24 THE QUEENS COURIER • NOVEMBER 7, 2019 FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM
Photo credit: Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Offi ce
Mayor Bill de Blasio, Deputy Mayor Phil Thompson, Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza, and School Construction Authority President and CEO Lorraine Grillo announce the start of construction of a new
STEAM focused Pre-K Center in Flushing Meadows Corona Park on Oct. 31.
New 300-seat STEAM Pre-K center to open in Corona
BY ANGELICA ACEVEDO
Mayor Bill de Blasio was joined by several
Queens lawmakers and leaders on
Oct. 31 to announce the beginning of
construction of a new 300-seat Pre-K center
in Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
Th e new Pre-K center will take the place
of the current parking lot right next to
the New York Hall of Science (NYSCI).
NYSCI is in partnership with the state-ofthe
art center that will focus its eff orts in
STEAM (science, technology, engineering,
art, and math) education.
During a press conference inside of the
NYSCI, de Blasio said that this is a great
moment for the Corona community — a
community that’s mostly made up of working
class and immigrant families.
“Th is is by no means a privileged community.
It’s a community where parents feel deeply
that they want the best for their kids, but they
don’t have the advantages that other communities
have, economically,” de Blasio said. “Th is
is going to be one of the very best programs
in our nation. And it’s not happening in Park
Avenue — it’s happening here, in Corona.”
Th e special project, which will cost $42.4
million, has been in the works for a few years
now. Th e mayor made a point to thank the
lawmakers, community leaders as well as the
NYSCI for helping bring the plan into fruition.
Among those who played an important
role were Queens Borough President Melinda
Katz, Deputy Mayor Phil Th ompson, Schools
Chancellor Richard Carranza, State Senator
Jessica Ramos, Assemblyman Jeff rion Aubry,
Councilman Francisco Moya, and President
of NYSCI Margaret Honey.
“It took a lot to get here,” Katz said. “Queens
lacks the number of seats that is required for
most of our children, and mostly it’s because
Queens is doing so great, everybody wants to
come here. Our numbers are growing every
single day, we are exponentially growing in
population, in tourism and all that comes with
it — and that means that we need school seats.
Th is is a great step in that direction.”
Th e School Construction Authority will
take care of construction of the 306-seat center
at 47-01 111th St., which will be fully ADAaccessible
and will include 17 Pre-K classrooms,
two exercise rooms, an outdoor playground,
and a community and parent room.
Th e school will also participate in the
Department of Education’s Diversity in
Admission program, which will create
an opportunity for a diverse group of
District 24 students, including those who
are in the Emergent Multilingual Learners
program and who qualify for Free and
Reduced-Price Lunch.
Th e Pre-K center is scheduled to open
in the Fall of 2021.
/WWW.QNS.COM
