UPK Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup
The purpose and charge of the Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup, including relevant statute, membership, meeting details, and related documents.The final meeting of the Universal PreKindergarten (UPK) Quality and Access Workgroup (Workgroup) will take place on Monday, April 22, 2024.Workgroup meetings are open to public viewing via Zoom teleconference.
The California Department of Education (CDE) was required, in consultation with the California Department of Social Services, and the State Board of Education, to report to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature and the Department of Finance with recommendations for preschool quality standards, recommendations for preschool access, and recommendations at the intersection of both quality and access, as well as other considerations.
The CDE has submitted the report to the appropriate committees and invites you all to join in celebration of this process that has spanned over the last year and a half. Please join us in viewing a graphically designed version of the report and other materials developed for the Workgroup. During the meeting we will be focusing on system acknowledgements that are working in tandem alongside the UPK Workgroup, such as the work of the Rate and Quality Advisory Panel, the California Commission on Teacher Credentialling (CTC) Child Development Permit Workgroup, and transitional kindergarten (TK) implementation and preschool through grade 3 (P-3) alignment efforts.
- The UPK Workgroup Legislative Report is linked below.
- Additionally, the graphically designed version of the UPK Workgroup Report, along with additional supplemental materials, will be posted on the California Educators Together (CET) website later in April 2024, and can be viewed on the UPK Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup Page
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Date: Monday, April 22, 2024
Time: 1:30 p.m.– 3:30 p.m. PST
Virtual Meeting Registration Information
Register for the April 22, 2024, UPK Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup Meeting
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Translation to Spanish, Mandarin, and American Sign Language (ASL)will be available at each public meeting.
Vision
"One System, All Children: Better Together"
Our Call to Action
California’s mixed-delivery system intends to offer a variety of early learning and care settings to allow parents and guardians an authentic choice to meet the needs of their families. However, access to high-quality preschool programs for families utilizing subsidized early learning and care options has been undersupplied. Additionally, the current standards of quality for preschool pursuant to Education Code (EC) Section 8203 and found in Title 5 of the California Code of Regulations must be reviewed and, more importantly, must be updated through the lens of equity - for children, families, and the workforce and to incorporate more recent research and understanding of what practices best support children’s development and learning. Our call to action has been initiated by the Legislature’s addition of a state-level workgroup intended to review these standards listed in EC Section 8203, as well as to review practices to expand access to high-quality preschool programs in the mixed-delivery system.
Pursuant to EC Section 8202.6, the Superintendent, in consultation with the Director of Social Services and the Executive Director of the State Board of Education (SBE), is required to convene a universal preschool (UPK) mixed-delivery statewide interest holder workgroup (Workgroup). As part of a statewide collaborative effort, the California Department of Education (CDE) has welcomed the partnership of the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC).
Per EC Section 8202.6, the Workgroup is required to include representatives from:
- County offices of education
- Contracted state preschool programs, including those operated by school districts and by community-based organizations
- Transitional kindergarten programs
- Tribal preschool programs
- Educators
- The Commission on Teacher Credentialing
- First 5
- Resource and referral programs
- Alternative payment programs
- Contracted general childcare programs serving preschool-age children
- Head Start
- Private center-based preschool providers
- Licensed family childcare providers
- Researchers
- Child development experts
The Superintendent is required to, in consultation with the Director of Social Services and Executive Director of SBE, provide a report to the appropriate fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature and the Department of Finance with the recommendations of the Workgroup.
Statutory Charge of the Workgroup
- Provide recommendations on best practices for increasing access to high-quality universal preschool programs for three- and four-year-old children offered through a mixed-delivery model that provides equitable learning experiences across a variety of settings.
- Provide recommendations to update preschool standards pursuant to EC Section 8203 to support equitable access to high-quality preschool and transitional kindergarten programs through the mixed-delivery model and across all appropriate settings and funding sources.
- Ensure that recommendations are in alignment with the work of the Master Plan for Early Learning and Care, without recommending new system changes that create increased state or local costs to offer preschool across the mixed-delivery system.
Workgroup Selection Process
The UPK Mixed Delivery Quality and Access Workgroup includes interest holders with experience and expertise related to preschool quality and access. The Workgroup consists of state appointees and individuals identified through an open application process creating a diverse and representative group of individuals.
To establish the Workgroup, the California Department of Education (CDE) identified Workgroup members through a combination of individual referrals and an open application process.
The CDE identified Workgroup members to invite through individual referrals based on their experience working on quality and access issues in preschool programs and their roles in key organizations working on quality and access issues in California. Identification of representatives from the specific groups/agencies is outlined in AB 185 through a referral process.
To solicit applications through an open process, the CDE developed and widely disseminated a survey application form.
