October 15, 2023 Vol. 53, No.8 |
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE
And the Winner is... | PCPI Grants | Grant Information Session
Grant Recipient Recap | PCPI Board Training | Volunteer Opportunity
Member Profile: Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool | Welcome, New Members!
Join Us! | 2024 Annual Meeting Reminder
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Happy Co-op Month! October offers the perfect chance to let others know how much cooperative preschool has meant to you and your family. In celebration, PCPI has several exciting opportunities available that we hope you'll take advantage of and share with your community.
The application window for PCPI grants is now open! Find details within this issue, along with some updates on how last year's grant recipients were able to accomplish great things with a little help from PCPI.
Don't forget about the FREE board training for PCPI members being offered twice this month. This will be a great opportunity for members at your school to deepen their understanding of how boards function, and we think those who have been around co-op for a while will come away with some new ideas too.
Don't let the month go by without finding a way to celebrate the unique benefits that come with being part of a cooperative community!
Cooperatively yours,
Melissa Ranck
Editor, Cooperatively Speaking
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Last month we wanted to know your favorite season, and the top choice was overwhelmingly fall with over 50% of the votes. How lucky that fall has arrived! With football, pumpkin, spooky, sweater season upon us, we have a few questions for you:
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Apple cider donuts or caramel apples
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Tailgating at the game or watching it at home?
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Pumpkin painting or carving?
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Haunted houses or scary movies?
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Homemade costumes or store-bought?
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Now Available: PCPI Grants |
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2024 Member Benefits include the opportunity to apply for various PCPI Grants. Several grant applications are now open! Requests must be submitted by December 15, 2023, with determinations made for recipients by January 15, 2024.
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Renamed this year in memory of our long-time supporter and mentor, Anne Eddowes promoted parent involvement as the cornerstone of cooperative preschool communities. Apply for the Anne Eddowes Cooperative Spirit Grant to help build spaces that create a legacy for the future of your school, while strengthening bonds and encouraging community within your current membership. The guidelines are open – be creative!
The total grant amount for the Cooperative Spirit Grants is up to $1,500 to fund two or three programs. Each school may request from $100 to $1,000.
The Co-op Support Grant was created to provide financial assistance for co-ops that have a plan for long-term success to overcome unforeseen barriers. Application requests will be considered from established schools that have come upon financial challenges or from a newly forming school that needs an extra boost to get opened.
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Parent education is at the foundation of cooperative education. To help fund parent education projects, PCPI members in U.S. based schools and councils can apply for a mini-grant from the Becky Allen Fund. Canadian members may apply for the Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant to support a parent education program in the spring of 2024.
Over the years, many cooperative preschools have benefited from a range of parent education programs supported by these grants. Topics have included various aspects of child development such as dealing with challenging behaviors, speech and language, techniques to support play-based learning, nutrition, and more. Schools have invited a variety of speakers including a psychologist, college teacher, occupational therapist, authors, as well as their own expert staff to provide these programs. Last year’s Becky Allen Fund was awarded to Parent-Child Preschools Organization (PCPO), which will help support an upcoming virtual family education opportunity to encourage effective cross-cultural communication.
Your school could be the next recipient of funds to support a parent education program that is just right for your school! The total grant amount is $500 to fund programs in one or more schools. PCPI member schools are invited to submit grant requests using the following links:
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Join us for a virtual information session to review the different PCPI grant opportunities. Come ready to ask any questions you may have. |
Thursday, November 16, 7:00 pm EST |
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Need a little inspiration? We asked some of last year's recipients to share an update on projects funded by PCPI grants, and we're happy to share the results with you! |
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Cooperative Spirit Grant winner
"Our vertical garden was completed over the summer thanks to the Cooperative Spirit grant we received and the help of a former Lafeyette Nursery School student, Griffin Rotund. Griffin, who is now a local Boy Scout, was looking to complete a volunteer project for his community and reached out to our school. The grant came in perfect timing. Together, our school and Griffin were able to complete and bring the vertical garden to our students in time for the start of the school year. The vertical garden stands tall and equipped with wheels so that it can be moved anywhere along the backyard. Just this past week our students, with the help of our teachers and Griffin, had the opportunity to plant a mix of fresh flowers and herbs on our vertical garden. We are so happy to have this new addition to our school and very grateful for the grant that allowed this fun project to be completed. Thanks so much!!"
- Hellen Lopez, LNS President
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Co-op Support Grant winner
"Oak Leaf Cooperative's forest school for 3-6 year olds launched on September 5th at Crow Island Woods, a 17-acre public nature area in Winnetka, IL. Waldorf-trained teacher and co-op director Elizabeth Kelly is working alongside co-op members to create a nature play space and community garden. Current plans include a garden bed and a sensory area for children to dig in dirt or sand without disturbing the wildlife habitat. Children are taking an active role in planning the play space. Oak Leaf Cooperative School has grown into a network of forest school co-ops run by parents and teachers in the Chicago area and Atlanta, Georgia, and this project will serve as a model for other co-ops in the network."
