Funded by NYC’s Compass program, which is managed by the NYC Department for Youth & Community Development (DYCD), PS8 has been fortunate to offer a free after school program for the past 19 years. Since 2008 the YMCA has managed this program at PS8. The YMCA after school program plays a significant role in supporting the diversity of our Brooklyn Heights and Dumbo neighborhoods, two of NYC’s most expensive neighborhoods to raise families in.

The YMCA after school program provides a safe, professional, and nurturing environment for PS8 students for 3 hours a day, 5 days a week. PS8 students love their YMCA counselors and have built incredible friendships through the program that would not have otherwise developed during the normal school day. PS8 parents and caregivers rely on this free program, which allows many families to make ends meet with confidence that their children are well cared for every afternoon.

Unfortunately, for reasons that are unclear to PS8 families, school administration at PS8 has made the sudden decision to begin the process to remove the free YMCA after school program from PS8 after the current school year. School administration has come to this surprising and controversial decision seemingly on its own with no input from the PS8 community, most importantly, with no dialogue with the PS8 families who rely on the YMCA program.

The potential loss of the YMCA after school program has left impacted PS8 families disappointed, frustrated, and concerned about how they will manage next school year. With less than 4 months until the 2023-24 school year begins, many families are now left scrambling to budget for costly after school care for the 2023-24 school year.

Since there is no cost to PS8 or to PS8 families, pushing the YMCA after school program out of the school is akin to turning down hundreds of thousands of dollars of free public funding for the PS8 community. 

We ask that you please sign this petition to show the NYC Department of Youth and Community Development (DYCD), NYC Department of Education, PS8 administration, and our local elected officials your support for PS8’s YMCA after school program as a critical and much-needed community resource that must be maintained. For families who have participated in the program, we welcome testimonials about your experience.