{"id":159175,"date":"2026-03-10T14:30:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-10T14:30:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/159175\/"},"modified":"2026-03-10T14:30:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-10T14:30:07","slug":"nyc-adds-1000-free-3-k-seats-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/159175\/","title":{"rendered":"NYC Adds 1,000 Free 3-K Seats Today"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\t\t<img data-dominant-color=\"8f8276\" data-has-transparency=\"false\" style=\"--dominant-color: #8f8276;\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"not-transparent size-medium wp-image-422349\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/GettyImages-2224235754.webp.jpeg\" alt=\"NYC Adds 1,000 Free 3-K Seats, Drawing, education and teacher with children in classroom for learning, education and creative art. Growth, kindergarten and academy with woman and kids at school for helping and child development\" width=\"822\" height=\"433\"  \/>Getty Images<\/p>\n<p>Mayor Zohran Mamdani is set to announce a citywide 3-K expansion, adding seats for three-year-olds across 56 ZIP codes to help families access early childhood education.<\/p>\n<p>Just a week after announcing which neighborhoods will get<a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorkfamily.com\/nyc-neighborhoods-to-get-free-2-k-program\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\"> free 2-K seats this fall<\/a>, New York City is expanding its early childhood programs again.<\/p>\n<p>Mayor Zohran Mamdani will announce today that over 1,000 additional 3-K seats will be added for the upcoming school year. These new seats will reach 56 ZIP codes across the Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, and, this time, Staten Island, too!<\/p>\n<p>At-a-Glance<\/p>\n<p>Over 1,000 new 3-K seats will be added for this fall.<br \/>\nIt covers all five boroughs this time.<br \/>\nParents can search and apply online through MySchools.<br \/>\nPrograms are designed for three-year-olds before pre-K.<br \/>\nAreas missing 2-K access will now be included in this expansion.<\/p>\n<p>This rollout brings the city\u2019s total 3-K seats to over 40,000 and extends access to neighborhoods that missed out on the 2-K program, most notably parts of Staten Island, which felt overlooked when 2-K seats were selected.<\/p>\n<p>The 3-K programs will offer free, full-day early education for three-year-olds before they enter pre-K and kindergarten.<\/p>\n<p>Mayor Mamdani spoke about the program in a video released on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DVrokd0EaPs\/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&amp;igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ==\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">Instagram<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=9hgzU7_wSrg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\">YouTube<\/a>, and addressed the difficulty in finding affordable childcare in the city, saying that in the past, some parents had to travel three miles to reach their designated childcare spot.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA 3-year-old can\u2019t take themselves to class three miles away, and a working parent shouldn\u2019t have to commute from Parkchester to Park Slope just to find childcare,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s why our administration is working tirelessly to make sure that every family can get the more than $20,000 in savings a year that 3-K provides them, and so every child can receive the benefits of an early childhood education.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The mayor said if you\u2019ve already applied for 3-K, you don\u2019t have to do anything, and families will be notified once new 3-K seats are available in their neighborhoods. Parents have until April 24 to fill out a new application or update an existing one.