Chalkbeat | Gov. Kathy Hochul proposed to extend mayoral control of New York City’s public school system, boost funding for public schools across the state, and pay for child care for 2-year-olds in the five boroughs — a major campaign promise of Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

That spending would include $73 million this year for New York City to roll out a new 2-Care program, with a commitment to invest $500 million over two years. 2-Care is expected to create 2,000 new child care seats for 2-year-olds in high-need areas of the city in the fall, and then grow to 8,000 seats next year. Mamdani said he will make the program available to all of the city’s 2-year-olds by the end of his first term.

However, many early childhood teachers and advocates say that the expansion will fail unless the city fixes problems in its existing early education system. Currently, large disparities in teacher pay make it difficult for community-based child care centers to hire and keep staff, and there is a severe shortage of seats for kids with developmental delays and disabilities.

Both Hochul and Mamdani have promised to make programs available to students with disabilities, “but past expansions of early childhood education have shown that good intentions are no guarantee of equity,” wrote Maria Odom, the executive director of Advocates for Children of New York, in a statement.