Parent Participation
Lilliput Land is a non-profit, parent-run, organization. As part of a cooperative preschool, all parents have the opportunity to create a truly special place for their child / children.
Helping Out
By choosing a cooperative school, you are agreeing to participate in the life of the school and share in its direction and operation with other parents. All families are required to:
Take turns bringing in (but not preparing) the snack (details in our registration package).
Attend general membership meetings, usually twice per year.
Assist with fundraising as needed.
Agree to take on an individual assignment for the year.
Individual Assignments
Assignments vary. Parents indicate their preferences based on their interests, skills and time schedules.
Examples include: sitting on the Board of Directors or supporting initiatives like fundraising or socials, supply teaching (only needed if a teacher is sick), assuming a housekeeping or administrative duty.
Fundraising
Our fundraising initiatives for the 2023/2024 school year included:
Scholastic Book Orders – order books to add to your home library and a percentage of the orders is given back to the school as money towards books and classroom supplies.
50th Anniversary Campaign – An online fundraising campaign through PayPal to rebuild our reserve funds that were depleted through the pandemic and the past couple years of lower enrolment.
Silent Auction - We also have a silent auction organized by some of our parents with wonderful items from local stores and artists and even some Leafs vs Golden Knights tickets! This was a highly successful event for us that we will aim to repeat!
Our President, Treasurer, and Staff accepting a 50th Anniversary Certificate from Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie in November 2023
recent Achievements
Lilliput Land is celebrating our 50th anniversary in 2024! We have had many notable achievements in 2023 / 2024 that our Board of Directors is proud to share:
50th Annivery Certificate presented to us by Mayor Cam Guthrie
Local news coverage of our 50th Anniversary (Link)
Hugely successful fall fundraising campaign and silent auction raising over $5,000 to help us rebuild our reserve funds.
Awarded Tier 1 status from the Ministry of Education's Licensing Board based on our successful performance over the past 3 years.
Adopted a modern accounting system that will simplify our County/Ministry reporting, enable automated invoices and statements for our members, plus reduce the effort required for annual audits.
Migrated to a more robust and modern email system
Organized several parent social initiatives (Mom's / Dad's nights out, etc)
Launched our new website and updated our social media presence
Board of Directors
Our school has a volunteer Board of Directors made up of parents, past and present. A minimum one year term is required. No member can hold the same office for more than four years consecutively. The Board meets at a minimum of once per month during the school year, and for any additional meetings at the Board’s discretion.
President - Organizes and chairs school meetings; has joint signing authority for school finances; prepares license renewal and other government forms; facilitates school’s compliance with County operating criteria; responsible for the yearly renewal of the school’s rental contract, insurance contract, and the teachers’ contracts; works to enhances school’s relationship with community; networks with other agencies; and oversees general governance of school.
Vice-President - Assists the President as needed and performs all the duties of the President in his or her absence. The Board of Directors elects as Vice-President preferably the Treasurer, Secretary, or Membership Coordinator.
Secretary - Compiles and distributes the agenda and minutes of every meeting; responsible with the Membership Coordinator for maintaining an accurate contact list of all membership; assists in the creation and distribution of regular communications with members; prepares annual report for general members’ meetings; and assists President and Treasurer with general governance.
Treasurer - Updates all the bookkeeping records; makes deposits; pays all bills; provides income tax receipts as requested; oversees payroll, budget preparations and schedules; prepares financial reports and budgets for annual general members’ and monthly Board meetings; responsible with the President for preparing financial documentation required by the County; assists President and Secretary with general governance. Has joint signing authority for school finances.
Membership Coordinator - Coordinator of the Membership Team; works to attract new membership; answers inquiries from the public about joining Lilliput; distributes and collects registration forms, ensuring that these forms are completed properly and fully; attends all Open House events; supervises the school’s waiting list; prepares reports for monthly Board and annual general members’ meetings.
Fundraising / Publicity Coordinator - Coordinator of the Fundraising Team; responsible for the development and presentation of a fundraising plan; facilitates and follows through with all fundraising projects; collects money and delivers it to the Treasurer; submits for funds; reports to the Treasurer on funds gained; prepares reports for monthly Board and annual general members’ meetings. Facilitates the ongoing printing and distribution of publicity material, as well as the school’s online presence, including the school’s website, Facebook page etc.; creates new marketing opportunities; enhances school’s visibility in community; prepares reports for monthly Board and annual general members’ meetings.
Job Coordinator - Responsible for organizing parent jobs and volunteers; assesses workload and needs of staff, board, teams, and parents; reviews staff and parents’ job descriptions. Works with Membership Coordinator to ensure new families have jobs.