Parents who Missed the “Pre-K for All” April Enrollment Deadline for their Child Can Still Apply

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Parents who missed the April 19 enrollment deadline to enter their child in the “Pre-K for All” program can still apply, according to the New York City Department of Education (DOE). NYC Schools Chancellor Meisha Porter announced on Friday, May 28, a record ninety-one percent of families received an offer to one of their top three choices for free, full-day, high-quality Pre-K education. Seventy-seven percent of families received an offer to their top choice program, consistent with 2020. There are 57,511 families receiving Pre-K for All offers as of May 29, including all families who applied by the April

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Kenny Agosto, district director to New York State Senator Jamaal T. Bailey, announced that he has suspended his campaign for the 15th city council district seat in the upcoming June primary, releasing a statement on Twitter on May 21, as below.

Op-Ed: A Summer of Renewal for our Students

By MEISHA PORTER

This year has demanded that all New York City families and students do so many things differently—they’ve had to think differently, learn differently, and connect differently with teachers, peers, and the whole school community. At the Department of Education, we know we also have to think differently as we look towards the summer. For the first time ever, we are inviting all students to join us for a free, fun-filled, enriching summer program: Summer Rising. This year, we will serve any student in grades K-12 in July and August who wants to participate, and I am excited to be

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Friends and family members of the late Yadira Arroyo were joined by community members and elected officials to officially rename Blackrock Playground, in Unionport, in honor of the FDNY Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) on Thursday, May 27. Arroyo, a 14-year FDNY Emergency Medical Technician (EMT), was a dedicated leader and public servant who gave her life for the community. She was tragically killed in the line of duty on March 16, 2017, one block from Blackrock Playground. NYC Parks First Deputy Commissioner Liam Kavanagh joined FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro, State Assembly Member Karines Reyes, and Community Board 9

By SÍLE MOLONEY

With a series of sunny, yet smaller-than-usual, diploma ceremonies held on the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University, as well as a university-wide commencement videocast, streamed on Saturday, May 22, graduates of the university were honored for their bravery and determination amid the pandemic, and Fordham flipped the script on an unprecedented year, offering the Class of 2021 a chance to celebrate their resilience, and look forward with hope. During the videocast, Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, officially conferred degrees upon nearly 5,500 graduates from ten different college schools, while acknowledging that it was not the commencement

By DAVID GREENE & SÍLE MOLONEY

A host of local elected officials joined former tenant lawyer and Hostos Community College adjunct professor, Oswald Feliz, as he was sworn in as city councilman of the 15th Council District, following his win in the March 23rd special election. Feliz assumes the seat left vacant for a few months following the resignation of the former councilman, now Congressman Ritchie Torres, after the latter won the 15th congressional race in November 2020. The swearing in ceremony for Feliz was held on Sunday, May 2, at the Serviam Gardens, located at 2848 Bainbridge Avenue in Bedford Park. Officials in attendance included

By JOSÉ A. GIRALT

The transformation of the South Bronx continued Thursday, May 20, with a groundbreaking ceremony for a new museum which will memorialize the history of hip-hop in the borough, part of a $349 million development known as Bronx Point. With shovels in hand and scooping dirt from a pile of earth, elected officials, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, and Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr., joined hip-hop legends, Grandmaster Flash, Slick Rick, LL Cool J, Chuck D, Nas, and Fat Joe, in marking the ceremonial foundation of the museum’s construction. The 22-story building

By SÍLE MOLONEY

District 11 City Council Member Eric Dinowitz has called on the City’s health commissioner, Dr. Dave A. Chokshi, and on the commissioner for the Department for the Aging, Lorraine Cortes-Vazquez, to immediately move to reopen the city’s senior centers. In his letter, the council member said the centers have long been the only place where many older adults receive food, interact with others, and maintain some level of routine in their lives. “While these centers have remained closed since the onset of the pandemic, we have seen many other facilities across NYC start to open in a safe and

By SÍLE MOLONEY

Video courtesy of the Jr. Knicks The Jr. Knicks announced on May 24 that Clarence “Mugsy” Legget has been named the 2021 Jr. Knicks Coach of the Year, presented by Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS). Legget is currently the executive director of the Wiz Kids basketball program and the director of the SCAN after-school program. Founded in 1977, SCAN-Harbor is a non-profit youth and family service organization that provides a variety of integrated supports to the highest risk children and families of Harlem, East Harlem and the South Bronx. Following hundreds of nominations, from youth basketball coaches across