The West Village Community Drop-In is The Ithaca Care Collective’s first program. It offers a community funded early childhood education program and a community space which provides support to families who lack access to regular childcare.

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Inspired by the Danish Legestue model, the West Village Community Drop-In provides a welcoming community playroom for young children ages 18 months to 5 years, and up to three hours of drop-in childcare, three days a week, free of charge. The West Village Community Drop-In relies on a ‘neighbors supporting neighbors’ model as all participating members are also volunteers.

Through the West Village Community Drop-In, children have an opportunity to play together, build social skills, and engage in a high-quality, play-based learning environment, while their caretakers can take a break, connect, or attend to personal matters. 

At its core, the West Village Community Drop-In views childcare as community care grounded in the spirit of ubuntu. Ubuntu reminds us that each child belongs to a greater whole. Through ubuntu, we are raising a generation that understands the power of togetherness, and that caring for one another strengthens us all.