Families

For the 2022-2023 school year, the Durham PreK Governance Committee voted to reduce parent fee rates from 4% of gross household monthly income to 2% of gross household monthly income.  

Parent fees are monthly payments made by families to their child’s pre-K site. They are calculated by household annual income and household size based on the Federal Poverty Level (FPL). Families whose household income is greater than 400% of the FPL qualify for a monthly parent fee that is 2% of their monthly income (view the estimated parent fee table).

Parent fees contribute to the monthly payments that sites receive from the Durham PreK Partners. Durham County has determined the local cost of high-quality pre-K for each child to be $1300/month. Local, state, and federal funds cover the full $1300/month for families under 400% of the FPL. Families who qualify for parent fees contribute to the total $1300 paid to pre-K sites within Durham PreK. For example, a family whose parent fee is $300/month pay their fee directly to their child’s Durham PreK site, and Durham PreK pays the remaining $1000 to the pre-K site for that family’s seat. This sliding scale parent fee system allows Durham County to fund more seats for under-resourced families in the community.

If you need to complete an online application for more than one child, please contact the Pre-K Information Desk for assistance at 1-833-773-5338 or prek@childcareservices.org.

For families with more than one child eligible for Durham PreK for the same school year:

• The monthly parent fee for the first child will follow the Durham PreK Sliding Scale based on household income and family size.
• For each additional child, the monthly parent fee will be 50% of the parent fee assigned for the first child.

For example, if you have two children sharing an academic year, and your family size and household income indicate a $300 parent fee, then you will pay $300 per month for one child, and $150 per month for the second child.

To determine what your monthly parent fee may be, please see the Durham PreK Sliding Scale below.

Durham PreK classrooms are 5-star rated classrooms, and all lead teachers are required to have or be working toward a Birth to Kindergarten License. These classrooms go through a thorough application process and a non-conflicting committee reviews them before selecting semifinalists. Semifinalists then receive an official Classroom Assessment Scoring System (CLASS©) observation to evaluate the quality of teacher-child interactions, and a site visit to review application materials and plans for family engagement, dual language learners and children with unique needs.

Child citizenship does not determine eligibility. All 4 year old children in Durham County are eligible for all programs, regardless of citizenship status.

Families can choose to leave the citizenship question blank, but it will limit program options for that child to Durham Public Schools, Durham PreK and Head Start.

The application will prompt you for each piece of required documentation needed to submit your application. This includes documentation of child’s age, Durham County residence, monthly income, and annual income. Some families may be required to submit additional documentation based on their application responses, such as proof of military service, custody paperwork, or school enrollment information. For a full list of required documentation and further explanation, download the checklist below.

View Checklist (English) (Spanish)

All Durham PreK sites provide high-quality education that supports healthy social-emotional, physical and academic development. Children will learn positive social behaviors, emotional regulation and academic concepts through play, inquiry and other academic activities.

Visit our Why Pre-K page for more information!