Universal Preschool

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Universal Preschool In Larimer County

Early Childhood Council of Larimer County (ECCLC) is thrilled to be Larimer County’s Local Coordinating Organization (LCO) for Universal Preschool. We will continually be updating this page with opportunities to collaborate and learn. We are determined to ensure that UPK works our way in Larimer County. That means we will strive to make sure that everyone impacted by Universal Preschool, including families, early care and education providers, community partners, government, and local organizations has a voice–and say–in how Universal Preschool plays out in Larimer County.

Sign up for email communications about Universal Preschool in Larimer County here or via the QR code.

 

Universal Preschool Communications & Resources 
Larimer County Universal Preschool Hub
Universal Preschool Family Booklet
Does my child qualify for Universal Preschool?
ECCLC’s UPK Communications Toolkit
Larimer County Families ‘What you need to know’ – English
Larimer County Families ‘What you need to know’ – Spanish
Provider Talking Points – English
Provider Talking Points – Spanish
How to Navigate UPK Colorado in Larimer County
Cómo acceder al programa de UPK Colorado

 

Family Application

  • Families can apply for Colorado Universal Preschool for the 2024-2025 school year starting February 29th, 2024!
    • Contact Early Childhood Council of Larimer County, your local coordinating organization, to help support you through this process. You can email us at: [email protected]
  • The Universal Preschool family application is available in English, Spanish and Arabic.
  • Access the family application HERE.
  • Click here to view a video of the family application experience
  • Click here to view an example of a provider search

Provider Portal

  • Access the provider portal HERE.
  • If you are logging in for the first time, use the email associated with your child care license.

Family FAQs

What is Colorado Universal Preschool? 

  • 15 hours a week of free, high-quality, voluntary preschool to every Colorado child in their year before entering kindergarten
  • Universal Preschool is a 36-week program. The total hours required is as follows: Part-time (10 hours) 360 hours Half-day (15 hours) 540 hours Full-day (30 hours) 1,080 hours
  • Universal Preschool allows families to choose the right setting for their child, whether it is in a licensed community-based, school-based or home-based preschool setting
  • A result of the voter-approved Proposition EE
  • Launched in 2023 for the 2023-2024 school year and will be available every school year.

Does my 3-year-old qualify?

  • Qualifying 3-year-olds can receive Universal Preschool through their local school districts only. Families of 3-year-old students who are low income or who have a qualifying factor, wishing to send their child to a program run by a school district, will not be able to select a specific school location and should select the school district where they reside. School districts will match 3-year-olds in a separate process.

How do I apply for Universal Preschool Colorado?

  • Families can apply for Colorado Universal Preschool for the 2024-2025 school year starting February 29th, 2024!
    • Access the family application HERE.
  • Contact Early Childhood Council of Larimer County, your local coordinating organization, to help support you through this process. You can email us at: [email protected]

How do I find a preschool provider?

What if families need more than 15 hours of preschool a week? 

  • Universal Preschool funding covers 15 hours a week of preschool programing. If a family needs more than 15 hours, they can choose to pay out of pocket for those additional hours.
  • Children also will continue to qualify for the state’s Child Care Assistance Program, Head Start and other funding sources, which can be stacked on top of the 10 universal preschool hours.

What if my child has an IEP?

  • Children with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) must be served by the school district.
  • Throughout the enrollment process and school year, children with Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) would be supported through direct application, registration, and enrollment through their Administrative Unit (AU).

What documents will I need to provide to apply for Universal Preschool?

  • Make sure to have a copy of your child’s birth certificate (PDF, digital, photocopy, etc.), which you will need to register your child for Universal Preschool. To be eligible for Colorado’s Universal Preschool, your child will need to be 4 on or before October 1, 2024.  Learn more about how to obtain a birth certificate in Larimer County here.
  • You will need to provide proof of income with your application if you are applying for additional hours. For information on what documents are accepted, please visit the state’s FAQs here.

What is the timeline for families to apply and be matched to a school?

  • 2024-2025 Enrollment Process Updates
    • CDEC is developing an improved Colorado Universal Preschool enrollment process for school year 2024-25. The streamlined process has been developed to reduce matching delays, lessen providers’ administrative burden, and increase equitable family access to funding for high-quality preschool programming available throughout Colorado. The following provides a general overview of the new process. More information about the process will be available soon!
  • Pre-Registration (estimated February 2024- March 2024)
    • With an eye towards continuity-of-care, a pre-registration process would be available for families with children currently enrolled, children with siblings currently enrolled, or with a family member currently employed by a participating provider. CDEC and Local Coordinating Organizations (LCOs) would provide additional support to providers between pre-registration and the start of the school year to ensure that all families have access to and can complete the application in a timely manner.
  • Family Matching (estimated April 2024 – June 2024)
    • For families looking for a new preschool provider, the Family Matching process would offer families a simplified opportunity to be matched with a ‘just-right fit,’ based on their top choices from a wide variety of high-quality, licensed school-based, community-based, and home-based providers participating in Colorado Universal Preschool. Families will find a one-stop-shop to browse providers, select top choices, review eligibility for the program, and submit an application for funding via upk.colorado.gov.
  • Walk-In Direct Enrollment (estimated Summer)
    • Closer to the start of the school year, families who have yet to enroll would work directly with a provider of choice to enroll as space allows. Similar to the pre-registration process, families would be able to submit an application and directly enroll with the provider. CDEC would continue to work with providers to find ways to ensure families complete the universal preschool application during this phase so that providers secure funding for these families.

