Over $42 Million Invested, Including Contributions from New Yorkers, Foundations, Businesses, NYC Public School Alumni to College Scholarship and Savings Accounts of NYC Public School Kindergarten through Third Graders

To Honor 529 Day, NYC Public School Alum Will Visit Alma Mater and Talk about Importance of Having Assets and Community Support for College and Career Readiness

May 29, 2025

New York, NY – In honor of 529 Day, a national day for building awareness around 529 college savings plans, NYC Kids RISE Founding Executive Director Debra-Ellen Glickstein; NYC Public School Alum, business owner, and philanthropist Rotimi Akinnuoye; and local leaders will celebrate the major investment in the college and career futures of nearly every kindergarten through third-grade student in New York City Public Schools by visiting P.S. 153 in Harlem and discussing dreams for the future with students who have one of nearly 280,000 NYC Scholarship Accounts through the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program.

While many American families face barriers to investing in capital markets or saving for the long term—as they juggle rising costs for essential day-to-day expenses like housing, food, medical care, and more—New York City families don’t have to face challenges alone, or sacrifice efforts to build toward their children’s futures in order to focus on present survival costs. New Yorkers and New York City institutions, including businesses, philanthropy, faith-based communities, NYC Public School Alumni, and more, are harnessing the Program to invest in children’s college and career futures and partner with families on saving for children’s college and career dreams.

Since the fall of 2021, the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program has provided every NYC Public School kindergartener with an NYC Scholarship Account with $100 in seed funding, invested in the NY 529 Direct Plan account. 529 plans are the country’s main state-administered, tax-advantaged investment products that help families save for college and career education. Today, nearly 280,000 children’s accounts across the five boroughs have accumulated over $42 million in assets for college and career training. New Yorkers, foundations, and businesses have all contributed to the accounts of students through Community Scholarships, generating assets for higher education expenses and sending students a powerful message that they have support from their communities to achieve their goals.

By leveraging the Save for College Program, serial entrepreneur Rotimi Akinnuoye organized a NYC Public School Alumni Community Scholarship for third graders attending his elementary school alma mater, P.S. 153 Adam Clayton Powell in Harlem. The NYC Public School Alumni Community Scholarship initiative gives public school alumni a unique opportunity to give back to their school communities by investing in the NYC Scholarship Accounts of students at the elementary schools they once attended. Rotimi is among one hundred alumni who have led these scholarships, which so far have helped channel more than $725,000 into students’ NYC Scholarship Accounts, and joins New Yorkers who are leveraging the Program infrastructure to invest in the future of neighborhood children.

On May 29 (National 529 Day), these students will celebrate their college and career investments and build on their dreams for the future with Akinnuoye, policymakers, city leaders, and more, drawing attention to how entire New York City communities are coming together and harnessing the unique 529 infrastructure to invest in kids’ futures.

About NYC Kids RISE

The NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program is a community tool New Yorkers can use to build wealth in their neighborhoods and support the college and career dreams of their children. The public-private-community partnership provides NYC public school students, starting in kindergarten, with financial resources for higher education and support from their communities to achieve their goals.

NYC Kids RISE is a nonprofit organization managing the Save for College Program in partnership with NYC Public Schools and the City of New York. In the fall of 2017, the Save for College Program launched as a pilot in the communities of Queens School District 30 through a partnership between NYC Kids RISE, the NYC Public Schools, and the City of New York, with founding and ongoing support from the Gray Foundation. After the successful pilot, starting in the 2021-2022 school year, and every year going forward, students in eligible grades enrolled in an NYC public elementary school (including participating charter schools) automatically receive an NYC Scholarship Account invested in a NY 529 Direct Plan account with an initial $100 and opportunities to earn more through early rewards and community scholarships, unless their families choose not to participate. To date, more than $42 million has been invested across the Accounts of more than 280,000 students that will help to support their future college and career training.