The Community Preschool at Grace Cathedral

The Community Preschool at Grace Cathedral believes that diversity is a strength, and that a high quality preschool experience creates a foundation for a child’s educational and life success. The Community Preschool supports students and their families by providing a child centered, inquiry focused, play based learning experience to an intentionally mixed socioeconomic group of children aged 3-5.

Our vision is for every child to have equal access to a high quality education, in development of just, independent, creative, empowered and respected lifelong learners and their supported and supporting families.

We believe that a child’s early education experience sets the course for his or her future. It is at the core of building a positive self-image, critical social skills, and a life-long curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. The program’s deliberate socio-economic diversity brings together children and families representing a wide range of experiences, perspectives and backgrounds for a unique learning experience that allows students to experience and learn respect for diverse cultures, perspectives and traditions. The teachers collaborate with parents to help enhance the potential of each child.

The Community Preschool, Grace Cathedral seeks to enroll children who will benefit from its purposes and programs. As stated in the preschool’s mission, the program seeks to develop a diversity of population by enrolling families from varied socio-economic backgrounds, ethnicities, religious traditions, and cultures represented in the city of San Francisco. In order to accomplish that goal, the preschool will enroll one-third full fee paying, one-third partial fee paying, and one-third full scholarship families. The school will reach out to neighboring communities for children who would be unable to attend preschool without full tuition help. When making admission decisions, the school will give attention to the level of family’s interest in the school’s mission and their willingness to participate in this mission with enthusiasm and sensitivity. We also seek a balance of gender, temperament and developmental levels.

• A developmentally appropriate full-day program for children ages three to five.
• A professional teaching staff and high teacher/child ratios: one teacher for every five kids.
• Play based program with an inquiry-based curriculum
• A location on the grounds of Grace Cathedral on Nob Hill on Taylor St, close to public transportation lines.
• Daily hot lunch and two snacks by Acre Gourmet, with lunch made on-site using local and organic ingredients.
• A dynamic family engagement program with educational opportunities as well as social and community building events.
• Full day year-round care and education.
• A program committed to anti-bias and anti-racist education.

Based on our admissions statement, our enrolled families will be a balance of families able to remit the full tuition, families receiving sliding-scale adjusted tuition, and families with fully adjusted tuition. Families who are actively enrolled on Early Learning SF, or meet ELS eligibility certification requirements (varies yearly) will be eligible for fully adjusted tuition. Fully adjusted tuition and sliding-scale tuition adjustments are determined by eligibility (gross household income and family size), need (parent employment, school, or other activity), and target population (see Section 1. Priority Enrollments for qualifiers). These sliding scale adjustments vary between a 30%-70% discount from the full tuition.