Universal Preschool
Universal Preschool Colorado (UPK) funds at least 15 hours of preschool for Colorado children in the year before they enter kindergarten.
Colorado's Universal Preschool Program (UPK) provides a minimum of half-day preschool, or 15 hours per week, for the 2023-24 school year to children who turn 4 between August 2, 2022, and August 1, 2023.
Some four year old children may be eligible for 15 additional hours of preschool per week. Children who turn 3 between August 2, 2022, and August 1, 2023, may also be eligible for UPK if they have at least one qualifying factor.
Participating in UPK is voluntary, both for families and preschool providers.
Sign Your Child Up for UPK
Applications for UPK Colorado are accepted throughout the year. There are no deadlines to apply.
UPK is available during the school year (nine months). The funding for each child's preschool tuition goes directly to the participating preschool provider. Participating UPK preschool providers must be licensed by the State of Colorado and can include: Family Child Care Homes, Community Based Centers, School District Based Programs, Charter School Programs, and Head Start Programs.
Preschool providers participating in UPK may serve the number of preschool students allowed for by their current child care license.
Some children are eligible for more than 15 hours a week if they have low household income and one additional qualifying factor.
Four-year-old children who live in a low-income household and have at least one additional qualifying factor (listed below) may be eligible for 15 additional hours of preschool per week (30 hours). Children who turn 3 between August 2, 2022, and August 1, 2023, may be eligible for UPK if they meet at least one qualifying factor.
A child who is a dual language learner and the native language spoken at home is a language other than English, or the child’s native language is not English
A child with an Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
A child who is currently in foster care or in non-certified kinship care
A child who is identified as homeless
Are you a preschool provider?
Explore your options for participating in the Colorado UPK program.
How does the UPK matching process work?
After you submit your application, the UPK system uses an algorithm to match children to preschool providers.
Learn more about the matching process in this video from CDEC.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Yes. Children will continue to qualify for the state’s Child Care Assistance Program (CCCAP), Head Start and other funding sources. These programs can be “stacked” on top of the universal preschool hours to provide a child with additional hours per week. Providers participating in UPK are encouraged to blend and braid UPK tuition credits with other available funding sources including Head Start and CCCAP for eligible families.
The initial 15 hours of UPK funding should be applied first to a child’s tuition costs. After that, Head Start or local scholarship dollars are applied. Then, if remaining tuition is owed, the additional UPK rate for qualifying factors is applied. By statute CCCAP is the last funding source applied. -
Families will still be able to enroll in a program of their choosing and the first 15 hours per week will be free and then families can pay for the additional hours or the program can work with them to see if they might qualify for other programs to help subsidize the cost. Families will be able to review the costs of each program in the UPK portal and decide which program is best for their child.
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Universal preschool funding is tied to the seat — not the child. Unlike CCCAP or Head Start that have attendance requirements, the UPK rate is not impacted by a child’s actual attendance.
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Please see this slide show for an explanation of how programs (or schedules) work in UPK.
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Visit the CDEC’s website to learn more, including the amount of tuition credits for each region of the state, updated annually.
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Yes. As of July 1, 2023 the Colorado Preschool Program (CPP) will unify with the UPK Program. CPP as it is currently known will no longer exist.*
*There is a one year “hold harmless” funding provision for school districts, charter schools, and community-based providers that served CPP children: CDEC will pay the difference if the provider receives total preschool funding in the 2023-24 school year that is less than funding received in the 2022-23 school year.
UPK Help Desk & FAQ
UPK Help Desk support is available by phone 303-866-5223 or email: cdec_upkcolorado@state.co.us.
Help Desk hours are 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. (MST). Support is available to:
Help providers with login issues
Answer common program questions for families
Help families with login and document upload issues