Annapurna Schreiber just started a petition addressed to Columbia University: 

Save the Red Balloon Preschool in Harlem!

Dear John,

I just started a petition titled "Save the Red Balloon Preschool in Harlem!"

Red Balloon Preschool needs your help.

Columbia University, which owns the building where Red Balloon operates, recently revealed that they will not renew our school's lease next year, leaving dozens of kids and parents to uncertain futures. Red Balloon is a non-profit, community-based preschool founded to serve working families in the Harlem/Morningside Heights neighborhoods in 1972 to address a lack of affordable, high-quality childcare in the area. Unfortunately, this problem persists, and Harlem was recently named a child care desert by the NYS Division of Child Care Services. We are asking Columbia to renew our lease so we can continue to serve families for years to come. The accessibility provided by Red Balloon is at the heart of our ability to care for our families, sustain careers, and be part of a school that aligns with our values in the community where we live and work.

Sign the petition: Demand that Columbia University renews Red Balloon's lease now!

At Red Balloon, we strive to serve every family that wants to join our community. We do not turn children away based on factors such as disability status or neurotypical development, which unfortunately happens every day at other preschools across the city. We serve an economically and ethnically diverse community: immigrant families and those new to New York. We serve the families of graduate students, adjunct professors, essential workers, rank-and-file Columbia staff, and members of the Harlem and Morningside Heights communities. Our community demands that Columbia University extends our lease and lets Red Balloon continue its mission to educate children and support working families. 

Tell Columbia University: Let Children Learn! 

Thank you for your support,

Annapurna Schreiber

President of the Parent Board at Red Balloon Preschool