Open preschool events in Kent County coincide with backlash as NYC schools reopen after heavy snow
Kent ISD will hold “PreK Here I Come!” open houses this week to guide families through tuition-free preschool enrollment, even as New York City moved to reopen public schools after a powerful winter storm. The contrast matters because one jurisdiction is expanding access to 4-year-old classrooms while another faces criticism for resuming in-person learning amid transport and safety concerns.
Open Houses: Kent ISD Great Start Readiness Program
Families with children who turn 4 by Dec. 1 can attend Kent ISD Great Start Readiness Program open houses on two days this week: 4: 15–5: 45 p. m. on Thursday, Feb. 26, and 9–11 a. m. on Friday, Feb. 27. Events are scheduled at locations across Kent County and in the Thornapple Kellogg school district area; some sites are open both days. Enrollment for the next school year is open now and will continue while classroom spots remain available.
All families qualify for tuition-free pre-K for their 4-year-olds through Michigan’s PreK for All initiative. The GSRP offers full-day preschool classrooms that most often run Monday through Thursday, with select classrooms operating Monday through Friday. Families are encouraged to contact GSRP at 616-447-2409 for information on openings and schedules.
Kent ISD programs, partners and openings
There are many openings across Kent ISD public districts, in private and charter school districts, in community-based organizations such as YMCA, and in child care centers including Appletree and Milestones. The district’s outreach is part of a network that covers 20 public school districts and enrolls more than 102, 000 students. Kent ISD was founded in 2013 as an initiative of Kent ISD, is supported by local districts and community sponsors, and operates from 2930 Knapp NE in Grand Rapids, MI 49525.
The public districts named in program materials include Byron Center, Caledonia, Cedar Springs, Comstock Park, East Grand Rapids, Forest Hills, Godfrey-Lee, Godwin Heights, Grand Rapids, Grandville, Kelloggsville, Kenowa Hills, Kent City, Kent ISD, Kentwood, Lowell, Northview, Rockford, Sparta, Thornapple Kellogg and Wyoming.
Vito Fossella voices Staten Island criticism after reopenings
New York City public schools returned to in-person learning on a Tuesday one day after a nor'easter dumped more than 20 inches of snow in parts of the region. Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella said borough officials asked City Hall for an exemption that would have allowed Staten Island schools to remain closed while other boroughs reopened, but they were met with "basically silence. " Fossella called the city’s snow response "horrible" and characterized reopening schools as "a big mistake. "
Fossella said the borough’s conditions left many families unable to travel and questioned how students and commuters could get out of their homes when "the secondary, tertiary streets … are impassable. " He contrasted Staten Island’s car-dependent neighborhoods and one- and two-family homes with denser parts of the city, saying, "One size does not fit all. "
Transit suspensions and attendance impacts on Staten Island
The storm disrupted rail and bus service: the Staten Island Railway suspended service between Tottenville and Huguenot while trains running north operated on an hourly schedule, and MTA buses were seen stranded on snow-covered streets. Reports from the borough indicated severe attendance drops, with up to 90% of students absent at certain schools and roughly 70% absence at some intermediate schools on the South Shore.
Those attendance figures came as main roads in parts of Staten Island were described as largely cleared but many residential streets remained snow-covered or impassable early Tuesday, with cars buried under heavy drifts and driveways blocked by plowed snow.
Snow totals and mayoral decision
The Grasmere section of Staten Island recorded nearly 30 inches of snow—the highest total across the five boroughs—while snowfall totals climbed into the double digits in several communities across New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. A Long Island Rail Road worker clearing platforms was among the images of systems responding to the storm after services closed on Monday, Feb. 23, 2026.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced that schools would resume as scheduled, saying, "I do have some tough news to share. School will be in person, " and adding in a lighter tone, "You can still pelt me with snowballs when you see me. " Fossella countered that the decision placed families and children at risk: "It was just a big mistake, putting family and kids in harm’s way, " and he said "One more day of keeping the schools closed would not have been the end of the world. "
What makes this notable is the starkly different focus this week—Kent ISD expanding access and drawing families into enrollment events while city leaders in New York defended a uniform reopening policy despite localized, severe storm impacts.
