Evening star., 1947-05-16
By Miriam Gutenberg

Last fall, mothers VINO sent tnelr
children to the Highland Nursery
School in the far Southeast area
were protesting bitterly because the
school had been dropped from the
Districts public day-care system.
Today, the center is still in opera
tion-run on cooperative basis
with the same staff, the same Ia
cilities. the same menus, but with
more children
While the Highland project is the
only all-day cooperative center, 1t
is not the only case where parents
are helping each other for the COM
bined good of their children.
Others Flourish.
Flourishing in widely scattered
sections of the city are morning play
groups, where the mothers devote a
day week to helping out one or
more paid teachers.
Typical of these cooperative CEN
tiers are the Georgetown Cooper
ative Nursery, housed in the jackson
School, and the Trenton Terrace
Nursery School, which occupies an
apartment in the Trenton Terrace
housing development in Southeast.
Unlike the Highland Nursery
School, which takes the children OF
both working and nonworking
mothers, the other cooperative play
groups cannot accept working moth
ers because the mothers must as
sist in the nursery and the centers
operate only half day.
The Highland center, which &C
cepts children from 2 to 8 years
old. shares building with recrea-
ton hall in the National Capital
Housing Authority project.
Trained Staff Retained.
Mrs. Wyolene Fischel, director Of
the center under both District and
cooperative management, said that,
after the center was cut Oh from
District funds, she proposed ex-
changing the trained staff for less
expensive help to give the children
simply custodial care while. their
mothers worked. It would have been
less expensive, but the parents
vetoed the idea of giving their chill
dren less than the best care.
Highland was dropped from the
public day-care system because the
average income of the parents was
higher there than at some OF the
other public centers. Mrs. Fischel
estimated that, when the center was
under the District and parents paid
according to income, the average
payment per child was about 50 a
week. Public day-care officials es-
innate the average paid IN other
centers is 81
Mrs. Fischel said the parents In
the area now prefer the co-opera-
tive because it Is "better suited to
the needs of the community" The
center is no longer limited to all
day care of children of working
mothers and those with acute hard
ships in their homes. OF the SO
children now in the school, % are
the children of working mothers
and some of the children spend only
half a day at the center.
$40 for First Child.
Although the center had to raist
its charges to make up for the los.
of the District subsidy Mrs. Fische
said none of the children dropped
out. In fact. the enrolment ha'
more than doubled.
Parents now pay. $40 week fol
the first child. For more than ont
child, the rates vary according t.
income, ranging from $3.50 to SIG
Children who attend during th'
morning only are charged S.. and i
they stay for lunch, the charge i
$3.50.
The rent is free, but Mrs. FiSche
estimated the outgo each week TO
salaries, food and milk comes Il
about $500. This includes salarie
for Mrs. Fischel, full-time teacher
a part-time teacher, cook and maid
Mothers do not work in the High
land center.
The weekly income is $24o. Tn
school has been able to bank abou
$500 as sinking fund. The directo
said if any money is left over afte
the sinking fund reaches respec
table size, it will be divided anon
the parents.
i The center is very much a neigh
borhood affair. Its advisory boar
includes the manager Of the hous
ing project, the principal OF tn
Congress Heights School, two par
ents who live in the housing projec
and two parents who live elsewher
in the neighborhood.
j At nursery schools like Trento
Terrace and Georgetown. the EN-