JUMP TO ENROLLMENT INQUIRY FORM

REGISTRATION POLICIES

• Admission is made without regard to a child’s race, religion, color, creed, national or ethnic origin, family structure, or financial status.

• There is no fee to fill out the Enrollment Application/Inquiry Form or join our waitlist.

• A $100.00 non-refundable registration fee per child, as well as each program's non-refundable retainer (Materials Fee and last month's tuition which will be held and applied to your June balance) is required prior to enrollment in any program. 

• Registration fees are capped at $250 per family.

• A wait list will be created when maximum class size is met.

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​REGISTRATION PROCEDURE

• ENROLLMENT APPLICATION: All families must fill out an Enrollment Application for each child they would like to enroll. Registration opens first to currently enrolled families and families signed up for Early Access, including previously waitlisted families. The following week registration opens to the public. Enrollment Applications will be processed in the order in which they are received.  You will receive an email from us by July 1, with instructions to complete the registration process.  If you are enrolling after July 1, we will reply as soon as possible.

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​​If there is an open spot in your chosen programs, the following steps are required to secure your placement:

1. ​REQUIRED READING: You will receive an invitation to your Jovial Family Portal from Admin. Please begin with the Required Reading files located in your Jovial Family Portal Bulletin Board.

2. REGISTRATION FORM: Once you have familiarized yourself with our policies, fill out and submit the Registration Form located in the Forms section of your Jovial Family Portal.

3. BALANCE PAYMENT:  Choose a payment method in your Jovial Family Portal to submit your $100 non-refundable Registration Fee for each child as well as each program's non-refundable retainer (Materials Fee and last month's tuition which will be held and applied to your June balance).

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** All three of the steps above must be completed to secure placement in a program **

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The following are required on the first day of the program:

• Certificate of Immunization Status and/or Certificate of Exemption

• Emergency Comfort Kit: Place all items in a Gallon ziplock with child’s name:

  • bottled water

  • juice box

  • small can/pop-top soup or prepared food

  • small container applesauce or fruit

  • 2 granola bars and/or energy bars - no peanuts

  • small hand sanitizer

  • family picture and/or cuddling object (optional)
     

WAIT LIST

We continue to take applications throughout the year to fill open spaces. Enrollment for each program will close once it has reached its maximum number of students. Remaining applicants will be placed on our waitlist. There is no fee for a place on the waitlist. If a spot becomes available in a program, families will be contacted by email.

If you have any additional questions after reading through our website, please feel free to reach out to us.

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PAYMENT METHODS

• We accept both Electronic Check (ACH) and Credit/Debit Cards through the Jovial Family Portal

  • Credit/Debit Cards have a 3% processing fee. You will notice a check box to make a donation to cover the processing fee. This helps us keep the cost of tuition down. If you are unable to donate this processing fee, we recommend choosing a different payment method, such as an eCheck/ACH). 

  • Electronic Checks (ACH) have no processing fee.

  • If you opt to use ACH/eChecks, you will complete a one-time verification process using "microdeposits". Jovial will send two small deposits (each between 1 cent and 99 cents), to the caregiver's bank account, and they need to confirm the two amounts. This is done to protect against fraud, by making sure you are actually authorizing the withdrawal of the funds from that account. When a microdeposit verification is pending, you will receive an email (and a reminder) with clear instructions on how to complete the process. This verification is done only once, for the first payment; subsequent payments get processed right away.

  • Where to find your checking account numbers on your check?​

    • The routing number is the first 9 digits on your check​

    • ​The account number is the 10 digits to the right of the routing number

• Registration, reservations, late pick-up fees and any other fees are payable directly to Ashlar LLC. Payment will be billed on the 1st day of the following month, if reservations were not paid for in advance. Alternatively, PayPal and check payable to Ashlar LLC mailed to PO Box 353, Maple Valley WA 98038. We do not accept cash payments. A $30 fee will be assessed for non-sufficient funds or other forms of returned payments.

• Please let us know if you need information from us for tax purposes. 

 

2024-2025 PROGRAM TUITION

$2500 yearly per program day ($250 per month) plus a one-time Materials Fee that varies by program ($150 for Art and STEAM programs, $100 for all other programs).   

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​This rate is for attending 1 day per week. We have created this structure in response to our families who have expressed a need for flexibility in which days they attend. However, our programs build strong community, and we highly encourage students to sign up for each day of our multi-day programs (Wilderness Whimsy, FarmTime Whimsy and Wonder Roots). 

