Harper School

What grades do you offer ?

Do you offer half-day and full day toddler, preschool, and pre-kindergarten ?

Yes, for toddler, preschool, and pre-kindergarten, Harper offers half-day and full day programs for two days (Tues/Thurs), three days (Mon/Wed/Fri), four days (Mon - Thurs or Tues - Fri), and five days (Mon-Fri).

What are the birthday cutoffs for toddler, preschool, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten ?

Toddler - 2 years old before August 1, 2021
Preschool - 3 years old before August 1, 2021 and potty-trained
Pre-kindergarten - 4 years old before August 1, 2021 and potty-trained
Kindergarten - 5 years old before August 1, 2021

Please call us if you have any questions about the appropriate grade level for your child.

How much is tuition ?

Tuition for the 2021-22 school year is $10,755 for all full day, five-day programs from preschool through sixth grade. For half-day programs for toddler, preschool, and pre-kindergarten, tuition ranges from a high of $7,515 for five-day morning programs to a low of $3,015 for two-day morning programs. For more information, see Harper's tuition schedule. Financial aid is available.

Do you offer financial aid ?

Yes, Harper offers financial aid based on demonstrated financial need. For more information, see Harper's financial aid page.

Is there a sibling discount ?

Yes, if you have more than one child enrolled at Harper, there is a 10% sibling discount for the second child and an added discount for each additional child enrolled per the schedule below.

Do you offer extended care ?

Yes, Harper offers morning extended care from 7:00 am to 8:30 am when the school day begins. Afternoon extended care is also available, from time of dismissal at 3:30 pm. until 5:30 pm. For the cost of extended care, see Harper's tuition schedule.

What are the student-to-teacher ratios and class sizes at Harper ?

Toddler, Preschool, and Pre-kindergarten - 8 to 10 students per teacher with two teachers per class for a class size of 16 to 20 students.

Kindergarten - 12 to 14 students per teacher with two teachers per class for a class size of 24 to 28 students.

Elementary - 18 to 22 students per teacher with one teacher per class for a class size of 18 to 22 students.

How is technology used at Harper ?

We use technology to teach coding and to personalize the curriculum in certain subjects. For example, in math, every student receives lessons tailored to how far along they are on the path to becoming excellent at math. We use iPads and Chromebooks in the classroom.

Does Harper have student uniforms ?

Toddler, Preschool, Pre-kindergarten, and Kindergarten students are not required to wear a uniform. Beginning in first grade and continuing through fifth grade, students wear uniforms. Information on how to order uniforms is provided to parents at time of enrollment.

Who is Harper named after ?

Harper School is named after Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee’s novel is one of the all time greats for fostering a love of reading in young children. More importantly, the story has an enduring and valuable message for us all about striving to live and act without prejudice and standing up for what it is right regardless of the pressure to do otherwise. You couldn’t ask for a better book for kids. Harper students will not only love reading the story but ideally will take its message to heart. After all, our goal is to help our kids become not only good students, but good kids, and only when we do both, will we have succeeded as a school.

Who owns Harper School and is the school a non-profit or for-profit ?

Harper School is owned and operated by Harper School - Frontenac, LLC, which in turn is owned and managed by Joe Wagner, Founder of Harper School. The LLC is a for-profit entity, not a not-for-profit 501(c)3. As an LLC, Harper School is in a better position to enable Joe and the Harper team the opportunity to earn a financial return combined with running a high quality school.

As an LLC and not a 501(c)3, Harper School is responsible for paying personal property taxes and real property taxes to the full extent as assessed by St. Louis County. These taxes help support many public entities and services including the City of Frontenac, the Ladue School District, the St. Louis County Special School District as well as cultural treasures in the St Louis community like the Art Museum, Botanical Garden, History Museum, Science Center, and the Zoo.

Why did Harper School choose for its website a .org domain name and not a .com domain name ?

Our first choice was harperschool.com, but it was unavailable. Our second choice, harperschool.org, was available, but we wanted to verify if a .org domain was appropriate for a school like Harper, which is owned by a for-profit LLC. For guidance, we looked to the Public Interest Registry, the organization responsible for operating .org and maintaining the authoritative database of all .org domain names. With help from the Public Interest Registry website, we determined that the .org domain is well-suited for Harper School.

The Public Interest Registry operates .org as an open and unrestricted domain open to all individuals and organizations, including non 501(c)3 organizations. While .org always has been overwhelmingly popular with not-for-profit organizations, it is becoming more common and encouraged for any organization including non 501(c)3 ones to register their websites using .org domains. According to the Public Interest Registry, “.org is one of the oldest and most trusted domain extensions out there. It’s a domain ending that a number of nonprofits, educational centers, and other upstanding businesses use for their websites.” These organizations include “clubs, incorporated and unincorporated not-for-profit organizations, industry associations, families, individuals, schools, foundations, and more.”

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