, I believe, is one of the things that will get us there.

Anything to add?

Chancellor Farina: It’s an ongoing investigation and the reality is that we have visited some schools but we haven’t visited enough schools. So, that is what we’re in the midst of doing now. School has just started today and our plan is visit schools over the next few months to come up with a much more specific guideline.

Question: Just to follow up –

Mayor: Yeah.

Question: How many of these schools have you actually visited?

Mayor: We can get you the facts on where we stand and what more we have to do. Last call.

Question: Is there a waitlist for 3-K, and if so, how many families are on it? And can you find more space within these two districts to accommodate all the families that want it?

Chancellor Wallack: So, we can get you the specifics. We do have waitlists in some programs and we are confident that by next fall we’ll be able to offer a free, full-day, high-quality pre-kindergarten seat to the families – every three-year-old that wants in District 7 and 23. And we also have additional seats in Early Learn programs around the city. So, if families reach out to us now we may be able to help them find a seat that’s available.

Mayor: And families can reach out to 3-1-1 and go on the City website if they want to apply for 3-K. As we know – a couple other points – the application process continues for weeks and weeks. In a lot of cases we don’t have kids finally get into seats until well into the next month just because families make different decisions. 

But look, we said this would be a two-year ramp up in these two districts. That was true of the original pre-K initiative as well. It took a two-year ramp up in District 7, District 23. It’ll be two years. We’re going to announce new districts for next fall. That will also be a two-year phase-in.

That’s the model we’ll do because we’re creating something absolutely new. You know, with pre-K we had it in some places full-day, we had it in other places half-day, and obviously we didn’t have enough of either.

But with 3-K, we’re starting something entirely new. So, we want to be realistic that the ramp up takes longer. But as Josh said, every child in District 7 and District 23 will be served by next September. 

Thanks, everyone. Congratulations on opening day.