Lower School

List of 11 items.

• STEP 1: STUDENT FORM | DUE NOW

  Submit Step 1: Student Form anytime between now and December 15. Once submitted, you may log back in to your account and complete the remaining steps of the application process on or before January 15. There is no application fee to apply to CA. 
  
  Birth Date Information:
  

  • Applicants to Pre-K must turn four years old by September 1 of the year they start Pre-Kindergarten.
  • Applicants to Kindergarten must turn five years old by September 1 of the year they start Kindergarten.

  
  

• PARENT/GUARDIAN FORM

  As parents/guardians, your responses on the Parent/Guardian Form will help CA learn more about your child and your family. The Parent/Guardian Form is available once you submit the Student Form and is due on or before January 15.

• TEACHER RECOMMENDATION & TRANSCRIPTS

  Request Teacher and Principal/Director Recommendation
  
  Request the Teacher Recommendation* and Principal/Director Recommendation (if applicable) from the appropriate faculty/staff member at your child’s school. Recommendation and Transcripts are due on or before January 15.
  
  For Grade 1 - Grade 5: Please request Transcripts from the Current and Previous School year (if applicable).
  
  *Colorado Academy is one of several Denver-area independent schools that use the Common Recommendation and Transcript Request Forms to reduce the workload for an applicant’s current teachers and school staff. Once you have created an account in the application portal, you will be able to submit requests for recommendations and transcripts using the common forms.
  

• STUDENT VIDEO CLIPS (PRE-K-GRADE 1)

  Once the Student Form is submitted, parents/guardians are able to submit two short video clips of the applicant participating in developmentally appropriate activities at home. Video clips are due on or before January 15.

• APPLICANT TESTING

  For Applicants to Pre-K, Kindergarten, and Grade 1*: Developmental readiness is assessed by our teachers during the Student Visit, and no other formal testing is required.
  
  *Applicants to Kindergarten or Grade 1 may submit optional testing results if available.
  
  For Grades 2-5: CA is test flexible and will accept the results from any testing that an applicant has completed within the last two years. Examples include the CogAT, WISC, DAS, MAP, DIBELS, ISEE Primary, ERB, and any state specific standards-based assessments, among others. Test results are due on or before January 15.
  
  There is no need for the applicant to take more than one test, and the Admission Committee does not prefer one test over another.

  • If submitting CogAT, MAP testing and/or other standardized testing (such as the ERB) from the applicant's current school, request that the school send those results along with report cards and attendance records through the Transcript Request Form.
  • You may upload WISC or DAS scores directly to the Checklist in the portal, or else you may email the report to admission@coloradoacademy.org.
  • If your child has no recent test reports available, you may register your child for testing with an evaluator from the DATC (Denver Area Testing Consortium). Please contact Paige Siemers to request assistance if the fee is a hardship. 

• STUDENT VISIT

  The Student Visit scheduling calendar is available once you submit Step 1: Student Form.

• APPLICANT ASSESSMENT (GRADE 3)

  The Grade 3 Applicant Assessment scheduling calendar is available once you submit Step 1: Student Form.

• OPTIONAL CAMPUS TOUR

  Prospective families are welcome to tour campus and visit CA during Admission Preview in September and October.

• OPTIONAL PARENT/GUARDIAN CHECK-IN

  A Parent/Guardian Zoom Check-in is available once families submit Step 1: Student Form. The goal of this optional appointment is to share feedback and answer any additional questions that families have about the process. Appointments last approximately 20 minutes.

• FINANCIAL AID APPLICATION | DUE BY FEB 15

  With over $5.1 million in tuition assistance each year, CA welcomes students and families from all backgrounds and encourages families to consider CA no matter their income.
  
  The Application for Financial Aid is separate from the Application for Admission, although the timing of the two cycles overlaps. Families who wish to apply for tuition assistance should submit an Application for Financial Aid through Clarity Financial.
  

  • We recommend starting the application after January 1 as it is helpful to have end-of-year tax documents available to complete the form. Please check back in November for a link to our Financial Aid Application.
  • Within the Clarity Financial portal, you will be asked to upload your 2022 tax return, as well as 2022 and 2023 W-2's and K-1 statements, if applicable.
  • CA prefers the Clarity Financial application, but, if you've already submitted a Financial Aid application for another school through FACTS or SSS, there is no need to fill out an additional application through Clarity Financial. You will only need to add Colorado Academy as a recipient on your FACTS or SSS application.
  • The deadline for the Financial Aid application is February 15. We realize that many families have not yet completed their 2023 tax return by this deadline. The Financial Aid Committee will consider an application complete as long as we receive the 2022 tax return and 2023 W-2 and/or Profit & Loss Statements (if self-employed) by February 15. The 2023 tax return should be submitted as soon as it is completed.
  • Completing the Financial Aid application by the deadline allows the Financial Aid Award to be communicated at the same time as the Admission Decision.
  • Questions? Contact Financial Aid Manager Lisa Dean at 303-914-2516.

• NOTIFICATION: MARCH 1

  In conjunction with other Denver-area independent schools, Colorado Academy sends Lower School admission decisions (Pre-Kindergarten-Grade 5) by email at 4:00 p.m. MST on Friday, March 1, 2024.