Parents' Cooperative School

University Archives and Special Collections
15 Lippitt Road
Kingston, RI 02881-2011
Tel: 401-874-4632

email: archives@etal.uri.edu

Published in 2008

Collection Overview

Title:	Parents' Cooperative School
Date range:	1969-1981
Creator:	University Archives and Special Collections
Extent:	8 box(es) (3.50 linear feet)
Abstract:	The collection contains the administrative and financial records of the Parents' Cooperative School, an alternative school for children ages three through eight. The school operated in Narragansett, RI from 1969 to 1980. Materials highlight the school's educational philosophy and practices, financial activities and concerns.
Language of materials:	English
Repository:	University Archives and Special Collections
Collection number:	Mss. Gr. 77

Scope & content

Contained in this collection are the administrative and financial records of the Parents' Cooperative School, which operated in Narragansett, Rhode Island from 1969-1980.

Arrangement

The papers are arranged into two series:

• 1. Subject Files
• 2. Financial Records

Biographical or Historical Information

The Parents' Cooperative School was established as a non-profit corporation by several parents in the greater Washington County, Rhode Island area. The school began in 1969 as a nursery school in quarters rented from St. Peter's-by-the-Sea Church in Narragansett. The parents sought to create a school environment less structured than that of the area public schools. They also desired to participate in the educational experiences of their children in a way and to a degree not possible in the public schools.

Teachers were paid five dollars a week and most of the school's equipment was built and/or donated by the parents. The school expanded in 1971 to include a primary school serving children ages five through eight. A full-time primary school teacher was hired and the school moved to larger quarters adjacent to St. Peter's Church. The school received accreditation by the Rhode Island Department of Education at this time. The Parents' Cooperative School continued to grow through the early 1970s, and, in 1974, moved to larger quarters owned by St. Thomas Moore Church in Narragansett. Affectionately known as the "Pink Elephant," due to its pink stucco exterior, the school's new home had formerly been a New England Telephone Company office.

Although the Parents' Cooperative School was regarded as an educational success, it struggled with financial difficulties throughout its existence. The school's funding was generated through tuition and various fund raising events. A number of tuition plan models were tried. In 1977 the school settled upon a sliding-scale-tuition fee based on parents' income. Subsequent financial problems arose when parents were late with or unable to make payment. This financial uncertainty made it difficult for the school to project a budget from year to year. As a result, the school carried an ever-increasing deficit from the mid-1970s forward.

Despite attempts to economize and raise funds from alternate sources, the school was not able to reduce its deficit. Additionally, the building in which the school was housed was sold in the spring of 1980. Faced with the prospect of a continually growing deficit, the difficulty of finding affordable school quarters that would meet stringent Rhode Island fire code requirements, and an apparent waning of cooperative spirit that underlay the school's mission, the Board of Directors voted on May 21, 1980 to dissolve the corporation and liquidate its assets at the conclusion of the school year. The school's equipment and furnishings were sold in a yard sale one month later.

Access & Use

Access to the collection:	Open for research.
Use of the materials:	Terms governing use and reproduction: Photocopying and scanning of materials is a fee based service available in the repository and is allowed at the discretion of the Archivist when in compliance to the Unit's policy on copyright and publication.
Preferred citation:	Records of the Parents' Cooperative School, Mss. Gr. 77, University of Rhode Island, University Archives and Special Collections.
Contact information:	University Archives and Special Collections 15 Lippitt Road Kingston, RI 02881-2011 Tel: 401-874-4632 email: archives@etal.uri.edu

Administrative Information

ABOUT THE COLLECTION
Acquisition:	The collection was donated to the University of Rhode Island, University Archives and Special Collections by Alexandra Broches, a former member of the school's board of directors, on August 20, 1989. The records were received in generally good physical condition but lacked an organized internal order.
ABOUT THE FINDING AID
Author:	Finding aid prepared by Kevin J. Logan.
Encoding:	Finding aid encoded by Jodi Goodman on 2008 July 1., updated by Mark Dionne on 2020 April 13
Descriptive rules:	Finding aid based on Describing Archives: A Content Standard (DACS)

Additional Information

Inventory

---

Inventory