Columbia is fully committed to making it possible for all Community families to afford to send their children to The School. When a student is drawn in the lottery, along with an application for admission, his/her family will receive information about applying for financial aid. To apply for aid, families are required to provide copies of their tax returns and W-2 forms, and grant The School permission to obtain additional information as needed from the IRS. Families must also provide financial information to the School Scholarship Service (SSS), a third-party organization that works with the financial aid offices of independent schools. Based on the information it receives, SSS will provide The School with an estimate of the contribution each family can be expected to make. The School then uses this estimate to determine the financial aid grant that will be awarded to each family.
Because financial aid grants are only valid for one year, all families must reapply for financial aid each year. Unless a family experiences a significant change in financial circumstances, its financial aid award is not likely to change dramatically from one year to the next.
Whether married, separated, divorced, or never married, it is expected that each of a child’s parents will complete the financial aid process, and contribute, to their best ability, to their child’s education at The School.
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