Outdoor Preschool Grand Opening!

Letter from our Director

"Join me in an adventure!"

While Lancaster Family Farms: Outdoor Preschool is neither a farm (yet) nor a nonprofit, by partnering with OCC (Office of Child Care) and ODHS (Oregon Department of Human Services), I can provide affordable (possibly cost free to the family) child care and education. This year and in the years to come, we will not only be partnering with local farms, growing food in our backyard garden, and raising chickens, but we will also be saving money to purchase a passenger van for field trips. This blends my interest and passion in sustainability, ecology, and education into a great preschool environment.

With licensing and DHS support, your young ones can qualify to attend cost free (or with a small copay)! This Fall we will be open for 3 - 6 year olds! Siblings are welcome and will have priority registration. We plan on openning our doors to 8 masked children. My goal is to save my limited preschool spots for families who need assistance with child care options. Lancaster Family Farms: Outdoor Preschool is now fully licensed with the Oregon Office of Child Care as a Certified Out of Home Child Care Program. We also hold a license obtained from the City of Medford and business insurance.

One final note to this update... Its just me. My name is Nicole and I am the Founder, Director, and Lead Instructor of Lancaster Family Farms: Outdoor Preschool. I have been teaching outdoor education for over 10 years now and have been using farm and wilderness (plants and animals) to teach a wide age range of children for the past 4 years. You are welcome to check out the "Get to Know Us" page to learn more about my qualifications and experience. As of now, I am the only staff member, with the promise of more to come in the upcoming months once the preschool is up and running. With limited staffing, I will only be accepting 6-8 students max. Once the preschool is licensed I will be able to have up to 12 children enrolled as long as we have a 10:1 ratio of kids to staff. Administrative support is soon to follow within a year of creation and additional education positions are being drafted.

Join us as we learn while we play outdoors, dig into where our food comes from, and make connections with the community around us.

Sincerely, Nicole Carbone

Founder, Director and Lead Instructor