Tip Tap Grow opens second preschool location in Cottage Grove

Tip Tap Grow opened its second preschool location at 216 S. 3rd Street in Cottage Grove, giving South Lane families a new early-learning option inside First Presbyterian Church. The Eugene-based performing arts preschool marked the move with a ribbon-cutting and open house, where parents could tour the classrooms and meet instructors before enrollment.

The opening matters because Lane County remains a child care desert, with more than three children for every regulated child care slot. Local reporting has said the county needs about 1,500 additional slots to meet demand, and the need is especially sharp for infant care. Tip Tap Grow will be Cottage Grove’s only licensed child care provider for infants, a detail that gives the new site immediate weight for working parents and families looking for a nearby start for their youngest children.

Founded by Drea Smith, Tip Tap Grow opened about a year before expanding into Cottage Grove. The preschool blends performing arts with child care, a mix that sets it apart from more traditional programs and could appeal to families seeking both care and creative enrichment in one place. For parents juggling work schedules, the practical value is simple: one local stop for early learning, arts programming and an easier enrollment process in a part of the county that has long struggled with access.

The partnership also fits the history of the church itself. First Presbyterian Church of Cottage Grove says many local social relief agencies trace their origins to the church in the 1980s and 1990s, and its history page says Community Sharing was formed in the early 1980s with leadership from church members and the interim pastor. The church says its first regular pastor, Rev. W.V. McGee, arrived in 1888, underscoring a long record of community service at the same site.

Reverend Karen Hill has said the church’s history of hosting child care services made the arrangement a natural fit, including the Family Relief Nursery, which got its start there. Tip Tap Grow and the church first met in May 2025 and found their priorities and philosophies aligned, a sign that the expansion was built around shared community needs rather than a short-term lease.

The timing also lands in a broader countywide conversation about early learning. Oregon State University’s Lane County early-learning profile highlights child care availability, affordability and workforce wages, all of which shape whether families can find and keep a stable slot. With a second Tip Tap Grow location now open in Cottage Grove, the Eugene-Springfield-Cottage Grove corridor gained another small but concrete response to a persistent shortage.