Problem Statement:

The Colorado Department of Early Childhood (CDEC) sought to enhance the Universal Preschool Program (UPK) BridgeCare platform to improve user experience and streamline operations for families, providers, local coordinating organizations (LCOs), and policymakers.

Key Challenges:

• Lack of seamless digital experience for families and providers applying for and managing preschool placements.

• Limited data-driven decision-making capabilities for CDEC administrators.

• Need for a structured but flexible roadmap for future improvements.

• Required a “Voice of the Community” engagement model to collect continuous

  stakeholder feedback.

  Tight deadline to implement Year 2 priority enhancements in under 3 months

Root Causes Identified:

• The BridgeCare platform was not fully optimized for multiple user segments, including:

• Families with varying eligibility requirements (IEP students, English learners, diSerent school district policies).

• Providers with complex seat allocation and application management needs.

• Administrators with limited visibility into data for program oversight and

  reporting.

• Limited real-time data accessibility for decision-making.

• Lack of a structured, scalable engagement model for collecting community input.

Phase 1

Product Management for Digital Experience Enhancements

• Conducted Community Feedback Analysis: Synthesized data from families, providers, school districts, and policymakers into actionable user stories.

• Developed & Prioritized Features: Created a product backlog and decision- making framework for UPK improvements.

• Designed & Tested Prototypes: Developed low-fidelity prototypes based on real- world user experiences and tested with families and providers.

• Created a Roadmap for Future Enhancements: Outlined a clear implementation strategy for digital improvements.