Frequently Asked Questions

Because our of small school size, only a limited number of openings are available for a grade in any given year. The Waldorf School of Garden City considers the whole child in the application process, though we expect applicants in middle school and beyond to be proven and motivated. While evidence of achievement and motivation is essential, admission to the school is not just about numbers. The school welcomes independent thinkers and looks closely at each applicant, carefully weighing all facets. The Waldorf School of Garden City presents extraordinary opportunities for its students to thrive and achieve, and seeks students who will take full advantage of these opportunities.

To assess an applicant, the committee considers achievement and motivation, appraises the standards of the previous school’s curriculum, and carefully reviews application essays. For older children, the committee also considers the time and effort that the student has dedicated to class and out-of-class activities and pays close attention to recommendations. The Admission Committee does not consider a candidate’s financial need in making its decision.

For Early Childhood applicants we are seeking families who value our early childhood philosophy and seek a school that will provide a healthy, balanced and nurturing childhood experience.

Contact us at 516-742-3434, or fill out our inquiry form to request information about our school. It is highly recommended that you schedule a visit to our school. For all applicants, the first task is to fill out the application online and for students in grades 1-12 to arrange to have school reports, teacher recommendations, and test scores forwarded to our online admissions portal. When we receive a completed application, you are entered into our system as an official applicant, and we will contact you to schedule an interview.

ONLINE APPLICATION

For all applicants, the first task is to fill out the Waldorf School of Garden City’s application online. The Waldorf School of Garden City works with a company called “TADS” in the creation of our online application. While completing the online application, applicants to grades 1-12 should arrange to have school reports, teacher recommendations, and test scores forwarded to our online admissions portal. When we receive a completed application, we will contact you to schedule an interview.

Need Assistance with your Online Application?

You may contact TADS for assistance completing the application or to check application status.

Applications must be submitted with a $75 application fee. Directions and forms of accepted payment are listed at the end of our online application.

In addition to the parent and student portions of the online application, a completed application includes school records, and teacher evaluations.

All students must request formal academic records be sent from their current school directly to the Admissions Office. Recommendation and transcript request forms  for you to download and give to your school officials, appear on our application page.

International student applicants to the HS must also submit TOEFL scores and a copy of the applicant’s passport page showing birthdate, city of birth and picture. TOEFL scores for applicants to Grade 9 must be 80 or higher. International applicants to Grade 10 and above must have TOEFL scores above a 90.

Once your application is complete we will be in touch to schedule an interview.

When you decide to apply to the Waldorf School of Garden City, download the recommendation and transcript request forms from our online admissions portal and send to your current school.

If your teachers won’t fill out the recommendation forms, please make sure to submit any narrative reports that your school sends home. Additionally, you may ask another adult who has a good perspective on the applicant to send us a confidential letter of recommendation.

It is not necessary to formally prepare for an interview. However, as parents and applicants for upper grades will be asked to carry on an extended one-on-one conversation, it is useful to know a little bit about the Waldorf School of Garden City and have submitted your application before you come in. This will help you to know what kind of questions you might want to ask while you are here, and will let us know something about you before you arrive.

Tuition Assistance is available for families with children entering the Mixed-Age Kindergarten to Grade 12. The maximum award for students for Grades 4 and above is 50 percent.

The Waldorf School of Garden City works with a company called TADS to process tuition assistance requests. TADS provides a framework through which household need can be measured fairly and equitably. Recommendations from TADS are used by the Waldorf School of Garden City award committee in accordance with its policies to determine the award amount. Make sure to complete your TADS financial aid application as soon as possible to make certain we receive all necessary paperwork before our April 1st deadline.

Application Information

Applications for tuition assistance may be completed online at www.mytads.com or by clicking on the TADS financial aid application icon.

Supporting Documentation

The following supporting documentation must be submitted to TADS via mail for your application to be considered complete:

• Household members’ most recently completed federal tax forms (personal and businesses owned)
• W-2’s from each job held by household members
• Most recent pay stub from each job held by household members
• Documents that establish the amount of miscellaneous monthly or yearly income you currently receive (i.e., welfare, food stamps, unemployment, workers’ compensation, etc.)
• All corporate, partnership, and trust forms if a household member owns 20% or more interest in a corporation, partnership or trust

Need Assistance with your Application?

You may contact TADS for assistance completing the application or to check application status. TADS does not have award information.

No. Admissions decisions are made without consideration of a family’s ability to pay. Despite our generous financial aid program, requests for aid can exceed our available resources. Therefore, to ensure your family is able to be evaluated for a tuition assistance grant, make every effort to accurately and carefully fill out all financial aid materials and submit them well before our stated deadline.

Nassau County Residents: District transportation is available for families residing within 15 miles of the school. Most districts have an April 1st deadline for the following school year. Transportation request forms can be obtained through your district’s transportation office. Families should plan accordingly when considering this deadline and should complete applications well in advance of April 1st if relying on bus transportation from their school district.

Given that our number of openings can be fewer than our number of qualified applicants, we do at times maintain an active wait list until our seats for the next fall are all filled. Each year, our decision to go to a particular wait list depends on the response we get to our offers of admission. If we are not able to accept a student in a given year, we encourage families to reactivate their application for the following year, particularly if that next year is one of our major entry points.