Preschool & Early Childhood Education

RPS offers a free, high-quality preschool program for eligible 3-and-4-year-olds living in the City of Richmond.

PRESCHOOL APPLICATIONS ARE NOW OPEN
click here to Apply

Program Overview

RPS offers full-day, high-quality early childhood education to eligible children through the Virginia Preschool Initiative (VPI), Early Head Start, Head Start and Early Childhood Special Education (ECSE) programs. RPS preschool prepares children for success in kindergarten through the use of The Creative Curriculum and Al’s Pals strategies.

Preschool students are immersed in learning through purposeful play-based experiences on topics they are familiar with from their everyday lives.

Enrollment Resources

Preschool Applications are now open for the 2022-2023 school year. Go to

attendrvaschools.com to apply

Required Documents for Preschool Enrollment

Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions for RPS Employees

For more information please send an email to preschool@rvaschools.net

2022-2023 Frequently Asked Questions for RPS Employees

Do RPS employees need to qualify for RPS Preschool to enroll their 3-year-olds?

Do RPS employees need to qualify for RPS Preschool to enroll their 4-year-olds?

Subject to the approval of the division superintendent or their designee, parents or guardians of dependent children (turning 4 on or before September 30, 2022) who are full-time employees of Richmond Public Schools and who do not meet the eligibility criteria may enroll their children in RPS Preschool on a tuition waived basis, subject to the availability of space, as determined after Richmond Public Schools has met all local, state and federal requirements regarding the enrollment of eligible children.

Note: Due to a likely low number of available spots for non-eligible children, we encourage RPS employees to also seek other preschool options.