Enrollment/Lottery

Tours and Information

Please visit the school websites at  Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School and Carroll Creek Montessori Public Charter School to read more about MMCI’s charter school programs. You can find more information about joining school tours here: MVMPCS and CCMPCS.

How Do I Apply?

Lottery applications are submitted online via your MMCI Lottery account. Lottery results and waitlist placements may also be accessed through your account.

Admission Policies

Admission to Monocacy Valley Montessori Public Charter School (MVMPCS) and Carroll Creek Montessori Public Charter School (CCMPCS) is determined from the results of two separate lotteries. There is no opportunity to enroll in either of our schools outside of the lottery process. FCPS charter regulations (Policy 440) and Maryland state law (SB 595) govern the lottery and acceptance process.

Lottery Account

Only one log-in account is allowed per family; duplicate accounts will be identified and deleted. Each log-in account must be verified with a valid email address, and you will be asked to provide a mailing address and telephone number. Please provide accurate information as we use it to communicate with accepted applicants both immediately following the lottery and throughout the year for wait list openings. If you need to change your contact information, please do so via the “Edit Profile” link in your account.

Applications

Applications for both schools are accepted using one application form; however, the lotteries for the two schools are completely separate. The applicant pool for each lottery is unique and the results from one school’s lottery have no impact on the results for the other school’s lottery. Applicants are advised to be thorough when reading and completing application materials, and to clearly indicate, where requested, the school or schools for which they want to participate in the public lottery. The children on one family application can apply to different lotteries (e.g., an 8th grader for MVMPCS and a 4th grader for Both Schools).

How do the lotteries work?

Priority Lotteries

Priority lotteries are run prior to the general lottery at each school. The first priority lottery is for children of faculty/staff employed at each school. The second priority lottery is for siblings of children currently enrolled at each school on the day of the lottery. For all priority lotteries, if a slot is not available for a priority student, that student receives a priority wait list number. Also, MVMPCS priority applicants do not receive priority in the CCMPCS lottery and vice versa*.

High School Lottery Only

Beginning with the 2023-24 school year, MVMPCS will be expanding to include grades 9-12. The first class of 60 9th graders will begin in August 2023. *There will be a third priority lottery for Carroll Creek Montessori Students 8th grade students, who will be granted priority for up to 35% of available 9th grade seats. Please note: The 2023-24 school year lottery for high school is for 9th Grade Only. 10th grade will be added in 2024-25, 11th grade in 2025-26, and 12th grade in 2026-27.

General Lottery

After the priority lotteries are run, the general lottery determines the placement of the remaining applicants at each school. At the conclusion of the general lottery, the list of accepted students per grade level and the wait list numbers per grade level are certified by MMCI Admissions, the school principals, and FCPS.

Sibling Priority Assignment After Lottery

SIBLINGS OF STUDENTS ACCEPTED ON OR AFTER THE DAY OF THE LOTTERY EACH YEAR DO NOT RECEIVE SIBLING PRIORITY STATUS UNTIL THE ACCEPTED STUDENT’S PAPERWORK (FCPS ENROLLMENT FORM, BIRTH CERTIFICATE, AND PROOF OF RESIDENCY) HAS BEEN SUBMITTED AND APPROVED BY THE ADMINISTRATION. Once the enrollment is processed, sibling priority status will be granted to other siblings still on the wait list. As such, wait list numbers for all students could move up or down throughout the year as new families are welcomed to the schools.

IF THE ORIGINAL LOTTERY RECIPIENT DECLINES/RESCINDS THEIR ACCEPTANCE OF THE SPOT AND/OR UN-ENROLLS BEFORE ATTENDING SCHOOL, SIBLING PRIORITY STATUS CONFERRED UPON ANY SIBLINGS WILL NO LONGER BE VALID. Siblings will be placed back into the general lottery at their original position.  If the sibling has already submitted enrollment paperwork, his/her enrollment will be void, and s/he cannot attend unless pulled from the general waitlist based his/her original position.

Lottery Placement Notification

The acceptance and wait list results are posted to the MMCI lottery accounts immediately following the lottery.  If you have opted into text notifications, you will also receive a text.

