Pre-K seats still available across Brooklyn, NYC

Signup deadline is October 2

September 19, 2013 By Mary Frost Brooklyn Daily Eagle

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School has already started but pre-K seats are still available across the city, and the Department of Education advises families to enroll as quickly as possible.

The enrollment deadline for Universal Prekindergarten is October 2, 2013.

DOE spokesperson Harry Hartfield told the Brooklyn Eagle that pre-K seats still remain in Brooklyn Districts 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 and 32.

Some of the openings are in public schools and others are in community centers. In District 15 (Cobble Hill, Red Hook, Park Slope, Sunset Park, the southern end of Brooklyn Heights) for example, pre-K slots are still open at 37 locations, including P.S. 38, PAVE, and the Bay Ridge Child Care Center.

In District 13 (DUMBO, Brooklyn Heights, Fort Greene, Bedford-Stuyvesant), seats are open in 17 locations, including P.S. 46, The Salvation Army, and Imagine DUMBO.

In District 14 (Williamsburg, Greenpoint), 36 locations still have openings, including the Hatora Puerto Rican Family Institute, Inc., Williamsburg CCC, and P.S. 59.

You can call 311, or find a list of programs with available seats here: http://schools.nyc.gov/Academics/EarlyChildhood/ParentResources/vacancy

Universal pre-K programs offer at least 2.5 hours of educational services at no cost to parents. All children born in 2009 who reside in New York City are eligible for pre-K during the 2013-2014 school year.

Research shows that early childhood education is essential in closing the achievement gap and expands opportunities for children in high need communities. Studies also show that half of the achievement gap that is evident at the end of high school is already present by kindergarten.

High-quality early childhood interventions have been shown to lead to increased social readiness, higher incomes, less likelihood of drug use and less involvement in the criminal justice system.