What is UPK?

Colorado’s UPK program, commonly known as Universal Preschool, is a State-sponsored initiative that offers families Tuition Credits that can be applied directly to a preschool student’s tuition at any school of their choice.  This includes both private and public institutions, allowing for what they call a “mixed-delivery system.”  MMA has seen the benefits of UPK in 2023-2024 and is excited to continue our participation in this program in the coming school year.  We believe this system gives parents more opportunity to find and select a curriculum and school community that best fits their family’s needs!

How does UPK work at MMA?

MMA is a private program that offers a school day (8:30-3:30), with extended day childcare that elongates attendance to include 7:30 am to 5:30 pm.  We do not offer any half-day programs at the ECE4 grade level and all children applying for ECE4 will only being considered for a full-day program.

Families with ECE4 children looking to enroll at our program apply and enroll following the same process of other grades at our school.  Tuition rates are set by grade and have been published on our website.  As a full-day program, that does not offer half-day programming for ECE4 classes, UPK credits act as a “scholarship” or “credit” that is applied to a specific portion of the school day, but does not cover the entire tuition amount.  This credit will be applied to a child’s tuition statement each month/year, depending on the Tuition Payment Plan selected.

A visual breakout of 2024-2025 Tuition Costs and *estimated* UPK credits, by campus, have been posted below for prospective families to review.

*Final 2024-2025 UPK Credit amounts by county have not yet been finalized, 2023-2024 sums were used in the examples provided. 

How does MMA ensure UPK credits are applied to our tuition?

After touring, submitting an application, attending a student interview, and receiving a subsequent Enrollment Offer, each family does sign a Tuition Agreement consisting of the published tuition rates for the school year of attendance.  This Tuition Agreement will outline the contracted (published) Tuition Rate, but will then show a deduction for UPK credits that will be applied for the school year.

Once their ECE4 child has been enrolled through MMA’s internal process, the family will be guided through the matching process to formally “match” or “link” the enrolled child to MMA’s UPK profile for the upcoming school year.

After a child has submitted all enrollment documents, paid the required enrollment fees, and “matched” with MMA via the UPK matching program, a child enrollment is ready for the coming school year.

How does UPK affect my child’s participation in CCCAP or DPP?

UPK funds can be used in addition to DPP credits and CCCAP assistance to maximize tuition savings.  They call this a braided and layered approach to ensure families have equitable access to quality education programs.  Each program a child applies for and is accepted into acts as an additional “credit” that is applied to the child’s Tuition Statement.

Credits are applied in the following order: UPK –> DPP –> CCCAP.

For family specific questions, please contact our Enrollment Office at 303-218-6641 or enrollment@midtownmontessori.org.