Early childcare services and a good public education are the central tools that allow kids from low-income and working families to make it to the middle class. Yet years of disinvestment have hurt working families’ chances of getting affordable childcare and threatened the promise of public education from 3-K to college for our youngest neighbors.

Just last year, it was announced that New York City would lose $70 million in Head Start funding – a federal program which helps thousands of low-income children across the city receive quality childcare services. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has cancelled grants to CUNY and slashed funding for K-12 education while bolstering money to predatory charter schools.

In a district that’s home to over 2,000 Head Start slots and two CUNY schools, Antonio will not stand for any cuts to public education or give up on the potential of good-paying jobs and fulfilling careers that come from a debt-free higher education. Antonio believes that fully funding childcare and public education are intrinsically tied together, and as a member of Congress, he will be a champion for both causes.

In Congress, Antonio will champion a public education ecosystem that is well-resourced, inclusive, and truly accessible for all students. He will fight to fully fund New York City’s Head Start program so that our youngest neighbors from low-income families can be well prepared for their public education journey, and he will fight to pass universal childcare benefits and paid family leave to help working families.  

To combat the skyrocketing costs of higher education, Antonio will join the fight to pass the College for All Act, which will ensure that incoming students at public universities such as CUNY receive a tuition-free education, and champion legislation that will liberate college graduates from the crippling debt of student loans.