Awhile back I wrote about how the child care center my son has been attending was slated to close at the end of August. This is the place that the year we signed up Jacob, people lined up starting at 4 AM for an application. The following year people were lining up at 6 PM the night before to get an application! But despite its success, Berkeley Carroll School decided to close it.

This doesn't directly affect us because by then Jacob will be on his way to PS 321. But for his friends and for the excellent teachers who have been caring for him and teaching him for going on three years, and, in my opinion, for the community, this loss was devastating. This child care center was wonderful and Jacob has benefitted so much from it. And I have to say, in my opinion, the Berkeley Carroll school had not been up front with parents or teachers about the closing. They "negotiated" for some time with parents about how to keep the child care center open, but in the end I don't think they were negotiating in good faith. But that is my opinion.

But the good news is that a group of very dedicated parents did what the Berkekey-Carroll school were unwilling or unable to do: they found a way to keep it going. The name will change to the Park Slope Schoolhouse. And in time it will move to a new location, though for now it will continue across the street from Methodist Hospital. And at least some of the teachers will stay on to provide the same excellent care and education for children.

Here is their Program Info from their website:

PSS is a newly formed non-profit early childhood education program that formerly operated as the Berkeley Carroll Child Care Center and previously, as the MHB Child Care Center (operated by New York Methodist Hospital). The program has a rich history in the neighborhood, having been in operation since 1986.

Offering a full academic year running from September to August, PSS provides two-, three- and five-day programs with early drop off (7:30 a.m.) and late pick-up (6:30 p.m.). Tours are being offered now and families who complete a tour will be accepted into the program on a first-come, first-served basis. For application information and to schedule a tour, contact Natasha Corlette, at (718) 768-4873 or at ncorlette@parkslopeschoolhouse.org.

The program was created by parents of current and former program children, and is being supported with transitional funding by the Fund for the City of New York (FCNY), a foundation that was established by the Ford Foundation and provides cash flow loans and business incubator services to non-profits whose missions benefit the lives of New Yorkers.

Park Slope Schoolhouse (PSS) is a child development program based in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Using an integrated approach, PSS provides a developmentally appropriate curriculum to assist with the natural process of a child's development- physical, emotional, social and cognitive. PSS encourages children to make their own choices and to develop an appropriate level of independence while remaining respectful and responsible members of a larger classroom and school community. PSS believes in the integrity and individuality of each child and strives to create a caring, diverse, loving, stimulating and entertaining environment that provides children of all backgrounds the opportunity to grow in their own distinct manner and at their own individual pace through play and organized activity...

For admissions information and to schedule a tour, please contact Natasha Corlette at:
(718) 768-4873
ncorlette@parkslopeschoolhouse.org or mail@parkslopeschoolhouse.org

New families will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.

I am so happy that this excellent school will continue in Park Slope. And I highly recommend it to anyone looking for child care.