- Liana Gray, Oakleaf Cooperative
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Thank you to each school for sharing an update with us! Applications for several PCPI grants are now open, and we can't wait to hear your creative ideas!
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PCPI's first ever board training is right around the corner! Be sure to register to attend this virtual training covering topics like duties as a board member, best practices for governance, financial responsibility, and more. Training is expected to last one hour, and attendees will receive a certificate. |
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Two opportunities to attend! |
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Monday, October 23,
1 pm EST
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Offered via Zoom
(This event will not be recorded)
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Tuesday, October 24,
7 pm EST
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This training is FREE for PCPI members. If you are a staff member or caregiver at a member school, this means you!
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PCPI needs your help!
We're hoping to rebuild and modernize our website, moving it from Squarespace version 7 to 7.1. As part of the update, we want to improve search capability, redesign the school directory, and improve the online store.
This would be a great job for a tech savvy teen who needs volunteer hours! If interested, please reach out to PCPI President Dianne Rose for more information.
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Member Profile:
Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool
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This month we're happy to spotlight Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool (AUCP), another of our host schools from PCPI's 2023 Annual Meeting. Located in Arlington, Virginia, AUCP is a school that many families are proud to call home.
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What is special about Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool?
The community! Although AUCP isn’t small, with approximately 90 families enrolled each year, the children, parents, and teachers connect in such a way that it is not uncommon to hear about friendships lasting decades. Each day two co-opers work alongside a professional teacher (most of whom are former AUCP parents) in the classroom, providing ample opportunity to get to know each other and the children. Our volunteer board and committees also plan CEs and fun activities outside of the school day where families continue to forge relationships. AUCP has been described by parents as “remarkable” and “a true village” providing “a community of care.”
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What are one or two events your school holds that are a highlight each year?
AUCP has a number of annual events that we host and cherish, such as our annual auction, Winter Songs, Stories, and Crafts event, and the schoolwide playdate and alumni reunion, but two newer events have been creating some extra excitement over the past couple of years.
The monthly Antiracism Book Club (ABC) for preschoolers focuses on antiracism, multicultural understanding, and inclusion. In this forum, AUCP families can read and discuss preschool-age books written about BIPOC characters and communities by BIPOC authors and facilitate important conversations with our children and families.
Another exciting event began last year and is definitely here to stay. The Bike & Antiracist Book Club Fest featured a bike parade, helmet decorating, BIPOC story readings, a book bus, and so much more! There was a make-your-own book station, a bike obstacle course, bookmark creation station, and a generally wonderful time in the fresh air with classmates, the school community, and neighborhood participants.
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What else is unique about Arlington Unitarian Cooperative Preschool?
Ten years ago, AUCP began Timber Tuesdays and Forest Fridays, our Outdoor Classrooms for our 3 and 4-year-old classes. Classes alternate spending a full morning outdoors in unstructured play and exploration on the grounds of a nearby nature center. Our younger classes have opportunities to go to the Outdoor Classroom throughout the year as well.
From the staff’s perspective, the Outdoor Classroom has been an inspiring and exciting journey as we watch the skills of the children transform before our eyes.
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Some field notes from our Outdoor Classroom staff:
- The social interactions among the children can differ from those in the classroom. We’ve seen quiet, more reserved children find their voice and become leaders and more exuberant children learn to pause and observe. Overall, the children have opportunities to connect with one another and their environment in different ways.
- Navigating a slippery bank or climbing over a newly fallen log develops gross motor skills in a way a structured playground doesn’t. Children must pay careful attention and adjust to the constantly changing landscape. In addition, the outdoor environment encourages reasoned risk-taking and personal responsibility.
- The children’s time in the woods inspires a sense of wonder, both in the small details around them and in the larger changes from season to season. The natural world provides everything the children need and meets each child where they are.
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We're so appreciative of AUCP Program Director Diann Vaughan for taking the time to share your school with us this month, and thanks again for hosting us last spring! |
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Is there something special about your school community that you just can't help but share? Interested in being highlighted in Cooperatively Speaking? Reach out and tell us more!
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We want to offer a warm welcome to our newest members. We're glad you're here and we look forward to getting to know you better! |
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Thinking about becoming a member of PCPI? Membership is open to schools, councils, libraries, and individuals who recognize the value of parents as teachers and the necessity of educating parents to meet the developmental needs of their children. Through the month of October, new members joining PCPI are eligible for a special, buy one-get one offer!
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The date has been set for PCPI's next Annual Meeting, and we'd love to see you there! Please save the date for April 18-21 and plan to join us in Indianapolis, Indiana. More details to come!
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A PCPI Members Google Group has been created to give us another avenue to share ideas and information. This has replaced the Yahoo Group which is no longer active.
Joining is easy!
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Click the button below to send an email to PCPINews@preschools.coop.
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Use the subject line: Add to Google Group.
- Include your first and last name, your school and/or council name, and the email address you'd like to have added. (If there are multiple people in your school who should be added to the group, you are welcome to include all of their information in one email.)
Group members will receive a daily digest of messages exchanged. Message threads will be grouped by topic for easy searching later. Spread the word!
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Interested in becoming a sponsor? Contact PCPI to learn more!
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