A list of Philly Pre-K Locations is available throughout Northwest Philadelphia.
The Free Philly Pre-K Program applications are officially open today, and this year, the application process will be entirely online. Northwest Philly families and caregivers can search for sites throughout the area. Germantown Info Hub has included the sites and contact information in this story for all eligible preschools in the Germantown zip codes.
Local new mom Ashley Fuller has her daughter Aubrey at Little Einsteins’ Philly Pre-K program in Germantown. Aubrey is graduating this year and moving into kindergarten in the fall, but Fuller had a lot of questions when applying to programs.
“I feel like your experience will be primarily based on the school that the children go to. Little Einsteins made it fairly easy for me. It wasn’t such a hardship with filling out the paperwork or just knowing what came with the Philly Pre-K program–obviously, the meals and the snacks and then even the hours, nothing was unknown to me. They made it easily accessible,” said Fuller.
Another mom, Nailah Thomas, also has her son Gideon, who is graduating this year from preschool at Little Einsteins. For her, location and safety were really important. Little Einsteins was a great choice for her family, and she advises other families to check in with what’s important to them.
“Just trust the process and, you know, trust your process. Make sure that you get what you want, and don’t settle for less. That would be the tips. Don’t settle because you can’t find anything, and you’re panicking. Trust your process. Trust your judgment. And if this location isn’t good for you, then there’s others. There’s other Pre-K programs that you can find that would fit,” said Thomas.
The Office of Children and Families (OCF) says the best way to enroll for the free, publicly funded preschool options for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year is online at www.phlprek.org, now the only way to apply.
Launching an online portal application aims to streamline the process for families and preschool centers. If families have additional questions, the OCF staff remain available at 1-844-745-7735 to answer questions and help parents and caregivers find the best site for their child. The portal is mobile-friendly and is available in 12 different languages.
The only requirements for applying are that children must be 3 or 4 years old by September 1, 2024, and live in Philadelphia. There are no income requirements. It’s important to note that some sites will fill up, but sometimes, seats are set aside for students in disadvantaged, under-served situations.
Families can also find various locations using the website. The locator includes hours of service and ages served.
Seats are expected to fill up quickly, so applicants are encouraged to apply sooner rather than later.
The list of Free Philly Pre-K sites in the 19138 and the 19144 zip codes are below.Â
19138:
- Divine Treasures Child Care-Chelten, 1201 E. Chelten Avenue, (215) 549-4760
- Extraordinary Dreamers Early Learning Academy, 2117 E. Chelten Avenue, (215) 948-9663
- MECCA Child Care Academy, 7401 Limekiln Pike, (215) 424-4480
19144:
- Adams Childcare, 5120 Germantown Avenue, (267) 385-7815
- Bambinou Academy Center Inc, 259 W. Coulter Street, (267) 766-6260:
- Brightside Academy Wayne, 138-148 W. Chelten Avenue, (215) 713-0999
- Learning My Way Montessori, 6341 Germantown Avenue, (215) 457-2410
- Little Einsteins Early Learning LLC, 6316 Germantown Avenue, (215) 438-5437
- Miss Marty’s Preschool, 6001 Germantown Avenue, (215) 843-8299
- North Wales Academy, 13 E. Price Street, (215) 844-2285
- Olde City Day School (Pulaski), 5534 Pulaski Avenue, (267) 437-3002
- Queen Lane Montessori School, 433 W. Queen Lane, (215) 843-0780
- Spots for Tots Family Child Care Home, 18 E. Walnut Lane, (215) 280-9073:
- The Magic Years LLC, 36 W. Chelten Avenue, (215) 621-7681
- Ya-Ya’s Place Family Daycare, LLC, 5717 Germantown Avenue, (267) 971-3928
- Zhang Sah (Mt. Airy), 6110 Wissahickon Avenue, (215) 844-6200