<\/p>\n<p>Psst\u2026 Check Out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorkfamily.com\/new-yorkers-struggle-with-child-care-costs\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">New Yorkers Struggle with Child Care Costs Across the Five Boroughs<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Check If Your ZIP Code Is on the List<br \/>\nBronx<\/p>\n<p>10461 \u2013 Fordham, Pelham Bay, Morris Park<br \/>10462 \u2013 Parkchester, Morris Park, Pelham Parkway<br \/>10465 \u2013 Country Club, Edgewater Park, Throgs Neck<br \/>10469 \u2013 Eastchester<br \/>10475 \u2013 Co-Op City<\/p>\n<p>Brooklyn<\/p>\n<p>11201 \u2013 DUMBO, Downtown Brooklyn, Cobble Hill, Vinegar Hill<br \/>11214 \u2013 Bath Beach, Gravesend, Bensonhurst<br \/>11217 \u2013 Boerum Hill, Park Slope, Prospect Heights<br \/>11218 \u2013 Kensington, Windsor Terrace, Borough Park<br \/>11222 \u2013 Greenpoint<br \/>11229 \u2013 Sheepshead Bay, Midwood, Gerritsen Beach<br \/>11234 \u2013 Canarsie, Marine Park, Mill Basin, Flatlands<br \/>11238 \u2013 Prospect Heights, Crown Heights, Clinton Hill<\/p>\n<p>Manhattan<\/p>\n<p>10003 \u2013 East Village, Gramercy, Union Square<br \/>10010 \u2013 Flatiron, Kips Bay<br \/>10011 \u2013 Chelsea, West Village<br \/>10012 \u2013 SoHo, Greenwich Village<br \/>10014 \u2013 West Village<br \/>10017 \u2013 Midtown East<br \/>10018 \u2013 Midtown West<br \/>10021 \u2013 Upper East Side<br \/>10022 \u2013 Midtown East<br \/>10024 \u2013 Upper West Side<br \/>10025 \u2013 Upper West Side, Morningside Heights<br \/>10036 \u2013 Hell\u2019s Kitchen, Midtown West<br \/>10040 \u2013 Washington Heights, Inwood<br \/>10044 \u2013 Roosevelt Island<br \/>10065 \u2013 Upper East Side<br \/>10128 \u2013 Yorkville<\/p>\n<p>Queens<\/p>\n<p>11004 \u2013 Glen Oaks, Floral Park<br \/>11105 \u2013 Astoria, Ditmars\u2011Steinway<br \/>11109 \u2013 Long Island City<br \/>11356 \u2013 College Point<br \/>11363 \u2013 Little Neck, Douglaston<br \/>11365 \u2013 Fresh Meadows, Auburndale<br \/>11368 \u2013 Corona<br \/>11370 \u2013 Jackson Heights, East Elmhurst<br \/>11372 \u2013 Jackson Heights<br \/>11375 \u2013 Forest Hills<br \/>11378 \u2013 Maspeth<br \/>11379 \u2013 Middle Village<br \/>11385 \u2013 Ridgewood, Glendale<br \/>11418 \u2013 Richmond Hill<br \/>11420 \u2013 Ozone Park<br \/>11423 \u2013 Hollis<br \/>11426 \u2013 Bellerose<br \/>11432 \u2013 Jamaica<br \/>11433 \u2013 Jamaica<br \/>11436 \u2013 Jamaica, Ozone Park<br \/>11691 \u2013 Far Rockaway<\/p>\n<p>Staten Island<\/p>\n<p>10302 \u2013 Port Richmond<br \/>10306 \u2013 New Dorp, Midland Beach, Lighthouse Hill<br \/>10307 \u2013 Tottenville<br \/>10308 \u2013 Great Kills<br \/>10309 \u2013 Charleston, Prince\u2019s Bay, Pleasant Plains<br \/>10312 \u2013 Eltingville, Annadale, Arden Heights<\/p>\n<p>Staten Island was excluded from the 2-K rollout, so these new 3-K seats will finally bring extra early childhood options to families on the island.<\/p>\n<p>How to Apply for 3-K<\/p>\n<p>Families can apply for 3-K through the city\u2019s NYC MySchools enrollment system.<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how:<\/p>\n<p>Create or log into your MySchools account.<br \/>\nSearch for 3-K programs near your home or workplace.<br \/>\nRank the programs in order of preference.<br \/>\nSubmit your application before the city\u2019s deadline.<\/p>\n<p>Seats are open to all NYC families, regardless of income or immigration status.<\/p>\n<p>Psst\u2026 Check Out <a href=\"https:\/\/www.newyorkfamily.com\/nyc-neighborhoods-to-get-free-2-k-program\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Free 2-K Seats Are Coming to These NYC Neighborhoods This Fall<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\t<script async src=\"\/\/www.instagram.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Getty Images Mayor Zohran Mamdani is set to announce a citywide 3-K expansion, adding seats for three-year-olds across&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":159176,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[44144,65642,36610,9,24,55,54,56,53179,65641],"class_list":["post-159175","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-early-childhood-education","tag-free-3-k","tag-mayor-mamdani","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-new-york-city-headlines","tag-new-york-city-news","tag-ny","tag-nyc-families","tag-nyc-preschool"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159175","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=159175"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/159175\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/159176"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=159175"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=159175"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=159175"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}