May 22, 2020
Dear Families of First Church Preschool,
We hope that you and your loved ones are healthy and in good spirits. You are on our minds and in our hearts, and we truly wish you all the best.
As mandates and guidance continue to evolve regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, we would like to update you on our current actions, decisions, and thoughts as of today, May 22, 2020:
Will First Church Preschool make any financial adjustments to assist families?
As you are aware, throughout the period of time that First Church Preschool was closed due to the Covid-19 crisis, we continued to pay our staff. We hope that their dedication, creativity, and significant efforts to provide relevant content, social-emotional support, and continuity for your children has, in some small way, helped your children to navigate through these unfamiliar and unprecedented times.
At the same time, we are aware that many families are suffering from financial stress and uncertainty as a result of this pandemic. Our staff, Preschool Board, and First Congregational Church leadership have spent many hours over the past few weeks carefully considering meaningful ways that the school might help relieve the financial burden on families, while also safeguarding the operations of the school. While the new safety regulations and protocols will have a significant financial impact on First Church Preschool, we have decided to take the following steps to support our families:
1. For families in good standing, First Church Preschool will provide a goodwill credit equal to 15% of tuition paid by the family for the period from March 12 – June 12, 2020. This will equate to a total credit to families of approximately $50,000. We will apply the credit to next year’s tuition for returning children or siblings of currently enrolled children, and send a check to those who will not be returning in the fall.
If you are able, please consider making a tax-deductible donation of your goodwill credit to the First Church Preschool scholarship fund to help families who may need financial support to attend in the fall.
2. As previously announced, we have made two changes to our 2020 – 2021 programming payment procedures:
a. We amended our tuition payment schedule for our next school year programming to allow more time for families to make payments. If you are already enrolled with us for the ’20 – ’21 school year and have an outstanding tuition balance, we will send you an updated payment schedule ending with a final payment on December 1, 2020. If you have not yet enrolled with us but wish to do so now, we will require a deposit to hold a spot for your child, and your first tuition payment will be due by July 1st.
b. In light of the new safety protocols that we will be implementing when we reopen, we will share the new procedures and requirements in detail once they are in final draft. Families will have one week from that date to confirm their child’s enrollment. If for any reason you decide to withdraw your child from the program during that one-week period, we will refund all tuition payments made to date, less a $250 administrative fee. Following this one week period, our normal, stated refund policy will be in effect.