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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Teresa Baik, Director of Education at Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York
6:13:05
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140 sec
Teresa Baik, representing Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, testified about the importance of adult literacy programs and the need for increased funding. She highlighted the success of their ESOL program and the growing demand for adult literacy services in their community.
- KCS has provided adult literacy classes through city funding for over 20 years, with increasing demand each year
- The Adams administration cut funding for community-based adult literacy programs from $17 million to $12 million in FY25, maintained in the FY26 preliminary budget
- Baik called for doubling the baseline funding for adult literacy programs from $12 million to $24 million to restore cuts and stabilize services
Teresa Baik
6:13:05
Good afternoon Chair Aviles and members of the committee.
6:13:09
My name is Theresa Baek, and I'm the Director of Education at Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, KCS Port York.
6:13:17
KCS is a 52 year old 52 year old social service nonprofit for immigration whose mission is to be a bridge for Korean immigrants and the wider Asian community.
6:13:30
We accomplish this mission by providing culturally competent programs in the areas of aging, education, immigration, workforce development, public health, and mental health.
6:13:41
In addition, KCS is a proud member of the New York City Coalition for Adult Literacy, NICAL.
6:13:47
For over twenty years, KCS has provided adult literacy classes through city funding.
6:13:53
Each year, the number of students and the number of classes have dramatically increased and is an evidence of the success of for our ESOL program and the constant need for adult literacy programming in our communities.
6:14:07
We operate our in person and virtual classes from Monday through Saturday with flexible class times in the morning, afternoon, and evening to best accommodate our students and their busy schedules.
6:14:19
In f r twenty five, the Adams administration cut funding for community based adult literacy programs funded through multiyear contracts with DYCD from 17,000,000 to 12,000,000.
6:14:32
This reduction in funding has been maintained in the mayor's preliminary budget for FY '26, as you already know.
6:14:38
Our students desperately need these classes, and with the Trump administration, there is a great risk that these programs will either be cut, eliminated, and or restricted.
6:14:49
We are calling on the administration, along with NICAL, to double its baseline funding for adult literacy programs funded through DYCD from 12,000,000 to 17 mill to 24,000,000, restoring the cuts from last year and enabling programs to bolster and stabilize their services in a time of increased need and continuous cuts to our communities.
6:15:12
In addition, on behalf of our students, we wanna express our deepest gratitude to this to the support that the council has supported.
Manuel Castro
6:15:21
Thank you for your testimony.
6:15:22
Your time's expired.
Teresa Baik
6:15:24
Okay.
6:15:24
Thank you for your attention.