UPK for FAMILIES
Click the icon for a FAQ page for families and see the Family section for more info. If you still don't see what you need, please contact us! We're here to help!I
UPK for providers
Click the icon for an FAQ page for providers and see the Provider section for more info. If you have additional questions, please contact us or attend Office Hours.
UPK for School Districts
Click the icon for an FAQ page and see the School District section for more info. If you have additional questions, please contact us or attend Office Hours.
UPK NEWS + EVENTS
Life after the MATCHING algorithm | Special Meeting
As of November 6th, the state will no longer run the UPK matching algorithm. Applications will remain open with communication directing families to complete the application and then enroll directly with their provider of choice. Moving forward, providers can work solely on direct placement, similar to how providers manage the hybrid enrollment environment, but will no longer need to review matches in the application portal. Email UPK@jointinitiatives.org for assistance.
Your JI team is developing a plan to ensure that families interested in your program are directed to you after the matching process ends. See the slides and recording of our special meeting below.
▶ View the Life After the Matching Algorithm special meeting presentation slides HERE.
▶ View the Life After the Matching Algorithm special meeting RECORDING HERE.
Roundtables for Early Childhood Providers
Joint Initiatives is announcing a NEW platform to keep early childhood providers informed about guidance from the Colorado Department of Education (CDEC), offer time for Q+A, and provide expert business consultation and training. Roundtables will be held monthly via a one-hour Zoom session.
▶ November 29th Roundtable Slide Deck HERE.
Roundtable included CDEC updates feedback planning for the 2024-25 UPK year.
- School Districts | Watch recording HERE.
- Center-Based Providers | Watch recording HERE.
- Family Child Care Providers | Watch recording HERE.
▶ October 20th Roundtable Slide Deck HERE
- School Districts | Watch recording HERE.
- Child Care Centers | Watch recording HERE.
- Family Child Care Homes | Watch recording HERE.
MAP OF UPK PROVIDERS
Provider Guidance
enrollment guidance for walk-ins
- We understand that families may contact a provider directly (e.g., walk-in) that has not yet applied in the Universal Preschool Application Portal. In these cases, we ask the provider to work with the family to help them apply in the Application Portal the same day they contact the provider and complete the enrollment process simultaneously. The provider will email UPK@jointinitiatives.org when the application is complete, and JI will accept the match on behalf of the family on that day. Finally, the provider will complete the enrollment form for the child that same day in the Application Portal so we can ensure that the payment is correct based on the actual start date of the child.
- It is the provider’s responsibility to ensure there are enough seats available to serve walk-in students based on children in the matching queue in the Universal Preschool Application Portal. Providers must monitor declines and children in the queue before making a manual placement to ensure no children who apply through the Universal Preschool Application Portal are displaced due to manual entries.
Payment Process for providers
CDEC prioritizes ensuring payments to providers are accurate and timely. Providers are encouraged to reach out to UPK@jointiniatives.org with specific questions and technical assistance needs. Providers have received communication from MetrixIQ (see payment vendor information in Provider Section) regarding the provider payment process for UPK. To access an overview of the payment process and directions on who to contact, please click this link: Payment Quick Reference. For a detailed payment schedule, see the Provider Section below.
As payments continue monthly, the CDEC team will continue to review quality and accuracy. If you have concerns related to your payment, please contact the payment help desk at: coupkpayments@metrixiq.com so that we can track and respond.
additional hours
Families who qualify as low-income (defined as 270% Federal Poverty Line) and have one other qualifying factor may be eligible for additional hours. CDEC completes a monthly review to determine availability of funds as the program year progresses. Families may need to upload documentation in the Universal Preschool Application Portal for income verification if they have not yet done so. They must also be enrolled in a 30 hour program. If you have questions about the aligned payment, please connect with the payment help desk at: coupkpayments@metrixiq.com.
