‘Greatest investment we can make’: Wu unveils plan to expand Boston’s universal pre-K program

BOSTON — Mayor Michelle Wu on Wednesday announced a $20 million investment to expand Boston’s universal pre-K program.

The investment will expand support for community-based classrooms, increase the number of seats available to 3 and 4-year-olds for the upcoming school year, and begin integrating family child care providers into the UPK system, according to Wu. Specifically, universal pre-K will now offer up to 992 seats at community providers, with up to 627 seats for 4-year-olds and up to 365 seats for 3-year-olds

“The greatest investment we can make in our future is to support and center our young people,” Wu said. “With this historic investment in early childhood education, we can kickstart an increase in high-quality Pre-K seats, bring family child care providers into the UPK network, and ensure all of our families have access to free and accessible early childcare and education.”

Wu says the city will increase developmental and behavioral health screenings, student support interventions, culturally relevant and challenging curriculum, and coaching to improve quality in classrooms.

Beginning at the start of the upcoming school year, Boston will launch a new per-classroom funding formula, replacing a per-student formula, to ensure high quality learning environments for students.

Universal pre-K will also expand to include family child care providers, increasing the options available to prospective families.

Boston is now accepting applications for Pre-K seats at community-based providers for the 2022-2023 school year

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