Open Discussion Forum

  • 1.  Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-26-2019 07:52 AM
    How much, if any,  do you discount tuition for staff who enroll their children in your program? We are in the process of updating our benefits package; currently we provide pension, health, life, and tuition reimbursement.  We are a relatively small program with 75 kids and 19 staff members.

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    Stacey Duggar
    Director
    Trinity United Methodist Preschool
    Tallahassee FL
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  • 2.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 10:45 AM
    We allow staff to enroll one child in our program free of charge.  We are a small parent participation school with 50 children and 4 staff members.  Currently, none of our staff have children enrolled in our program.

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    Sherrie Rose Mayle
    Director/Teacher
    Campbell Parents' Participation Preschool
    Campbell, CA
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  • 3.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 10:50 AM
    We are a nonprofit about your size. We do free tuition for at least one child. This has helped us recruit and retain staff we otherwise would not have been able to. I think this should be considered by any program that doesn't have a long waitlist. We now have a long waitlist so we may want to scale back the free tuition but it's a nice way to help your teachers with children if you can make it work financially. From what I've heard from other directors free tuition is very uncommon.

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    Nate McCallister
    Director
    SonShine Learning Center
    Minneapolis MN
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  • 4.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 11:59 AM
    I am with a small nonprofit preschool in an Episcopal church.  We have about 50 children enrolled, with 12 staff members.  We have a pension program for benefits.  We do offer a 50% discount for a staff child.  I would love to know how you afford health and life.  

    Teri Smith
    St. James School for Little Folks
    Hendersonville, NC

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    Teri Smith
    Director
    St. James Episcopal School
    Hendersonvlle NC
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  • 5.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 12:21 PM
    Thanks for the reply Teri. We are greatly supported by our church. We provide retirement/pension (9% of their salary), free health care and life insurance. We are able to keep costs low because as a church, we have many employees. (50+, even though the preschool only accounts for 19 of those). We currently offer 50% discount for staff children enrolled.

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    Stacey Duggar
    Director
    Trinity United Methodist Preschool
    Tallahassee FL
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  • 6.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 10:59 PM
    Hello Stacy,
    I am a coach in a QRIS in Washington state, so different situation. When I first started out working in child care many years ago, I was the director and gradually worked my way up to free child care.  I believe in the beginning I paid about 50%, but had 2 children. Only 1 was full-time. I do remember there being some issues at some point because child care isn't always an equitable benefit.  I had two children, and stayed with the program for 15 years. (I would like to think I was worth the investment). As I become older, many colleagues had 1 child, but many also had 0. We too paid for certain percentages of health care and tuition reimbursement. Because of the equity issue, I believe some education was paid for that wasn't even in a related field. Everything had to be re-evaluated when enrollments dropped from time to time, and health insurance took a huge hike.

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    Kelly Clark
    Early Achievers Coach
    Everett WA
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  • 7.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 12:30 PM
    Hi Stacey,

    When I was a Center Director I always started my response by looking at my current annual budget and my budget projections for at least 2 years. I determine if I could offer a tuition discount for staff. I was careful to determine the percentage I could offer while remaining profitable when I worked for a for-profit company and when I worked for a non-profit organization my calculation factored in 20% of the excess revenue I would be able to put in a reserve fund.


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    Robert Gundling, Ed.D.
    Better Futures LLC
    Senior Consultant
    Washington, DC
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  • 8.  RE: Staff Benefits

    Posted 08-27-2019 02:20 PM
    Full time staff members receive a 50% discount and half-time staff members receive a 25% discount.

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    Catherine Awong
    Director
    Mililani Presbyterian Preschool
    Mililani, HI, USA
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