"If education is protection to life, you will realize that it is necessary that education accompany life during its whole course."
- Dr. Maria Montessori
Annual Fund
Show Your Support for MSC
The Annual Fund is our utmost fundraising effort, and what enables us to provide essential resources for the Montessori learning experience and the community behind it. Parents that show their support at such an important time help us continue our learning mission at the top of our games.
The contributions are distributed throughout all of MSC’s learning programs, ensuring that students from ages three to fifteen will benefit from the incoming capital.
This type of endowment is a reinforcement of parents’ confidence in our methods that manages to strengthen our tools, diversify learning experiences, and both improve the facilities of our campus as well as create new ones.
This gift beyond tuition prevents us from cutting classes, accommodating a more diverse scope of students, and supporting unexpected expenses. Every contribution is welcome and it matters. The goal is for every family to contribute through any amount they see fit.
Annual Report
At the Montessori School of Columbia, we believe that sharing felt experiences help solidify the principles and values we most desire our children to learn: accountability, compassion, and emotional intelligence.
Thanks to the incredible generosity of one of our MSC families, Austin and Lane Meyer, we have a brand new Upper Elementary building that allows this type of education to happen daily.
This state-of-the-art facility is also a Net Zero building that leaves no ecological footprint, and solidifies our position as one of the most committed Green Steps Schools in the state.
Our Eyes Are on the Future
Your contributions will help to build a future that includes a Net Zero classroom building with a natural playground and greenhouse.
The Montessori School of Columbia is a registered 501(c)(3) and is located at 411 Maple Street in Columbia, South Carolina.
“Most importantly, we wanted to show students and the community that it is possible to have a beautiful, fully functioning Net Zero space that gives back as much as it takes, nurtures a child’s heart, mind and body and is equipped to adapt as needed.” – Lane and Austin Meyer
If this type of contribution to our community gets you excited and feeling generous to donate any amount, please Scan the QR code below to donate, or contact our Directors of Development:
Becky Carter and Joanna Derrick at 803.783.8838.
Frequently Asked Questions About Montessori
Dr. Montessori realized that children’s play is their work, their effort to master their own bodies and environment, and out of respect, she used the term “work” to describe all their classroom activities. Montessori students work hard, but they don’t experience it as drudgery; rather, it’s an expression of their natural curiosity and desire to learn.
The Annual Fund is the most important fundraising program at the Montessori School of Columbia. It’s an essential component of the school’s operating budget and supports important areas including faculty salaries, professional development, financial assistance, and our enrichment programs.
Tuition does not cover all of our operating costs, creating a gap between tuition income and budgeted operating expenses. Annual Fund gifts help us to close this gap and bring more flexibility in a budget setting, allowing MSC to be accessible to a diverse pool of applicants.
That would only be possible if we raised our tuition. Our administration and the Board of Directors consider this option every year when they recommend and set tuition levels. However, Montessori School of Columbia’s families fall within a wide socio-economic range, and it is important to keep tuition at a reasonable level.
It is a conscious decision by the Board to trust that our various constituencies will bridge this gap with their Annual Fund contributions. Not to mention that tax-wise, funding educational expenses partially through charitable donations is certainly more advantageous to our families than simply paying higher tuition.
The education that your child receives at MSC costs more than the tuition you pay. Not everyone can make up that gap, we know. Some families can do more and we hope they will. Others can give less and that’s perfectly fine. The important thing is that each family makes a meaningful gift for themselves. Every child benefits from the Annual Fund so it’s important that every family pitch in to the best of their ability.
We are very prudent when it comes to budgeting. Because most of the school’s expenses are in salaries and benefits, we can’t eliminate too many costs without seriously jeopardizing the quality of our programs.
At MSC, Annual Fund gifts range from $20 to more than $5,000. The size of a gift depends on a family’s means, but the goal here is a gift from every parent. No gift is too small – all gifts are welcome, tax-deductible and make a difference.
Each year, all members of the Board of Directors, faculty and staff, current parents and grandparents, alumni/ae parents, alumni/ae, and friends of the school are asked to make a contribution to MSC’s Annual Fund.
We welcome contributions to the Annual Fund at any point during the year. Our annual fund runs along with our fiscal year, July 1 through June 30. Many donors choose to make their Annual Fund donation in December – before the end of the calendar year.
Unless they choose to remain anonymous, all donors are recognized in MSC’s Annual Report.
We make every effort to minimize the number of times during the year that our parents are asked for contributions and hope that our fundraising efforts will be well-supported by our families. However, we ask that parents make their commitment to the Annual Fund first because we count on these contributions to meet our operating expenses throughout the academic year
