What's happening
This bill directs the Board of Regents to study kindergarten readiness and consider changing the required starting age for attendance.
Why it matters
Potential changes to the kindergarten starting age could directly affect when children begin formal education. , influencing family planning, childcare arrangements, and early childhood development pathways.
The study on "readiness" may prompt broader discussions about what skills and abilities are truly necessary for a child to start school. , possibly leading to new benchmarks or supports for young learners.
Adjusting the cutoff date for kindergarten entry could impact educational equity. , as children with birthdays just after the current cutoff might gain or lose a year of preschool or childcare, affecting their academic and social development compared to peers.
The recommendations could shape long-term state education policy. and funding priorities by highlighting gaps in early childhood preparation and by influencing how resources are allocated for pre-kindergarten and kindergarten programs.
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Who cares
Board of Regents and State Education Department
The bill would require a study of kindergarten readiness and whether to adjust required attendance for children who turn five after September 1 in a school year.
Parents of children turning five after September 1
The study would examine attendance-age rules affecting when their children would be required to start kindergarten, without itself changing those rules.
Governor and state legislators
They would receive a report on the study’s findings from the Board of Regents and education commissioner within one year of the bill’s effective date.
Headline styles
Study Kindergarten Readiness Age
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to education
- Referred to education
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
3925
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 21, 2019
Introduced by Sens. SEWARD, TEDISCO -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Education
AN ACT directing the board of regents and the state education department to conduct a study and make recommendations on the readiness of children to start kindergarten and adjusting the age of mandatory attendance
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The board of regents, in consultation with the state education department, shall study the readiness of children in the state to start kindergarten and investigate the appropriateness of adjusting the age of required attendance to start kindergarten in New York state to minors who become five years of age after the first of September in any school year.
§ 2. No later than one year after the effective date of this act, the board of regents and the commissioner of education shall submit to the governor and the legislature a report on the results of the study conducted pursuant to section one of this act.
§ 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09553-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act directing the board of regents and the state education department to conduct a study and make recommendations on the readiness of children to start kindergarten and adjusting the age of mandatory attendance
Purpose
To undertake a study which would make recommendations about having one statewide kindergarten entrance date of age five by September 1 in any school year.
Summary of provisions
Section One - The education law is amended to create a new section to mandate that SED and board of regents conduct a study on the appropri- ateness of creating a statewide kindergarten entrance age of age five by September 1 of any school year.
Section Two - Requires that no later than one year after the effective date of this act the board of regents and state education department submit such study with recommendations to the governor and state legis- lature.
Justification
The age for kindergarten entrance ages vary. In New York State, the law currently states that the board of education of each school district may maintain kindergartens, which shall be free to resident children between the ages of four and six years; provided, however, such board may fix a higher minimum age for admission to such kindergartens. In many New York State regions, for a child to enter kindergarten most school districts require that he or she must turn age five before December 1 of the school year. A number of other states use September 1st with age five in their laws for kindergarten attendance. The compulsory attendance law in New York State requires that all children between the ages of six and sixteen be provided with a program of instruction, at either a public school or elsewhere.
A growing body of evidence suggests that delaying a child's kindergarten starting age may be beneficial to the child's mental health. Some studies suggest delaying kindergarten entry age may have a positive effect on student academic achievement.
This bill would direct the NYS Board of Regents and the New York State Education Department to conduct a study and make recommendations on the readiness of children to start kindergarten and the appropriateness of adjusting the age of mandatory attendance.
Legislative history
S. 8413 of 2017-2018, passed senate.
Fiscal implications
To be determined.
Effective date
Immediate
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.