FINANCIAL DISTRICT — A new Financial District private school that aims to develop independent, creative young learners is now accepting applications for its September 2014 opening.
The Pine Street School plans to launch its preschool, kindergarten and first-grade classes next year, offering a Montessori program that allows kids to learn at their own pace, said Jennifer Jones, the school’s founder.
“We want to create a haven for the children,” Jones said at a recent Community Board 1 meeting, as she presented a slideshow of the school’s spacious layout, which will eventually house preschoolers through eighth graders. “We want to create a supportive, comfortable environment for their education.”
The 75,000-square-foot school, which uses nature as an inspiration for its internal design, will take up the second, third and fourth floors of the Trump Building, a 70-story skyscraper at 40 Wall St. — but the school will have its own dedicated entrance on Pine Street, near William Street.
The Pine Street School will offer both Montessori and International Baccalaureate programs. Parents will be able to decide which track their child will follow, either the creative Montessori or the more traditional International Baccalaureate.
Along with bright, roomy classrooms, the school will feature two multipurpose studios for music and movement classes, a dedicated performance space and areas for students to study and eat. There will also project rooms for art, science and culinary studies.
Each class will have no more than 15 students, with preschool classes capped at 10 students. The school plans to enroll 10 classes of 2-to-6-year-olds next fall. The sixth-grade class will launch in the fall of 2015, and then the school will grow from there.
The Pine Street School is the second private school Jones has launched. Last fall, the Lower Manhattan mother, who has a doctorate in education from Columbia University's Teachers College, opened Battery Park Montessori, a preschool in Battery Park City. It was designed to be the first in her growing Green Ivy Schools network.
Jones said she decided to open schools Downtown in part to address the overcrowding crunch in the neighborhood's popular public schools — but unlike the public schools, the Pine Street School will charge tuition. Fees will range from $19,000 to $29,400 per year, with discounts for siblings.
All Green Ivy Schools will offer scholarships, Jones added, "as part of our long-term plan and commitment to the families of Lower Manhattan."
For more details, visit the school's website for information session times and dates.
