Universal Preschool CO Program Updates

From now until the UPK school year begins in August, direct enrollment is in place. That means families should contact the providers of their choice to ask about space and initiate the application process.

More information about direct enrollment is in the UPK Family Handbook on pages 24-25.

Provider Support Session on July 16

Join us on Wednesday, July 16, 2025 at 1:00pm via Zoom. Next session: August 20.

No need to register. We’ll answer your questions and provide important updates from CDEC.  Can’t make the Support Session? See June Provider Slides.

CDEC Office Hours & Recordings

Triad Bright Futures encourages all providers and AUs to attend CDEC Office Hours.

  • Community Provider office hours:
    • 1st Tuesday of each month at 6pm (Aug 5, Sept 2, Oct 7, Nov 4):
    • 4th Monday of each month at 1pm (Mar 24, Apr 28, Jun 23, Jul 28, Aug 25): Zoom Link
  • School District office hours:
  • AU office hours:

May Provider Slides

Current Universal Preschool Program Rules and Regulations

Provider Expenditure Reporting Resources

Expenditure Reporting FAQ

Expenditure Reporting Guidance

Expenditure reporting Template and tools

If you have additional questions about this process, you can email Enroll Metrix directly coupkpayments@metrixiq.com.

IEP Direct Enrollment Open Through End of 2024-25 School Year

IEP Direct Enrollment runs through the end of the 2024-25 school year.

Special Education Administrative Units (AUs) and school districts will request placement of students with IEPs. Providers will accept matches within 2 weeks of receiving a match. Families of a child with an IEP will have until 6/30/25 to accept their match. CDEC requests that they accept within two weeks.

Quality Standards Updates

The (UPK) quality standards include program requirements in Instructional Practice (IP), Healthy Development (HD), and Family & Community Engagement (FCE). 

For updated information about quality standards, please see the newly revised Provider Handbook, pages 64-71. Note this document is live so be sure to consult the table of contents to confirm the correct pages.

Interested in Joining UPK as a Provider?

Providers can start registration and provide contact information for an Authorized Signer to be sent the Provider Agreement for signature. See this guide for instructions on completing your program setup form.  If you have questions about provider agreements, please contact CDEC directly at cdec_procurement-contracts@state.co.us.

Tools to Promote Your UPK Program to Families

The materials in this shared folder are designed to help providers promote their program to families.

Resources include printable flyers that you can share with families to let them know that you are a participating UPK provider and how they can enroll their child. There are also emails that providers can customize and send to families.

(CDEC created a marketing toolkit for UPK providers and partners to promote UPK in multiple languages.)

UPK Materials

Universal Preschool Handbooks & FAQ

Family Handbook 2024-25

Comprehensive information to help families understand the UPK program, sign their child up, and rank their providers of choice.

There are also answers to common questions, a tool to check age eligibility, and more.

LEARN MORE

Provider Handbook 2024-25

Check this link frequently for the most updated version of the UPK provider handbook. This is a live document and new information is added regularly.

Includes detailed instructions how to enroll, how the matching process works, answers to common questions, and more.

LEARN MORE

UPK Help Desk

The Triad Bright Futures Help Desk can help families and providers navigate the UPK portal, assist with reviewing rosters, and make requests to CDEC for seat adjustments.

The fastest way to get support is to submit an online ticket.

Submit a Ticket

Need help with submitting a ticket? Here are how-to documents to guide you through it: 

If you cannot submit a ticket, you can email universalpreschool@state.co.us or call 303-866-5223. Please do not submit multiple requests for the same issue as it increases the volume of tickets and delays our ability to respond.