What's happening
This bill directs the Board of Regents and State Education Department to study and recommend whether kindergarten should be mandatory in all New York school districts.
Why it matters
The bill seeks a detailed, statewide analysis of the costs and logistics involved in making kindergarten mandatory, which could directly impact school funding, staffing, and infrastructure needs across New York.
By evaluating the potential effects of kindergarten on children's learning abilities, the study could influence long-term education policy and resource allocation based on evidence of academic and developmental outcomes.
The requirement to consult experts in child education, development, and school finance aims to ensure that recommendations are informed by a range of professional perspectives, potentially leading to more comprehensive and practical policy suggestions.
Findings and recommendations from this study could shape future legislative action, affecting when and how New York children begin formal education and aligning state requirements with national trends.
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Who cares
Headline styles
Study Mandatory Kindergarten Feasibility
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
3926
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 to evaluate and make recommendations on mandating kindergarten in all school districts
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. The board of regents and the state education department shall conduct a study to evaluate and make recommendations on mandating kindergarten in all school districts. Such study shall:
a. examine school districts currently offering kindergarten to determine the costs of requiring kindergarten in all school districts;
b. identify the potential effects kindergarten has on the learning abilities of children;
c. make recommendations on the feasibility of mandating kindergarten in all school districts; and
d. include any other information such board and such department deems relevant.
§ 2. No later than 1 year after the effective date of this act, the board of regents and the state education department shall submit to the governor and the legislature a report on the results of the study, as described in section one of this act.
§ 3. The board of regents and the state education department shall evaluate such data with the assistance of experts in:
a. child education;
b. child development; and
c. school district finance.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD09558-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Purpose
To conduct a study on the feasibility of mandating kindergarten in school districts.
Summary of provisions
Section 1 requires the NYS Board of Regents and the NYS State Education Department to conduct a study and make recommendations on mandating kindergarten in all school districts including specific parameters.
Section 2 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 legislature.
Section 3 sets forth experts to be consulted with the creation of these recommendations by the regents and SED.
Section 4 provides the effective date.
Justification
Academic studies suggest that investing in quality early childhood education fosters life-long benefits for children including increasing school readiness and reducing the need for remediation later on. Kinder- garten is a pivotal step in the early education process, yet New York State currently does not mandate kindergarten for all school districts. Attending kindergarten, children learn valuable cognitive (thinking, reasoning, remembering) and non-cognitive (interpersonal, integrity, motivation) skills that are important predictors to a child's future academic and career success, as well as his or her life wellbeing. Research shows that during the early years of a child's life, cognitive and non-cognitive skills are highly malleable and the skill levels a child can achieve for each at any age depends in part on the levels of those skills he or she achieved at younger ages. Furthermore, encourag- ing the development of non-cognitive skills early in life increases the benefits of education later in life, which is why earlier investments in education such as making quality kindergarten programs available to all of New York's children is so important.
This bill would direct the regents and the SED to conduct a study to evaluate and make recommendations on mandating kindergarten in all school districts in New York State.
Legislative history
S. 8310 of 2017-2018, passed senate.
Fiscal implications
Minimal
Effective date
Immediate
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.