Nearly 25,000 families apply for new state preschool program
DENVER — Nearly 25,000 Colorado families applied for participation in the first round of the state’s new Universal Preschool program with 22,087 of them matched with their top choice of a preschool.
Those families will have received an email this week letting them know their status.
Families that participate in Universal Preschool Colorado will save $6,000 per year on average. This equates to nearly $150 million in savings for the participating families, the state Department of Early Childhood said in a press statement.
“My kids went to preschool and today I’m so excited that many more Colorado families will be able to prepare their child for success with a high quality preschool experience,” Gov. Jared Polis said in a written statement. “I am so excited that today tens of thousands of families and students were able to match with the high quality universal preschool provider of their choice. … This is an exciting moment in Colorado and education,” he said.
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Families have until May 10 to log back into UPK.Colorado.Gov to accept or decline their match. Families that accept their match will then complete the registration process with their preschool provider.
Families that decline their match can submit new program choices and go through the next round of matching. If a family declines a match, the seat will be released and may not be available in the future. Seats for families that do not accept or decline their match by the May 10 deadline will also be released.Families seeking to participate in Universal Preschool Colorado that have not yet applied can continue to sign up and make provider rankings for their child, the department said. Enrollment is on a rolling basis and families can log in to UPK.Colorado.Gov to find a provider in their area. There is no deadline to sign up.
