Brooklyn Kindergarten Society
Lobbying client
The Brooklyn Kindergarten Society, founded in 1891 as the Brooklyn Free Kindergarten Association, runs early childhood learning centers in public housing developments in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Crown Heights, Brownsville and Weeksville Gardens, serving about 400 children and families a year. It filed 15 disclosures since 2024, a citywide registration reaching all 51 council members through Bolton-St. Johns, LLC seeking budget funding for education and school programs, with reported compensation of $100,000 and $133.9 million in city contracts since 2009 in our data, about $425,000 of it currently active as of August 2026.
- Council members lobbied
- 51 (citywide)
- Filings (since 2024)
- 15
- Lobbying compensation (since 2024)
- $107,000
- Industry (per city contracts)
- Human Services
- City contracts (active)
- $425,000 · 1 contract
- Awarded all-time
- $133,980,559 · 39 since 2009, incl. expired
- Paid to date
- $93,224,295
- Won without a fresh bid
- 38% of contract value · $50,581,501 · 23 contracts
- Discretionary funding (FY2009-FY2027)
- $834,585 · 18 awards
- Funding history
- Funded 7 years (FY2012–FY2027), including each of the last 6
- Top officer pay (FY2023)
- $248,995 · Melisha Jackman, Executive Director.
- Based in
- Brooklyn, NY
Represented by lobbyist firms
- Bolton-St. Johns, LLC Lobbyist firm
Holds contracts at
- Administration for Children's Services City agency
- Department of Education City agency
- Department of Youth and Community Development City agency
Funded by these agencies
- Administration for Children's Services City agency
- Department of Education City agency
- Department of Youth and Community Development City agency
What they lobbied on
subjects from their filings
- Budget - Funding for education in NYC
- Budget - Funding for school programs
- Resolution - Miscellaneous Issues in NYC
City contracts
Registered city contracts, largest first by current contract value (not amount spent): running now, then registered to start later, then ended. Totals count every registered contract. Each line shows its Checkbook contract ID. The tag on each row is how it was awarded (“no-bid” = non-competitive).
- To provide funding support for staffing and curriculum Department of Youth and Community Development · CT126020268805429 $425,000
- EarlyLearn Services Administration for Children's Services · CT106820131406835 · ended 2016 $20,308,883
- Decrease of funds and EarlyLearn Services transfer to DOE. Administration for Children's Services · CT106820171403648 · ended 2019 $16,491,226
- Assignment/Negotiated Acquisition Extensions for Early Learn Department of Education · CT104020209050340 · ended 2021 $13,618,405
- UPK-HST Department of Education · CT104020229251150 · ended 2025 $9,847,695
- UPK-HST Department of Education · CT104020229251165 · ended 2025 $9,229,147
- UPK-HST Department of Education · CT104020229251270 · ended 2025 $7,008,832
- Day Care Service. #03-003 Administration for Children's Services · CT106820100001435 · ended 2011 $6,195,446
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · CT104020229250610 · ended 2026 $5,646,269
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · CT104020229250580 · ended 2026 $5,147,867
Largest payments, by purpose
The organization's largest individual city payments (roughly $25,000 and up), grouped by purpose, to show what recent money was for. This is NOT a total — smaller payments aren't listed; see “Paid to date” above for the complete amount paid against its contracts. Fiscal years 2020 and later.
- Assignment/Negotiated Acquisition Extensions for Early Learn Department of Education · FY2021 · 12 payments $3,639,293
- UPK-HST Department of Education · FY2023 · 22 payments $2,013,151
- Assignment/Negotiated Acquisition Extensions for Early Learn Department of Education · FY2020 · 5 payments $1,739,687
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · FY2023 · 31 payments $1,719,425
- Head Start Services Department of Education · FY2022 · 9 payments $1,359,340
- Birth to Five Department of Education · FY2022 · 9 payments $1,034,720
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · FY2026 · 16 payments $1,030,894
- UPK-HST Department of Education · FY2025 · 11 payments $933,910
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · FY2025 · 12 payments $724,572
- Assignment/Negotiated Acquisition Extensions for Early Learn Department of Education · FY2022 · 4 payments $623,874
- UPK-HST Department of Education · FY2024 · 9 payments $567,644
- UPK-BTF Department of Education · FY2024 · 13 payments $526,600
- Birth to Five Services Department of Education · FY2023 · 6 payments $445,582
- Decrease of funds and EarlyLearn Services transfer to DOE. Administration for Children's Services · FY2023 $392,441
- Decrease of funds and EarlyLearn Services transfer to DOE. Administration for Children's Services · FY2020 $279,000
- Birth To Five Department of Education · FY2023 · 6 payments $224,444
- UPK-Head Start Services Department of Education · FY2026 · 5 payments $196,232
- To provide funding support for staffing and curriculum Department of Youth and Community Development · FY2026 · 2 payments $143,510
- UPK - Universal Prekindergarten Services Department of Education · FY2020 · 3 payments $142,611
- UPK-Head Start Services Department of Education · FY2027 · 2 payments $82,611
Discretionary funding received
City Council discretionary (member-item) awards, largest first. Covers FY2009-FY2027.
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2027 $150,000
- The Sensory Gym Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2022 $100,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2023 $100,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2024 $100,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2025 $100,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2026 $100,000
- Speaker's Initiative CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2025 $50,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Speaker · Speaker's Initiative · DYCD · FY2026 $50,000
- Pandemic Support for Human Service Providers Pandemic Support for Human Service Providers · DOE · FY2022 $39,585
- Local ACS · FY2012 $5,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Restler · Youth · DYCD · FY2023 $5,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Restler · Youth · DYCD · FY2024 $5,000
- Council District 40 CM Joseph · Youth · DYCD · FY2025 $5,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Restler · Youth · DYCD · FY2025 $5,000
- Learning Program - Council District 40 CM Joseph · Youth · DYCD · FY2026 $5,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Restler · Youth · DYCD · FY2026 $5,000
- Learning Program - Council District 40 CM Joseph · Youth · DYCD · FY2027 $5,000
- The Sensory Gym CM Restler · Youth · DYCD · FY2027 $5,000
Funded by these council members
City Council members who steered discretionary (member-item) money to this organization, largest first (FY2020 and later, where the sponsoring member is disclosed). Sitting members link to their page.
- Lincoln Restler FY2023-2027 · 5 awards $25,000
- Rita C. Joseph FY2025-2027 · 3 awards $15,000
Officer & key-staff pay
Reportable compensation from this organization's IRS Form 990 (Part VII), latest available filing (FY2023). Includes pay from related organizations where reported; an annual figure, not a running total. Source: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
- Melisha Jackman Executive Director. $248,995
- Olena Jaffe Director of Compliance $145,530
- Kiere Wynne Dp Dr of Education $136,636
- Nandy Cauvil-Duverglas Program Director $117,800
- Crystal Taitt Program Director $114,600
Officer pay over time
Total officer pay changed +25% from FY2020 to FY2023. Top-officer reportable compensation by year (org-paid only), with each year's share of total revenue. Source: ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer 990 filings.
- FY2020 Angela Terry · 7.69% of revenue $124,968
- FY2021 Melisha Jackman · 7.48% of revenue $208,454
- FY2022 Melisha Jackman · 4.51% of revenue $219,621
- FY2023 Melisha Jackman · 8.25% of revenue $248,995