Why will Colorado Universal Preschool have a mixed delivery system? 

  • A mixed delivery model allows parents to choose among different program types (i.e., centers, homes, preschool – private and public) and select one that best meets their needs.
  • Children can participate in a program that meets their development and learning style.

 

Provider FAQs

How do preschool providers sign up to be part of Universal Preschool?

  • Please contact [email protected] about enrolling as a participating provider for the current school year (2023-2024). Information about provider enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year is not yet available. Please check back for updated information soon.

Where can we access the provider agreement?

  • ECCLC will send you the provider agreement once you have completed the registration steps outlined above. You can also access the agreement here .

When is the deadline to register as a provider?

  • Please contact [email protected] about enrolling as a participating provider for the current school year (2023-2024). Information about provider enrollment for the 2024-2025 school year is not yet available. Please check back for updated information soon.

Are we allowed to charge families for the remainder of their tuition not covered by Universal Preschool?

  • Per the state’s FAQ (pg. 6), providers cannot charge more for the hours provided by UPK, but if a child attends hours more than their allocated UPK slot, you can charge for the additional tuition cost.
  • Families must receive the Universal Preschool services for the number of hours covered by their rate without any additional charge. If families are enrolled for additional hours beyond what the rate covers, and the provider’s tuition for preschool is lower than the Universal Preschool Colorado reimbursement rate, then the family shall receive a tuition credit toward to total tuition (CDEC Rule). If a family is enrolled for more hours than covered by the rate and the provider’s tuition is higher, the provider may charge the family at a rate equal to what other families are paying for the same period of time above the Universal Preschool hours.
  • For example, if a child has a 15 hour/week slot from Universal Preschool, but attends 20 hours/week, you may charge for the additional 5 hours but it must be equal to what other families are paying for the same period for additional hours not covered by Colorado Universal Preschool.
  • We are waiting on further clarification from the state if there are additional rules on what providers are allowed to charge

Will Universal Preschool replace the existing Colorado Preschool Program? 

  • Universal preschool replaces Colorado Preschool Program, which had provided 15 hours a week of preschool for at-risk students and was administered by school districts. Some children will qualify for more than 15 state-funded Colorado Universal Preschool hours based on risk factors that are still to be developed.

Universal Preschool hours & rates

     Part-time 

  • 10 hours of preschool programming per week
  • 3-year-olds with one qualifying factor, served by school district
  • $4,757.44 (based on a 9 month school year)

     Half-day

  • 15 hours of preschool programming per week
  • All Colorado children in their year before kindergarten (must be 4-years-old by 10/1)
  • $5,944.89 (based on a 9 month school year)

     Full-day

  • 30 hours of preschool programming per week
  • All Colorado children in their year before kindergarten (must be 4-years-old by 10/1) with the factor of income and one additional qualifying factor are eligible for an additional 15 hours stacked on top of the half-day programming, pending eligibility confirmation and available funding. A qualifying child will only receive the additional hours of funding if they are enrolled in a program that is at least 30 hours per week.
  • $10,511.26 (based on a 9 month school year)

What is ECCLC doing about early care and education workforce issues in Larimer County? 

  • ECCLC had developed a workforce roadmap to make targeted recommendations for Larimer County. The roadmap focuses on improving recruitment and retention, achieving higher compensation of ECE professionals, and ongoing professional development.

What is an LCO? 

  • Local Coordinating Organizations (LCOs) are responsible for the coordination of Universal Preschool at the local level – this includes supporting families in navigating enrollment, tracking and reporting on seat availability in preschools, communicating with and supporting providers, and ensuring the smooth rollout of at least ten hours of free voluntary preschool for every child in the year before they are eligible to enter kindergarten. In time, CDEC will work with LCOs to broaden their areas of coordination, building a cohesive system among all early childhood service providers in their catchment area.
  • Learn more about what an LCO is and ECCLC’s role in implementing Universal Preschool here.

Questions about Universal Preschool?

Do you have important questions about Colorado Universal Preschool? If so, please sign up here for a 1 on 1 Universal Preschool information meeting with our Universal Preschool manager!  If the times provided do not work for you, email [email protected] for scheduling. 

Share Your Ideas and Comments

ECCLC has created a form to collect any ideas and comments you may have about Universal Preschool. As your dedicated partner and LCO, we will work diligently to answer those questions in a timely fashion. ECCLC looks forward to supporting you in doing what you do best- providing high quality care to the children and families of Larimer County.