Welcome to our school! Answers to common questions can be found in our Parent Handbook. We will have a short day every Thursday for teacher prep. Classes will end at 12:30 on those days. Our Extended Day Program is available for before and after school supervision for a reasonable fee. Please contact the office for more information.

Why we are a parent cooperative

Congratulations on choosing a cooperative school for your child! Research has shown that the single greatest predictor of student success is parent involvement. By choosing to send your child to a school where parent involvement is not only welcomed and required, but also structured to create the greatest possible positive effect on the students, you have taken a huge step in insuring your child’s academic and social future.

Benefits: For your child

During your time here, your child will see that you value education enough to take time from your life to participate in her/his learning. Your child will know that his community is also yours. When she talks to you about her day, she will find that you are knowledgeable about the people and activities that are important to her. He knows that you and his teacher communicate frequently and are partners in his school success. This combination of the child’s home and school lives enhances the child’s opportunities for learning in both venues.

For all the children

Your participation benefits not only your child, but also the school experience of all of our children. Our students see parents as members of a learning community, one in which all of the adults are focused on the success of all of the children. Students see adults who model treating those around them, both adults and children, with respect and consideration. Just as the children learn techniques for communicating clearly, solving problems, resolving conflict, and creating consensus, the parents and teachers will also have the opportunity to support community efforts through clear communication and consideration.

For learning

The third way parent involvement supports learning is the most simple and direct: with the help of parents, teachers are able to present a more enriched program to the children. SDCCS is defined by our numerous field trips that link classroom learning with the real world. Our oldest classes are able to take over-night trips and attend camps only because of parent involvement in chaperoning and fundraising. Our Art and Music teachers are paid, in part, with funds raised by parents. Our students have learned about brain research, play writing, and cooking through parent volunteer instruction. Parents acting as volunteers supply leadership throughout SDCCS, from the gardening committee to the governing board. These efforts impact the daily experience of each and every child – we would not be ‘us’ without them.

For You

The final way membership in a cooperative school provides value is by supporting you in your role as a parent. Parents need a community - friends and acquaintances - who offer advice, sympathy, laughter, and company in the hard work of being a good parent. We are a pretty diverse group by many measures, but we share a passion for our children and an ability to walk our talk that we are very proud of.

How Volunteering Work

Each family of a child or children enrolled in SDCCS is required to contribute 54 hours per year toward an activity that supports the mission of the school. Hours are expected per family, not per child. These hours may take place during school hours or on evenings or weekends. Some school jobs will take place at the school site, some will occur on field trips, some at home.

Persons eligible to complete school jobs include parents, stepparents, guardians, grandparents, and other family members. A non-family member ‘sponsor’ may commit to all or part of a family’s school job hours. Participation in the classroom requires a recent negative test for TB.

School jobs are organized into ‘teams’. Each team is coordinated by a parent whose school job it is to guide the parents on his or her team.

Parents are not always able to spend time in the classroom. In order to offer these families the benefits of participation, SDCCS asks parents to model the importance of school by working on projects that support the school on evenings and weekends. Parents learn about their child’s school experience by attending school meetings and events. Taking advantage of these opportunities also allows parents to partake of the other great benefit of a parent cooperative: an adult community for the parents. At picnics and class meetings, workshops and Parent Staff Association meetings, parents are able to network with a ready made pool of people with whom they share a devotion to their children and a commitment to quality education. Parents who support each other and learn from each other are able to be better parents, which in turn helps children thrive in school and out.

Helpful Volunteering Information:

• You may accrue hours by volunteering in your child’s classroom, either during the school day, as a classroom helper or field trip chaperone, or by taking on an off campus task (data entry, sewing, coordinating class book orders, etc.) Your classroom coordinator or your child’s teacher can assist you in finding a job.

• You may accrue hours by taking on an event or project that will benefit the whole school. This may be during school hours or evenings or weekends. See the Help Wanted board for details.

• You may commit to a regular schedule of volunteering, such as two hours, twice a month, or four hours every month, OR you may do one or two big projects and complete all your hours that way.

• ATTENDENCE AT ANY SCHOOL EVENT ACCRUES HOURS. For example:
-Back to school night 2 hours
-Parent meeting 2 hours
-Family science night 2 hours
-Grade conference 1 hour
-Earth Day Parade 2 hours
-Talent Show 2 hours
-PSA Meetings 1 ½ hours

• If you hold office on the PSA Board or the Charter School Board, you will automatically complete your hours.

Want more information contact our Volunteer Coordinators Kari Finch & Elien Alexander.

Logging Volunteer Hours:

You can log your volunteer hours online. This will allow you to record and manage your volunteer time and always know how much time you have contributed towards your families 54 hours.

Volunteer Hours Login Page