Admissions Process

Welcome to Waverly!


We hope you look through our website and learn more about our warm and caring commu­nity that fosters indi­vid­ual growth as a part of the progres­sive educa­tion model. At Waverly, we believe that students learn best when they are actively involved in their educa­tion, when they become respon­si­ble for their growth as students, when they are encour­aged to work to their highest level, and when their learn­ing is centered around commu­nity-based expe­ri­ences. We also know that while cogni­tive devel­op­ment is essen­tial, social and emotional devel­op­ment is just as key. There­fore, we take pride in demon­strat­ing that students who attend The Waverly School will be seen, their voices will be heard, and they will know they are valued.

It is an honor to guide fami­lies through the admis­sions process and share the foun­da­tional expe­ri­ence and excel­lent educa­tion at The Waverly School. We often speak to culti­vat­ing curious, resource­ful, confi­dent learn­ers, all made possi­ble by our talented and student-centered faculty and staff. When educa­tors know and under­stand the students they teach, it allows us to connect and chal­lenge them to achieve in ways they never thought possi­ble. Love of learn­ing and not recit­ing infor­ma­tion is vital.

The Waverly School is an inno­v­a­tive leader in progres­sive educa­tion. We were the region’s first school to offer a Preschool through 12th-grade educa­tion, teach outdoor educa­tion utiliz­ing a farm, provide detailed student narra­tives and assess­ments instead of gener­al­ized grades, use test-free admis­sions, and move away from traditional uniforms.

We look forward to helping your student soar!

Attend a Tour & Open House

Tours for parents and guardians are held in both our Lower and Upper School — Preschool & Elemen­tary School (Lower: PS — 6th) and Middle School (Upper: 7th — 8th) & High School (Upper: 9th — 12th) — at the start of the school day. Tours include time with our Head of School, Direc­tor of Admis­sions Outreach and Recruit­ment, and Divi­sion Direc­tors to learn about our program, visits to class­rooms, and an oppor­tu­nity to ask ques­tions of current Waverly students and faculty. 

All in-person tours are for adults only. Student visits are arranged further in the admissions process.

The Waverly School Open House

We strongly encour­age fami­lies to attend an Open House. The Open House is the student’s first oppor­tu­nity to visit Waverly and to hear from the teach­ers directly about their classes. Open houses will be held at The Waverly School Farm in October and on our Lower and Upper Campuses in Novem­ber and December. 

Click Here To Sign Up For Waverly Tours and Events!

Appli­ca­tion Deadline

Apply online by Decem­ber 6, 2024, to guar­an­tee a parent/​guardian inter­view. The appli­ca­tion dead­line is January 21, 2025, and Febru­ary 1, 2025, for all supple­men­tal docu­ments includ­ing tran­scripts and teacher recom­men­da­tions. Febru­ary 1 is also the dead­line to apply for Flex­i­ble Tuition.

Student Visit

We will host student visi­tors begin­ning in January 2025.

For students apply­ing after the appli­ca­tion dead­line, please sched­ule a visit directly with the admis­sions office: admissions@​thewaverlyschool.​org.

No Tests Required

The Waverly School’s admis­sions process does not include formal testing, such as the ISEE. Our goal is to assess each student’s indi­vid­ual skill set to ensure that all students fall within an appro­pri­ate range of learn­ing levels in any one class. We pay very careful atten­tion to infor­ma­tion provided in prospec­tive students’ appli­ca­tions, includ­ing tran­scripts and teacher recommendations.

Teacher Recom­men­da­tion Forms

Complete the top portion of the form and deliver it to the applicant’s current core teacher. (Second-12th-grade appli­cants need two teacher recom­men­da­tions.) Teacher recom­men­da­tions must be submit­ted via your admis­sions portal or in a sealed letter­head enve­lope from the appro­pri­ate school [helpful tip: provide addressed and stamped envelopes to your child’s teach­ers along with the recom­men­da­tion form(s)]. Down­load a teacher recom­men­da­tion form (PDF):

Tran­scripts

Complete the Tran­script Release Form and submit it to the applicant’s current school (required for 1st grade and above). Tran­scripts must be submit­ted via your admis­sions portal or in sealed letter­head envelopes from the appro­pri­ate school. Down­load a tran­script request form (PDF).

Admis­sions Notification

Noti­fi­ca­tion letters for Admis­sions and Flex­i­ble Tuition deci­sions for the 2025 – 2026 school year will be announced on Friday, March 7, 2025. Deci­sions are sent by email at 5:00 p.m.

Non-Discrim­i­na­tion Policy

Waverly fosters an envi­ron­ment in which indi­vid­ual differ­ences of race, ethnic­ity, biolog­i­cal sex, gender iden­tity, sexual orien­ta­tion, socioe­co­nomic circum­stance, national origin, immi­gra­tion status, ability and disabil­ity, phys­i­cal char­ac­ter­is­tics, reli­gious belief, and all aspects of iden­tity are acknowl­edged and celebrated.

Inter­na­tional Students

At this time, The Waverly School is not able to offer, process, or assist in the procure­ment of student visas (I‑20). Appli­cants must be able to provide proof of visa or other docu­men­ta­tion demon­strat­ing ability to attend non-public school in the United States before an appli­ca­tion can be processed. 

Impor­tant Dates: 2024 – 2025

Satur­day, October 5, 2024
Farm Open House.

Satur­day, Novem­ber 16, 2024, and Satur­day, Decem­ber 14, 2024
The Waverly School Open Houses. These events welcome our prospec­tive appli­cants and their parents/​guardians to learn about classes and meet faculty members. 

Tuesday, January 21, 2025
Appli­ca­tions are due for new families.

Sunday, Febru­ary 2, 2025
Flex­i­ble Tuition appli­ca­tions are due for new and return­ing students. Supple­men­tal appli­ca­tion docu­ments due, includ­ing tran­scripts and teacher recommendations.

Friday, March 7, 2025
Admis­sions noti­fi­ca­tions are sent to families.