UPK Newsletters + FAQs
- UPK Newsletter | 11.28.23
- UPK Newsletter | 11.15.23
- UPK Newsletter | 11.8.23
- UPK Newsletter | 11.2.23
- UPK Newsletter | 10.18.23
- UPK Newsletter | 9.25.23
- UPK Colorado FAQs
Curious about the meaning of the statuses in BridgeCare? Here are the definitions of the most commonly used statuses.
Draft Quality Standards
The Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) has released the Draft Universal Preschool (UPK) Colorado Quality Standards for stakeholder review and input. These draft Universal Preschool Quality Standards have been designed to ensure that preschool services are both high quality to prepare children for kindergarten and accessible throughout the state across various provider types and program settings, including school-based, community-based, and home-based settings. The proposed UPK Quality Standards Rules (Redline Draft | Clean Draft), as outlined and required by Colorado House Bill 22-1295, reflect statutory requirements, incorporate findings from comprehensive reviews of 26 national and Colorado-specific standards, and include input and feedback from Families, Providers, School Districts, Early Childhood Councils, and Early Childhood Community Members.
Before these proposed rules move through the Colorado Department of Early Childhood’s formal rulemaking process, CDEC is requesting public feedback and support crafting the proposed rules by November 22, 2023. Stakeholders may use the Stakeholder Input Form to submit general comments, questions for inclusion in the FAQ, and suggested changes to the draft Universal Preschool Quality Standards. CDEC will review and consider all submitted stakeholder input in advance of submitting UPK quality standards rules to the Rules Advisory Council later this fall. See links below for details.
- Posted to CDEC Public Notice Information
- Draft Universal Preschool (UPK) Colorado Quality Standards
- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Quality Standards Crosswalks (previously released in Spring 2023
▶ Quality Standards Webinar RECORDING HERE | Slide Deck HERE
▶ For more details and links to past stakeholder engagement opportunities, click HERE.
family applications
Universal Pre-K (UPK) allows families to choose the right setting for their child, whether in a licensed community-based, school-based, or home-based preschool setting. Families of children in the year before they are eligible for kindergarten and qualifying 3-year-olds are able to apply for UPK for the 2023-24 school year.
- If you have already submitted a UPK application for your child, please DO NOT submit a second one unless directed by JI. Each child can only have one application in the system.
- If you are having trouble logging into your original application to make changes, please contact JI at upk@jointinitiatives.org.
Here are links to more information:
upk for providers
Important Provider Updates
Early childhood programs act as the bridge between preschool and kindergarten and are an essential resource for families preparing to navigate this transition. Below are suggestions to help your program implement practices to ensure families have the information they need and that children are ready for this big transition. The most important thing is that children who believe in their own abilities have been found to be more successful in school.
- Beginning October 15, ALL UPK children attending your program need to be in Enrolled Status in BridgeCare in order for you to be paid. See this Enrollment Notice for more information. For information on how to place children in Enrolled Status, download the guide HERE. Click HERE for the Provider Guide on how to enroll children in the UPK system.
- Need to check the enrollment date for a child in your program? Follow the instructions HERE.
- Do I have to report my enrollment monthly to be paid? No. Metrix IQ is downloading your enrollment on the 15th of the month, and that will be the basis of your payment the following month on the 8th. Make sure that all of your attending children are in enrolled status!
- What do I do if a child drops from my program? You have two choices. You can send an email to UPK@jointinitiatives.org to withdraw/unenroll the child, or you can attempt to unenroll by clicking on the child’s name and changing their status to unenroll. If you need assistance, please email us.
- The CDEC will allow providers to increase seats throughout the year.
Infant/Toddler Bonus Grant:
- In Spring 2024, a one-time bonus (estimated at $800 – $1,600) will be awarded to Universal Preschool providers who have maintained or increased their licensed capacity to serve infants and toddlers between April 1, 2022, and April 1, 2024.
