Op-Ed: A new school year brings great news for Western New York families

As fall weather brings welcome relief from the summer heat, families are also welcoming the start of another school year in Western New York. Throughout the 61st Senate District, the new school year is bringing a lot of exciting changes.

In the City of Tonawanda, students are enjoying the new, state-of-the-art Tonawanda Elementary School. In the Town of Tonawanda, construction of a new wing is underway at the Thomas A. Edison Elementary School. Amherst schools will kick off a major districtwide capital improvement project in the summer. Meanwhile, the Grand Island Central School District received 75 additional universal pre-kindergarten slots, for a total of 185 full-day slots, thanks to our continued investment in UPK.

While there’s a lot going on locally, there are also major changes happening for families across the state. First, the big one: In this year’s state budget, we invested $34.5 billion in school aid, marking the highest amount of state funding for schools in our state’s history. I’m proud to report that New York now provides more education funding per student than any other state in the country.

Included in that investment is $135 million to expand access to the existing free and reduced price school meal program. Ask any teacher, and they’ll tell you that a hungry student is a distracted student. Kids who go through the school day with empty stomachs are far less likely to be engaged learners. Under the new plan, nearly 300,000 additional students statewide now have access to free breakfast and lunch every day, regardless of their family’s income. We hope to expand the program to cover even more children for the 2024-2025 school year.

The expansion of the free school meal program also allows more New York families to receive discounts on their internet bill through the Affordable Connectivity Program. This federal program is open to every family in America whose child receives free or reduced-price meals at school. With more local schools providing free meals to all of their students, that means that every family with a student in the Buffalo, Ken-Ton, Sweet Home and Tonawanda school districts can apply for up to $30 off their monthly internet bill. The program is also open to any household that receives SNAP, WIC, SSI, Medicaid or tribal assistance benefits, as well as those who receive federal public housing assistance, a veteran’s pension or survivors’ benefits, or a federal Pell grant. Families can learn more and apply at GetInternet.gov.

Another meaningful statewide change this year is the designation of Lunar New Year as a public school holiday. The holidays we celebrate as a state are a reflection of our state’s great diversity. The inclusion of Lunar New Year as a school holiday is a recognition of our state’s growing AAPI community, and it means that more families will be able to celebrate the holidays together.

This school year is shaping up to be a great one, and I wish the best of luck to teachers and students as we enter a new year of learning. With record investment in our state’s schools, the future of education in New York is bright.