After the application deadline, Mack Boulder accepts applications on a rolling basis. Applicants who have completed the process and are considered to be a good fit for the school are placed in a wait pool until such time as an opening becomes available. Available openings are filled with best fit candidates. We encourage families to complete applications as early as possible to provide the best opportunity for enrollment in the next school year.

Students entering grades 2-8 are required to submit cognitive testing as part of the application process. The preferred testing is the WISC-V. The WISC-V is administered by a number of local professionals that we will be happy to connect you to. We may also consider a comparable body of evidence including school administered testing, previous acceptance to a gifted program or other standardized tests measuring cognitive capacity.

This is a good question! There are a number of indicators of giftedness, one of which is cognitive testing, required for applicants entering 2nd grade and above. Chances are, if you are asking this question, you may have already seen some signs. Gifted children often process information more deeply and with intensity. We are looking for students who are curious about the world and who make connections. These children are always asking questions and may be deeply passionate about areas of interest. Gifted children often do not thrive in traditional educational settings.

We run two Kindergarten Admissions Play Dates – one in fall and one in winter that serve the dual purpose of an admissions open house and visit day for students. We gather 12-18 prospective students for a full session of classroom academic, play, and community building activities. While our admissions team is spending time with the applicants, families are welcome to spend 30 minutes meeting with administrators.

Visiting students spend an entire day at Mack with their current grade level. Visitors will typically be asked to complete a short math, reading, and writing assessment. The primary goal of the visit is to see how the child fits in our learning environment and with the peers. The child’s sense of belonging is just as important as the teacher’s evaluation of fit. For students applying to grades 6-8, we encourage two consecutive visit days. Many of our visitors go home feeling connected and wanting to start immediately.

At Mackintosh Academy, socioeconomic diversity is important to us, and we understand that affording an independent school education is a significant investment for many families. We offer Tuition Assistance to as many students as possible. Approximately 37% of our population receive some form of assistance. Families are encouraged to apply for assistance early. Tuition Assistance is based solely on demonstrated need. Please see our Tuition Assistance and Scholarship pages for more information.

Investment in a Mackintosh education is a choice that we believe pays large dividends. All of our graduates attend public and independent high schools having developed a strong sense of self and having been nurtured in a caring community where their strengths are celebrated. Fostering a love for learning and developing solid critical thinking, communication and collaboration skills set the foundation for lifelong journey, preparing our children for a world that needs them.

Mackintosh prepares students for a wide variety of high school experiences. We run a high school info. night with both parents and students to help them identify the best fit for the next step in their educational journey. Some of our students choose to continue in the IB program by attending a high school that offers the IB Diploma Program (ie: Fairview HS, Niwot HS). Some students choose independent high school (ie: Watershed, Dawson, Shining Mountain, etc.). The majority of students choose to attend their local high school or charter schools in the area (Boulder HS, Centaurus HS,  Monarch HS, Peak to Peak, etc.).

Mack Boulder families come from all over the Boulder area with a concentration from Boulder, Lafayette, Louisville, Longmont, Niwot. We currently have families coming from farther away such as Golden, Westminster, Superior, and Broomfield. Our MackBot parent portal provides geographic locations for all of our parents to encourage carpooling.

Yes! We offer a wide array of organized Enrichment activities outside of school hours including musical practice, arts, chess, Renaissance Adventure, D&D, cooking, robotics, and many other high interest activities. Activities run by trimester and are registered via a link off our website.

Yes. Mackintosh’s after care is provided from 3:25 until 5:00pm every day except early dismissal Fridays which runs until 3:30pm. We run a balance program afterschool including outside play, rest time, and space/time for homework.

We work closely and openly with prospective families during the admissions process to identify potential learning differences in applicants. We strive to accommodate and support as many differences as we can within our learning systems, structures, and teacher expertise/skills. We also will be open and honest about what we are likely unable to support. For example, we have invested heavily in training our homeroom teachers to be able to identify and support learners with dyslexia. If, however, a learner has severe dyslexia we may not be the ideal setting unless he/she is receiving intense therapy outside of school. Mackintosh teachers are also prepared to support the needs of students with sensory, auditory, and visual processing challenges. We have a full time School Psychologist who specializes in supporting socio-emotional and learning differences as well as several part time literacy and learning specialists on staff. Children who need support services such as occupational therapy, speech therapy or tutoring can receive some support during school from outside providers, or they will need to access these resources outside of school.

The IB Program is central to our mission and learning environment.  We encourage you to learn more by visiting www.ibo.org.