Co-Op Commitment Expectations

A cooperative exists because all of its members contribute to the function and success of its mission and its intentions. There are Co-op Membership Requirements that are expected of all families who are regis-tered members of BRANCH.

1. Regular Attendance/Participation

To ensure that Co-op runs smoothly, each family needs to be committed to attending the Co-op for the entire year. Families that have their children participating must have at least one parent actively involved in our Co-op mornings and activities.

If a parent or family has irregular attendance without explanation, someone on the Leadership Team will reach out about their involvement in Co-op. Attendance is especially important because there are often families on our waiting list wanting to join.

2. Fulfillment of Teaching/Assisting/Supervising

Parents are given the opportunity to teach, co-teach, or supervise a group of students during Co-op. Fulfillment of this can happen by teaching a class of any age, by assisting a teacher on a permanent basis, by assisting different teachers on a rotating basis, or by supervising a group of students as needed. While helping in a classroom, assistants are expected to help with classroom control and any activities the teacher requests help with. Assistants should participate in the class rather than be chatting with other helpers or just being a body in the room.

*If the Leadership Team determines because of special needs, health concerns, or behavior issues that a child would best be served by having their own parent as their constant helper, they will be asked to fulfill that assignment.

3. Classroom Set-up/After Co-op Cleaning

Each co-op family will be asked to sign up for two times of either coming early to set up the classrooms or staying after co-op to do some light cleaning of the classrooms or other areas of the building that we used.

Unless someone requests to teach or assist in a particular class, parents will be assigned to a specific area for the morning. This list of assigned helpers will be posted on The Forum earlier in the week prior to our Co-op morning. If a person is not assigned a role, they can spend the morning in the “Moms’ Room.”

We understand that illness-related absences, as well as family matters, happen. Please communicate the reason for your family’s absence so it can be recorded properly. Without the commitment to attend and fulfill helping requirements, is unfair to the other families in our Co-op. If you are unable to attend and are not able to complete your assigned role, it is your responsibility to find a replacement and to contact someone on the Leadership Team to let them know you will be gone and who is covering for you. You will also be reassigned to cover the missed assignment at a future co-op.