Today, the Marguerite Casey Foundation (MCF) announced it has supported Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s campaign to create a universal free childcare program in New York City. Dr. Carmen Rojas, president & CEO of MCF, joined Mayor Mamdani and other supporters at a press conference today in New York City to announce the foundation’s decision to support the childcare program. MCF has invested $3 million in the Mayor’s Fund To Advance New York City. The program will kick off by providing care to 2,000 two-year-olds this fall.

“This is the kind of bold leadership we need replicated across our country,” said Dr. Rojas. “People are spending almost a fifth of their wages on childcare in an unfair, unjust economy. Marguerite Casey Foundation decided to invest $3 million into New York City’s childcare work because this is what it looks like when the government works to fix things and make our lives better. Providing universal childcare is a real solution to the issues people are facing right now.”

As a response to the federal administration’s rash decisions to freeze SNAP benefits, limit Medicaid, and preside over a government shutdown, MCF elevated its giving scope over the past year, with the decision to use its endowment to give $130 million in funding in 2025. This particular investment expands on the Foundation’s “Public Dollars for Public Good” grantmaking program, which supports grant recipients focused on ensuring that public money is used to build an inclusive, multiracial democracy, and create a more equitable society.

“It is my hope that this goal continues expanding across the state, and that more funders will join us in moving money to the Mayor’s Fund,” Dr. Rojas added. “This is an incredible opportunity to help people realize that we can have a government that is accountable to everyday people instead of to a handful of billionaires.”

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Marguerite Casey Foundation supports leaders, scholars, and initiatives working to shift the balance of power in society—building power in communities that have long been excluded from shaping how society works and from sharing in its rewards and freedoms. The foundation’s board, leadership, and staff are committed to advancing a just economy and a fully realized democracy, while providing bold, unrestricted support for the strategies needed to drive lasting change in our lifetime.

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