30 THE QUEENS COURIER • KIDS & EDUCATION • JANUARY 31, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
kids & education
Multilingual forum in Flushing to help parents enroll their children in Pre-K
BY CARLOTTA MOHAMED
cmohamed@schnepsmedia.com
@QNS
City Councilman Peter Koo alongside
Danielle DiMango from the
Department of Education School District
25 announced on Jan. 25 a multilingual
Pre-Kindergarten Information Session to
take place next month in Flushing that
will inform parents about enrolling their
child in school for the fi rst time.
Koo and DiMango introduced new
Pre-K information guides — translated
in several languages Korean, Chinese,
Spanish and English — at Koo’s Flushing
offi ce located at 135-27 38th Ave.
“Th e city’s Pre-K application process
can be a daunting experience for fi rsttime
parents, especially if English is not
your fi rst language,” said Koo. “Naturally,
parents have many questions when enrolling
their child in school for the fi rst time,
so we decided to host this multilingual
information session so all parents in our
community are well informed about their
options for early childhood education.”
Representatives will be present from the
DOE’s Offi ce of Student Enrollment, and
the Family Welcome Center from District
25 will present and host a Question and
Answer session. Translation for the session
will be available in Chinese, Korean
and Spanish.
“We are more than happy to support
our families of the newest and youngest
learners,” said Di Mango. “Th ere are more
than enough seats for everyone. No one
should be worried that we are running out
of seats. We’ll fi nd you a pre-k seat.”
Families do not have to apply to
District 25 schools, according to
DiMango. Parents can fi nd a site that
best fi ts their needs and children outside
of the district.
Parents can also set up an account on
Myschools.nyc to apply for Pre-K and
receive information about programs their
children are accepted to, said Di Mango.
The Pre-Kindergarten Information
Session will take place at the Flushing
Library — located at 41-17 Main St. — on
Photo courtesy of Koo’s off ce
Tuesday, Feb. 12. From 6:30 p.m. to 8:30
p.m. Th is year, the application deadline
for students born in 2015 is March 15 for
the September 2019 school year.
Parents can RSVP at 718-888-8747, or
email jchen@council.nyc.gov.
York College launches Indo-Caribbean history class taught by local political leader
BY ALEJANDRA O’CONNELLDOMENECH
adomenech@qns.com
@AODNewz
A ground-breaking new course has
arrived at York College in Jamaica.
Th is Saturday, Jan. 26, Democratic
District Leader Richard David led York
College’s fi rst ever Indo-Caribbean history
class which will explore the social,
political and economic factors that led to
the rise of a distinct Indo-Caribbean identity
in Guyana, Trinidad, Suriname and in
the United States.
“During these political times, when
immigrants are under attack, this is a
landmark moment for our community
and all immigrant communities,” said
Shivika Rajkisore, chairperson of the
Indo-Caribbean Alliance (ICA).
According to the 2018 MOIA report,
Guyanese are the fi ft h-largest immigrant
group in New York City and are the second
largest in Queens.
York College has one of the highest
Asian student enrollment rates among
CUNY colleges which includes many
Indo-Caribbean students. According to
a press release from David, in 2015 Asian
students were the second highest ethnic
group among the freshman class aft er
African-Americans.
But although the Indo-Caribbean community
comprises such a large part of the
city, community leaders have had to fi ght
hard to gain visibility. According to vicechair
of ICA, Artee Perumal, the alliance
was started just for this reason 10 years
ago. Th e course has promoted on ICA’s
Facebook page as something that was
“fi ve years in the making.”
“We want students to feel a sense of
pride in their culture and history,” said
Perumal, who worries about second- and
third-generation Indo-Caribbean young
people not being able to connect with
their heritage. “I would have loved to take
an elective like this.”
Th e course, known as HIST 401 on
York College’s campus, is one of the
most important new courser off erings
in a generation, according to Dr. George
White, chairperson of the Department of
History, Philosophy and Anthropology at
the college.
“Th ere is so much about this vibrant
community and so much to learn about
ourselves through the eyes and voices
of these Americans. And you won’t fi nd
another course like this anywhere in the
United States.” Photo courtesy of Richard David
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