Pre-Kindergarten

New York City provides free Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) programs for children who turn four years of age by December 31, 2009 and live in New York City.  Seats are still available for Pre-Kindergarten programs at public schools and contracted early childhood community-based organizations (CBOs).

 Please contact the Pre-Kindergarten programs in your area on the list below for hours and availability.

 To register you must bring your child and the following required documentation to the program for registration: proof of birth (birth certificate or passport), verifiable proof of residence (two documents), and immunization records.

Available Pre-K Programs

Check below  to find a list of public schools that may have available pre-K seats for the 2009-10 school year (as of October 5, 2009). After finding schools of interest, you may contact the schools directly to get more information about registration. 

You can contact Community-Based Organization (CBO) programs directly to find out about seat availability.

Please click here for a list of Bronx public schools that may have seats available.

Please click here for a list of Brooklyn public schools that may have seats available.

Please click here for a list of Manhattan public schools that may have seats available.

Please click here for a list of Queens public schools that may have seats available.

Please click here for a list of Staten Island public schools that may have seats available.


Please click on the district links below for a district flyer with public school and CBOs that may have seats available.

Borough

Districts

Bronx

District 7

District 8

District 9

District 10

District 11

District 12

Brooklyn

District 13

District 14

District 15

District 16

District 17

District 18

District 19

District 20

District 21

District 22

District 23

District 32

Manhattan

District 1

District 2

District 3

District 4

District 5

District 6

Queens

District 24

District 25

District 26

District 27

District 28

District 29

District 30

Staten Island

District 31

   


***

What is Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK)?

Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) programs provide a nurturing environment where children’s natural curiosity is used as a springboard to learn skills that are necessary for success in school. In Pre-Kindergarten, children learn how to share, take turns and work in groups.  They also develop skills that form the foundation for reading, writing and mathematics. All UPK programs are free of charge.  Programs can be half day (two and a half hours, AM - morning or PM - afternoon) or full day (six hours and twenty minutes).

Eligibility 

Children born between January 1, 2005 and December 31, 2005, who will turn four years old between January 1, 2009 and December 31, 2009, and who reside in New York City are eligible to participate in UPK programs that are offered by the New York City Department of Education.  Parents/guardians of applicants must be New York City residents and must apply through the centralized admissions process.

Applying to a Community-Based Organization (CBO) Universal Pre-Kindergarten

Step One:

Review the list of CBO UPK programs provided in this directory to identify programs that may be right for your child and family.

Call and/or visit CBO UPK programs that interest you. It is important to ask about seat availability because some UPK programs at CBO sites reserve seats in UPK for children enrolled in the CBO as three year-olds.

Step Two:

Complete one CBO UPK application for each CBO program to which you are applying. You can obtain the CBO application at any CBO UPK site or below.

Step Three:

Hand deliver the application directly to the CBO site.  DO NOT USE THE ENVELOPE IN THIS PACKET TO MAIL YOUR CBO UPK APPLICATION.  THIS ENVELOPE IS ONLY FOR THE UPK APPLICATION TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

Step Four:

Each CBO UPK site will notify you directly about whether space is available for your child.

Step Five: 

The CBO UPK site will notify you about registration procedures for September 2009 admissions. 

The CBO application is available here.