Carranza, city lawmakers celebrate more than 10,000
students in District 30
BY ANGÉLICA ACEVEDO
Schools Chancellor Richard
Carranza and several City
Council members joined families
and students at P.S.148
to celebrate the third cohort of public
schools students in the NYC Kids RISE
Save for College Program in District 30
on Wednesday, Jan. 29.
“When a student sees their parents
open an account that is specifically
for college, there’s no more powerful
lesson for that student,” Carranza said
at the event. “It’s more than just saying
you’re gonna go to college, it’s more
than just saying we want you to go to
college, it is a parent taking an active
step to set the pathway for students to
go to college. What we are doing today
is empowering New York City.”
The program is in its third year and
has enrolled more than 10,000 students
(which is 95 percent of students in
District 30) from 39 elementary public
schools across western Queens.
The program offers universal college
savings accounts for all students from
kindergarten to second grade, regardless
of immigration status or income, by
giving parents the option to create an
NYC Scholarship Account invested in a
529 college savings plan with a $100
seed. It is managed by the nonprofit
24 FEBRUARY 2020 I LIC COURIER I www.qns.com
NYC Kids RISE in partnership with the
NYC Department of Education and the
City of New York, with funding support
from the Gray Foundation.
In addition to the initial seed money,
families can also receive up to $175
in their child’s NYC Scholarship Account
through program rewards from
NYC Kids RISE as well as funds from
Community Scholarships, in which they
work with organizations across the city
to raise funds. Students have already
received more funds to their accounts
through Community Scholarships collaborations
with organizations like
Seamless and Astoria’s Center of Hope
International and Community Church.
During the event at P.S. 148, known
as The Ruby G. Allen School, one of the
Queens schools that participate in the
program, newly enrolled families got
to activate their children’s accounts
while teachers led an activity with the
elementary students to decorate the
school’s Money Tree poster.
According to Principal Yolanda Harvey,
more than 340 students at P.S. 148
now have a college savings account,
with a total of more than $46,000 of
funds in those accounts.
Carranza spoke in Spanish and English
during the event’s lighthearted program.
He talked about his own experience
as a son of Mexican immigrants
Photos by Angélica Acevedo and NYC Kids RISE
Community News
NYC Kids RISE
/www.qns.com
/www.qns.com
