NEW YORK (1010 WINS) -- Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday announced the city's new Mentors Matter Initiative which focuses on providing mentors and tutors to young men of color throughout the city.
Mentors can provide a transformative experience that propels people to their potential and includes a CUNY Tutor Corps.
The initiative would support 3,600 additional students with academic tutoring and near-to-peer mentoring, according to the mayor.
The community crisis response will provide $500,000 in grants to community-based organizations that offer tutoring, mentoring, social-emotional support, and is estimated to support 4,000 students.
Parents can apply for the program between Sept. 21 and Oct. 5.
The mayor also gave details for the city's Learning Bridges initiative which provides free childcare and supervised learning for kids from preschool to 8th grade.
Starting on Monday, 3,600 preschoolers to have full-time care and K-8 beginning Sept. 29, de Blasio said.
Families can apply on a rolling basis at schools.nyc.gov/learningbridges
De Blasio said "there was an air of energy and spirit," as New York City schools opened their doors for in-person classes for about 90,000 students on Monday.
"This year was special," he added.





