By Forum Staff
Three South Queens schools are among the 12 borough educational institutions scheduled to start “After-School for All” programming in the fall, Mayor Eric Adams announced on Tuesday.
Public School 63 in Ozone Park, PS 108 in South Ozone Park, and PS 60 in Woodhaven are those three South borough schools.
Adams said the first 40 new after-school program sites providing 5,000 new K-5 after-school seats to students beginning this September, putting New York City on the path to universal after-school in the next three school years. The 37 City Public Schools locations and three public charter school locations were selected based on economic need and service gaps in those communities.
The $21-million investment in the Fiscal Year 2026 Adopted Budget will bring the initial new seats online this fall, and marks the first step in delivering Mayor Adams’ vision of “After-School for All.” The $331-million commitment will support the addition of 20,000 new after-school seats over the next three school years, bringing the total number of public-school students served by universal after-school programming to 184,000 with a total investment of $755 million annually, baselined by Fiscal Year 2028.
The total number of public-school students served by after-school programming will rise to 184,000 by the 2027-2028 school year, with an overall investment of $755 million annually that will then be baselined going forward. DYCD will assess the ongoing need and add slots if necessary.
The expansion also includes the first request for proposals in over a decade, in an effort to enhance and improve programs for New York City youth, as well as raise provider rates to stabilize the non-profit organizations leading these programs and better support the workforce who serve New York City’s youth. Additionally, the Adams administration will form a commission for universal after-school by engaging providers and community stakeholders to develop a sustainable, long-term system that ensures non-profit organizations are able to continue to hire and train staff and deliver quality programming.
“Every parent knows that learning doesn’t just take place in the classroom, but, for too long, too many families did not have access to affordable child care and during after-school hours. But building a safer, more affordable city starts with creating a safe space for our young New Yorkers to learn,” Adams said. “Less than three months after we announced our ambitious goal of delivering universal after-school to families with 20,000 additional seats, we are delivering on that promise with our first batch of 5,000 new after-school seats for the upcoming school year that starts in just a matter of weeks. Universal after-school will make life easier for a total of 169,000 students and their parents this fall who will no longer have to choose between work and taking care of their kids — or worse yet, using an iPad as a babysitter.
City Department of Youth and Community Development Commissioner Keith Howard added, “As the commissioner overseeing the first major expansion of New York City’s after-school system in a decade, I have seen firsthand how these opportunities will forever change the lives of thousands of young people. For me, after-school programming is personal. My mother made sure my siblings and I attended after-school growing up in the Bronx, and I carried on that family tradition by sending my own children.”
