Universal Preschool Colorado (UPK)

Arapahoe County Early Childhood Council (ACECC) is thrilled to be Arapahoe County’s Local Coordinating Organization (LCO) for Universal Preschool Colorado (also known as UPK). This page is a collection of information from the State of Colorado Department of Early Education and Arapahoe County Department of Human Services. We will continually update this information as opportunities to collaborate and learn are announced.

ACECC is a non-government, non-profit, collaborative that is dedicated to promoting high quality programs and services which support a safe, smart, and healthy start for young children and their families in Arapahoe County. We partner with federal, state, and local organizations to share resources and bridge the gap to improve early education in Arapahoe County.

We are determined to ensure that UPK is of benefit for all families. That means we will do everything that we can to make sure that everyone involved in Universal Preschool, including families, early care and education providers, community partners, government, and local organizations, have a voice in how UPK is implemented with support from our partners.

We are here to help!

Please contact us with any questions or to schedule a one-on-one meeting.
Email: upkhelp@acecc.org
Phone: (720) 845-0918

Additional Information

Universal Preschool Colorado (UPK)
Students who qualify must be 4 on or before October 1st, 2024. Some 3-year-old may be eligible for funded Preschool through their home school district only.

Please contact our UPK team with any questions
Email: upkhelp@acecc.org
Phone: (720) 845-0918

Family Resources:
Application Link
Colorado Department of Early Childhood
Find a new UPK Provider
School District Contact Information in Arapahoe County catchment area

Provider Resources:
We hold weekly office hours for participating providers every Thursday from 1:30-2:30 pm via zoom.
Program Specific Questions- Email us at jordan@acecc.org
Funding Questions- Submit a help desk ticket to coupkpayments@metrixiq.com
Participating Provider Guidance

All the information below can be found on the Colorado Department of Early Childhood website:

UPK Eligibility:

For students to qualify for UPK funding in the 25-26 school year, they must turn 4 on or before October 1st, 2025. All age-eligible students qualify for 10 or 15 hours of funding per week between August 2025 and May 2026. Some families may be eligible for 30 hours of funding based on low-income + additional qualifying factors. To see about full day eligibly please visit Eligibility and Qualifying Factors for 30 Hours of Funding page.

Students on active IEP’s will only be serviced through their local school district, contracted provider, or CSI location. To find your local school district, please  click here.

Tentative Enrollment Process for the 2025-2026 School Year

Pre-Registration:

  • December 17 - February 3: Pre-registration application window for families requesting Continuity of Care Placements: currently attending, sibling attending, or child of employee. 

  • February 3 - 10:  Families must accept pre-registration matches. 

Family Matching:

  • December 17 - February 5: Registration through https://upk.colorado.gov opens for families. 

  • February 10: First family-to-provider matching round runs. 

  • February 12 - February 21: Providers review and accept or decline matches. 

  • February 24: Families notified of first round matches. Families must accept or decline by March 3.

  • March 10: Second matching round runs. 

  • March 12 - March 21: Providers review and accept or decline matches. 

  • March 24: Families notified of second round matches. Families must accept or decline by March 31

Direct Enrollment:

  • April 1 until the end of the 2025–26 school year: Direct enrollment for non-IEP families directly through providers. 

IEP Direct Placement:

  • December 2024 through the end of the 2025–26 school year: Special Education Administrative Units (AUs) and school districts will request placement of students in accordance with their IEPs and CDEC will support direct upload of those identified placements. Providers will accept matches within 2 weeks of receiving a match; families will have until the start of the school year to accept matches.

Read more on the Universal Preschool Family Information page.