“There are no words to convey the degree to which the Waldorf School of Garden City shaped me into the person I am today. The experiences and education that were provided to us as students were excellent, but the community itself stands out to me more than anything.” —Alumna
Admissions Process
The Waldorf School of Garden City seeks best-fit candidates for admission to our School. We find that students who are curious about learning, internally motivated, and self-directed are most successful in our School environment. Admission is based on a review of many factors, including strong prior academic performance, positive teacher reports, a successful interview at our School, and the student’s ability to give something back to our School community. All admissions decisions are made by a committee of Waldorf administrators and faculty members.
Step One
Complete our online application and pay the $75 application fee.
Step Two
Send the School Official Reccomendation Form to the child’s current teacher or counselor. She/he should mail the completed form to the Admissions Department.
Request that the school send copies of the student’s complete records, including transcripts, grades and any standardized test and achievement results, special assessments and other relevant evaluation(s).
Step Three: Interview
Once all required materials are received, we will call to schedule an interview. The interviews are structured in the following way:
- Applicants for the middle school will meet with the Admissions Director, Lower School Chair, and class teacher. Parents are welcome to attend.
- Decisions are made and communicated shortly after the interview. In some cases, students will be invited to come and spend a day or two with the class they are applying to before an admissions decision is made.
- International applicants who reside outside of the area will be invited to a Skype interview with the Admissions Director, Lower School Chair, an ELL teacher, and other faculty.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
The admission process for applicants begins the year prior to entry. While we encourage families to look ahead at the Waldorf School of Garden City, we do not accept applications until September 1st of the year before a student will enroll.
We do not have a specific deadline for applications, but we strongly encourage families to submit their application and application fee by our priority deadline of February 1, 2018. However, we continue to accept applications beyond that date.
We do work with a September cut-off. However, we evaluate each child individually to determine the best placement for the child, depending on his/her unique social, emotional, and academic needs.
Letters detailing the admission decision are sent within a week after scheduled interviews.
Decisions are made after thoughtful deliberation taking into account the individual candidate’s ability to be successful at the Waldorf School of Garden City. The Admission Committee looks at the applicant in the context of students currently attending and the other candidates who would like to join the same grade. Many factors are taken into consideration, including academic ability, maturity, curiosity, and extracurricular interests. We use teacher evaluations, school records , and an admission interview as tools of assessment.
The Middle School (Grades 6-7) tuition is $26,400 and (Grade 8) is $29,100 for the 2018-2019 academic year.
Yes, we offer need-based assistance. To learn more, visit our
Tuition and Aid page.
Middle school students may attend the before-care program from 7:30 to 8:10 a.m. and/or the after-care program at dismissal until 6:00 p.m. for an additional fee. Students are given quality supervision, nutritious snacks, a quiet area for reading and homework, and another area for board games, storytelling, arts and crafts, and indoor/outdoor play. Charges are billed monthly by the Business Office. After-school enrichment courses are also offered several times a year, as are junior varsity sports for students in Grades 7 and 8.
No, it is not. For our middle school students, we do offer a hot lunch program that is cooked from scratch onsite using organic ingredients. A vegetarian option as well as soup and salad bar are available daily. In addition, students are welcome to bring their own lunch. Many of the vegetables we serve were grown by our students in our gardens.
Read this Newsday article to learn more about it!
Parents and guardians of students who reside in Nassau or Suffolk County within a 15-mile radius of the School can arrange for bus transportation to/from the Waldorf School by submitting a
“Request for Transportation to a Non-Public School” form to
the school district in which the student(s) reside. These forms can be obtained only from your local school district and must be completed and returned to them by
April 1st of the preceding school year. Failure to submit your request by this deadline will result in your student not qualifying for transportation. The only exception is when a student has moved after the application deadline, in which case the request must be filed within 30 days of moving to the new district.
New York City residents are eligible for reduced fares on the LIRR and Metro cards.
For further information, visit Transportation.
Our families come from over 50 different Zip codes around Nassau and Suffolk Counties as well as the five boroughs of New York City.
Students take two foreign languages in the middle school—French and German. Spanish is an additional option offered in the high school.
No, we offer only need-based scholarships and financial aid. Please read more in our
Tuition and Aid section.
For more questions, please contact Ms. Ann Mulvehill, Enrollment Director, at mulvehilla@waldorfgarden.org or 516-742-3434 ext. 302
Admissions