Frequently Asked Questions: Early Childhood Program

1. Which museums, gardens and zoos does Cool Culture partner with? Check out http://coolculture.org/parents/places-to-visit for a list of our 90 world-renowned museum, garden and zoo partners. To name a few, our Family Pass provides free, general admission to: Children’s Museum of Manhattan, American Museum of Natural History, New York Hall of Science, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Bronx Museum of Arts, Staten Island Zoo and more!

2. Can we use our Cool Culture passes to make field trips? No, Passes are meant for out-of-school time use by parents. No more than 3 families may travel and enter together to a cultural institution. Cultural institutions view larger groups as they would a class trip, which is not covered by the Cool Culture Family Pass and requires separate arrangements with the museum’s group services department.

3. What kind of professional development is provided by Cool Culture? There are opportunities throughout the year for Cultural Liaisons to attend professional development workshops. They take place during business hours and space is limited. Therefore, an RSVP is required on a first-come, first-served basis. Each 4.5 hour workshop takes place at a different cultural institution; it includes a guided tour by a museum educator and an introduction to simple educational strategies, and parent-child activities for museum visits.

4. How do I apply for Cool Culture?

Follow these 4 steps to be considered for enrollment:

1. Select a dedicated staff member to be the Cultural Liaison 2. Visit www.coolculture.org/early-childhood-program-2013 3. Complete the ONLINE form 4. Print, sign and submit the Cultural Liaison & Site Director Agreement

Submitting an application does not guarantee enrollment in the program. Enrollment decisions will be shared in late-August via email.

PROGRAM ELIGIBILITY Your program is eligible if it meets the following criteria: 1. is a year-round early childhood program in NYC serving children ages 0-6 2. provides subsidized childcare services or accepts vouchers to assist low-income families 3. can commit to partnering with Cool Culture for approximately 12 months.

*Family Day Care, summer and after-school programs are ineligible.

More Information On The Back

5. Is there a cost to partnering with Cool Culture? Each program site pays a separate registration fee determined by the site’s enrollment capacity, see the payment schedule below. Please do not submit payment with your application. If your program site is accepted, you will receive an invoice in late August with a September deadline to remit payment.

Program Size Total cost to your center: (Determined by Enrollment Seat 2013-14 Program Fee Capacity) 1 - 24 children $125

25 - 74 children $225 75 – 124 children $325

125 – 224 children $425

225 – 399 children $525 400 children or more $625

6. If my program is accepted, how do we register families and staff for a Family Pass? In late August, early childhood programs will receive email notifications of Cool Culture’s enrollment decision. Accepted early childhood programs will receive registration materials, an enrollment confirmation form and an invoice with a deadline in early September. Registration materials include family and staff registration forms for enrolled families and staff to complete in order to receive their personalized Cool Culture Family Pass. There are three opportunities throughout the program year for families and staff to register for a Pass. Please see the timeline below. For the September round, Family Passes will be distributed at the Cool Culture Fair & Orientation in late October. At the fair, Liaisons will learn more about Cool Culture, enjoy their first workshop, and receive their families’ first round of Cool Culture Family Passes.

Important Dates & Deadlines

LATE AUG Enrollment decision notifications are emailed to all applicants.

SEPT Deadline for 1st round of Pass registration, enrollment confirmation form and the program fee

SEPT - OCT Directors Meeting LATE OCTOBER Cool Culture Fair & orientation (1st round of Passes available)

LATE OCTOBER 2nd deadline for Pass registration DECEMBER 2nd round of Passes available JANUARY FINAL deadline for Pass registration

FEBRUARY Online Impact Survey due

MARCH FINAL round of Passes available

JUNE 2nd online Impact Survey due OCT 31, 2014 Cool Culture Family Passes expire

Note: Dates for professional development workshops and special family events are TBD. This timeline is subject to change.