01/28/2026
We need your voice, current families and alums. We are collecting personal testimonials, letters of support, and stories about how this program has shaped your family’s life. Your words will reach decision-makers in ways that data alone cannot. If this program has mattered to you, your voice can help protect it, for today’s families and for those who will come after you. Click below to take action!
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSflUaUjTIkJy1jdK_hZV2N7XIeU_d-bW0lRai7BYt2-lqkqOw/viewform
Parenting is real, skilled, and essential work: so says the state of Washington since the 1940’s. Yet now the program that fulfills that mandate, our Preschool and Parent Education Program, is in jeopardy. Over the last several years we have seen multiple programs across the state close. Most recently, the Bellevue Co-op, a long-standing leader in Parent Education, is scheduled to close this June. This has raised urgent concerns about the future of similar programs across Washington, including ours. We need your voice.
To understand the current issue, let’s understand the history of the model. During World War II, women stepped in to learn all sorts of skills that supported the war efforts: in uniform, in overalls, overseas, at home. Gradually the definition of “women’s work” expanded. Even “mothering” came to be understood as important work that would strengthen the future of our country.
Nationally recognized educator Katharine Whiteside Taylor helped formalize a model that valued parents learning alongside their children within the public schools. Parenting with a foundation of child development was seen as crucial during the 40’s then 50’s. So important that it became a vocation like any other that women, in particular, were exploring. Community Colleges, often called Vocational Schools, were the logical settings to offer classes that prepare learners for a “trade” where hands-on experience is necessary for learning. (Just like electricians and plumbers, did you know your Parent Educators are Union members?)
Washington State took this idea further than almost anywhere else in the country and sustained it. Today, Washington stands out nationally for maintaining a statewide, college-linked parent education and cooperative preschool infrastructure. Multiple community and technical colleges offer formal programs where parents earn college credit while participating as learners and co-educators in cooperative preschools. Oregon offers a similar, though smaller-scale, model through Linn-Benton Community College. In most other states, cooperative preschools still exist, but they are typically parent-run or community-based, without integration into public college systems. Washington’s model is not only historic, it is rare.
This model has endured for decades because it works. It has flexed with the times to reflect shared parental responsibilities and inclusion. Families don’t just enroll, they lead, govern, and learn together. Parents gain practical skills in child development, group decision-making, and community leadership, while children benefit from stable, responsive, developmentally appropriate care. Our program still believes that strong families mean a strong future for our state and country.
Fast forward to today. Washington state, as set by the legislature, subsidizes a portion of the College budget. To be responsible stewards of funds, during understandable budget crunches, each College must examine the departments and classes it offers to make sure they meet the educational needs of the community. That means, we need to prove to the college and our legislators that Co-ops ARE the community!
