Community Collective
What is the Community Collective?
Since Cedarwood’s founding, families and friends have been at the heart of our school’s life—bringing ideas, organizing events, and nurturing the connections that make our community thrive. Recognizing that our circle of care extends well beyond parents alone, the Community Collective welcomes grandparents, guardians, caregivers, relatives, and friends alongside parents in supporting our students and enriching our shared life together.
Formerly known as Parent Council, this group officially adopted its new name in summer 2025 to better reflect its spirit of inclusivity and belonging. The Community Collective meets monthly to connect, share updates, and collaborate on school-wide initiatives, with class representatives serving as liaisons between the group and each class. Together, we celebrate community, deepen our understanding of Waldorf education, and host events that bring joy and connection to our school.
All are welcome—because it’s through the collective efforts of our broader community that Cedarwood continues to flourish.
Community Collective Responsibilities
Community Collective Leadership Responsibilities (Two Co-Chairs)
The Community Collective co-chairs are responsible for mentoring and supporting the (sub)committees chairs (festivals, faculty lunch, parent socials) and the class representatives.
They set meeting dates (once a month) and agendas while working collaboratively with the school’s Advancement Team, Grades and Early Childhood Directors, Head of School, as well as with the parent body, faculty, administration, and Board of Trustees. They receive feedback, suggestions, and criticism and decide which topics/issues are appropriate for discussion at the meetings.
Lastly, they are responsible for building the next school year’s Community Collective leadership.
Community Collective Class Representatives’ Responsibilities
Each class should ideally have 2 to 3 representatives whose job it is to communicate and collaborate to ensure that at least one is able to attend the meetings and fulfill responsibilities at any given time.
These representatives forward the Community Collective meeting notes to classes (provided by our notetaker) and occasionally tailor or highlight information appropriate for their class. They will also share Community Collective updates or news at the class parent meetings.
They encourage participation in volunteerism and assist with volunteering needs (organizing and sending sign-ups to classes) depending on the festival or community event happening at the time. They may assist the Festival Chair or Events Coordinator.
They assist the faculty and lunch co-chairs to host the lunches (one per class), sending sign-ups, and encouraging participation.
Community Collective Class Representatives should generally be available to communicate with their class parents should they have feedback, issues, or questions that can be brought to and addressed at the CC meetings. They should work towards connecting with each parent in the class once per year for a short conversation either in person, by phone, or (if necessary) email/text.
Lastly, they will help find new reps for the following year should they decide not to continue.
Important note: both CC leadership and the class representatives should be aware and able to make the distinction between speaking as a parent (from a personal perspective) and speaking as a co-chair or class representative (from the perspective of their class) and mention it accordingly for clear communication.
Community Collective Co-Chairs
Jill Chan and Kylee Deterding
2025-26 Community Collective Meetings - 6:00PM - 7:30PM
Typically on the second Monday of each month.
All meetings are in the Susan Andrews Hall (formerly known as the Performance Space)
Adults only; childcare provided for grades 1-5
To participate in Community Collective, please attend one of the meetings or reach out to Jill Chan at cc@cedarwoodschool.org.
For additional volunteer opportunities, check out our Volunteer Guide.