Cooperative Nursery School
of Champaign-Urbana

Adopted April 21, 1976
Revised February 15, 1997
Revised November 12, 2001
Revised February 12, 2003
Revised August 17, 2017

​

​

Article I   -   Name and Purpose

​

Sec. 1 The name of the organization shall be the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana.

 

Sec. 2 The purpose of the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana shall be to operate a parent-participation nursery school for preschool children of all races and creeds. The Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana has such powers that are now or may hereafter be granted by the General Not-for-Profit Corporation Act of the State of Illinois.

In the event that the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana should be disbanded, its assets shall be liquidated as necessary to pay any outstanding debts. Any remaining assets shall be donated to a local, child or family-oriented, not-for-profit organization(s) of the Board of Director’s choice.

​

​​

Article II   -   Membership

​

Sec. 1 The membership of the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana shall consist of parents of children enrolled in the nursery school.

​

Sec.2 Any preschool child that is at least two years old by September 1st and meets enrollment qualifications is eligible for enrollment. Enrollment is to be determined by order of written application, and, in special cases, by the discretion of the Board of Directors.

 

Sec.3 Rights and privileges of members shall be as follows:

​

A. Each family shall be entitled to one vote on each matter submitted to a vote by the members. When a family has more than one child in the Cooperative Nursery School, they will be entitled to one vote for each child enrolled.

 

B. Each member shall be entitled to hold any office for which s/he is deemed qualified by a majority of the voting members present.

 

Sec. 4 Obligations of members shall be as follows:

 

A. All members shall assist in the classroom on scheduled days; attend business, educational and work meetings; and comply with all school regulations.

 

B. All members shall pay tuition and fees for their children as specified in Article IX.

 

Sec. 5 Any member may be suspended or expelled for not fulfilling his/her obligations as a member by a two-thirds vote of the full Board of Directors after an appropriate hearing.

 

Sec. 6 Any member may be required to withdraw his/her child from the nursery school by a two-thirds vote of the full Board of Directors after an appropriate hearing.

​

​

Article III   -   Member Groups

​

Sec.1 The children enrolled in the nursery school shall be divided into classes. The parents and teacher of each children’s class shall constitute each member group.

​

Sec. 2 Each member group shall have a Chairperson, who shall serve starting on the first day of summer vacation and throughout the school year. In the event of a vacancy a new Chairperson shall be designated by the members of the group.

​

Sec. 3 Each member group shall hold at least two meetings per year for the purpose of continuing parent education and handling of business necessary for the smooth operation of its class. The group chairperson may call special meetings of the group and shall call a special meeting upon the request of three members of the group. The call for the special meeting must state the business to be transacted, and no business shall be transacted except that specified in the call.

​

​

Article IV   -   Director

 

Sec. 1 The Director shall answer all inquires about the school, its nature and purpose, supply application forms upon request, give site tours, enroll families, maintain the children’s paperwork per DCFS standards, and prepare class rosters, shall maintain good relations with the state licensing agency, may serve as Treasurer (see Article VI, Sec. 4) in the event that the position is unfilled, so long as a Budget Committee is in place, shall serve as the Publicity Coordinator, shall serve as the Good Beginnings Liaison, shall, with Board of Director’s approval, secure parent volunteers to teach enrichment classes, shall serve on the Executive Committee as an advisor only, and shall serve as an ex-officio member on all standing committees.

 

A. The Publicity Coordinator strives to maintain a satisfactory level of enrollment in the school through publicity, strives to maintain goodwill in the community by preparing and distributing recruiting materials as needed, and publicizing special events, maintains the publicity archives.

 

B. The Good Beginnings Liaison arranges advertising for the program, assists the Good Beginnings teacher as needed.

​

​

Article V   -   Administration

​

Sec. 1 The governing body of the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana shall be the Board of Directors. The board shall have full power and authority to manage and conduct the property and business of the organization. It shall be responsible for formulating school policies, administering and distributing school funds, and providing for the organization of the parents.

​

Sec. 2 Officers, who shall constitute the executive committee of the Board, shall be the​ Director (as an advisor only, and shall not have a vote), President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer (during years when this position is filled), Personnel Chair, and Tuition Collector. Remaining members of the board shall be the Chairpersons of standing committees, member group Chairpersons as representatives to the Board for the member groups, and any person, member, or nonmember, designated by the executive committee for his/her ability to contribute to the governing of the school. The immediate past President shall serve as ex officio member of the Board, and shall serve on the executive committee as a consultant.

​

Sec. 3 Board members shall be elected by a majority vote of the membership present at a general meeting. Board members and those filling designated positions shall assume office the first day of summer vacation, and shall serve for a term of one fiscal year (June 1 - May 31).