- Providers considering reallocating slots intended for four-year-olds to serve other age groups based on actual Universal Preschool enrollment levels, may be eligible to receive the one-time bonus if they convert these slots to maintain or expand their infant and toddler capacity
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The Colorado Department of Early Childhood is excited to share the updated versions of the Business Guides For Early Care And Education Providers:
- Business Guide for Family Child Care Homes (en español)
- Business Guide for Child Care Centers (en español)
Click HERE for the information below in Spanish.
The updated guides offer family child care home providers and child care centers, as well as those interested in expanding or starting new programs, a collection of resources to strengthen their small businesses. Early care and education providers are essential to the children and families they serve, their communities, and our state. The Business Guides were developed and updated, through stakeholder focus groups and feedback, to make the business side of providing early care and education services easier.
The guides are in an easy-to-navigate digital format allowing users to click on hyperlinks to access the most up-to-date information on budgeting, regulatory compliance, and other operational functions of a small business. The guides are “living documents”, which are updated at least annually with new information or resources as they become available. We encourage those accessing the document to always follow the link to ensure they are accessing the most up-to-date version. As they are a compendium of existing resources, the guides will only be in a digital format. You can also access the guides on the Colorado Department of Early Childhood website under the “For Providers” tab by selecting “Support, Resources and Guides”.
What’s new:
- NEW Universal Preschool (UPK) Colorado section: Program requirements, provider application information, and collection of helpful links.
- Updated CCCAP section: Program requirements, application process, and links to Provider Handbooks.
- Updated Head Start Suite of Services section: Program overview, eligibility information, and benefits.
- Human Resources: Health insurance, retirement, and the Family and Medical Leave Insurance (FAMLI) program.
- Updated Time-limited Grant opportunities.
- Other business-related topics.
For each topic in the guides, we include key points family child care home and child care center providers should know or consider as small business owners. The topic sections include links to more information and resources if providers are interested in researching a topic in more detail.
Please forward this information to anyone who might be interested in the updated Business Guides for Early Care and Education Providers! If you are interested in a presentation on the guides or have any questions, please contact Marika Padilla at: Marika.Padilla@state.co.us.
These guides were developed pursuant to Colorado Shines Brighter Strategy 5.1.5.
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Providers must complete an enrollment verification form in BridgeCare for each child, which includes confirmation of the date of birth and Colorado residency, by October 14th. In response to providers, the form has been simplified for efficiency. Providers will only need to complete this once per child. This will ensure accurate payment and can be adjusted on a monthly basis based on changes to enrollment.
- This Universal Preschool Provider Guide contains additional details on the process: UPK Provider Guide: How to Enroll a Child 7.24.23.
Providers will receive payment for all children in accepted and enrolled status for the months of August, September, and October, even if the Enrollment Verification Form has not yet been completed. You have until October 15 to complete the Enrollment Verification Form for each child attending your program. Through October 15, payment will be made based on acceptance. After October 15, payment will be made on enrollment. CDEC will give additional time to complete the verification as needed. Please email cdec_upkcolorado@state.co.us if you need additional time to complete the Enrollment Verification Form for your student(s).
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See hours graphic under Family Section.
Metrix IQ is the payment vendor for UPK. All providers should have received an email from Metrix IQ asking you to complete a “survey” that is the basis for your payments. Click HERE for a sample email sent to private providers along with the payment dates. If you have any questions about payments, please contact Metrix IQ at coupkpayments@metrixiq.com.
Providers have received communication from MetrixIQ regarding the provider payment process for UPK. To access an overview of the payment process and direction on who to contact, please click this link: Payment Quick Reference.
Providers may reach out to UPK@jointinitiatives.org for specific questions and technical assistance.
On August 1, providers will receive their initial start-up payment based on their accepted matches and enrollment as of July 9. Providers will receive their first two payments based on matches made in BridgeCare before October 15. After that, monthly payments for the remainder of the school year will be based on the number of students who are enrolled and verified, as explained in the payment reference guide (linked above). Please see the payment schedule below.