Waitlist

Children will remain on the active wait list until the next year’s lottery application period begins. At that point, those wait lists are discarded and the results of the new lottery become the active wait list. You must re-apply and re-confirm your application every year during the open application period for any student not currently attending your desired school.

How do I enroll my child?

After Winning the Lottery

If your child is selected for admission to an MMCI school during the lottery, you will need to accept the desired placement and register online.

In the event that your child has been accepted at multiple MMCI schools during the March lottery you must ACCEPT ONLY ONE offer online through my lottery account and submit an FCPS enrollment form to your chosen school by deadlines prescribed below.  This action will automatically decline the other offer, and the slot declined at the other school will then be released to the waiting list.

Enrolling from the Waitlist

Positions can open up for a number of reasons over the course of the year. IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU CONTINUE TO MONITOR YOUR EMAIL/LOTTERY ACCOUNT FOR OFFERS THROUGH JANUARY!

• As a position opens up, the next student from the waitlist is contacted.
• If a student is selected, the family will receive an automated message making the offer using the email address and/or phone listed on the family’s application, and the family will have an opportunity to accept or decline the position with the following time frames:

a) Until TWO (2) Weeks before school begins: Families will have TWO (2) BUSINESS DAYS to login to their lottery account and accept the offer. After they accept the seat, families will have THREE (3) BUSINESS days to complete the registration process online and upload/return completed paperwork to the school, or the offer will be rescinded.

 b) TWO (2) Weeks before schools begins and after the first day of school: Families will have ONE (1) BUSINESS DAY to login to their lottery account and accept the offer. After they accept the seat, families will have ONE (1) BUSINESS day to complete the registration process online and upload/return completed paperwork to the school, or the offer will be rescinded.

Enrollment Documentation

• Parents of children not currently enrolled in FCPS will also have to complete an immunization form and a record of physical examination, provide current proof of residency (i.e. utility bill) within the last three months, and proof of birth for each child.
• Current FCPS students enrolling/transferring to MVMPCS or CCMPCS will need to provide a current proof of residency. The other documentation (health records, student cumulative file, etc.) will be requested from the sending school.
• All children on your application must be residents of Frederick County by July 1st and show proof of residency.
• Proof of immunizations must be on file prior to the first day of school in order for students to attend on the first day.

About our Schools

Montessori Multi-Age Classrooms

There are four distinct age groupings in our Montessori schools: Primary, Lower Elementary, Upper Elementary, and Middle School*. 

Primary Program (PK3 – Kindergarten)

The Primary classrooms include students from age 3 through Kindergarten. Your child must be three by September 1st to enter the three-year-old program, four by September 1st to enter the four-year-old program, and five by September 1st to enter Kindergarten. Early entrance to Kindergarten is only granted via the FCPS Kindergarten Early Entrance process. Please note: we cannot hold a spot for your child in both Pre-K and Kindergarten while you wait for FCPS results; if you request a Grade Level Exception for Kindergarten and are offered a Kindergarten spot via the lottery, you will forfeit that spot if your child is not approved for early entrance by FCPS in early summer. There is no early entrance or delayed entrance for three-year-olds or four-year-olds. All children in Montessori programs progress at their own pace.

The four-year-old program and Kindergarten (both schools) hours are 9:00 AM to 3:45 PM on Monday through Thursday and 9:00 AM to 2:45 PM on Friday. The three-year-old program (both schools) hours are 9:00 AM to 11:30 AM, Monday through Friday.  Pre-K students are required to be independently toileting before the start of the school year.

1st – 8th Grade

The other three multi-age groupings in our schools include: Lower Elementary (Grades 1-3), Upper Elementary (Grades 4-6), and Middle School (Grades 7-8). The September 1st birthday cut-off also applies to these grade levels; however, there is a place on the application to indicate if your student should be applying for a different grade level based on their current grade level. Grade Level Exceptions are approved by the principals and outcomes are emailed. School hours for 1st through 8th graders are 9:00 AM to 3:45 PM on Monday through Thursday and 9:00 AM to 2:45 PM on Friday.

