C4C Statement on Graduation Rates and The FY21 Preliminary Budget

Following the release of state graduation rates as well as Mayor de Blasio’s FY21 Preliminary Budget, the Campaign for Children released the following statement:

“Today’s announcement showed that New York City’s students achieved a record-high four-year graduation rate in 2019 at 77.3% – a 1.4 percentage point increase over last year. The Campaign for Children applauds Mayor de Blasio for his ongoing commitment to and investment in the city’s schools and children, including universal pre-k for four-year-olds, the ongoing expansion of pre-k for three-year-olds, and salary parity for pre-k teachers. We agree with the Mayor that his significant investments in early childhood education have already shown results for New York’s children and families, and will continue the upward trend of positive educational outcomes for our students.

“Despite this commitment, we are deeply concerned that the Mayor’s priorities in the Fiscal Year 2021 Preliminary Budget do not invest in vital year-round educational programs. The budget does not include summer programming or funding to reduce per-child rate disparities between afterschool programs. We understand the state fiscal outlook this year presents a challenge for the city’s budget, but we must ensure that we continue to prioritize the educational supports and programs that are proving to make a difference for students and schools across the city.”