Support Roxbury Weston Preschool!

Because of your support, for over 50 years our students have received a nurturing and supportive early childhood education that embraces diversity. All RoxWes students are taught from an early age the importance of friendship, and the idea that we are all one big family. Long after their days of playing on “Fort Awesome,” tapping the maple trees, and witnessing the four stages of metamorphosis are behind them, our students continue to bond in Weston Public Schools and beyond. 

Roxbury Weston Programs remains the longest running, voluntarily desegregated educational program in the country. We are very proud that our program is built upon a mission to bring families together in a learning community dedicated to the celebration of diversity and excellence in early care and education. Roxbury Weston’s unique community is committed to meeting the educational needs of the whole child and encouraging friendship amongst children of all backgrounds. Not only does our program offer a truly unique learning environment, but it is also steeped in a rich and important history of which we are proud to be a part and that is vital that we continue to remember. During a time when racial tensions and injustices impacted many communities in the area, a group of like-minded parents from Weston and Roxbury came together and decided that they wanted their children to do better and be better. They wanted their children to live out and pass along the mindsets that we are all equal and that every child deserves a quality education. We raise our students of color up to know their worth and to value themselves as meaningful members of society, while teaching our other children to be allies and to always stand against racial inequality in all its forms. These kids leave this program with love in their hearts for their brothers and sisters.

For these parents to accomplish this goal for their children, they relied on the support of the people of Weston to help them get young children from Roxbury to and from school safely. For decades, the Weston School Committee invited the RoxWes students to ride the bus with the Weston METCO students on their way to and from school. This was vital to the sustainability of our program. Three years ago, the Weston School Committee decided to end this relationship. The RoxWes community has fought for three years to reestablish the services we once shared with Weston Public Schools, but to no avail. 

As a result, our program has struggled to cover the cost of private transportation for our Roxbury students. Safely transporting our students to and from school costs about $55,000 each year, and that number will only continue to increase over time. This is an astronomical cost for a non-profit of our size and is not sustainable.  The truth is - without a bus - we will lose our Roxbury kids, and without our Roxbury kids, there will be no Roxbury Weston Preschool. They are the backbone of our program and our mission depends on being able to provide them with a quality education focused on a supportive and comprehensive curriculum. This starts with getting them to school every morning. 

We need your help, now more than ever, to help us reach our fundraising goal of $55,000. If you have not given money to our program in the past, now is a great reason to start.  If you have, be it $5, $100 or $1,000, we ask you to consider donating again. This is a critical time for RoxWes. Every little bit helps, and your donation will ensure that this great program gets to keep its doors open and can continue to spread its powerful and meaningful mission.