Parent Owned. Democratic. Community Driven.

The Cooperative

A cooperative is a type of business structure with limited liability, formed for and by a community to fulfill a need. It's jointly owned by the people who use it, democratically governed, and operated for member benefit - not outside profit. Co-ops have a long history in Nebraska, spanning agriculture, grocery stores, insurance, and childcare.

Democratic Decision Making

Every enrolled family will hold an equal vote at monthly meetings. Our elected board of directors will be composed of people who have extensive experience in our world, making operational decisions that directly serve our kids.

Uninterrupted Work Schedules

This is not a volunteer-only rotational exchange. The cooperative will be designed to allow parents full-time employment while certified, trained, vetted, and experienced staff provide childcare.

Benefits to Special Needs Families

Advocacy

Savings

Community

The center works for you, for us. If your child needs an accommodation, you have a staff concern, or an idea for an improvement, you have an impactful voice as an owner at cooperative board meetings.

No income - dues, donations, or tuition - goes to shareholders or a franchisee's pocket. Everything is spent on quality child care. We could plan around Medicaid waiver enrollment, CCDBG vouchers, sliding-scale tuition, and scholarships to keep it within reach.

Families like ours often experience isolation, a bare support system, and feeling like no one "gets it". This project builds a much-needed community for us as parents, just as much as it will for our kids.

Cooperative essentials

What is the time commitment?

Has this been done before?

How does a cooperative make money?

To get the doors open, we'll all need to commit some time to fundraising and facility set up. Once up and running, professional caregivers will be employed. We'll decide together on ongoing commitment. You'll want to join monthly co-op meetings to make decisions.

There are childcare cooperatives all across the country. We even have one here in Omaha that has operated since 1984! It's not known if any childcare cooperatives exist that serve special needs children...yet!

Co-op's can be for-profit or non-profit. This project is a non-profit that will operate on grants, fundraising, annual membership dues and tuition. Tuition could include Medicaid Waiver reimbursement, childcare vouchers, and scholarships.

Interested in supporting our cooperative? We will be hosting an informational meeting for prospective families and supporters.

A parent-led, non-profit cooperative in early formation, organized with support from the Nebraska Cooperative Development Center. Nothing here is final - this site exists to provide information and gather families and support that will shape it.