By CASSIE MCKEE, Four Points News
School in the Hills Steiner Ranch is building a second campus at River Place and is expanding its Montessori curriculum to teach up to third grade.
Head of School Alicia Marker said they hope to break ground later this year on School in the Hill River Place and be open by June 2015. The new campus will be located on a three-and-a-half acre property at 10911 RM 2222.
“From the conception of School in the Hills in Steiner Ranch, we have always dreamed of more than one campus,” Marker said.
Daniel and Alicia Marker on the three-acre site in River Place where they will build their second School in the Hills Montessori school, which will have capacity for 250 students and offer up to 3rd grade.
Photo by Lynette Haaland
The second campus will be a 14,000-square-foot facility that will feature a 2,000-square-foot activity room and plenty of outdoor space for gardens, hiking trails and an outdoor learning center.
“We are working with Cisneros Design to finalize plans on an amazing learning environment both inside and out,” Marker said.
“The Montessori movement is strong in North America and we are proud to be able to help bring Montessori to as many children as possible,” she added.
School in the Hills Steiner Ranch, which began six years ago in August, currently has 220 children on the roster for the 2014-15 school year. Students range in age from 18 months through kindergarten. The school also provides after-school care for 30 children from Steiner Ranch, Laura Bush and River Ridge elementary schools.
“After years of watching our amazing team, I cannot overstate the value of the love and nurturing our teachers give to our children,” Marker said. “It is this genuine love and care that makes us more than just a school, but a true community.”
The Montessori Method of education, developed by Dr. Maria Montessori, is a child-centered educational approach based on scientific observations of children from birth to adulthood, according to the American Montessori Society. A February article in the New York Times reported that there are more than 4,000 Montessori schools in the U.S. Marker said her school has had a lengthy waiting list since their second year of operation.
School in the Hills is an independent Montessori school, owned by Alicia and her husband, Daniel, who have been married for 30 years and live in Steiner Ranch. Coming from a background in business, Daniel serves as the school’s administrative director. Alicia has worked in Montessori schools for 26 years, both teaching and serving as the head of school at a large campus in Houston.
She said the new campus will meet a big demand in the community for an early elementary-aged program.
“We really wanted to do elementary, but I could not do an elementary program properly without space,” Marker said. “This is something that many of our families have asked for. It’s something that is wanted and needed in this neighborhood.”
The school will offer busing to River Place for its Steiner Ranch elementary students.
For more information on School in the Hills, visit their website at www.schoolinthehills.com or call (512) 266-6160.