Payment Date | Includes Enrollments As Of
August 1 | July 9th
September 8 | August 15 and late enrollments from July 10-August 15 (full-month rate)*
October 6 | September 15 and late enrollments from August 16-25 (half-month rate)*
November 8 | October 15 and late enrollments from September 16-25 (half-month rate)*
December 8 | November 15 and late enrollments from September 16-25 (half-month rate)*
January 8 | December 15
February 8 | January 15
March 8 | February 15
April 8 | March 15
May 8 | April 15
*Payments are structured to retroactively pay for students who did not enroll before the previous month’s data was reported. Providers who are published for UPK between July 10 and August 15 will be eligible for a full monthly August payment on the delayed schedule if children are in an accepted or enrolled status.
If you have questions about provider payments, please contact coupkpayments@metrixiq.com.
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New! Visit the new CCCAP web page! This page has been updated to include new information and links to the recently developed CCCAP/Universal Preschool resources.
Are you a CCCAP (Colorado Child Care Assistance Program) provider and have questions about how CCCAP integrates with UPK?
Click HERE to see the slides from a recent training for LCOs presented by the state CCCAP office. The transcript of that meeting can be found HERE.
After discussion with providers, we have decided to suspend Friday office hours and instead make individual technical assistance appointments available. Please reach out to upk@jointinitiatives.org for assistance with scheduling an appointment.
We are also planning some in-person town hall meetings for both families and providers.
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ADDITIONAL provider resources:
- Learn more about the true cost of child care and managing finances, including revenue, monthly costs, and profit-and-loss calculations HERE.
- Need a UPK flyer to share with families? Download or share a link to Universal Pre-K for Families Flyer (English) or Universal Pre-K for Families (Spanish)
upk for school districts
Early childhood programs at school district locations across our community act as the bridge between preschool and kindergarten and are an essential resource for families preparing to navigate this transition. The information below details the placement of children with and without an IEP, the placement of 3-year-olds, district/AU reports and guidance, FAQs related to special education, and additional resources.
- School districts can expect their historical allowance payment in November. This is separate from payments for three-year-olds with IEPs
Thank you to those who have completed the 3-year-old attestation and to those who have attended the webinars. If you have additional questions in the process, please contact us at coupkpayments@metrixiq.com. Also please note that if you have been unable to complete your attestation by October 31, you can still receive 3YO payment. Just complete the attestation and payment will follow within 30 days. These attestations are due by Tuesday, October 31st, for a November 2023 payment.
Two trends have arisen from the initial webinars:
- How is the five-year average calculated (for those who are eligible)?
- The five-year average is based on the CPP FTE per your districts’ Student Count over each of the last five years, multiplied by the 2022-23 PPR. (Funding code 81 = 1.0 FTE and funding codes 83 and 64 = 0.5 FTE)
- It is important to remember that the three-year-old FTE was disaggregated from the four-year-old FTE based on an October 1 eligibility date for the historical allowance attestation. So, if your district utilizes an alternative kindergarten eligibility date, your noted average may be off. Check your counts, disaggregate by your eligibility date, and provide an updated five-year average to attest.
- Some districts have had the attestation survey end after two questions, which may have occurred if you answered no to either question or if you were timed out. If you need to have the survey reopened please let the payment help desk know at: coupkpayments@metrixiq.com.
Districts can make changes within a district by following these steps:
For students WITHOUT an IEP: Connect with Joint Initiatives HERE to align a child without an Individualized Education Program to the new program.
For students WITH an IEP: AUs should request a placement as soon as known with CDEC securely through this IEP Placement Request Form. All requests will be honored and responded to within two business days. However, the AU requesting the placement can begin serving the student immediately, even if the request has not been responded to by CDEC. This form also can be utilized for any other requested modifications such as adding students, or correcting or updating students’ information, except for personally identifiable information, which is protected. To do this, AUs should utilize the “other” field in the form.
