Hundreds of caregivers and parents on Friday demanded New York City Mayor Eric Adams to reverse the city’s decision to shutter five childcare centers that have served their communities for generations.
Parents were sent scrambling after the Department of Education blocked enrollment for the childcare centers in Brooklyn and Queens less than 24 hours before applications for the upcoming school year were set to go live on Jan. 15. The DOE said the centers did not meet enrollment requirements and the city would not be renewing their leases.
In Brooklyn, Friends of Crown Heights, Fort Greene Council, Nuestros Niños in Williamsburg and Grand Street Settlement in Bushwick are in danger of closing along with All My Children Daycare and Nursery School in Jamaica, Queens. The centers offer year-round early childcare services like 3-K, pre-K, kindergarten, and after-school care programs.
Mayor Adams on Tuesday said only four students are registered at Nuestros Niños, a childcare center in South Williamsburg that has operated for over 50 years.
Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, a former student at Nuestros Niños, said he spoke with Adams on the phone asking him to tour the center.
“We have 96 students here,” said Reynoso. “You know who would know that there are not four students here? A mayor that would take time to come to this center instead of going to D.C. for an inauguration.”
Elizabeth Garcia, a parent who spoke at the rally, said there are 10 children in her son’s class alone.
“My son is getting a quality education here for an affordable price,” said Garcia, who also attended the center when she was a child. “I would not be able to pay for childcare if it wasn’t for this place. We need these services, it is very clear by all the people that showed up, that this site is very important to everybody in this community.”
Over 200 people came out to support the childcare centers, causing police to temporarily shut down the block as the crowd filled the street. Despite frigid temperatures, the crowd rallied for over an hour, cheering on staff and local elected officials who spoke.
“We are not leaving here without a fight,” said Ingrid Matias Chungata, the executive director of Nuestros Niños. “I grew up in this neighborhood, my family still goes here and I will fight. I fight for every child in this center, South 2nd, South 3rd and the 45 providers that we serve.”
Robert Cordero, the executive director of Grand Street Settlement, said his center is at 100% enrollment.
“The rationale behind this is all about business,” said Cordero. “This is a real estate issue. They’re looking at what do I get for rent at this site. I can see condominiums right here and an art gallery and things that are not going to help children.”
The timing of the center’s closure is rather odd, since New York Governor Kathy Hochul visited Grand Street Settlement touting its success just two weeks ago, said state senator Julia Salazar.
“You don’t take the governor of the state to a child care center that is not a model child care center,” said Salazar. “It doesn't make any sense. It is absolutely counterintuitive in a moment when we need to be expanding childcare across the state.”
Parents who attended the rally said the decision to close these centers without a walkthrough made them doubt DOE leadership.
“It makes me angry, I feel like it's so unjust and disingenuous,” said Maria Candelario-Skiles whose daughter attends 4-K at Nuestros Niños. “I would remind them that they chose a career in service and in doing so you need to stand up for what you believe in. If you believe in education this is how you prove it.”
Parents also wondered why the mayor would shut down child care centers when he often emphasizes his family-oriented policies, especially as the June Democratic primary approaches ahead of the mayoral election.
“He obviously hasn’t been in the community,” said Julissa Pena. “It's a whole act of ‘Yeah I care.’ Do you really care? These are working-class moms that are waking up in the morning and they have a safe place to drop their kids off and you’re taking that away from them.”
The mayor's office did not respond to a request for comment in time of publication.
If the decision is not reversed, the centers will close for good on June 30.
