WHEN EVENTS TAKE PLACE

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The Valley Co-Op usually meets the first, second, and third Tuesday of each month during the school year-August through May.  The first and second Tuesdays are our Class Days, which are typically held at The Gathering Center at the Orchard Church, Carbondale unless parents are notified otherwise via email.  The third Tuesday of each month is held off-site--details for these trips are on our Valley Co-Op calendar on the individual event pages.  ALL EVENTS require students to RSVP two weeks PRIOR to the field trip.  RSVPs are collected through the event pages as well.

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Both Class Days and Field Trips typically start at 9:30am and scheduled classes end at 12:20pm.  As part of our students’ social development, we HIGHLY recommend that Co-Op members attend an additional hour after our activities/classes (12:20-1:20pm) to share a picnic- style lunch with their peers.  The Valley Co-Op encourages all students to engage with each other, and adults are encouraged to allow older students to mentor, engage, and encourage younger students during lunches and events.  Co-Op meetings and lunches are always monitored by a CHE-certified CIS, but all students are required to have a parent on site for the lunch portion of our day as well.  If a parent is on their "break" weeks, they are able to drop students off at 9:30am but must be back for lunch at 12:20pm.  During this break, parent must sign a release form allowing the Co-Op leader to make parental decisions for their on-site children.  PLEASE BE AWARE that YOU are responsible for monitoring which foods your student is around or eats of.  We do not have allergy restrictions in place for our students' lunches.  After lunch students and parents rotate through "clean-up" crew to help the church get ready for activities later in the week.  Below is a typical Class Day Schedule:

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   *Check-In for Class Days starts at 9:15am in the Gathering Center--please use the MIDDLE doors to enter the church. 
    *Students are given 10 minutes between classes to find their next class and grab some water (please plan on bringing a water bottle for your student whether you plan to stay for lunch or not).  Students are accompanied by a Classroom Lead at all times during the day.
   *Students are NOT allowed to enter the auditorium or church offices at any time during Co-Op.

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ATTENDING EVENTS

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Co-Op parents, once they have fully registered their students, gain access to the members-only section of our website.  From this section parents can view the Valley Co-Op Calendar and RSVP their kids for Valley Co-Op events.  You must RSVP your kids for EVERY EVENT that you would like them to attend (events are included with the appropriate membership, but we need a headcount for our providers).  Attendance is taken at every event--Class Days and Field Trips.  Event reminders and event changes are emailed to the parent’s email address they use for their member profile.  If a member is planning to bring additional party members to a Field Trip, PLEASE RSVP for everyone attending.  Payments for additional party members or parents participating in events are accepted via Venmo or cash and must be paid prior to the event and are subject to the group coordinator's approval.  If there is a space limitation for a Field Trip, members and siblings of members are given priority over guests.​​

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Registration includes student information, medical alerts and parent contact information.  All students and parents MUST sign a hard copy of the Valley Co-Op’s Code of Conduct--these are available at check-in on Class Days and Field Trips in August from the group coordinator.  Student information is NOT shared and is only used for emergency situations or to contact guardians.

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The Valley Co-Op is a non-profit organization and is able to provide events and activities due to the generous donations from sponsors and awarded grants.  All money (including registration fees) is used only to fund the administration and facilitation of the events scheduled during the school year.  We currently have limited scholarships for students through donations to the Valley Co-Op.  Colorado Homeschool Enrichment students are not eligible for scholarships.  Our largest sponsors and supporters are the Orchard Church, Carbondale, Colorado Homeschool Enrichment, and the Christian Home Educators of Colorado. 

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CO-OP POLICIES

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All students and at least one parent/guardian per family MUST be registered with the Co-Op and have paid registration fees for each student.  Note that occasionally individual events have specific waivers and forms that are required by contractors hired for an event--this typically only applies to Field Trips.  Participants must ALSO sign these individual event waivers to participate in that specific event.  Any event specific waivers will be available on the Event Details page in the member's area or in person at the start of the event or class day. 

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Each individual event-Field Trips and Class Days-require an RSVP for each family-the site member (parent) will RSVP online and then add the names of the students attending in their RSVP form.  If you have younger family members (brothers and sisters) that are attending and wish to take part in the event, but are not actually part of the Co-Op, please add them to the RSVP as well (younger siblings, including future members, or visiting relatives).  The RSVP feature serves as a headcount for the total number of students and parents participating in the event.  Co-Op events are occasionally limited by space—if it is possible for non-co-op members to participate in an event that they are registered for, the event coordinator will contact the registered parent/guardian to notify them of space available and any associated cost.  Please note that only students actively enrolled in the Co-Op are included in the registration fee and sponsored by donors.

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Most events' RSVP windows close 1 week prior to the event date, though there are exceptions to this rule and the RSVP close date is noted on each individual event's information.  If your student has RSVP’d for an event but does not arrive or cancels after the RSVP close date 3 times in one school year (August through May), their membership will automatically fall under review and their membership may be revoked WITHOUT a membership fee refund.  Reviews of and requests for exceptions to this rule will be considered on a case-by-case basis.

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CODE OF CONDUCT

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All students and parents are expected to know and follow the rules in our Code of Conduct while at any event facilitated by the Valley Co-Op.  Students and parents are expected to utilize this code during interactions with any other student, parent, teacher, facilitator, volunteer, and/or contractor.  Failure to adhere to the policies that follow may result in immediate termination of students' or parents' memberships in the Valley Co-Op with NO refund of registration fees.

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• Be Polite to All

• Act as Positive Role Models

• Respect Our Differences

• Work Together Kindly

• Listen When Others Speak

• Choose to Be Encouraging

• Be Helpful

• Strive to Be Excellent

 

Our Co-Op strives to create a Big/Little relationship between the older and younger students in the Co-Op.  Older students (Bigs) are expected to encourage and help younger students (Littles) and lead by example in the above code of conduct as well as helping to guide others in set up, tear-down, and clean up from Co-Op Events.  Here is an introductory letter for the Bigs in Co-Op.  Please have your BIG read this prior to attending any Co-Op events.

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COLORADO HOMESCHOOL ENRICHMENT HOURS

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As a registered Enrichment Service Provider (ESP) with Colorado Homeschool Enrichment, all the events that the Valley Co-Op facilitates are eligible to qualify as extra-curricular hours for Colorado Homeschool Enrichment (CHE).  There will always be a Valley Co-Op leader present at our events to satisfy state safety requirements.  If you want to count the Valley Co-Op’s events for your student’s extracurricular hours (see our membership schedules for hours available), please note that attendance is taken at all events and your student will be marked absent from events they are not present at.  Also be aware that the hours listed on our membership schedules show available CHE hours that DO include our picnic lunch social time.  CHE hours do NOT include transportation time to and from Co-Op Events. 

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The Valley Co-Op automatically reports your student's gained hours at the end of each month to CHE Campus Leaders.  Please be sure to provide accurate information for your CHE micro-campus leader when registering your children so that the Valley Co-Op can ensure your hours are correctly credited to your student.  If you have questions, please contact info@homeschoolinthevalley.com