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Families

Families

Wake ThreeSchool Overview

Family Application Support

For families that would like assistance with their Wake ThreeSchool application, please contact us via email at wtsapp@wakesmartstart.org or you may come to one of our Wake ThreeSchool application events.

 

                           

 

When: 10am – 4pm, every other Tuesday (Jan 21; Feb 4 & 18; March 4 & 18; April 1, 15 & 29; May 13 & 27; June 10 & 24)

Where: Wake County Smart Start, 4901 Waters Edge Drive, Suite 101, Raleigh, NC 27606

How to Apply – Digital Guide (English)
How to Apply – Digital Guide (Spanish)

 

The following information can be found to help navigate applying for Wake ThreeSchool programs for the 2024-2025 school years. Please verify that you are reviewing the correct information and using the correct link for the corresponding school year for which you are applying. 

Wake ThreeSchool is a new early learning program for Wake County three-year-olds that opened its classrooms for the first time for the 2022-2023 school year.

This new program provides early education to young children in a play-based, dynamic environment, similar to the nationally recognized NC Pre-K program. Research shows when three-year-old children receive support for learning early, they learn better, gain stronger skills and are better prepared for success in Pre-K and Kindergarten ahead. This is because at age three, a child’s brain is building connections rapidly in a way that is unique to this time of life. This “framework” is what all future learning is built upon.

 

SY 2025-2026 Wake ThreeSchool Sites

  • A Safe Place – Clarendon
  • A Safe Place- Crosslink
  • A Safe Place- Trawick
  • Academically Based
  • Bambino’s Playschool
  • Bright Beginnings Child Development Center
  • Childcare Network #125
  • Daniel Center for Math and Science
  • Early Preschool & Learning Center
  • The Happy Face Preschool
  • Knightdale Head Start
  • Little Believer’s Academy II
  • Little Hands and Feet
  • Method Child Development Center
  • Telamon Parkway Head Start
  • Triangle Academy Preschool
  • Wakefield Creative School
  • Wanda’s Little Hands Education Center

For a map view of all Wake ThreeSchool sites, please click here.

The Wake ThreeSchool Program is only available for eligible Wake County residents. Please click here for additional verification regarding Wake County residency.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

The below chart contains the terms frequently used in communication regarding your child’s Wake ThreeSchool application.

Term Definition
Priority Group Wake ThreeSchool may assign additional priority points for children who meet the criteria and provide complete documentation for these groups. These groups include children who have/are:

  • an Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
  • a limited English proficiency
  • a chronic health condition
  • a developmental or educational need
  • a child of an eligible military family

Please note that meeting the criteria for one or more priority groups does not  guarantee placement in the Wake ThreeSchool program.
Priority Deadline All applications that have been submitted and are completed by May 31, 2024, will be considered for the first round of placement. All applications that are submitted or completed after 05/31/24 will be considered on a rolling basis. Rolling enrollment will occur from July – September 2024. After September, placement offers will be made on an individual basis as they become available through March 2025.

Please note that if your application has been submitted by 05/31/2024 but is incomplete/missing documents, your application will not be able to be considered for the first round of placement. Your application will be eligible to receive a placement offer at a later date; this is not guaranteed.
Eligible Family has a gross household income that is at or below 75% of State Median Income for the family size and/or meets one or more of the following criteria:

  • Individualized Education Plan (IEP)
  • Limited English Proficiency
  • Chronic Health Condition
  • Developmental or Educational Need
  • Child of eligible military family

Please note that eligibility does not guarantee placement in the Wake ThreeSchool program.
Ineligible Family has a gross household income that is above 75% State Median Income and does not meet criteria for any priority groups.
Waitlist Family has a gross household income that is at or below 75% State Median Income but there are no open slots available.

OR

Family has a gross household income that is above 75% State Median Income and meets the criteria for one or more of the priority groups but there are no open slots available.
Denied Family has applied to Wake ThreeSchool and is ineligible due to reasons including but not limited to:

  • Family is not a resident of Wake County
  • Child is not age eligible for the program
Under Review Wake ThreeSchool staff is reviewing the submitted application to determine if further documentation or information is needed to process the application and identify if the child is eligible/ineligible.
Final Review The application has been fully processed by Wake ThreeSchool staff. The family will be contacted about their placement decision (placed/waitlist) in June 2023.
Missing Documents The Wake ThreeSchool application has been submitted, but additional required documents are needed for the application to be considered complete. The application cannot be reviewed/processed by Wake ThreeSchool staff while the application is missing documents.
Incomplete The Wake ThreeSchool application has been submitted, but information and/or documentation is missing from the application. The application cannot be reviewed/processed by Wake ThreeSchool staff while the application is incomplete.

Important Documents

 

Next Steps

If you have specific questions about Wake ThreeSchool, please contact: Emily Diaz, Wake ThreeSchool Program Assistant, at ediaz@wakesmartstart.org.