Workgroup members were chosen based on several factors, which included both work and lived experiences. The CDE received nearly 300 applications, and each was read by three reviewers. Members were selected and notified in mid-November 2022 and the Workgroup was established on December 1, 2022.
This Workgroup is convening under the Bagley-Keene Open Meeting Act of 1967
denoting that all Workgroup meetings will be open to the public to attend, as well as each meeting will contain a forum to capture public comment. To avoid limitations under this Act and to ensure diverse opinions and experiences are uplifted from around the state, the CDE selected individuals for this Workgroup who are not currently participating in other public workgroups.
Questions: UPKMixedDeliveryWorkgroup@glenpricegroup.com
Workgroup Members
| Representative | Agency/Affiliation |
|---|---|
| Ansina Green | Green Tree Community School LLC |
| Carolyne Crolotte | Early Edge California |
| Christian Patterson | Santa Barbara County Education Office |
| Dawn Anderson | Robbins School |
| Deidre D. Jones | Neighborhood House Association |
| Donna Yuriar | San Mateo County Office of Education |
| Elsa Jacobsen | Early Care and Education Consortium |
| Fabiola Gonzalez | First 5 Fresno |
| Gloria Corral | Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) |
| Guadalupe Diaz Lara | California State University, Fullerton |
| Hanna Melnick | Learning Policy Institute |
| Jennifer Adcock | Moreno Valley Unified School District |
| Jennifer Marroquin | Tulare City School District |
| Kate Williams Browne | Commission on Teacher Credentialing |
| Katie Hardeman | California Teachers Association |
| Kimberly Rosenberger | Service Employees International Union (SEIU) |
| LaWanda Wesley | Child Care Resource Center |
| Lorena Burrola | Merced County Office of Education |
| Mei Hua Fu | Kai Ming Head Start |
| Melissa Herrarte Bunch | Foothill Learning Center |
| Michele Berke | California School for the Deaf |
| Michelle Spence | San Diego Unified School District |
| Misty Knight | Hoopa Valley Tribe |
| Naeemah Charles | Children's Council of San Francisco |
| Nancy Herota | Sacramento County Office of Education |
| Otokonda Ble | Otokonda Ble Daycare |
| Radha Bala | Berryessa Union School District |
| Raquel Morales | Education-Trust West |
| Samantha C. Thompson | Child Development Expert |
| Scott Turner | East San Gabriel Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) |
| Susie Estrada | Centralia Elementary School District |
| Tony Jordan | Stanislaus County Office of Education & Central California Migrant Head Start |
Workgroup Meetings
| Date and Time | Location | Agenda | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 26, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference |
January 26, 2023 Notes
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| February 23, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference | February 23, 2023 Agenda | February 23, 2023 Notes
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| March 23, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference | March 23, 2023 Agenda | March 23, 2023 Notes
|
| April 27, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference | April 27, 2023 Agenda | April 27, 2023 Notes
|
| May 25, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference | May 25, 2023 Agenda | May 25, 2023 Notes
|
| June 22, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference | June 22, 2023 Agenda | June 22, 2023 Notes
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| July 27, 2023, 12:30–4:30 p.m. | Teleconference: Meeting cancelled | Meeting cancelled | Not applicable |
| August 24, 2023, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. | The August 2023 meeting will be held at the California Department of Education. The CDE building will be open to the public; however, capacity may be limited due to public health considerations. LOCATION: 1430 N Street, Room 1101 Sacramento, CA 95814 Teleconference |
August 24, 2023 Agenda (in-person) | August 24, 2023 Notes
|
| September 28, 2023, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. | Due to recent Legislative changes, Workgroup meetings for the remainder of the calendar year will take place virtually. Teleconference |
September 28, 2023 Agenda | September 28, 2023 Notes
|
| October 16, 2023, 9:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. | Due to recent Legislative changes, Workgroup meetings for the remainder of the calendar year will take place virtually. Teleconference |
October 16, 2023 Agenda | October 16, 2023 Notes
|
| December 14, 2023, 1:00–2:30 p.m. | Teleconference | December 14, 2023 Agenda | No Notes |
| January 11, 2024, 1:00–4:00 p.m. | Teleconference | January 11, 2024 Agenda | No Notes |
| February 2, 2024, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. | Teleconference | February 2, 2024 Agenda | No Notes |
April 22, 2024, 1:30–3:30 p.m. |
Teleconference
|
April 22, 2024 Agenda | TBA |
Additional meeting documents and materials can be found on California Educators Together
UPK Workgroup Report
English UPK Workgroup Report to the Legislature and Department of Finance
Spanish UPK Workgroup Report to the Legislature and Department of Finance
Simplified Chinese UPK Workgroup Report to the Legislature and Department of Finance
Questions about the Workgroup may be directed to UPKMixedDeliveryWorkgroup@glenpricegroup.com