Children's Community Center

{{short description|Parent cooperative preschool in Berkeley, California, United States}} {{Infobox organization | name = Children's Community Center | formation = {{start date and age|1927|10|03}} | abbreviation = CCC | former_name = Children's Community | founder = Katharine Whiteside Taylor | type = Parent cooperative preschool | status = Non-profit | purpose = | website = {{URL|https://www.cccpreschool.org}} | location = Berkeley, California, U.S. }} The '''Children’s Community Center''' ('''CCC''') is a parent cooperative preschool located in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1927 by educator Katharine Whiteside Taylor, it is recognized as one of the first cooperative preschools. CCC is the oldest continually operating cooperative preschools in North America.<ref>{{cite book |title=The SAGE Encyclopedia of Contemporary Early Childhood Education |publisher=SAGE Publications, Inc. |year=2016 |isbn=9781483340357 |editor1=Donna Couchenour |location=Thousand Oaks, California |quote="In 1927, the Children's Community Center was organized in Berkeley, California, and is today the oldest continually operating cooperative preschool." |editor2=J. Kent Chrisman}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Hewes |first1=Dorothy W. |title=An Administrator’s Guidebook to Early Child Care and Education Programs |last2=Leatherman |first2=Jane M. |publisher=Pearson (Allyn & Bacon) |year=2004 |isbn=0205420583 |pages=240 |quote="It is recognized as the oldest continuously operating cooperative preschool in the United States"}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Hewes |first=Dorothy W. |title=It’s the Camaraderie: A History of Parent Cooperative Preschools |publisher=Center for Cooperatives, University of California |year=1998 |isbn=9781885641236 |quote="As the oldest continuously operating cooperative nursery school in the United States, the formation of Children's Community in 1927 [...]"}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |date=October 10, 1986 |title=Preschool Began With Concern |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zrlJAAAAIBAJ&pg=PA6&dq=oldest+continually+operating+cooperative+preschools&article_id=3268,2572045 |access-date=9 October 2025 |work=The Madison Courier |page=6 |quote="...oldest continuously operating parents' cooperative preschool in the country."}}</ref>

== History == The Children’s Community Center was established in 1927 when Katharine Whiteside Taylor, and a group of local parents sought to create a school where families could participate directly in their children’s early learning. The model reflected contemporary ideas of progressive education and cooperative governance, in which parents and teachers shared responsibility for curriculum, administration, and child development support.<ref name="Byers197222">{{cite report |url=https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED091063 |title=Origins and Early History of the Parent Cooperative Nursery School Movement in America |last=Byers |first=Libby |date=October 1972 |publisher=U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare, Office of Education |pages= |id=ED091063 |access-date=8 October 2025 |type=ERIC Document}}</ref>

Taylor documented the school’s founding philosophy in her 1929 publication ''The Children’s Community'', which became an influential guide for other emerging parent cooperative nursery schools.

== References == <references responsive="1"></references>

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Category:Education in Berkeley, California Category:Schools in Alameda County, California Category:Preschools in the United States Category:1927 establishments in California Category:Educational institutions established in 1927 Category:Private schools in California