March 24, 2023 Vol. 53, No.3
INSIDE THIS ISSUE
And the Winner is... | Becky Allen and Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant Recipients
2023 Annual Meeting Registration | Virginia Preschool Visits
CPR Certification Opportunity | Welcome, New Member!
This month, PCPI hosted a virtual forum entitled "Using Social Media to Boost Enrollment." A huge thanks to our special guest, social media consultant and co-op parent Danyelle Disbrow from Hunters Woods Cooperative Preschool. Attendees came away with new tips and tricks, and we also had an engaging and informative discussion about how cooperative preschools can appeal to all different types of families as we see trends toward a growing number of working caregivers.

PCPI board members in attendance also gained renewed excitement for our time together for our 2023 Annual Meeting, and YOU are invited to join in! This weekend (May 4-7) will be a great opportunity to connect with and learn from others who share a love for co-op. Registration is now open and will close on April 17, so check out more details below, and sign up soon!

Cooperatively yours,

Melissa Ranck
Editor, Cooperatively Speaking
And the Winner is...
beach_chairs_pier.jpg
Spring Break is underway or soon will be, and last month we asked about your favorite vacation spots. Many of us have been dreaming about a beach trip, with others wishing for an international getaway or time on a lake or river. We hope you have a great time wherever you may be traveling this month, and we hope travel to Virginia for our Annual Meeting is part of your plans too!
Are you planning to attend the Annual Meeting?
Yes, I can't wait!
Still thinking about it.
Not this year, but maybe next time!
And the Becky Allen Grant goes to...
By Lisa Meyer
We are pleased to announce that Parent-Child Preschools Organization (PCPO) was this year’s recipient of the Becky Allen Grant. The Becky Allen Grant provides a yearly award of $500 to fund a parent education program. PCPO is an Oregon based organization with over 50 member cooperative schools. PCPO’s goals include assisting newly formed cooperatives, supporting existing schools, encouraging communication among schools, and providing education to parents and teachers. The Becky Allen award will fund a speaker to provide a family education workshop on communication strategies with children. To maximize reach, the format of the workshop will be a virtual presentation followed by a question-and-answer period. The presentation will also be recorded to allow participants who are unable to attend the opportunity to hear the lecture.

The Becky Allen fund has supported a wide variety of topics pertinent to different cooperative schools across the U.S. It is one of the valuable opportunities of membership in PCPI and supports a component at the heart of cooperative schools, that of encouraging and providing parent education. The next opportunity to apply for the grant will be the fall of 2023 (applications due 12/15/2023). Your school or organization could be the next recipient!
Congrats to our Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant Recipient
Each year, the Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant offers funds to Canadian parent cooperative preschools or councils. The purpose of this grant is to help fund a parent education project or other activity that helps members improve in their role as parents.

PCPI is happy to announce that the recipient of this year's Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant in the amount of $500 is Rutland Parent Participation Preschool (RPPP) located in Kelowna, British Columbia. RPPP plans to utilize these funds to host a virtual parent education speaker event on the topic of play as a developmental tool.

Over the years, cooperative preschools and their communities have offered a wide range of parent education programs, and the Katharine Whiteside Taylor Grant supports this vital member benefit. The next opportunity to apply for the grant will be the fall of 2023 (applications due 12/15/2023), so put your heads together now to think of how your school or council might utilize these funds!
2023 Annual Meeting Registration:
Now Open!

Registration for the 2023 Annual Meeting is open now through April 17! The meeting will take place in Northern Virginia from Thursday, May 4 - Sunday, May 7. We will be headquartered at the Hyatt Regency Reston Town Center, and school tours will take place across Northern Virginia. The general itinerary is outlined below. Click here to join us--we hope you will!
Thursday, May 4
  • Afternoon arrivals and hotel check in
  • 5:00 pm - Evening networking and social event at the hotel (refreshments included)

Friday, May 5
  • Breakfast at hotel
  • Meetings and networking
  • School tours (lunch included)
  • Dinner and networking (location TBD)

Saturday, May 6
  • Breakfast at hotel
  • Meetings
  • 1:00 - 3:00 Awards Ceremony and Luncheon at Mon Ami Gabi, Reston Town Center
  • School tours
  • Networking and social event at hotel. Light dinner fare provided.

Sunday, May 7
  • Breakfast at hotel
  • Meetings, and Annual General Meeting (Time TBD)
  • 1:00pm - Meetings adjourned
Remember: Registration closes April 17, so don't delay!
Co-op Preschools, Here We Come!
Visits to a few area preschools are a highlight of the Annual Meeting. There is nothing more inspiring than peeking inside a school and learning from what they do and how they work. In the next few issues of Cooperatively Speaking, we'll share an in-depth look at each of the Virginia schools we'll be visiting.

In the meantime, take a quick look at this year's tour line-up:
Announcing: Wild Med 21-Day Challenge
Are you due to renew your CPR/First Aid certification? Or perhaps you are a caregiver to preschoolers and want to become certified for the first time? No matter your reason for being interested in a CPR course, PCPI has an upcoming opportunity for you!

This August, PCPI will join with Wild Med, an organization that partners with other mission-driven groups to reach families, educators, and people who spend time outdoors. For 21 days, PCPI will receive 50% of the $97 course cost. Look for more details coming soon!
"I did my CPR/First Aid renewal course through the Institute for Wild Med 21-day challenge and found it to be EXCELLENT. I’ve now had several staff members try it out, and they felt the same way. It can all be done from home on your own schedule, including the skills challenges, so it works well for teachers and parents." Dianne Rose, Hunters Woods Cooperative Preschool Teacher and PCPI President
Welcome, New Member!


We want to offer a warm welcome to our newest member. We're glad you're here and we look forward to getting to know you better!
Alexandria, VA
PCPI Sponsor Shout-Out


Thank you to Jovial for your ongoing support of PCPI!
Interested in becoming a sponsor? Contact PCPI to learn more!
Join Our Google Group
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!
  1. Click the button below to send an email to PCPINews@preschools.coop.
  2. Use the subject line: Add to Google Group.
  3. 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!