What Does a Cooperative Preschool Treasurer Actually Do?

Nobody handed you a job description when you became treasurer of the cooperative preschool. You agreed to "manage the finances" at a parent meeting, and now you're discovering that means something different than you expected — especially compared to typical volunteer treasurer roles at larger organizations.

Here's an accurate description of what the cooperative preschool treasurer actually does.

The core responsibilities

Managing the bank accounts. For most co-op preschools, this means one or two checking accounts and possibly a savings account for reserves. You're an authorized signer, you manage deposits, and you review statements every month.

Processing payments. Tuition comes in from families — sometimes on different schedules, sometimes on payment plans. You need to track who has paid and who hasn't, and follow up on late payments according to whatever policy the school has established.

Paying bills and vendors. Teacher compensation (which may be handled through payroll or as contractor payments), facility costs, supply orders, insurance premiums, and licensing fees all come through the treasurer.

Preparing monthly financial reports for the board. This is the most visible part of the job. For a detailed guide to what goes in these reports, see the co-op school treasurer report guide.

What most new co-op treasurers don't expect

Tuition tracking is more work than it sounds. Families pay on different days, in different amounts if sliding scale is in use, and sometimes in advance. Keeping a clean record of who has paid what — and reconciling that against your bank deposits — takes a consistent system.

Teacher pay has real legal implications. If your school employs a teacher rather than contracting them, you're managing payroll taxes, potentially workers' compensation, and unemployment insurance. This is where most volunteer treasurers are most in over their heads — and where seeking professional guidance (even just one consultation with an accountant or payroll service) is worthwhile.

Year-end close takes real time. Whether your school has a tax filing requirement or not, the end of the year means reconciling all accounts, generating a final financial statement, preparing for any audit or review, and setting up the next year's budget.

The monthly rhythm

A well-organized co-op preschool treasurer establishes a monthly routine: in the first week of the month, collect and deposit tuition payments and download bank statements; in the second week, pay outstanding invoices and process any pending disbursements; in the third week, build the treasurer report for the upcoming board meeting; in the fourth week, send the report and prepare for the meeting. Repeat.

That rhythm, once established, makes the role manageable. The co-op treasurer month-by-month guide maps the full year and covers what changes across seasons.

Common questions

How much time does this role take?

Expect two to four hours per month during the school year, more during enrollment season (when tuition agreements come in) and year-end close. The single biggest time consumer is building the monthly report — which is where tools like EasyTreasurer save the most time.

Do I need to be the one who pays all the bills?

Typically yes, at least for significant payments. For routine recurring expenses, some co-ops use autopay to reduce the manual workload. For any non-budgeted expense, the treasurer should verify it's been approved before paying.

EasyTreasurer generates your monthly report from your bank CSV — including categorized income and expenses and board talking points — so the most time-consuming part of the treasurer role takes 60 seconds instead of hours.