As School Year Approaches, A Rush For Pre-K Seats

Around the five boroughs, parents are rushing to land the handful of universal pre-K seats that remain in the city – and residents in our area are crossing their fingers that their child receives a spot in the newly added slots in School District 15 (which includes parts of Windsor Terrace and Kensington), the New York Times reported.

The Times article details the hope and frustration that comes with the last-minute addition of the seats, with one Kensington parent saying her family wouldn’t be able to afford a private pre-k seat if her child doesn’t get off a wait list or win the lottery at Bishop Ford High School, where there are now new pre-K seats available.

From the Times piece about a pre-K event at PS 10 in South Slope yesterday:

By midmorning, on the first of at least five days that children in District 15 could be entered in a lottery for the new slots, the auditorium at Public School 10 in South Slope was thrumming with the sounds of restless children and their anxious chaperones. And there were already about 90 names on the list for 126 seats.

The free pre-K seats come as part of an initiative from Mayor Bill de Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo to create a universal full-day pre-K system for 4-year-olds in the city. This fall, the city is expected to offer 33,000 full-day seats in community centers around the city – a significant increase over last year’s 3,360 seats. Public schools are slated to have 20,400 full-day slots, up from last year’s 16,100.

Again, from the Times:

But Halyna Kushyk, who lives on the border of Windsor Terrace and Kensington, said that if her daughter, Alexandra, did not get off a wait list or win the lottery at Bishop Ford, their local private schools, which can cost thousands of dollars a year, were not an option.

“If she does not get into pre-K, she’ll go to a Russian-based day care,” Ms. Kushyk said, as Alexandra experimented on a well-worn piano at the front of the auditorium. Ms. Kushyk and her husband are from Ukraine, and Alexandra has picked up Russian from some of their neighbors.

“I have no choice,” Ms. Kushyk said. “I’m working.”

If you’re a parent of a pre-K student, what has your experience been? Any advice for people who are still hoping to get a pre-K spot for their child?

Photo by Barnaby Wasson.