Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK)
2025/2026 UPK General Interest and School Choice Surveys
Thank you to those who have completed the UPK interest survey. The UPK Interest Survey will close on Friday, December 13. Please see below for those who have chosen to complete the interest survey.
As state law requires, WHe want to remind families of the district's lottery process for prekindergarten placements. Education Law 3602-e and the Commissioner's Regulations stipulate that when there are more eligible children than available prekindergarten seats for a given school year, WHe must use a random selection lottery. This ensures all children have an equal chance at being admitted to our prekindergarten programs. WHe will run the lottery on Friday, January 10, to fill available prekindergarten slots for our community collaborators. Once those seats are filled, the lottery will establish a waitlist order should additional placements become available. While WHe aim to accommodate as many families as possible, the lottery process is designed to be fair and equitable when demand exceeds capacity. WHe appreciate your understanding as WHe follow these state guidelines.
Families who have completed the interest survey for their child to be considered for a prekindergarten placement for the upcoming school year must complete the one-question UPK School Choice Survey during the open window. The survey will be available online starting Monday, December 16th, and must be submitted by the close date of Monday, January 6th. No entries will be accepted before or after those dates. Completing the one-question survey is mandatory. After the lottery, the receiving school will contact families of children who received a placement to complete the final registration paperwork and enrollment process. Don't delay - fill out the one-question school survey between December 16th and January 6th if you want your child considered for prekindergarten this fall.
2025/2026 UPK General Interest Survey
If you are a resident of the West Hempstead School District, and you have a child who will be four years of age by December 1, 2025, please scan the QR code in the flyer below and complete the survey to indicate your interest in the UPK program for September 2025.
June 27, 2024
Thank you to all families who participated in our Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) lottery. We're pleased to announce that the lists have been finalized and shared with HANC and Yeshiva Har Torah.
Important next steps:
Complete registration: You MUST complete the registration process with your assigned school.
Submit paperwork: All necessary paperwork will be submitted to the district by the schools.
Ensure completion: Incomplete paperwork may cause delays and other issues.
For further information or questions, please contact your assigned school directly:
HANC: (516) 565-5640
Yeshiva Har Torah: (718) 343-2533
We appreciate your cooperation and look forward to a great UPK year ahead!
June 21, 2024
The Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) survey is now closed. We will conduct the lottery for UPK placements on Monday. However, due to a significant number of incomplete or incorrectly filled surveys, our team needs to carefully review the list of applicants. This review process may take a few days to ensure fairness and accuracy. To maintain transparency, we have invited representatives from HANC and YHT to attend the lottery process. We appreciate your patience as we work diligently to finalize the UPK placements. Updates will be posted on this website as soon as they become available.
June 14, 2024
Please click on the following link to access the West Hempstead Community Collaborators UPK Interest Survey:
SURVEY IS NOW CLOSED
June 7, 2024
As state law requires, I want to remind families of the district's lottery process for prekindergarten placements. Education Law 3602-e and the Commissioner's Regulations stipulate that when there are more eligible children than available prekindergarten seats for a given school year, we must use a random selection lottery. This ensures all children have an equal chance at being admitted to our prekindergarten programs. We will run the lottery to fill forty (40) available prekindergarten slots for our community collaborators. Once those seats are filled (22 and 18) based upon the Board of Education approved RFPs), the lottery will establish a waitlist order should additional placements become available. While we aim to accommodate as many families as possible, the lottery process is designed to be fair and equitable when demand exceeds capacity. We appreciate your understanding as we follow these state guidelines.
Families interested in having their child considered for a prekindergarten placement for the upcoming school year must complete the UPK Interest Survey during the open window. The survey will be available online starting Friday, June 14th, and must be submitted by the close date of June 21st. No entries will be accepted before or after those dates. Completing the interest survey is mandatory. After the lottery, the receiving school will contact families of children who received a placement to complete the final registration paperwork and enrollment process. Don't delay - fill out the interest survey between June 14th and June 21st if you want your child considered for prekindergarten this fall.
June 5, 2024
#WHe are thrilled to announce that we are forming new community partnerships to expand our Universal Pre-Kindergarten (UPK) program. We believe every child deserves access to high-quality early education, and these partnerships will help us provide more families with this invaluable opportunity.
Stay tuned for updates on our website and social media channels. We are working closely with our partners to finalize the details. We can't wait to share the next steps with you soon!
Together, we are committed to giving our youngest students the best possible start on their educational journey. Get ready for an exciting expansion of our UPK program that will benefit families across our community.