New York City, CUNY to Certify 400 New Pre-K Teachers

Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York City has big plans to increase the number of qualified pre-K teachers, and announced plans to work with City University of New York’s Early Childhood Professional Development Institute to do so The mayor released a report Tuesday, announcing a $6.7 million partnership with the university to recruit and train about 400 New Yorkers so they can become certified to teach pre-K students. The effort is designed to help the city expand full-day pre-kindergarten, a major goal of the new mayor. The Department of Education projects that the city needs up to 1,000 new teachers this fall and another 1,000 next year to meet this goal.