If your AU has not already reviewed all selections of families on your list of students with IEPs in your geographic area, please start by reviewing the program selected by the family and making any requested changes using the process described above. The UPK placement for each child with an IEP should be reviewed and verified by the AU. The AU may request a different placement that aligns with the IEP and where the IEP can be implemented. Administrative units are the final decision makers on the location of where a student with an IEP should be placed to ensure consistency with the IEP team’s decision.
We know that the placement information from AU to CDEC will be ongoing, therefore the AU reports described below include the Child ID to allow you to communicate and request a placement with CDEC securely through the AU Reassignment Request form. All requests made through the AU Reassignment Request form will be responded to within two business days.
For children that are found eligible for an IEP and have not yet applied in the UPK system, the AU should support the family by applying in BridgeCare and selecting the provider where the child may receive their IEP services. Once the child’s application is in BridgeCare, the child will then be viewable on the “Children with IEP” report. Should further placement changes be needed, the AU can use the Child ID to communicate and request a placement with CDEC securely through the AU Reassignment Request form.
Need information on the placement process for three-year-olds? Click HERE to see the presentation developed by CDEC.
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In our (CDEC) work with stakeholders around Universal Preschool implementation, there was a request for access to lists of (1) more information about students whose parents identified as having an IEP who reside in the geographic boundaries of an administrative unit and (2) students that requested a district in the matching process but did not end up enrolled in the district. CDEC has collaborated with BridgeCare to create reports responsive to both these requests.
- For Administrative Units: A report was requested by Administrative Units (AU) that provides names of all children residing within school district and AU boundaries who have attested to an IEP regardless of a family’s location choice (including non-school district providers), along with their placement and status. This report is already available in BridgeCare to the AU Directors of Record and is designed to give real-time updates to AUs on the status of the placement process with CDEC and to support school district collaboration for program decisions. (See information above about direct placements of students with IEPs for further guidance on using this report. The assigned contact for each Administrative Unit will receive a separate communication on Friday, July 28 from CDEC with instructions on how to access this report from BridgeCare.
- Updated data sharing agreements, per provider request from the initial agreement, are available for Special Education Administrative Units (AUs) to sign. A contact sheet, as well as reminders to complete the DSA have been sent to each Special Education Director of record, who then do have the option to designate a signee. Once the Department has received the signed contact sheet from the AU’s director of record, a docusign approval is then sent to that signee for completion. We appreciate your time on these! If you have questions please email: cdec_upkcolorado@state.co.us.
- For School Districts: School districts have requested a report that lists the name of children whose parents chose the district as their first choice. This information is intended to help streamline the placement process. For ease of access, that report will be delivered to each School District UPK enrollment contact via email notification with access to a secure Google link by Friday, July 28 for immediate access that can be downloaded without needing to log in to BridgeCare. The one-time report includes matching data from February 27 through July 27. School districts may request updated reports with information after July 27 from their LCO. Districts will also receive the School District Report User Guide on how to effectively navigate the report. The school district report and user guide will be shared in the AU folder view noted above. Details on the report will be included in the email notification.
CDEC and CDE issued a joint Q&A about UPK and Special Education on Friday, March 3rd. Click HERE to view the Q&A and click HERE to submit questions so that we may follow up with you.
- UPK and Special Education FAQs (January 2023)
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After discussion with providers, we have decided to suspend Friday office hours and instead make individual technical assistance appointments available. Please reach out to upk@jointinitiatives.org for assistance with scheduling an appointment.
We are also planning some in person town hall meetings for both families and providers.
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General Info + Resources
UPK Newsletters
- UPK Newsletter | 9.11.23
- UPK Newsletter | 8.17.23
- UPK Newsletter | 8.8.23
- All Previous UPK Newsletters
- UPK Colorado FAQs
Curious about the meaning of the statuses in BridgeCare? Here are the definitions of the most commonly used statuses.
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Planning, Info + Input Process
Interested in how the Community Plan was developed? The process included planning sessions, input/info sessions, and a special Town Hall. We are grateful to our early childhood community for investing their time and efforts! To revisit any of the notes, feedback, or recordings, download the Community Planning Summary.