Early Childhood Education (ECE)

Universal Preschool Colorado (UPK) Information for Early Childhood Education (ECE) Students

Every school district in Colorado, including DPS, works with the Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) to continue expanding its Early Childhood Education with an enrollment process for Colorado Universal Preschool, also known as (UPK).

UPK ensures that every child, in the year before they are eligible for kindergarten, is eligible for half-day, state-funded, voluntary preschool.

Visit the ECE website for more information and further steps in the application process.

Important Update for 2025-26

There are important changes to the preschool application process for the 2025-26 school year.

• Families applying for ECE-3 must submit a DPS SchoolChoice application to be matched to a school.
• Families applying for ECE-4 must submit both a Colorado Universal Preschool (UPK) application and a DPS SchoolChoice application to be matched to a school for the 2025-26 school year. The school match will come from UPK. We highly encourage families applying for ECE-4 to submit their applications by Feb. 3, 2025.

Visit the ECE DPS website for more information on the application process for each.

If you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Miriam Arneros, Office Manager, at miriam_arneros@dpsk12.net for assistance.