GMS Community

Guadalupe Montessori School (GMS) was founded in 1979 with the goal of providing high quality Montessori education without the prohibitive tuition levels usually found at private schools. The school has been successful in reaching this objective: we have maintained our high academic standards and social service goals while providing families with limited resources with significant financial assistance.

In a state where the high school dropout rate is almost 9%, over its 22 years of history all former GMS students have completed high school. The public high school teachers consistently congratulate GMS for producing intellectually stimulated students with a desire to learn, and those most willing to work in a cooperative atmosphere. It is not uncommon for the class Valedictorian to be a GMS graduate. To our knowledge, problems related to low self-esteem, such as gang activity, and teen pregnancy and teen suicides are non-existent among adolescents that have attended GMS in their earlier years.

For the last decade our student population has averaged 85-100, serving children ages 14 months through the 6th grade level. We are committed to maintaining as much ethnic and economic diversity as possible. We actively recruit families with children who may be considered "at risk" later on in school. An enriched scholastic program, and a loving, caring, accepting environment is worth far more as prevention of problems than programs later on than to try to treat the effects of poor self-esteem.

GMS' tuition is one of the lowest among Montessori programs in the United States. To ensure the greatest diversity possible in our community, we offer financial aid and work exchanges for families of limited income. Our student body reflects our commitment to include a diversity of children: 32% are people of color, and 45% come from low-income families (as defined by U.S. government guidelines).