A co-op is a nonprofit organization owned and operated by parents of the children enrolled. This creates a unique opportunity for you to become involved in your children’s development through taking an active role in their early education. Although a cooperative preschool may be chosen initially because it tends to be less expensive than a traditional preschool, the true value becomes apparent as you learn more about your children through their daily social interaction with classmates and their learning opportunities within the classroom.

Creative Cooperative Preschool (CCP) is run by a parental board. Each parent has the opportunity to serve on the board or to actively participate in the monthly open board meetings. The parent becomes active in a community of like-minded parents working for the singular goal of enriching the children’s preschool education.

At CCP, parents take an active role in the daily operations of the school. State regulations require that at least one parent or guardian be on premises during school hours. We fulfill that obligation through our parent helpers, and each family typically has this opportunity 1-2 times per month. Parent helpers are in the classroom with our teacher, helping the children and teacher as necessary with crafts, activities, and other projects. As the teacher works with our parents regularly, she gains insights into family relationships, creating a more personal teaching environment. As we spend time in the classroom with our children, we gain insight into their social, emotional and intellectual development.

As owner/operators of the school, we take care of the day-to-day operations necessary to make sure we have the educational environment we want, including a monthly toy cleaning to promote a healthy and safe environment. Families are typically expected to help with this two to three times a school year. Families are also expected to support the necessary fundraising efforts we choose to take on to ensure the school’s sustainability over time.