YWCA offers high-quality, affordable child care, serving children and families for over 40 years. We provide a nurturing, creative space for children to learn and grow in newly redesigned and expanded indoor and outdoor learning areas.
Hours of Operation:
Monday – Friday: 8:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Saturday & Sunday: Closed
Quality, Affordable Child Care from Caring, Qualified Professionals
Persimmon Early Learning offers an inclusive, whole-child approach to high-quality child care.
We are a Level 4 Colorado Shines Rated Early Childhood Program with low teacher-to-child ratios in all classrooms.
We offer a comprehensive wellness and nutrition program and parent engagement and education through our Family Services program. We are a breastfeeding-friendly program with a certified Lactation Consultant on-site and a Healthy Eating, Active Living (HEAL)-certified program. Partnerships with Farm to ECE, Boulder County Child Health Promotion, Mental Health Partners/Kid Connects, and Early Childhood Council of Boulder County enable us to provide direct services, enrichment, and coaching. We are also a participant in Colorado’s Universal Preschool program.
Thanks to strong community support, in 2021 we completed a $600,000 renovation and refresh, expanding capacity to five licensed classrooms, three updated Outdoor Learning Areas, one commercial kitchen and a smaller kitchen for nutrition activities. Our new indoor and outdoor classrooms complement our emphasis on health, wellness, and nutrition, providing room for more active play, exercise, nature exploration and gardening.
Enrollment and Tuition
Learn more about our current classroom openings, tuition rates, schedules, and enrollment process.
Our Teachers and Curriculum
We are a Level 4 Colorado Shines rated Early Childhood Program with low teacher-to-child ratios in all classrooms.
Indoor/Outdoor Classrooms
Our child care center in downtown Boulder features newly redesigned and expanded indoor and outdoor learning areas.
Wellness and Nutrition
We offer a nutritious meal program led by a full-time nutritionist and chef, plus active play, yoga, nutrition lessons, and gardening.
Ready to Get Started?
Persimmon Early Learning offers two enrollment options:
Long Term Child Care
Long term contracted care. Contracts run from time of enrollment through the end of August each year, and families are billed monthly.
View our current tuition monthly long term contract rates here. Tuition includes all meals, snacks and activities. Please check our reservation system for current availability.
Families are required to tour our center before joining our waitlist. Please schedule your tour through our reservation system.
Please be aware that a non-refundable $200 waitlist fee applies. This fee will be credited to your account when you sign a contract with us. If a spot becomes available and you decide to decline it, your family will be removed from the waitlist.
This deposit is waived for all families receiving a child care subsidy.
Short Term Child Care
Enrollment for 1 day – 6 months. Spaces are limited and based on availability
No tour needed for short term child care. Fill out our Request for Care Form and a Persimmon Early Learning staff member will follow up with you.
After making your request, you will be contacted with a confirmation and sent a link to our enrollment forms. All enrollment forms must be completed prior to receiving care. Forms on file must be updated annually.
Upon acceptance of your request, we will inform you of the cost of the short-term contract. Download Persimmon Early Learning Drop In Sliding Scale Rates for more information. Proof of income is required to receive reduced rates.
Due to an overwhelming need for child care in Boulder, spaces are currently limited. If we do not find a care slot for you, you will be put on our short term care wait list (separate from our long term contracted care wait list.)
Tours, Waitlist, and Enrollment FAQs
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At this time our classrooms are fully enrolled. When a space becomes available, it is offered to those on our waitlist, in the order they joined the waitlist. We do not prioritize families who will pay full tuition over those who utilize CCAP (childcare assistance).
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All families must tour the center before signing up for the waitlist. Tours can be scheduled here. Please do not call to set up a tour. We are not currently able to accommodate virtual tours.
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It can be challenging for us to predict when spaces will become available. We generally try to reach out to families several months before a space would become available, however there are times when we have a space open unexpectedly. We will give families as much notice as possible if we determine we will have a space for their child. We will always reach out to families after 6 months on the waitlist to determine if you want to remain on the waitlist and to provide updates on your waitlist status if we are able.
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The price of tuition varies depending on the age of your child, the schedule you are requesting, and your family’s income. Please see our current tuition rates on our tuition page. We enroll children year-round when we have openings in our classrooms. All contracts for long-term care begin upon enrollment and continue until the following August 31st . Families do not have to re-apply to continue care. All long-term care is based on a yearly contract. We are not able to pro-rate tuition for extended absences.
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Yes, we do accept CCAP. Families are strongly encouraged to wait for approval from CCAP before starting care. If a family begins care while waiting for CCAP approval, and the care is not approved, the family will be responsible for paying for the care received at an hourly rate.
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Yes, we are participating in UPK for the 2024-2025 school year.
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You can view and download the 2024-2025 Persimmon Early Learning Calendar HERE.
Our Teachers and Staff ↘
All Persimmon Early Learning teachers are Early Childhood Teacher (ECT)-qualified and have continued coaching in children’s social/emotional growth and regulation to support all developmental needs. Our highly qualified teaching team works to strengthen all areas of child growth and pre-academic skills including social-emotional, gross and fine motor skills, early literacy, STEM, and social studies.
Several members of our staff are qualified Large Center Directors. For more information about our staff, please visit our YWCA Boulder County staff page.
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Celina Hernandez
Co-Director,
Persimmon Early Learning
303-443-0419 x121 -
Selena Melendez
Co-Director
Persimmon Early Learning
303-443-0419 x111
Persimmon Early Learning offers an inclusive, whole-child approach to high-quality child care.
Persimmon Early Learning introduced Experience Curriculum from BrightWheel in August 2024. This curriculum maintains our program’s focus on play-based learning, offering learning experiences for children aged 1-6. It integrates seamlessly with our existing BrightWheel assessment tools, is research based, and aligns with the standards and requirements of Colorado Shines, Head Start, Common Core, and the National Association for the Education of Young Children. Its activities and materials make lesson planning more efficient and help provide more time for one-to-one interactions between children and teachers.
Teachers connect with our children’s parents and caregivers at drop-off and pickup each day, and we send home daily updates about the child’s activities and meals. We also hold regular conferences with teachers for families. Teachers regularly assess all students and use the Colorado Early Learning and Development Guidelines to ensure all students are meeting appropriate developmental milestones and being provided with appropriate learning experiences.
Indoor and Outdoor Classrooms ↘
Our indoor and outdoor learning areas for each age group provide plenty of space for active play. In good weather, children spend as much time outdoors exploring nature as possible. Our newly remodeled outdoor spaces were each designed to be age-appropriate and offer all the learning benefits of an indoor classroom.
