Cooperation Station Nature Playschool

Cooperation Station Nature Playschool is a CI family childcare licensed daycare facility, 501c3 non-profit, which has been operated by members of Cook County since 1999, providing care to infants up to school-aged children 4 days a week, 10 hours a day. Cooperation Station is managed by a Board of working parents and community members. Throughout the years, we have been supported by local and regional grants to help maintain our building and the purchasing of materials for the program. Cooperation Station is truly a community asset with significant public investment. 

Cooperation Station has faced many hurdles in its years of existence. But now we find ourselves in the biggest hurdle yet. Since the addition of the three-year-old preschool program at ISD 166, Cooperation Station has lost nearly half its roster. Students who would have attended our childcare now attend preschool at a sliding fee rate, a rate that we cannot compete with. Since this addition to our community, we are left caring for a smaller age group of children where there is a high demand for infant care but not enough spots to fill that demand, all while still leaving our rosters half empty. As you can imagine, with only half a roster, it makes it very challenging to pay staff, pay bills, and make a living. We are not alone in this. Our fellow In-Home Childcare providers are also feeling this same burden.