Founding Cohort 2026–27

How to begin

The first cohort is small on purpose. The bar is high on purpose.

10 of 15 founding seats remaining
The process

Four steps, founder-led the whole way.

We don’t run a traditional admissions funnel. Every founding family talks to the founders directly — because a school this small, this early, is a relationship before it is an enrollment.

Begin your inquiry

A short, written conversation — no application fee, no forms for the sake of forms. Tell us about your family and your child, and what brought you here. This is the only step that matters today: raise your hand.

A 45-minute call with the founders

You talk directly with Chris & Bevin. We answer everything — model, day, calendar, cost, fit — and we ask the questions that tell us whether this is the right school for your child. Specific tuition figures are shared here, candidly.

A family & child visit in Telluride

You come see it. Your child spends time with the guides and the cohort; you see the room, the mountain, and the rhythm. Fit runs both ways — for the child and for the family.

Reserve your seat at the founding rate

Founding-cohort families lock a permanent founding rate for as long as their children are enrolled. The first cohort is capped on purpose.

Tuition & aid

Honest about cost, in the right setting.

The founding rate

Tuition is structured on the four-quarter calendar, and founding-cohort families lock a founding rate that stays below the new-family rate. We publish the full numbers — standard tuition, sibling savings, Visiting Scholars, fees, and billing — so you can see exactly what it costs.

Need-based aid

Need-based aid is available for families whose values align with the school. If the fit is right and the cost is the only obstacle, tell us. We’d rather have the conversation than lose the right family over a number.

This is likely a fit if your family —

  • Already using Alpha, a microschool, or an AI-based homeschool model — and the academics are working.
  • Want their child surrounded by other ambitious kids, not held back and not alone.
  • Believe the most important job in a family is not one to delegate — and want a partner, not a replacement.
  • Need a calendar that fits real mountain life: second-home, relocating, or travel-heavy families.
Timeline

What happens, and when.

We review inquiries as they arrive and move quickly for aligned families — the founding cohort fills in the order families complete the conversation, not on a fixed deadline. The school year follows the Telluride R-1 calendar, beginning in August 2026.

Discere et facere. — To learn, and to do.

Letters to a Young Mind

Occasional letters from the founders.

No drip campaign, no noise — a few times a season we write about how children actually learn, and what we’re building in Telluride. Read the manifesto first; subscribe if it’s yours.

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