(NewsNation) — New York City will provide about $12 million total to schools that have received an influx of students from asylum-seeking families, according to an education department news release.
The supplemental funding will allow schools to provide the necessary curricular and family support to multilingual learners, according to the release.
Schools with six or more new students in temporary housing will receive an allocation of $2,000 for each new student who fits those guidelines and has been enrolled since July.
Chalkbeat New York reported that since July 2, the city’s schools received about 7,200 students who live in temporary housing.
That money will be used to support the following priorities, according to the NYC Department of Education:
- Translated content-specific information
- Academic and extracurricular programming
- Social-emotional assessments and support
- Partnerships with community organizations to connect families with resources and services
The funding is part of a city plan called Project Open Arms. It aims to support families seeking asylum and connect children with services to start their education, according to the city’s website.
“New York has always been a welcoming place for those seeking a better life in this country,” Mayor Eric Adams said in the release. “As we see an increase of families seeking asylum in our city, we are working to ensure every student has the resources they need to thrive.”
City Comptroller Brad Lander said that the city’s funding formula shows schools serving new immigrants should actually be receiving at least $34 million total to account for higher enrollment, Chalkbeat reported.