Mayor Mamdani and Hochul Expand Free Pre-K for Two-Year-Olds to All Bronx and Staten Island Districts

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Governor Kathy Hochul jointly announced Tuesday that New York City's free early-childhood education programme for two-year-olds, known as 2-K, will be extended to 17 new school districts across the Bronx and Staten Island, adding 10,000 seats citywide. The expansion means every borough will now have full access to 2-K, with more than 12,000 two-year-olds and their families expected to benefit starting next fall. The programme provides structured early-childhood education and care at no cost to families, building on the city's universal pre-K for three- and four-year-olds. Officials argued the expansion would help working families reduce childcare costs, improve developmental outcomes, and advance equity in communities where affordable childcare is least available. The Bronx and Staten Island were the last remaining boroughs to gain full 2-K coverage. Early-childhood education advocates called it a landmark step in New York's effort to become a national model for publicly funded childcare.