Admissions Policy
La Piccola Scuola Italiana (LPSI) is open to the public. Admission to LPSI is by application only. We encourage you to read our Philosophy and Reggio Emilia page before you apply.
Application forms must be received in the LPSI office by February 1 each year. All applications received by that date will receive equal consideration for the following school year.
Applications are accepted only after the birth of your child, and are accepted only after you attend an open house or have an individual meeting with the Director.
Current students and their siblings receive priority placement each year. Current families will be asked to complete an Enrollment Request Form by February 1, 2009 for 2009-2010.
The LPSI Admissions Committee strives to create in each section a group that is balanced in gender, Italian language skills and disposition of the children. La Piccola Scuola Italiana di San Francisco and admits students of any race, color or national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students in either program and they do not discriminate on the basis of race, color or national or ethnic origin in the administration of policies or procedures.
Admissions decisions and final tuition rates for the following year will be announced by March 15, and contracts will go out at that time. Completed contracts must be signed and returned to LPSI, along with a non-refundable payment of $500 ($50 one-time enrollment fee for new students + $500 deposit which will be applied to your first semester’s tuition), by March 30, 2009 to secure the space that was offered.
Parents whose children are not admitted in March can indicate if they want to be placed on a waiting list or not. If spaces become open during the school year, parents who have indicated that they want to be on the waiting list will be contacted immediately and offered a space at that time. If you wish to be considered for the following year, you do not need to apply again. However, you should send a letter of intent including updated contact and schedule information and indicating which program you are interested in.
La Piccola Scuola Italiana is committed to creating an environment in which Italian is used by children and teachers alike. In order to do that, we encourage children to begin in our program during their older infancy or early toddler months, a sensitive period during which children are particularly attuned to both the grammar and sounds of languages. You do not need to speak Italian at home in order for your child to attend La Piccola Scuola. In most cases children older than 2 will be admitted only if they already have significant exposure to Italian language and can reasonably be expected to express themselves in our Italian immersion environment.
While not a requirement, parents who speak Italian are asked to commit to using Italian as much as possible when away from school. Parents who do not speak Italian are encouraged to take Italian for Parents, that will be offered regularly at LPSI or at other schools we collaborate with, in order to reinforce children’s use of Italian outside of school.
Summer Session
Summer session admission is not linked to the academic year admissions process. Summer enrollment is strictly first come-first served. Current students are given priority for admission to the summer session, and then we open it up to the wider community. Typically summer session information and application forms go out in late spring.
For additional information, please email admissions@lpsisf.org or phone 415-558-9006.