{"id":252658,"date":"2026-06-02T20:31:07","date_gmt":"2026-06-02T20:31:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/252658\/"},"modified":"2026-06-02T20:31:07","modified_gmt":"2026-06-02T20:31:07","slug":"applications-are-now-open-for-nycs-2-k-program","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/252658\/","title":{"rendered":"Applications are now open for NYC’s 2-K program."},"content":{"rendered":"

Sign up for Chalkbeat New York\u2019s free daily newsletter<\/a> to get essential news about NYC\u2019s public schools delivered to your inbox.<\/p>\n

Applications opened Tuesday for the inaugural year of New York City\u2019s free childcare program for 2-year-olds.<\/p>\n

Part of Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s affordability campaign for free universal childcare, 2-K will for the first time in the city\u2019s history offer free care for 2-year-olds regardless of their parents\u2019 income. In 2024, parents of toddlers spent on average more than $23,000<\/a> for childcare at center-based programs, according to the city comptroller.<\/p>\n

Families can apply on MySchools<\/a>, the city Education Department\u2019s online portal for school enrollment through June 26. <\/a>Offers are expected Aug. 4.<\/p>\n

The program kicks off in September with 2,000 seats clustered in several high-needs neighborhoods in every borough except Staten Island. <\/p>\n

The program is set to expand to 12,000 seats next year<\/a>, and Mamdani has pledged to bring it citywide by the end of his first term. Gov. Kathy Hochul\u2019s funding commitment, however, only covers the first two years. The state is chipping in $73 million this year for 2-K and plans to spend $425 million next year<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Applications for 3-K and pre-K, which already closed, remained relatively flat<\/a> compared to last year. But Mamdani is pulling out the stops to make sure families know about 2-K: He\u2019s sponsoring a 2K for 2-K road race<\/a> in Fort Tryon Park in northern Manhattan this weekend to encourage parents to sign up. And he\u2019s enlisted Cardi B to help judge a citywide 2-K jingle competition<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is not enough for [the] government to pat itself on the back and say, \u2018We have a good program,\u2019\u201d Mamdani said at a kickoff press conference in Queens Tuesday. \u201cPeople should find out about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what parents need to know:<\/p>\n

Who\u2019s eligible?<\/p>\n

Any child born in 2024 is eligible to apply, but, in most cases, they must be 2 years old to begin the program \u2014 meaning if the program starts Sept. 10, then kids whose birthdays fall after that date will likely have to wait to enroll. That\u2019s different from the city\u2019s free 3-K and pre-K programs, which allow kids to enroll before they turn 3 and 4, respectively, as long as their birthday is by Dec. 31.<\/p>\n

Families of kids who turn 2 later this year are still encouraged to apply now, but may receive a \u201cpending offer\u201d to start after their child\u2019s birthday, according to the Education Department.<\/p>\n

We’re on a need-to-know basis.<\/p>\n

Every weekday morning, Chalkbeat New York is bringing thousands of subscribers the news on public schools and education policy that they need to start their day. Sign up for our free newsletter to join them.<\/p>\n

Applications are open to families anywhere in the five boroughs, but kids living in one of the five districts where the initial 2,000 seats are rolling out will get priority for seats.<\/p>\n

Families currently using a childcare voucher<\/a> or receiving another form of childcare assistance are still eligible to apply to 2-K. <\/p>\n

Where are the new seats located?<\/p>\n

The 2,000 seats opening in September are located in five school districts:<\/p>\n

District 6 in Manhattan, covering Washington Heights, Inwood, and Hamilton HeightsDistricts 18 and 23 in Brooklyn, covering Canarsie, Brownsville, Ocean Hill, as well as parts of East Flatbush and Prospect Lefferts GardensDistrict 10 in the Bronx covering Fordham, Belmont, Norwood, Morris Heights, Riverdale, Spuyten Duyvil, Van Cortlandt Village, and KingsbridgeDistrict 27 in Queens, covering Ozone and South Ozone Park, Richmond Hill, Woodhavan, Howard Beach, and the Rockaways<\/p>\n

The 2,000 seats are spread across a mix of 550 center- and family-based childcare providers<\/a> who contract with the city. <\/p>\n

What are the hours?<\/p>\n

The default hours for 2-K will be 8 a.m.-6 p.m., 12 months a year<\/a>. That marks a big shift from the model the city has used for 3-K and pre-K, where most seats are funded only from 8 a.m.-2:20 p.m. from September through June. <\/p>\n

The extended day and year could save families thousands of additional dollars by erasing the costs of after-school and summer care. <\/p>\n

Programs can still decide to offer a shorter schedule, officials have said.<\/p>\n

Is 2-K open to students with disabilities?<\/p>\n

Students with and without disabilities are welcome in 2-K programs, Education Department officials said. <\/p>\n

Before the age of 3, toddlers and babies with disabilities can be identified for Early Intervention<\/a>, which provides families with free services like speech and physical therapy that can take place in their preschools or at home. When students turn 3, their family can meet with a Committee on Preschool Special Education to get a recommendation for a specialized program.<\/p>\n

Michael Elsen-Rooney is a reporter for Chalkbeat New York, covering NYC public schools. Contact Michael at melsen-rooney@chalkbeat.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sign up for Chalkbeat New York\u2019s free daily newsletter to get essential news about NYC\u2019s public schools delivered…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":252659,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[10883,98624,895,98623,9,56,63,65,64,98625,98626],"class_list":["post-252658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-new-york-city","tag-2-k","tag-2-k-seats","tag-governor-kathy-hochul","tag-mayor-zohran-kwame-mamdani","tag-new-york","tag-ny","tag-nyc","tag-nyc-headlines","tag-nyc-news","tag-rockaway-beach-boardwalk","tag-sheldon-r-weaver-child-care-center"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252658","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=252658"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/252658\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/252659"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=252658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=252658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=252658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}