9th – 12th Grades

*Beginning in the 2023-24 school year, MVMPCS will be expanding to include grades 9-12. The initial class of 60 9th grade students will begin in August 2023. The high school multi-age classrooms will consist of a Lower High School (grades 9-10) and an Upper High School (grades 11-12.) Please note: The 2023-24 high school lottery will have ONLY 9th Grade. 10th grade will be added in 2024-25, 11th grade in 2025-26, and 12th grade in 2026-27.

CCMPCS Spanish Program

For more specific information on CCMPCS’s Spanish program, please visit the Spanish Program page.

MVMPCS High School Program

For information about the MVMPCS High School program, please visit the MVMPCS website.

Transportation

MVMPCS and CCMPCS do not provide transportation. You must arrange to deliver your child(ren) to and from school each day. If you have three-year-old or four-year-old children in addition to older children who are accepted, you will be responsible for one drop-off and two pick-ups per day. Fee-based before care and after care are available for Kindergarten and up. There is no before care or after care for three-year-old or four-year-old students.

Fees and Fundraising for MMCI’s Charter Schools

MVMPCS and CCMPCS are public charter schools. There is no fee for public school. However, since charter schools receive 70% of the funding per pupil given to traditional public schools, we must raise funds to bridge the gap. All MVMPCS and CCMPCS parents are automatic voting members of Monocacy Montessori Communities Inc. (MMCI), the non-profit that holds the charter agreements with FCPS. Per Maryland charter school law, MMCI must exist for our charter schools to exist. Families are requested to contribute to school fundraising efforts every year to maintain regular operations. Each school might also run campaigns for specific fundraising goals.

Parental Involvement in MMCI’s Charter Schools

Active involvement of parents is at the heart of the charter school philosophy and is necessary for the successful operation of both schools. It is expected that families volunteer 30 hours per year (10 hours for single parent families). Specific ways in which parents might contribute include:

• Serving on the Board Of Trustees (BOT) for Monocacy Montessori Communities, Inc. (MMCI).
• Serving on either school’s Governing Council (GC) and its working subcommittees.
• Serving as a guide to students wishing to master a particular skill.
• Offering presentations or short courses to a class in response to student interest.
• Accompanying students on field trips.
• Assisting and participating in special events.
• Coordinating and assisting with school clubs and activities.

In addition, parents are encouraged to attend teacher conferences, meetings of the MMCI corporation and social gatherings for the school community.

Is Montessori a Good Match for My Child?

The following information will help you determine whether the Montessori approach embraced by our schools is right for your child. Basic tenets of the Montessori approach include:

• It is natural for children to want to engage in meaningful work that is relevant to them
• Children will be self-directed when given the opportunity to do so
• Children will operate with as much independence as possible
• Children will remain engrossed in their work for long periods of time
• The work itself should be rewarding for children; external rewards and praise are counterproductive because they teach the child to look to others for validation
• Children learn from natural consequences
• Children should be taught to advocate for themselves
• Children will teach each other and learn from each other

In a Montessori classroom, you will find:

• Long uninterrupted periods of time for work (3 hours or more every morning)
• Students working individually or in small groups on a work plan the student created or helped to create
• Small group or individual instruction
• Multi-age classrooms spanning three grade levels (two levels in the MVMPCS Middle School)
• Teachers working with students to make decisions about their learning
• Busy classrooms with many different activities occurring at once
• Students freely moving around the classroom as needed
• Self-directed students working without frequent adult intervention
• Classroom sizes of 25-30 students
• A peace-loving environment where everyone is expected to treat themselves, others, and the materials with respect
• Children pursuing their interests in a variety of ways (projects, clubs, etc.)
• Many field trips (often planned by students)
• Teachers observing students and modeling the behaviors of a lifelong learner

In a Montessori classroom, you will not find:

• Extrinsic reward systems such as sticker charts
• Competitions between students
• Desks in rows
• Extensive teacher-directed, whole-group instruction
• A large number of paper and pencil tasks
• Silent classrooms: learning involves interactions with other students
• Extensive homework

Some children handle the transition from a traditional school very well. Some children, especially in the higher grades, may experience difficulty with the transition. The staff will work with students to teach them the skills they need to become more self-directed and students are then expected to show increased independence over time.

Thank you for your interest in our schools!