Dear County and District Superintendents, Charter School Administrators, and Early Education Program Leaders:

Connecting with Families about Universal PreKindergarten

Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) is an important part of my plan for transforming California’s schools. Research has proven that children who receive a strong and early start to their education have higher achievement throughout elementary school and are more prepared to thrive in school and life in later years. High-quality PreKindergarten (PreK) programs give children the foundational skills they need to start school equipped with the tools that will help them succeed. That is why I am so excited to share resources with you today that will help ensure that all families know their options.

When I first began to envision how UPK would look in California, I knew that implementation would need to occur at the local level to reflect the diversity of our state and achieve more equitable outcomes for students. As UPK is built locally throughout the state, it is essential that local educational agencies and early education partners work in tandem to communicate with families about the PreK choices that are available in your community.

To support you in your communication efforts and help you connect directly with families in your community, we have created new materials designed to be tailored and customized based on your local programs. The materials include:

• A customizable PowerPoint (PPT) presentation
• Talking points that can be used and tailored to meet your needs when delivering the PPT presentation
• A two-page overview PDF highlighting key information about UPK
• Translations of the PPT presentation, talking points, and overview PDF into the top written languages used in California
• A Communications Toolkit that includes guidance on promoting UPK programs on social media, in newsletters and e-blasts, and on the web

All of these materials are available to download on the California’s Great Start UPK Resources Landing Page at https://adobe.ly/3SvwAYR. On this page, you will also find resources to support your work to design and communicate about UPK programs with your partners.

It is important to me that these materials are applicable and useful to you. As these materials are used in the field, we will actively gather feedback on ways to improve them, and we will adjust and make revisions as needed to reflect the diversity and needs of our California communities. Please use this form to submit your feedback: https://forms.gle/dCkxFdsjhZoPadgc9.

Sincerely,

Tony Thurmond
State Superintendent of Public Instruction