​

Sec. 4 Three absences from Board meetings without a valid reason may be deemed a resignation. Any member of the Board who does not satisfactorily perform his/her duties may be removed from his/her position by a two-thirds vote of the other members of the Board of Directors after an appropriate hearing.

 

Sec. 5 Any vacancy occurring on the Board by reason of resignation, death, or disqualification of an officer may be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term by a majority vote of the remaining members of the Board.

​

Sec. 6 The Board of Directors shall meet as often as necessary to conduct the business of the school, but no fewer than six times per fiscal year (June 1 - May 31). The President may call special meetings of the Board and shall call a special meeting upon the request of three members of the Board. The call for the special meeting must state the business to be transacted except that specified in the call.

 

Sec. 7 A majority of the Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum, who must be present for the purpose of transacting business.

 

Sec. 8 The Board of Directors shall call at least one meeting of the general membership. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum at a general membership meeting. A special meeting of the general membership may be called by the Board and shall be called at the request of 20 percent of the members. The call for the special meeting must state the business to be transacted, and no business shall be transacted except that specified in the call.

 

 

Article VI   -   Duties of the Executive Committee

 

The duties of the officers and their committees shall be as follows:

​

Sec. 1 The President shall oversee and coordinate all activities of the Board and the school, preside at all meetings of the general membership of the organization and of the Board of Directors, and shall serve as an ex officio member on all standing committees.

​

Sec. 2 The Vice President shall see that any legal matters concerning the organization are properly dealt with, shall maintain good relations with the school’s landlord, shall preside at general meetings of the Board of Directors in the absence of the President, and shall serve as ex officio on all committees.

​

Sec. 3 The Secretary shall keep minutes of the general membership meetings and all meetings of the Board of Directors, maintain Alumni Database, and shall perform such other functions as may be incident to the office. 

​

Sec. 4 ​The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all moneys collected and received, and disburse them upon order of the Board of Directors. The Treasurer shall prepare the annual budget, present statements to the Board at its regular meetings, keep the financial records of the Cooperative Nursery School, and see that an audit is performed as deemed necessary by the Board. The Treasurer shall be an ex officio member of the fund-raising committee and shall advise the committee regarding its fund-raising efforts. The Director shall take on all Treasurer duties when the position goes unfilled, so long as a Budget Committee is in place.

​

Sec. 5 The Tuition Collector shall collect and receive all moneys due and shall deposit them in a bank designated by the Board of Directors, shall keep record of all moneys received, and charge late fees accordingly, shall act as the Scholarship Coordinator.

 

A. The Scholarship Coordinator shall obtain outside funding for use as full or partial scholarships by families who meet the requirements, shall evaluate written applications using appropriate guidelines as determined by the school, in consultation with public service agencies, shall provide reports to the funding agency.

Sec. 6 The Personnel Officer shall be responsible for the hiring, orientation, and evaluation of teachers and/or Director (including a staff self evaluation process), and shall maintain the personnel files in good order. S/he shall see that the relationships between the professional teachers and parents working in the classroom meet the standards of and philosophy set forth by the Cooperative Nursery School. The Chairpersons of each member group shall report directly to the Personnel Officer.

 

A. The Chairpersons of each member group shall be the liaison between teachers and classroom parents, shall set up the classroom work schedule, help organize and run class meetings, and assist the teacher in planning and implementing the orientation for their member groups.

​

B. The Chairperson of each member group shall assist the Personnel Officer in conducting teacher evaluations and orienting new teachers, as needed.

​

​

Article VII   -   Committees

​

Sec. 1 There shall be five standing committees: Fund-raising, Property/Purchasing, Special Events, Enrichment, and Marketing. The Board of Directors shall establish such other committees, standing and special, as the Board shall deem necessary, including committees for the purposes of nominating Board members and hiring personnel.

​

Sec. 2 The standing committees, shall consist of an elected chairperson, who shall have a seat on the Board, and members, who are assigned by the Board to serve on a specific committee based on their expressed preference. Vacancies on the committees shall be filled by the Board.

​

Sec. 3 The duties of the five standing committees shall be as follows:

 

A. The Fund-Raising Committee

Plans and implements the fund-raising projects for the nursery school, and finding and applying for appropriate grants.

​

B. The Property/Purchasing Committee

Arranges for the opening and closing of school by making sure that classrooms are clean and equipment and supplies are available, maintains list of member’s property hours earned, keeps a current inventory of all school property, purchases items needed for the operation of the Cooperative Nursery School, including those needed for special membership events, keeps records of purchases.

