Parents of New York City Kindergarten Students Will Receive Money to Save for College

By Samantha Neudorf December 9, 2016

Though college may seem years away for kindergarteners, it takes years for some families to save up enough money for college tuition. This will now be easier and possible for low-income families in New York City, thanks to this new savings program passed by Mayor Bill de Blasio’s administration on Nov. 29.

The New York City Child Savings Account (CSA) program will donate $100 to college funds for low-income families with kindergarten students, and will increase this to $200 over time if parents contribute money to this fund, according to New York Daily News. This program is made possible thanks to a $10 million donation from Blackstone Group investor Jon Gray.

“We believe that all children should have an opportunity to reach their highest potential,” Gray told The Daily News. “By making college scholarship investments early in life, the New York City CSA initiative is sending the message to New York City public school students, their parents, their teachers and their communities that they can pursue higher education and will be supported in realizing that goal.”

The first program is slated to begin in fall 2017 in one of New York City’s 32 community school districts, and is expected to open accounts for 3,500 families each year until 2019. All kindergarten students in this district will be automatically enrolled over a three-year period, and the goal is to eventually expand this program to other school districts.

This savings program is part of efforts to make college affordable and accessible for low-income students. Last year, de Blasio introduced a $15 million plan to have personal guidance counselors available for at-risk students to meet with. In September, he waived the $65 application fee to City University of New York (CUNY) colleges for low-income public school students.

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