Some 10,000 New York City children will start kindergarten with $100 in a college savings account thanks to a public-private partnership intended to boost the number of students attending college.
Under the three-year pilot program announced Tuesday, about 3,500 kindergartners will get so-called 529 college savings accounts next fall.
Another 3,500 kindergartners will get the accounts in the fall of 2018 and a third group in the fall of 2019.
Families that meet savings benchmarks will get up to another $200 in matching funds.
The program is being funded with $10 million from Jon Gray, the global head of real estate at the investment firm Blackstone Group.
It will be overseen by a newly created nonprofit called NYC Kids Rise.
Similar programs exist in cities including San Francisco and Boston.
