Admissions Steps

Step 1: Schedule a phone call or Zoom meeting with Our Director of Advancement. 
  • Submit an inquiry form to and learn more about our school and schedule your phone call or Zoom meeting.

Step 2: Attend Campus Tour or Open House Event 
  • Once you have completed the phone call or Zoom meeting you can schedule a tour to see our beautiful 5-acre campus and see our community in action or you can attend our Open House. 
  • If you attend our Open House first, you will need to schedule a phone or Zoom call with our Director of Advancement. 

Step 3: Once Step 1 and Step 2 are completed an Application for Admission Form will be emailed to you. Complete the application and pay the $150 Application Fee invoiced to you after receipt of the Application. 

Step 4: Schedule a Family Interview. 
  • Open Enrollment: Family Interviews for the 2024/25 school year are scheduled from November 2023 through February 2024. 
  • Rolling Admissions: Family Interviews are offered outside of our Open Enrollment if/when spaces are identified as open mid-school year or over the summer.

Open Enrollment Timeline: 
  • Applications for consideration must be submitted by February 1st to guarantee a Family interview. 
  • Family interview must be completed by March 1st to be considered for admission during the Open Enrollment window. 
  • Decision letters will be sent via email by March 15th. 
  • Commitment intentions must be received back within one week of offer. 
  • Enrollment Agreements must be signed within 7 calendar days of the date sent. 
  • Deposit invoices must be paid within 7 calendar days of the date sent. 

Application FAQ's

Wait Pool 
MCH uses a Wait Pool to manage all Applications for Admissions.  All applicants are placed in a Wait Pool.  When a space becomes available in a program, we choose a candidate from our Wait Pool with the intention of balancing the needs of the classroom considering, age, gender, schedule, and individual needs of both the child and the classroom.  
​

Open Enrollment Timeline for the 2024-2025 School Year

  • Applications for consideration must be submitted by February 1st to guarantee a Family interview. 
  • Family interview must be completed by March 1st to be considered for admission during the Open Enrollment window. 
  • Decision letters will be sent via email by March 15th. 
  • Commitment intentions must be received back within one week of offer. 
  • Enrollment Agreements must be signed within 7 calendar days of the date sent. 
  • Deposit invoices must be paid within 7 calendar days of the date sent. 

Rolling Admissions  
Spaces may become available outside of our Open Enrollment timeline and can be offered to families in our Wait Pool during the school year or in the summer. If a space becomes available, families whose children meet the demographic criteria of the available space will be considered for acceptance, and may be contacted, and offered a Family Interview to be considered for open space.  A completed Family Interview does not guarantee an automatic offer of the open space. The school will carefully evaluate various factors, and the decision to extend an offer will be made accordingly. If families decline spaces offered to them, they will be given the choice to remain in the Wait Pool for the next available opening or be removed from the Wait Pool.  
   
Once a space is offered, families will need to make commitment decisions within 7 calendar days.  Enrollment Agreements should be signed within 7 calendar days from the date sent, and deposit invoices must be paid within 7 calendar days from the date sent. New Students may not start the program until Enrollment Agreement has been signed, deposits paid, and Enrollment paperwork completed. ​

Student Visits

Student visits are scheduled for all applicants in our Upper School (First Grade – Eight Grade) after applying and paying the application fee.  Your Upper School child will be invited to join a class of their peers for a day. This is an opportunity for your child to make friends, meet our teachers and learn what it is like to be a Montessori Children’s House student.  Student visits must be completed prior to Family Interviews. 
Occasionally, applicants in our Lower School (Infant-Kindergarten) will be asked to visit a classroom or undergo a readiness assessment. ​

Family Interviews

At Montessori Children’s House (MCH), family interviews with our owner, Jennifer McConnell, are a crucial part of our decision-making process. These interviews are designed to ensure that your child and family align with our mission and values. They play a pivotal role in assessing mission fit when filling spaces from our Wait Pool. It is expected that both parents and the child applying will attend this meeting. 

During the interview, Jennifer engages in a warm conversation with you and your child. She will ask questions to better understand your family's values and goals. The interview typically lasts up to an hour, providing both MCH and families with valuable information and insights. ​

Jennifer will also share details on the next steps and timeline during the meeting, and she is available to answer any questions you may have. We look forward to this opportunity to connect and learn more about your family's unique qualities and aspirations. 
Family Interviews will be offered at the following times:  
  • If your child is in the Wait Pool during the Open Enrollment Window, and you have indicated you would like to be considered for admissions for the upcoming school year.  
  • If a space is identified for your child mid-year or over the summer and you are interested in accepting it. ​ 

Admissions Decision Making Process

Admission decisions are made by the Admission Team, consisting of the Owner, Head of School, the Director of Advancement, the Student Support Director, and the Program Director.  Decisions are made with the goal of selecting Mission appropriate families while also balancing enrollment in our classrooms based on age/grade level, gender, schedule, diversity.  Additional weight is given to the following considerations (in no order of significance):  
  • Sibling priority  
  • Alumni Children priority  
  • Alumni Siblings priority  
  • Staff children priority  
  • Prior Montessori experience   
  • Developmental readiness  
  • Social/emotional readiness ​ ​

Application Considerations

Prior to and during our Open Enrollment Window, MCH generally receives more applications than we have spaces available to offer. Thus, we are unable to offer a space to every family that applies.  We do encourage families to remain in the Wait Pool as spaces open from time to time and can be offered outside of the Open Enrollment Window, either mid-year or over the summer.  All applicants that are not offered spaces during their initial application process will remain in our Wait Pool for future consideration for either mid-year or summer openings or during the next Open Enrollment Window.  Families will periodically be given the option to remain in the Wait Pool or withdraw their application.  MCH will periodically clean up the Wait Pool if families fail to respond to our communication inquiries. ​ ​