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The program tuition is based on a September-June commitment and divided into ten equal payments.  The first of the ten payments is the non-refundable retainer (plus Materials Fee) to hold your spot in the program. Then there are 9 subsequent payments billed on the first of each month, September through May.  The retainer is held and applied to your June balance. Prorated tuition is available for students enrolling midyear. 

 

Current rates and schedules can be viewed at www.theashlarway.com.

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NON-REFUNDABLE RETAINER

• There is a non-refundable retainer required for each program day of the week enrolled.

• If you sign up for one program per week, you will pay one non-refundable retainer. If you sign up for two classes per week, you will pay two non-refundable retainers, and so on.

• This retainer functions to hold your space in each individual class day and is set up to ensure that only families that are truly ready to commit to the full year enroll. It is a hardship on the program to have students with-draw midyear and it is difficult to fill spots that open up due to last-minute or mid-year withdrawals. Should you choose to unenroll at any point prior to the last day of school, your retainer will be withheld. Otherwise, your retainer will be applied to your last month's tuition. 

 

LATE PAYMENTS

• There is a 10% late fee for late payments made after the 5th day late after your notice. Your student will not be able to attend class until payment has been received unless you have made arrangements with our office. If payment arrangements are not made within 14 days, your student will be unenrolled from the program with no refunds.

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LATE PICKUP

• ​Families picking children up after the conclusion of their scheduled departure will be given a 15 minute grace period, and charged a late fee of $15 if they are more than 15 minutes late. Late fees will be recorded and billed on the invoice for the following month’s tuition.
   

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WITHDRAWAL, CANCELLATION, and REFUNDS

• Ashlar programs are designed to be a year-long commitment to foster a deep sense of community and belonging. Our withdrawal, cancellation, credit, and refund policies are based on our investment in our staff and time spent on program design, planning, registration, teacher training, and equipment.

• To withdraw from the program or for a change in enrollment (such as reducing the number of days attending): A minimum of one month’s notice is required. You will be billed for the full month of the last program day attended and your retainer will be withheld.

• There are no refunds on monthly class fees paid.

• Credit card processing fees are not refundable.

• There is no discount, refund, or other allowance for absence, illness, vacation, or holidays.

• Ashlar is committed to keeping children enrolled in our programs. We approach behavior and challenges with empathy and inclusion. When we are unable to adequately support a child's behaviors, we require that parents partner with us to provide that support as the child works through the difficulty at hand. Parents can either attend with their child, send a support person to attend with their child, or pay an additional fee for us to provide a 1:1 support person for their child. Ashlar reserves the right to deny continued enrollment, or re-enrollment, to any family if Ashlar reasonably concludes that the actions of a parent or guardian are inconsistent or in nonsupport of the educational environment or counterproductive to a positive working relationship between Ashlar and that child’s parents or guardians. 

• Consideration is given to those withdrawing due to medical or other hardship reasons.

• If any duration of a program is canceled by Ashlar due to inclement weather, unsafe conditions, or circumstances out of our control, we are unable to offer discounts or refunds.

 

INCLEMENT WEATHER POLICY

Two weeks mid-year have been designated on the calendar for inclement weather make-up days. These will be no-school days unless we have had a weather related cancellation, in which case individual programs will use those days to make up missed days. Additional make-up days or refunds for closures will not occur. 

 

Ashlar Way follows the local school district’s cancellation policies (Tahoma School District)  in terms of inclement weather.

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Families will be contacted by the Admin Team by email on the morning of school notifying them of the closure or delay. Please ensure that you are signed up for the Class Mailing List in Jovial so that you do not miss important notifications.  Additional communication measures may be included.

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If there is a 2-hour delay as noted by the School Districts, morning classes will be canceled. 

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If the district is closed, Ashlar is also canceled. However, discretion may be used as many of our programs start later than typical school start times. Ashlar may occasionally be open when schools are closed, in which case families are responsible for making their own decisions about the roads. Furthermore, because much of our staff travels from out of district, we may occasionally be closed when the local schools are open.

 

As an all-outdoor school, other reasons for closure might include: air quality, intense heat or cold, heavy and sustained wind, unsafe events in or near the site, or individual site closings. Programs that have access to the indoors may follow different protocols than all-outdoor programs. For details, refer to our Risk Management Manual.