Escuela Viva

Just a brief review, since I noticed there was only one older one on Unilocal.Our son has been here for a couple of years and really enjoys it, as do we. A few random comments:
— Don’t let the sort of «urban» exterior deter you — there are often some campers nearby but they haven’t had any trouble with any interacting with the school, and the school monitors the situation daily and has excellent relations with everyone needed to control it. Also there are apartment buildings scheduled to go up around it soon (of course!) which will change the area, in this case for the better.
— The classes don’t need to go out on neighborhood walks because they have an absolutely huge private and secure courtyard in the back with big vegetable gardens, trees, shelters, toys, etc. Probably the best outdoor space of any daycare in town.
— The teachers are great. They pay attention to the kids, they work on an educational experience for the kids that’s fun (and bilingual), and our son really enjoys going there. They really are proactive teachers, not just babysitters.
— There is a terrific mix of parents and kids of lots of different backgrounds — good diversity.
— Classrooms and facilities are open in a nice well-​lit space, well-​furnished and maintained, always clean and the spaces have a good vibe.
— Management is very focused on paying the teachers a living wage, since typically these are difficult low-​paying jobs. Very transparent about the economics.
— We have not had any problems here and we’ve had experience with other, upper-​end daycares and we feel this school is as good or better than any in town. Our son is always happy to go in the mornings.
— Certainly worth a look if you’re shopping around.

Escuela Viva was my daughter’s first daycare experience and I was very happy with it. At the time the daycare was located just blocks from my home and I could walk there every time I dropped my child off at the center. Often if I was having meetings in the neighborhood I would see the children out together with the caregivers on a walk.
The school is dual language and when my daughter was in the infant and toddler program it was a very small, intimate group. The community of parents and kids at this school is very tight knit, vibrant and diverse socioeconomically.
Tuition included all meals and supplies (other than diapers) and was comparable with most residence based centers. Angie, the owner, was always extremely upbeat, open and candid even with an overly concerned parent. I think this is why so many parents are so loyal to Escuela Viva and why the program continues to grow as each generation of kids in their care reach the next grade. Angie’s vision and candor really help.
Ultimately Escuela Viva built out a new center (which is amazing inside — by the way) that houses a variety of ages and is a really inspiring learning space. At the time I felt apprehensive about the new location. It is on a pretty rough corner in Portland and I appreciate the opportunity to teach my child compassion, but also felt the challenge was a bit beyond me at that point in my life. I felt insecure about my daughter’s security.
Angie was so awesome and sympathetic with my concerns and talked about a time when I might feel more comfortable sending my daughter there. She was totally candid with me and said other parents were expressing the same concerns and she outlined her plans to address those concerns in a meeting. The school also held social events for the parents to meet one another and this further allowed people to discuss their concerns openly with Angie and each other and — much more commonly — to just hang out and get to know each other and our kids.
Since that time I have had the privilege to continue to interact with Angie. I knew that she’d want to have more green space on their huge lot. I connected Angie to depave and she took the ball and has been absolutely running with it. She has talked to the landlord, the city, parents with planning and design backgrounds and in a short period of time has everyone on board with a play area for the children that will reroute stormwater, beautify and area in need of greenery and create an activated, green playspace for the children.
I do believe that once the greenspace is installed and when my daughter is more in need of a structured learning environment or bilingual preschool rather than a daycare environment that I will be back in Escuela Viva’s program.
As a parent it is very hard to have to hand your most precious possession over to other people many times a week. A good community, candid and sympathetic communication and a positive philosophy and practice at EV make it a little bit easier.