Registration for child care providers to participate in Colorado’s new universal preschool program is now open, with state officials reporting that more than 250 providers have signed up already.

Around one week after the registration portal went live, there are more than 12,000 openings available for kids to receive state-funded preschool through the providers that have signed up so far, according to an announcement from the Polis administration on Tuesday.

“Hundreds of high-quality early childhood providers are now one step closer to opening their doors to Colorado kids and families for free, universal preschool,” Gov. Jared Polis said. “This exciting milestone is part of the bold work we are doing to make universal preschool a reality in Colorado, and we encourage school districts and community preschools to register today.”

The universal preschool program, establish by the passage of House Bill 1295 in April, will provide 10 hours per week of free preschool for all Colorado children the year before they enter kindergarten. The program will save Colorado parents an average of $4,300 per year, according to state estimates, and parents may choose their own preschool provider within their community.

The program’s long awaited launch comes as Colorado has struggled through an acute child care shortage that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated.

In Colorado, an average family with two young children spends $28,600 on child care annually, according to federal data, and single parents earmark on average 49.5% of their income toward infant child care, according to a Child Care Aware of America report.

Some families can’t find child care at all. In Colorado, 51% of residents live in “child care deserts,” where there are more than three times as many children as there are licensed child care slots, according to Mile High United Way.

Even before the COVID-19 pandemic closed around 7% of licensed child care centers in Colorado, providers only had the capacity to serve 62% of the state’s 246,000 kids under 6 whose parents both work, according to a report that cited 2019 figures. That meant a shortage of more than 90,000 child care slots statewide.

The universal preschool program is scheduled to launch in the fall of 2023. The enrollment process for participating families will begin at 8 a.m. on Jan. 17.

“The number of preschools signing up is a positive sign for Colorado’s kids, for families, and for our future,” said Dr. Lisa Roy, executive director of the Colorado Department of Early Childhood. “We are so encouraged by the response of providers, and can’t wait to see this number continue to grow.”

The program could also potentially help lead an economic boost for the state.

A recent analysis from the Colorado Fiscal Institute found that Colorado families with access to free child care earn nearly $10,000 more on average, and universal free child care would boost the labor participation rate of Colorado mothers by 11 percentage points. 

All providers who are licensed to support preschool-aged children are eligible to participate in the universal preschool program. To register, providers can contact their Local Coordinating Organization and then log in to UPK Colorado with the same email used for Provider Hub.