Family At The Center

Volunteer Philosophy and Opportunities

The Center is not only home to students, but to families too! Parents are a big part of our positive school environment and strengthen the sense of community in many ways. In fact, once families become a part of The Center community, it is an expectation that all parents volunteer in some capacity over the course of the school year. We understand that parents have different amounts of time to contribute, so the school provides a range of opportunities so that volunteering can feel great and not stressful. When possible, having parents on campus strengthens the home-school partnership and enables The Center to maintain a wonderful school community!

Parents’ Association

Every parent of an enrolled Center student is a member of the CEE Parents’ Association. We believe that the active partnership between parents, children, and The Center makes our school and community even stronger!

We are proud of our 45+ different volunteer committees that are collectively supported by our parent community. Volunteer committees range in mission from greeting children at the beginning of the school day (and keeping our dropoff line moving!) to planning community events (such as our Fall Picnic, Book Fair, Spring Gala, and numerous cultural celebrations!), to helping serve hot lunch, to introducing prospective families to The Center. Because we want every parent in a family to volunteer in some capacity throughout the year, and we value the diversity of our families’ schedules, talents, and availability, we make sure that our volunteer opportunities are varied in time commitment, scope, and topic.

Our Parents’ Association is dedicated to ensuring that each and every family enjoys a sense of purpose, community, and belonging at The Center.

Parent Education

CEE offers numerous on-campus events, workshops, and resources that focus specifically on parent education. Orientation and Back-to-School nights take place at the start of the school year and are wonderful opportunities for parents to familiarize themselves with their child’s teachers, classroom, curriculum, and school routines.

We also host developmental meetings for each grade where division heads provide an overview of typical developmental characteristics across three areas: physical, social-emotional, and academic. The meaningful Q&A that follows these presentations helps bring these conversations to life because it provides a platform for families to connect over different topics.

Additionally, we host many parent education nights for all parents. We invite leaders in various fields of child development, parenting, diversity and identity, health, media, and psychology to discuss topics of interest. Past topics have included: gender and racial identity, mindfulness, establishing sleep routines, media and screen time usage, and human development, just to name a few.

Grandparents’ Council

The Center’s Grandparents’ Council is designed to keep CEE grandparents well informed about (and connected to!) the school, including providing updates on activities around campus, enhancements being made to the campus, academics, and other topics. Grandparents receive regular communication from The Center, including email updates, the Annual Report, and more. The Grandparents’ Council is active, meeting 3-4 times a year on campus with an option to join virtually, often featuring guest speakers and group discussions. Grandparents are an integral part of our community and we welcome them to volunteer on campus, read to their grandchildren’s classrooms, and more. Grandparents and Grandfriends love coming to campus each May for Grandparents’ & Grandfriends’ Day.

Giving

Every Center student’s experience is enriched by generous supporters from all corners of our community. Parents, alumni families, grandparents, friends, corporate and non-profit partners, and faculty and staff show their commitment to our mission and programs through generous donations of resources, time, and expertise, year after year. Giving, simply put, helps CEE provide the best educational experience possible for each child, now and in the future. There are many ways to support CEE. We have a robust Annual Fund Drive that supports the operating budget and an annual Gala that supports financial aid and the operating budget, in addition to capital and endowment campaigns and planned giving.