P.S. 280Q and Community School District 30 Celebrate NYC Scholarship Month, Welcome Kindergarten Families to the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program
The P.S. 280Q community joins schools across the city celebrating NYC Scholarship Month by supporting families to activate their children’s free NYC Scholarship Accounts with money set aside for college and career training
Students at P.S. 280Q Home of the Lionhearts celebrate NYC Scholarship Month with face paint inspired by their college and career dreams. Photo by Lotoya Francis for NYC Kids RISE (January 20, 2026).
February 3, 2026
Queens, NY – On Tuesday, January 20th in Jackson Heights, Queens, in celebration of NYC Scholarship Month, P.S. 280Q Home of the Lionhearts and Community School District 30 leaders welcomed kindergarten students and families to the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program. NYC Scholarship Month is the first opportunity new families have to activate their children’s free NYC Scholarship Accounts and view the money set aside for their future college and career training. The event featured a workshop to support families with activating the accounts, and learning about additional steps to unlock even more rewards for their children’s college and career futures.
Principal Barbara Andujar, who kicked off the workshop, was joined by School District 30 Family Support Coordinator Marco Dominguez to celebrate with families how P.S. 280Q students are among the more than 340,000 public school students citywide who have NYC Scholarship Accounts with more than $57 million now accumulated for their futures, invested in a NY 529 Direct Plan for their future college and career training. In Queens, more than 106,340 students have more than $18.8 million invested.
Citywide, approximately 70,000 new students received NYC Scholarship Accounts in January. That includes around 60,000 kindergartners whose parents/guardians can now activate and view the accounts at nyckidsrise.org/activate.
“As we welcome more than 70,000 new students and their families to the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program this year, we are proud that over 340,000 NYC public school scholars now have NYC Scholarship Accounts across the city,” said NYC Public Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels. “College affordability is key, and early access to a financial asset for college and career training reinforces our message to every student: we believe in you and support your aspirations. I encourage parents and guardians to activate and view their children’s accounts. It’s a meaningful first step in our work together, preparing all our kids for success in college and career training, and in rewarding careers.”
“This NYC Scholarship Month, as schools welcome the kindergarten class to the Program, we celebrate what we’ve achieved for our children already, and what more we can accomplish together,” said
“The NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program demonstrates the power of early collective investment in children, communities and New York City,” said Dana Zucker, NYC Kids RISE Board Chair and Chief Executive Officer of the Gray Foundation. “Amassing more than $57 million for our children’s college and career goals reflects the power of public-private-partnerships and collaboration. We welcome the new Kindergarten class to the Program, and work towards a future where all our kids are set up for success.”
“This NYC Scholarship Month, we are excited to join NYC Kids RISE and our public schools to welcome more than 70,000 new students to the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program. We celebrate that NYC families have access to essential resources and support for our children’s college and career futures,” said New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin. “I was proud to help launch NYC Kids RISE so every child, regardless of zip code, has access to educational and economic opportunity. I look forward to the City Council continuing to support this critical program as we work to make New York City more affordable.”
“Queens is proud to be the home of the first pilot district for the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program, where this groundbreaking initiative began,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards. “What started here has grown into a citywide powerhouse for helping families build assets for their children’s futures. I encourage Queens parents and guardians to activate and view their children’s NYC Scholarship Accounts today!”
The P.S. 280Q NYC Scholarship Month celebration is an example of the ways schools across Queens are incorporating the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program as a tool for college and career readiness, family engagement, and school-to-community connections. Across the five boroughs, elementary schools like P.S. 280Q are hosting events, workshops, and family outreach activities so that families know their children already have a resource for their educational futures. Each student’s account starts with an initial $100 seed investment and there are opportunities to earn more over time, building on this financial asset for higher education expenses and encouraging students to dream big about the future.
There are additional opportunities for families to receive more money over time through Community Scholarships, which send a message to students that their community believes in their potential and is investing in their success.
“The NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program is a vehicle for our schools to connect with families and communities and work together on college and career readiness,” said Jane Martinez Dowling, Chief of NYC Public Schools Office of Student Pathways. “And when children and families find out they have money for the future, it changes their ideas about what’s possible. NYC Scholarship Month is an important first opportunity for new families to activate their accounts and take part in this citywide commitment to educational opportunity for all our students.”
“It’s truly remarkable that nearly all kindergarten through eighth grade students in District 30 have an NYC Scholarship Account with money for their educational futures. Combined, they have accumulated more than $6.4 million!” said Community School District 30 Superintendent Hidalgo. “We look forward to continuing our work with schools and partners across this district and beyond so families can see even more growth in their children’s accounts and have the resources to fully benefit from the NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program.”
At P.S. 280Q, nearly 400 students have NYC Scholarship Accounts with over $63,000 already invested for their college and career futures.
“When families, schools, and communities invest together in students’ college and career futures, students gain stronger support, access to opportunities, and clearer vision for what’s possible,” said P.S. 280Q Principal Barbara Andujar. “This partnership helps close opportunity gaps, connects learning to real life, and builds confidence with purpose. Investing in today’s future strengthens our communities for tomorrow by preparing students not just for graduation, but for their lives and success ahead of them.”
During the presentation about the Save for College Program, the P.S. 280Q team worked with families to activate and view their students’ NYC Scholarship Accounts and learn about how they can work together to support their children’s college and career goals, starting as early as kindergarten. Families learned how they can receive up to $175 in additional rewards for their child’s NYC Scholarship Account when they complete steps in the Program: when they activate the account, open their own college and career savings account, and start saving their own money in the ways and amounts that make sense for them. The celebration also included face painting with kids choosing designs that encouraged them to think about their college and career dreams.
“As humble parents of the Latin community, we want to see our children succeed academically and see them with a college diploma someday, developing their passions,” said Mayra Moscoso, parent of a P.S. 280Q fourth grader and a member of the school’s Parent Teacher Association. “To all parents — get involved! Activate your child’s NYC Scholarship Account, a free opportunity that has so many benefits for your child’s college future.”
NYC Kids RISE has provided schools with toolkits, digital and print materials, outreach tools, and additional resources available in multiple languages to encourage families to activate their child’s NYC Scholarship Account and take other steps in the Program. For support with activating and viewing their child’s account in their language, families can reach out to their school, attend an upcoming virtual workshop at nyckidsrise.org/events, email NYC Kids RISE at [email protected], or call the NYC Kids RISE hotline at 833-543-7473.
About NYC Kids RISE
The NYC Kids RISE Save for College Program is a universal, community driven wealth-building platform for New York City neighborhoods that expands access to mainstream financial products; builds individual, family, and collective financial assets; provides financial education for families and students; and brings schools and communities together to support all their children’s futures. The Save for College Program’s model is intended to drive neighborhood-level changes in economic opportunity and mobility by promoting asset building, reinforcing college- and career-going expectations, and strengthening social capital, networks, and infrastructure in neighborhoods across New York City.
NYC Kids RISE launched a pilot phase in 2017 in geographic School District 30 (Queens), in partnership with the NYC Public Schools and the City of New York, with founding support from the Gray Foundation. Starting in the 2021-2022 school year, and every year going forward, students in eligible grades enrolled in an NYC public school, including participating charter schools, automatically receive an NYC Scholarship Account with money set aside for future college and career training, and opportunities to earn more through early rewards and Community Scholarships, unless their families choose not to participate. To date, more than $57 million has been invested across the Accounts of more than 340,000 students that will help to support their future college and career training.
