City child-care ‘enroll’ chaos

The city’s free child-care program is costing moms and dads their patience.

Parents say they’ve been left in the lurch with no notification on whether their child secured a slot or gained lastminute acceptance into the Learning Bridges program.

“The mayor fails to provide any specific information that parents need,” said Robert Bonanni, of Forest Hills, Queens, who has a 7-year-old daughter. “I don’t have child care. A lot of people are scrambling.”

Bonanni is a teacher at PS/ MS 164 in Flushing and his wife teaches at JHS 157 in Rego Park. Teachers and other Department of Education staffers are supposed to be among those getting priority access to the Learning Bridges program.

Bonanni jumped on the chance for a child-care slot, immediately filling out a city form on Aug. 19. But he said he didn’t receive confirmation that his application had even been received until this past Monday.

“They’re holding parents hostage,” he said.

In July, Mayor de Blasio announced that the city would provide 100,000 free childcare slots starting in September. Asked if all slots would be ready by the time school started, de Blasio said, “the goal is to have it all online.”

Earlier this month, the city said only 30,000 slots would be ready by the start of the school year, with the rest to be added later.

The care is for students in preschool up to eighth grade who are in the city’s blendedlearning model and will be in school only one to three days a week. The program is to take place at Ys and other community centers, giving students a place to do their remote studies while their parents work.

Councilmen Ben Kallos, who joined Councilman Brad Lander in July to say the program fell far short of the number of slots needed, said the city had done a poor job of explaining what Learning Bridges provided and how to apply.

“I would just say it’s a total mess,” Kallos said.

A City Hall spokeswoman said Friday that the plan still aims to provide care for 100,000 kids, and said more information will be provided this week.

LET DOWN: As working teachers, Robert and Michelle Bonanni, here with daughters Avery (left) and Reagan, were entitled to priority access for city child care, but their kids’ status has been in limbo for weeks.