April 28, 2023

Dear County Superintendents:

Apportionment for the Universal Prekindergarten Planning and Implementation—Countywide Planning and Capacity Building
Fiscal Year 2022–23

Section 7 of Assembly Bill 181 (Chapter 52, Statutes of 2022) and codified at California Education Code (EC) 8281.5(d), establishes the Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) Planning & Implementation (P&I) Grant Program which provides a total of $300 million to local educational agencies (LEAs), including school districts, county offices of education (COEs), and charter schools to support their planning around UPK implementation. Of this amount, $24 million is to be provided to COEs to support countywide planning and capacity building for LEAs in their county as they work to implement UPK.

Funds are allocated to COEs based on the formula specified in EC 8281.5(d)(1)(B), which specifies a minimum base grant of $15,000 for each LEA in their county that operates kindergarten programs. Estimated allocation amounts for COEs can be found on the 2022–23 UPK P&I—Countywide Planning and Capacity Building Grant Funding Results web page at: https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r2/upkcountywide2223result.asp.

Conditions for Apportionment

These funds may be used for costs associated with creating or expanding California State Preschool Programs (CSPPs) or transitional kindergarten programs, or to establish or strengthen partnerships with other providers of prekindergarten (pre-K) education within the LEA, including Head Start programs, to ensure that high-quality options for pre-K education are available for children four years of age. Allowable costs shall include, but are not necessarily limited to, classroom operating costs, planning costs, hiring and recruitment costs, staff training and professional development, classroom materials, and supplies and funds must be utilized by the COE in a manner consistent with this letter and with statute.

EC 8281.5(d)(3)(A) through (C) requires each COE receiving these funds to provide support and build capacity across LEAs in the county to implement UPK, ensure expenditures are consistent with their local plan adopted pursuant to subdivision (c), plan with their county’s local planning council, local tribes, and CSPP and Head Start program providers in their region, and provide program data to the California Department of Education (CDE), as specified by the Superintendent, including, but not limited to, recipient information and participating in overall program evaluation.

Accounting and Payment Information

A warrant will be mailed approximately three weeks from the date of this letter. For standardized account code structure codes, use Resource Code 6057, UPK P&I—Countywide Planning and Capacity Building Grant Program, fiscal year 2022–23, and Revenue Code 8590, All Other State Revenue.

In addition to this notice, County Superintendents were notified of this apportionment by an email sent to their ‘CDEfisc’ email address. The links to this letter and the accompanying apportionment schedule are posted on the CDE 2022–23 UPK P&I—Countywide Planning and Capacity Building Funding Results web page at: https://www.cde.ca.gov/fg/fo/r2/upkcountywide2223result.asp.

For questions regarding programmatic requirements, use of funds, and expenditure reporting, please contact the UPK P&I Grant Team at the following email: UPKPlanningGrant@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

Sarah Neville-Morgan, Deputy Superintendent

Opportunities for All Branch