 

C. Special Events Committee

Plans and coordinates general membership social and special events, plans events for Teacher Appreciation week.

​

D. Enrichment Committee

Plans and implements enrichment activities throughout the year, contacts local resources as needed.

​

E. Marketing Committee

Maintains school website and social media outlets as needed, updates school information such as job postings, school events, and enrollment details.

​

Sec. 4 Recurring Ad Hoc Committees

 

A. The Hiring Committee shall be chaired by the Personnel Chair and comprised of one member of the Executive Board, the Director, all Head Teachers (in the case of hiring a Director), the remaining Head Teachers (in the case of hiring a Head Teacher), or one Head Teacher (in the case of hiring an Assistant Teacher), and shall be responsible for the recruitment, selection, and employment of the Director, Head Teachers, and Assistant Teachers. All applicants must be approved by a vote of the Board of Directors before being offered a position.

 

B. The Nominating Committee shall be comprised of two to four non-returning members in good standing. They shall nominate a slate of Board members for election, and conduct the election either at the annual meeting or during the month of May.

​

C. The Budget Committee, which is chaired by the Tuition Collector, shall be comprised of three additional members in good standing, at least one of whom is an executive board member, and will be responsible for calculating the budget for the next fiscal year and presenting this budget to the Board of Directors, and shall review the finances three times per fiscal year, serving as the checks and balances.

 

​

Article VIII   -   Attendance Days

 

Sec. 1 The Board of Directors shall adopt a calendar for each school year as prepared by the Director.

 

Sec. 2 Closing the school for any emergency shall be at the discretion of the teachers and the Director.

 

 

Article IX   -   Fees and Tuition

 

Sec. 1 A nonrefundable registration fee shall be paid by the parents of each child upon submission of the application form. One month’s tuition shall be paid by August 1st as a security deposit. Provided no late fees are accessed and all tuition payments are made, this deposit will be applied to the last month’s tuition.

​

Sec. 2 Tuition in the amount designated by the Board of Directors shall be paid by parents for each child. Tuition shall be paid monthly in advance. If tuition has not been postmarked by the fifth of the month, a late charge shall be assessed; if not postmarked by the fifth of the month, this late charge will be doubled.

 

Sec. 3 The first month’s tuition shall be paid before the child enters school.

 

Sec. 4 If a child enters school during a month, tuition shall be prorated, and the parents charged only for the number of weeks the child attended during the month. If a child is withdrawn at any time during the month, the parents will be charged the tuition for the entire month.

Sec. 5 If a child misses school because of an illness, the entire month’s tuition is due regardless of the number of days missed. After a child has been absent for two weeks, parents shall be given the choice of continuing tuition payments to reserve the child’s place in the class or withdrawing the child and placing him/her at the head of the waiting list.

​

Sec. 6 Tuition payments one month in arrears shall constitute cause for suspension of membership. Parents whose tuition payments are two weeks in arrears shall be reminded of this fact by the Tuition Collector. No member shall be suspended without an appropriate hearing by the Board of Directors.

​

Sec. 7 Withdrawal of a student in mid year will result in loss of the security deposit. The Board may exercise a waiver of this requirement under extreme circumstances.

​

Sec. 8 Exact amounts for fees and tuition are specified in the “Cooperative Nursery School Tuition agreement”.

 

 

 

Article X   -   Teachers

​

Sec. 1 Head Teacher

Each Head Teacher shall sign a Board-approved contract, which shall be signed also by the President. Teachers shall read and abide by the policies set forth in the Cooperative Nursery School “Teacher’s Handbook”.

​

Each Head Teacher shall have full authority and responsibility for his/her class. Each teacher shall also be available for discussion with parents, shall conduct orientation sessions, participate in member group meetings for his/her class and Board meetings, and shall assist in parent education.

​

Sec. 2 Assistant Teachers

Each Assistant teacher shall sign a Board-approved contract, which shall be signed also by the President. Assistant Teachers shall read and abide by the policies set forth in the Cooperative Nursery School “Teacher’s Handbook”.

 

Sec. 3 Enrichment Teachers

Each Enrichment Teacher (Music, Spanish, or other) shall sign a Board-approved contract, which shall be signed also by the President. Enrichment teachers shall read and abide by the policies set forth in the Cooperative Nursery School “Teacher’s Handbook”.

​

​

Article XI   -   Adoption and Amendment

​

Sec. 1 The By-laws of the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana shall be adopted by a majority of the voting members present at the meeting of the membership.

 

Sec. 2 The By-laws of the Cooperative Nursery School of Champaign-Urbana may be amended or repealed by a majority of the voting members present at a meeting of the membership.