North Rockland Full Day Kindergarten Advocates Travel to Albany to Push for Assemblyman Zebrowski’s Legislation that Would Expand Full Day K Statewide

Parents and advocates met with various members of the Legislature and Governor’s Office to lobby for the Zebrowski-Skoufis Proposal

Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski and Assemblyman James Skoufis welcomed constituents and members of the North Rockland Full-Day Kindergarten Advocates to the Capitol for their lobby day to push for Full Day Kindergarten for all New York children. The group, originating in North Rockland, has expanded to a statewide initiative and is comprised of concerned parents from the remaining nine school districts in the State that have half day programs. The advocates have been supportive of Assemblymembers Zebrowski and Skoufis’ efforts to bring Full Day K to North Rockland and the entire State. Assemblyman Zebrowski was able to secure key meetings with Governor’s office and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie’s staff for the group. Zebrowski and Skoufis joined the advocates in both meetings where they had a productive dialogue about the importance of expanding Full Day K.

The North Rockland Full Day K Advocates have been supportive of Assemblyman Zebrowski’s proposal to provide Full Day K to all New York School Districts by expanding the current full day conversion aid (A.8692). The bill would provide an enhanced incentive for school districts with half day programs to transition to full day by providing multi-year funding. The current incentive is only a one year grant, while the Zebrowski-Skoufis legislation creates a five year program that provides three times the additional aid. This method better helps districts that are struggling financially, like North Rockland, by providing increased funding and the flexibility to develop an individualized program. It would also mandate that any current schools that have Full Day Kindergarten, or those that choose to transition, maintain their programs ensuring that New York can move to Universal Full Day K throughout the state.

“Today, I joined with the North Rockland parents and advocates to convey one simple message: we need full day kindergarten for all New York children. New York has always set the bar high in ensuring our students are prepared and have access to a quality education, and providing full day K should be no exception. Early childhood education is essential to establishing the building blocks for success later in life and Full Day Kindergarten statewide is the next necessary step that we must take. My legislation looks to assist the remaining school districts with the transition to a full day program; East Ramapo and North Rockland would receive a combined $18 million to make full day a reality,” said Assemblyman Zebrowski. “The potential that a student could move backwards in going from a full day pre-k program to a half day kindergarten class is illogical. It shouldn’t matter what side of the street you live on to determine if you are eligible for this essential service.”

Assemblyman Zebrowski authored a sign-on letter to Speaker Carl Heastie urging the Assembly to include the expanded Full Day K conversion aid in the budget. Thirteen Assemblymembers joined in signing the letter to the Speaker showing strong support for the proposal.

"Our children deserve a comprehensive education, from pre-k through twelfth grade, but far too many students in our state, including those in Orange and Rockland county school districts, are not afforded full day kindergarten," shared Assemblyman James Skoufis. "Today, I join my colleagues, parent advocates, and students in declaring 'enough is enough.' Let's pass the Zebrowski-Skoufis full-day kindergarten proposal and ensure that New York's children get the complete education they are entitled to."

“NYS needs to place fiscal priority towards funding full day Kindergarten. The nine remaining school district children are carrying the educational burden of a half day instructional program. Children need time to learn. NYS has committed to adopting k-12 learning standards that have placed rigor into the curriculum. Children in half day programs cannot meet the demands put before them. Our kids are being set up for academic failure and we as parents can't continue to allow this to happen. Our North Rockland Full Day Kindergarten advocacy group will continue to apply political pressure to all Albany officials. We are hopeful that our children will be provided a fair start to learning with a full day kindergarten program,” said Jen Teichmann, lead advocate of the North Rockland Full Day Kindergarten Advocates.