The Minneapolis Jewish Day School admissions process includes a number of steps that are designed to help us understand each of our applicants as learners and to allow us to determine whether MJDS is a good match for your child and family.
Step 1: Application – Getting started
Please mail a completed application form (signed by all parents/legal guardians) along with a $200 non-refundable application fee, to MJDS. Upon receipt of the above, we will contact you to schedule your admissions appointments. (Please see Admissions Timeline below for important dates.)
Step 2: Teacher Feedback – An important Form is Needed
MJDS will provide you with a Request For Records Form for you to fill out and give to your current school so it can forward your child’s complete file directly to MJDS. This information, including past report cards, provides the MJDS admissions team with important information about your child in a classroom setting.
Step 3: Individual Screening – Your Child’s First Introduction to MJDS
All prospective MJDS grade 1-8 students meet one-on-one with MJDS School Psychologist Gay Rosenthal, unless travel from out of state does not permit. She will administer a screening test, usually the McCarthy Scales of Developmental Learning and/or the Woodcock-Johnson, Third Edition. A brief interview with your child will also be conducted, providing information about inter-personal skills and social-emotional development. This process will take approximately one hour. During the entire appointment, one parent/guardian (not nanny/babysitter) must stay in the MJDS office waiting area. There may be a short parent/guardian questionnaire to fill out during this time.
Step 4: School Visit – An Opportunity To Learn and Share More Information
Next, we ask that your child spend all or part of a day at MJDS in his/her current grade. This visit will give your child an opportunity to experience a “snapshot of MJDS” as well as allow MJDS teachers to observe your child formally in a classroom setting.
Step 5: Follow-Up Meeting – The Partnering Process Begins
After the Individual Screening and school visit, you will be invited back for a parent-onlyFollow-Up Meeting with Gay Rosenthal, MJDS Psychologist, to gain feedback and hear what we have learned about your child. We hope that the information provided at this meeting will give you valuable insights about your child’s profile as a learner. This time is also one for you to share any information about your child that you do not feel was communicated on your application form. As part of our ongoing partnership with families, we hope that both parents can attend this meeting.
Step 6: Final Review & Decision – MJDS Admissions Team at work
The MJDS admissions team meets regularly to review applicants’ files. Admissions criteria used to determine whether or not MJDS is an appropriate learning program and environment for your child include: information from the application; in-person visit to MJDS classroom; previous school records; and any other information provided in writing by parents. Sometimes the admissions team will request additional information before making a decision about admission. (Please see Additional Information below.)
Step 7: Admission Granted – Congratulations!
A letter of acceptance, along with an enrollment form, fee schedule, and MJDS Parent Covenant, will be mailed to your home, in accordance with the Admissions Timeline listed below. Please review, sign and return to MJDS the enrollment form, along with a $600 deposit (applied to tuition), by the date indicated on the contract, to hold your child’s place in the upcoming Fall class. Enrollment forms received after the date requested will be considered on a first come/first served basis, pending space availability.
Families with children accepted by Passover will have the opportunity to fill out and return a class placement form to MJDS and all families will be invited to attend a variety of MJDS events and meetings during the summer leading up to enrollment including New Parent Orientations and an Ice Cream Social.
Financial Assistance – Available to families who qualify
MJDS is committed to socio-economic diversity. If you are considering applying for financial assistance, please be sure to check this box on your application. A financial assistance information package will be mailed to your home.
If you are unsure you want to apply for financial assistance and/or what type of documentation is required to show “demonstrated need”, we recommend you visit www.finaid.org/calculators/finaidestimate.phtml. and use the financial aid calculator provided to gain a ballpark idea of your family’s expected tuition contribution. If you have questions about using the calculator or interpreting its results, feel free to contact MJDS Finance Director Susan Divine for more information (see phone number below). Please carefully read all financial assistance information as there are a number of specific procedures and timelines required.
Approximately 30% of MJDS families receive some degree of financial assistance. MJDS does not offer any full scholarships.
Additional Information
Partnering between school and home is key to a successful experience at MJDS. Please provide MJDS with any/all outside testing or evaluations done by OT, PT, medical, psychological or other professionals. The more information we have about your child the more successful we will be in meeting his/her needs!
Admissions Timeline
* Families whose application forms and fees are received by December 15 will receive early notification of admissions near President’s Day.
* Families whose application forms and fees are received by February 15 will receive notification of admissions near Passover, 2006.
* All application forms and fees received after February 15 will be reviewed and accepted, in the order received, pending space availability.
* Admissions notification dates assume that families have followed the steps outlined above, including providing requested information and attending admissions appointments, in a timely manor.
Admissions Questions
This listing is designed to ensure that we meet the needs of prospective/incoming students and families as effectively as possible. Please use this guide as a reference when further admissions-related communication is desired.
If you have questions regarding scheduling admissionsappointments, please contact Ethan Tarshis , MJDS Admissions Assistant , at 952.381.3506 or etarshis@mjds.net.
If you have questions regarding admissions procedures, please contact Abbe Payton , MJDS Admissions & Outreach Director , at 952.381.3566 or apayton@mjds.net.
If you have questions regarding financial assistance and/or payments, please contact Susan Divine , MJDS Finance Director , at 952.381.3505 or sdivine@mjds.net.
If you have any other questions or concerns regarding your child, including those related to family stress or change, please contact Gay Rosenthal, MJDS Psychologist, at 952.381.3513 or grosenthal@mjds.net
Non-Discrimination
MJDS admits students of any race, national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. The school does not discriminate on the basis of race, nationality, or ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, athletic or other school-administered programs.
Grades 1- 8 Enrollment