Our Story

For 37 years, Little Feet Community Preschool offered preschool services to children aged 2-5 years in Hudson Valley New York’s northern Dutchess County.  

While similar to the Bank Street Progressive Education model in many ways, Little Feet’s curriculum was a unique program developed by Laurel Fay, an educator with a social work background. 

Upon Fay’s departure in 2004, the program was carried forth by long-time teacher Patty O’Connor.  Under Patty’s care, Little Feet prioritized community and equity, providing scholarships to children who would not otherwise have been able to access early childhood education.   Little Feet Community’s school parents helped raise tuition assistance through the school’s nonprofit branch.

By building a community reflective of the local villages and towns, Little Feet’s classrooms could work directly with topics of diversity, empathy, and tolerance in a way rarely seen in an early childhood classroom.