Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
$67.5 million investment brings nationally recognized special education programs to 14 school districts across every borough beginning this fall
NEW YORK — Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) Chancellor Kamar Samuels announced a major expansion of preschool special education, bringing the City’s nationally recognized Nest, Horizon, AIMS, Path and ACES programs to Pre-K classrooms for the first time.
Supported by a $67.5 million investment in the Fiscal Year 2027 Executive Budget, the expansion will make these specialized programs available in 14 school districts across all five boroughs beginning this fall, giving young children with disabilities access to high-quality instruction in their own communities.
The expansion will provide young learners with high-quality, individualized instruction that strengthens academic, communication and social development in both inclusive and specialized classroom settings.
In addition to expanding classroom access, the investment strengthens the systems that help children receive services earlier and supports families throughout the special education process.
NYCPS will hire hundreds of new staff members to reduce evaluation wait times, expand bilingual assessment options and help families navigate the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process. The investment includes 35 new professionals across 10 additional Preschool Regional Assessment Centers (PRACs), including psychologists, social workers, speech evaluators and occupational therapists.
Building on a successful pilot, the Special Education Itinerant Teacher (SEIT) program will also expand, placing special education teachers in general education preschool classrooms and helping more young children with IEPs learn alongside their peers. An additional 29 therapists and specialists will strengthen services for children attending community-based 3-K and Pre-K programs.
Students will be placed into new program locations across the following school districts:
• District 2: PS 042 Benjamin Altman
• District 5: PS 133 Fred R. Moore
• District 6: PS 005 Ellen Lurie
• District 7: Academy of Exploratory Arts
• District 9: PS 028 Mount Hope, P.S. 058, P.S. 070 Max Schoenfeld, P.S. 063X Author’s Academy, and Lucero Elementary School
• District 10: P.S. 310 Marble Hill, PS 023 The New Children’s School, Rose Hill Pre-K Center
• District 11: P.S. 068 Bronx, P.S. 111 Seton Falls, P.S. 121 Throop
• District 12: P.S. 006 West Farms, Samara Community School
• District 14: P.S. 147 Isaac Remsen
• District 15: P.S. 015 Patrick Daly, P.S. 024, P.S. 958
• District 20: D20 Pre-K Center
• District 21: P.S. 212 Lady Deborah Moody
• District 30: P.S. 152 Gwendoline N. Alleyne School, P.S. 171 Peter G. Van Alst
• District 31: P.S. 054 Charles W. Leng
3703 10th Avenue
Inwood
July 14, 2026
$67.5 million investment brings nationally recognized special education programs to 14 school districts across every borough beginning this fall
NEW YORK — Today, Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) Chancellor Kamar Samuels announced a major expansion of preschool special education, bringing the City’s nationally recognized Nest, Horizon, AIMS, Path and ACES programs to Pre-K classrooms for the first time.
Supported by a $67.5 million investment in the Fiscal Year 2027 Executive Budget, the expansion will make these specialized programs available in 14 school districts across all five boroughs beginning this fall, giving young children with disabilities access to high-quality instruction in their own communities.
The expansion will provide young learners with high-quality, individualized instruction that strengthens academic, communication and social development in both inclusive and specialized classroom settings.
In addition to expanding classroom access, the investment strengthens the systems that help children receive services earlier and supports families throughout the special education process.
NYCPS will hire hundreds of new staff members to reduce evaluation wait times, expand bilingual assessment options and help families navigate the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process. The investment includes 35 new professionals across 10 additional Preschool Regional Assessment Centers (PRACs), including psychologists, social workers, speech evaluators and occupational therapists.
Building on a successful pilot, the Special Education Itinerant Teacher (SEIT) program will also expand, placing special education teachers in general education preschool classrooms and helping more young children with IEPs learn alongside their peers. An additional 29 therapists and specialists will strengthen services for children attending community-based 3-K and Pre-K programs.
Students will be placed into new program locations across the following school districts:
• District 2: PS 042 Benjamin Altman
• District 5: PS 133 Fred R. Moore
• District 6: PS 005 Ellen Lurie
• District 7: Academy of Exploratory Arts
• District 9: PS 028 Mount Hope, P.S. 058, P.S. 070 Max Schoenfeld, P.S. 063X Author’s Academy, and Lucero Elementary School
• District 10: P.S. 310 Marble Hill, PS 023 The New Children’s School, Rose Hill Pre-K Center
• District 11: P.S. 068 Bronx, P.S. 111 Seton Falls, P.S. 121 Throop
• District 12: P.S. 006 West Farms, Samara Community School
• District 14: P.S. 147 Isaac Remsen
• District 15: P.S. 015 Patrick Daly, P.S. 024, P.S. 958
• District 20: D20 Pre-K Center
• District 21: P.S. 212 Lady Deborah Moody
• District 30: P.S. 152 Gwendoline N. Alleyne School, P.S. 171 Peter G. Van Alst
• District 31: P.S. 054 Charles W. Leng
3703 10th Avenue
Inwood
July 14, 2026
