To understand Clayton Valley Parent Preschool (CVPP), one must delve deep into the school’s history. Before CVPP was the school we all know and love, it was formerly known as St. John’s Parents Nursery School. Originally located at St. John’s Episcopal Church at 5555 Clayton Rd, in Clayton,  classroom construction began in St. John’s Parish Hall in October 1967. After months of planning, the original co-op filed Articles of Incorporation on December 27th, 1967. St. John’s Parent Nursery held its first orientation on February 29th, 1968, and opened its doors to students on March 4th, 1968.

Mrs. Stanley Lemer served as the first director of St.John’s Parent’s Nursery. She was a certified elementary school teacher with 5 years of experience as a cooperative nursery school mother.  She and the initial chairmans are owed a great deal of gratitude. Carolyn and Larry Bovat were among the founders of St. John’s Parent Nursery School and helped establish the core principles and lead the school for 8 years. 

For the school’s first year of operation, a new director was hired in the summer of 1968. Mrs. Klaus A. Mueller (Beverly), first opened the doors as director on September 16th, 1968.  Mrs. Mueller, a resident of Lafayette, directed her nursery school in Carmel Valley, California, from 1950-1960. Her husband was a professor of languages, serving as the director of the German division at the United States Army Language School in Monterey and teaching at Berkeley. Before owning a nursery school, Mrs. Mueller – as a young faculty wife at Princeton University – organized and co-directed a parent cooperative nursery school associated with the university. Mrs. Mueller majored in child psychology at the University of North Carolina.

For two school years, Mrs. Mueller worked to build the foundation of St. John’s Parent Nursery School. She implemented foundations that are still found at the school today. The central fundamentals include providing an environment for creative and educational play-based learning, fostering relationships between children, parents, and families, and promoting parent education through regular meetings and co-oping experiences. 

At the end of the 1969-1970 school year, Mrs. Mueller parted ways with St. John’s Parent Nursery School. In June 1970, Mrs. Frank Sherman took over, greeting her first class on September 14th, 1970. Mrs. Sherman would make the school her own, holding the director position for 30 years. 

Mrs. Sherman, or Patsy as she would be called by her students, received her B.S. Degree, with a major in Early Childhood Education, from Cal State University Hayward in June 1970. Patsy and her husband Frank had 4 children of their own – at the time, ages 9, 8, 6, and 2 – so Patsy had four years of experience as a co-oping mother at Pied Piper Play Center in Walnut Creek before her employment at St. John’s. Patsy would co-author a book “A Time to Grow – A Plea for Developmental Readiness.”

During her 30 years, Patsy made some major changes while maintaining the core values of the beloved play-based preschool established by the Borvat’s all those years ago. The biggest change came in 1975 when St. John’s Parent Nursery School left their St. John’s Episcopal Church location and moved to the current location at Concord United Methodist Church. With the new location came the name change, and the school officially became Clayton Valley Parent Preschool in September 1975. The school also adopted the rainbow and sun as the mascot in 1981. 

Over the years, Patsy touched the lives of students and parents alike. She helped shape CVPP into the school it is today, focusing on play-based philosophies and parent education. Field trips, school visitors, parties, and more added to the fun! Those who attended the school felt the joy, love, and magic that Patsy brought with her – whether she was playing her guitar during circle time, lighting a candle to celebrate a birthday, or simply enjoying being calm in the chaos that is a typical day at preschool. The school became fondly known as “Patsy’s School”.

After 30 years, the 1999-2000 school year was Patsy’s last year as Director of CVPP. She retired to enjoy traveling with her husband, while continuing her work in parent education at Los Medanos College. She left the school in the hands of Co-Directors Diane Starky and Aida Conteras. 

Diane possessed many credentials and had worked in early childhood education for over 20 years. Aida was an experienced preschool teacher and current co-oping mother. The co-directors ran CVPP for one year before leaving to pursue other ventures. At that time, Patsy helped hand-pick the new director, selecting Dietra (DeeDee) Leming for the role. 

Teacher DeeDee, as her students would call her, had just graduated with honors and worked as a professional expert in the preschool program at Los Medanos College preschool program. Her education included extensive training in Developmentally Appropriate Practices in Early Childhood Education, the student-centered, self-guided learning of Reggio Emilia. and the active learning HighScope philosophy of childhood development. For her years in childhood education, DeeDee received the "Making a Difference in the Lives of Children" scholarship award. In 2009, the Mayor of Concord proclaimed that April 9th would be known as “Teacher DeeDee Day!” In 2010, DeeDee was honored with the Teacher of the Year Award from the California Council of Parent Participation Nursery Schools. 

DeeDee had the magic emanating from her bright blue eyes. She dedicated 22 years of joy, love, and glitter to the CVPP community. Her dedication to CVPP could be seen in every decision she made, from school construction projects, to building a new play structure, and through every interaction she had with students and parents. DeeDee’s magic touched many lives during her 22-year tenure at CVPP, which sadly ended with her unexpected passing in December 2022.

Standing strong in their convictions to keep the school running, the board tirelessly worked to keep the school open and find a new director who would carry on the wonderful philosophies and traditions of CVPP. Unbeknownst to them, their answer was already sitting in the board room. 

Natacha Uriarte (Teacher ‘Tacha) was the Community Outreach board member for the 2022-2023 school year. DeeDee handpicked Natacha for her school board. Luckily for CVPP, she is an honored graduate in Child Development. Plus she is a lover and believer of our co-op preschool. She became the top candidate to take the reins and continue the valued work.

For over 55 years, Clayton Valley Parent Preschool has held fast to its philosophy of developing the whole child. The core fundamentals have always remained the same: to use play-based learning to help children develop their emotional, fine, and gross motor skills. Previous directors and alumni helped establish these ideals while the current director, board members, and families strive to keep this vision growing.