Community
At its heart, La Piccola Scuola Italiana ("LPSI") is a lively, growing community of over 100 active and alumni families who share a passion for Italian language and culture, and who want their children to grow up imbued with and nourished by this rich heritage.
LPSI's programs provide young children a nurturing and stimulating environment in which to grow and learn in Italian. We provide a community in which young children can play and learn to their fullest capacity, and a place where they experience lively, fun and authentic Italian culture.
History of LPSI
Our Founders started LPSI as a small program in their homes so that their children could speak Italian. Thanks to their vision and perseverance, LPSI is today in its 7th successful year as an early childhood education program with 70 children enrolled in its classes and a very competitive admission process.
LPSI has an Italian Director, employs 4 native Italian teachers, 2 teachers who have native like fluency and 2 Italian Cooks. Currently, we are operating under a recreational program licensing exemption. Our application for a Child Care Center License was completed and submitted August of 2008. Our children have successfully graduated to the highest rated kindergartens in the Bay Area.
We are very excited about the nature of our community. We have an extraordinary group of families who all enjoy each other's company. Many are Italian nationals; others are Italian Americans, while others are simply fans of Italy and its culture. Our goal of creating a strong parent community around our school is parallel to our commitment to education. Our hope is that these two elements, together, will ensure that a vibrant Italian community continues to Thrive in the Bay Area.
The school starts the current academic year debt free, on solid financial footing, and a cash flow positive balance sheet. We have raised funds for our Capital Campaign and simultaneously raised $20,000 for the Teacher’s Education fund..
We've come a long way and now aspire to eventually create a comprehensive PreK-12 Italian-immersion program. Now, one step at a time ("piano, piano"), we're building the foundation for our dreams.
Connect
Family Picnics are a great way to meet each other or reconnect. The next bring-your-own-lunch picnic is scheduled for May 30, 2009. In December we have the Festa di Natale, our traditional holiday party with a special appearance of Babbo Natale, as well as our year-end party, where parents will work with teachers to plan a special event to delight the children and celebrate our year together.