YMCA, Las Virgenes School District part ways over childcare

A nearly 40-year arrangement that brought YMCA before- and after-school childcare to Las Virgenes elementary campuses has come to an end, a change that directly affects families at four schools — three of them in Agoura Hills.

The Las Virgenes Unified School District has dissolved its long-standing agreement with the Southeast Ventura County YMCA, which had operated childcare at White Oak Elementary in Westlake Village and at Sumac, Willow and Yerba Buena elementary schools in Agoura Hills, The Acorn (Agoura Hills) reported.

The split means the YMCA-branded childcare that many local families have relied on for decades will no longer operate on those LVUSD campuses — and it continues a broader pattern of the district pulling back from outside childcare providers.

A string of severed partnerships

The YMCA is not the first longtime childcare partner to lose its place at LVUSD schools. According to The Acorn's reporting, the district previously eliminated on-campus enrichment and care programs run by the Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Conejo Valley and by the City of Agoura Hills — each of which had roughly 20-year partnerships with the district.

Taken together, the moves mark a significant shift in how before- and after-school care is delivered across the district: rather than leasing space to community organizations with deep local roots, LVUSD is bringing childcare in-house.

"They broke ties with us," Ronnie Stone, president and CEO of the Southeast Ventura County YMCA, told The Acorn. "We would love to still be in the schools and be their partner and will be happy at any moment to drop back in there."

Stone said he was told last year that the district wanted to run after-school and summer camp programs on its own, with no partners. "It's a bummer because we all like being partners and we believe in the partnership aspect, and we're here if they want us back," he said.

Why the district made the change

The driving forces, according to district officials, were cost savings and new state mandates. Superintendent Dan Stepenosky said in a statement that beginning in fall 2025, new state funding and requirements for "expanded learning" on public school campuses created an opening for the district to restructure its programming.

"Beginning in fall 2025, new state funding and requirements for expanded learning created an opportunity for LVUSD to restructure its after-school programs and develop a more integrated, curriculum and instruction-aligned, district-operated extended-learning model," Stepenosky said. "That model expanded to all LVUSD elementary campuses this school year."

For parents, the practical effect is that elementary after-school care across the district is now operated by LVUSD itself, folded into a model the district says is aligned with its classroom instruction — a selling point officials have emphasized, though families who preferred the YMCA's independent programs will need to look outside district campuses for them.

Stepenosky was effusive in praising the outgoing partner, calling Stone "a pillar of the community, an extraordinary partner, an Agoura High School alum" who "will always be a valued member of the LVUSD community." He noted the partnership extended beyond childcare, including joint efforts to support the community during wildfire emergencies — a history that resonates in the Agoura Hills area, which has faced repeated fire crises in recent years.

"The district has expanded its elementary after-school programming, our appreciation and respect for the YMCA and its leadership remain unchanged," the superintendent said, adding that the district looks forward to "finding new opportunities to work together."

What the split costs the Y — and what's next

The financial hit to the YMCA is substantial. Stone told The Acorn the lost revenue from both the summer camp and school-year programs totals about $3 million — a significant share for a regional nonprofit that serves families across the southeast Ventura County communities.

Still, the organization isn't retreating from school-based childcare. The Southeast Ventura County YMCA continues to operate before- and after-school programs in the Simi Valley, Moorpark and Conejo unified school districts.

"The Y is still in three school districts and happy to be there, and if LVUSD wants us back or in a different capacity, we're ready when they are," Stone said.

He offered well wishes to Las Virgenes as the district goes it alone — along with a note of caution drawn from decades in the field. "Everybody wants to try their own thing," Stone said. "Childcare is not an easy business. It can make you a little bit of money but it's not an easy business."

Meanwhile, the YMCA is looking ahead. The organization is currently offering discounts on its 2027 afterschool childcare and camp programs; interested families can email [email protected] for details. Earlier this year it also kicked off a $7.5 million expansion of its Simi Valley Family YMCA, a project that includes a full-size gymnasium, a larger fitness center, three multipurpose activity rooms, an expanded Kids' Zone and seven individual family locker rooms — improvements officials say are designed to meet growing demand in the Simi Valley area.

What it means for Agoura Hills families

For households in Agoura Hills, the transition raises the everyday questions that define childcare decisions: cost, hours, staffing and program quality. Families whose children attended YMCA care at Sumac, Willow or Yerba Buena will now navigate the district's expanded-learning programs — or seek out the Y's offerings outside LVUSD campuses.

The district has framed the change as an upgrade: curriculum-aligned programming under district control, funded with the help of new state expanded-learning dollars. Whether that model matches the affordability and familiarity of a four-decade YMCA presence will be something local parents judge over the coming school year.

Both sides, for now, are leaving the door open. As Stone put it: "We're ready when they are."