Council hearing spotlights libraries' early‑literacy programs and funding needs amid Head Start uncertainty

Council Member Carlina Rivera opened an oversight hearing of the New York City Council Committee on Cultural Affairs, Libraries, and International Intergroup Relations by warning of federal cuts that could increase pressure on local literacy programs and libraries. "America's beloved public libraries, art organizations, and museums are under siege," Rivera said, quoting a recent editorial.

The hearing brought testimony from leaders of the three New York City public library systems and from Literacy and Community (LINC), the facilitating partner for the City Council's City's First Readers initiative. Witnesses detailed the breadth of early‑literacy programs for children from birth through age 5, their outreach strategies to reach low‑income and multilingual families, and specific data on participation and materials distributed.

"Supporting the city's youngest New Yorkers has been part of the library's mission since its founding," said Eva Shapiro, associate director of early literacy programs and services at the New York Public Library. Shapiro told the committee that NYPL has expanded multilingual kits and branch spaces to promote caregiver‑child interaction and early learning through play. In the first half of the current fiscal year, she said, NYPL offered 3,700 story times with more than 98,000 attendees; 2,000 play programs with 35,000 attendees; and 1,800 early childhood class visits that served about 30,000 children and early childhood teachers. NYPL also distributed 24,000 trilingual outreach kits.

Roxana Benavides, manager of the Sunset Park branch for Brooklyn Public Library, described local, bilingual programs that teach caregivers to be their children's "first teachers" and said the system uses newly expanded branch space to deepen outreach. "Working with children and their parents and caregivers is one of the greatest joys of my professional life," Benavides said, noting Sunset Park's 20,000‑square‑foot branch that opened in February 2023 and combines a library with affordable housing.

Angel Deneb, coordinator of early learning services at Queens Public Library, highlighted QPL's "QPL Baby" initiative and hospital partnerships that distribute baby kits containing library card applications, bibs and early‑learning information. Deneb said Queens Public Library receives $438,114 through the City's First Readers initiative and that the funding supports systemwide early‑learning programming and eight staff positions that run outreach and in‑person programs.

Karen Rogel, director of strategic initiatives at LINC, urged the council to increase support for the City's First Readers initiative. "Learning to read starts at birth and the capacity to learn to read is heavily influenced by a child's prenatal environment," Rogel said. LINC testified that an enhanced City allocation of $1,000,000 would expand outreach to more families and neighborhoods citywide; City's First Readers was described in testimony as a collaborative initiative of 17 partners established in 2014.

Witnesses framed the funding need against federal changes to Head Start operations. Rivera and witnesses noted that the federal administration has closed several regional Head Start offices and that "about 35,000 very young New Yorkers up to the age of 5 are served by Head Start programs," a figure cited during the hearing. Panelists told the committee that reduced federal support could increase demand for library early‑literacy services and book giveaways.

Testimony described common outreach strategies: dedicated outreach staff who offer sample story times in pediatric and hospital settings, book giveaways tied to community outreach, multilingual programming targeted to neighborhoods where language needs are greatest, and partnerships with schools, day‑care centers and health providers. Speakers said much of their data on impact comes from patron surveys; they reported that roughly 70 percent of caregivers surveyed said they learned early‑literacy concepts through library programs and about 68 percent said they felt more comfortable practicing early literacy with their children after attending programs.

Members of the committee thanked witnesses for the systems' multilingual offerings and community partnerships and asked how libraries measure program outcomes. Panelists said their chief tools are participant surveys and self‑reported behavior change; they stated the systems do not track long‑term child outcomes formally.

No formal votes or council actions were recorded during the hearing. Rivera closed the session after testimony and comments and adjourned the committee.