Location: Central Austin
5815 Airport Blvd
Austin, TX 78752
Students served: Grades 6–12
Current enrollment: 50 (growing to a maximum of 110)
Model/philosophy: ATI is a high-accountability, high-autonomy, Montessori learning community focused on personal, academic, and professional excellence. Together with the support of Guides, students establish and refine individualized goals achieved through personally meaningful work. Each student will acquire the requisite content, skills, and experiences to prepare them to thrive in the life they want to live.
Special Features: Daily engaging Socratic discussions and real-work centered curriculum; mixed-age groups based on ability rather than grade; staff trained in cutting-edge, adolescent Montessori teaching methods; no prior Montessori background needed for students; 1-on-1 coaching to support each student in discovering and exploring their personal, academic, and professional passions and goals; daily office hours and tutoring available; individualized college counseling with full support for admittance to high-reputation state and liberal arts colleges and universities; tested virtual & in-person programs; internship opportunities; inclusive community of supportive learners.
Schedule: Monday–Friday, 9:30am–4pm. ATI mostly follows the AISD calendar.
Tuition: ATI's tuition is competitive in the Austin area at $26,000 for middle or high school for the 2022–2023 school year. The school charges no extra fees (no fundraising, supply fees, etc.) and doesn’t require any long-term contracts. ATI also offers flexible tuition based on family circumstances, with discounts ranging from 5% to 50% if it will be helpful. ATI also offers a 10% sibling discount. The application process for flexible tuition is through a third-party vendor called FAST and takes approximately 45 minutes to complete. You can read more and access the application online here.
Contact: ATI Admissions | austin-admissions@thoughtandindustry.com | 512-827-7962. ATI School Leadership: Julia Richards, Head of School | Jrichards@tohigherground.com || Leigh Moss, Assistant Head of School | lmoss@thoughtandindustry.com
Each listing in this alphabetical directory gives you a snapshot of a small, independent, alternative school in the Austin area.
This frequently updated list spans several pages, with navigation buttons at the bottom. Clicking on the name of a school will take you to its own website. To easily find schools by geographical area, see our Alt Ed Maps page. If you know of a school that’s missing from this directory, please drop a note here, and see Alt Ed Austin’s criteria for “alternative” and “school.” You may also be interested in our directories of other recommended schools (which are mostly larger or more specialized or religiously oriented), as well as special programs for children and adults.
Full disclosure: Alt Ed Austin founder Teri Sperry has ties with several of the schools listed on this site. Her child, now in graduate school, attended two of them years ago. She has friends who direct, teach at, or are otherwise involved in others. Some programs choose to advertise from time to time on Alt Ed Austin as Sponsoring Partners. She firmly believes that all of the schools featured on this site (including the ones to which she has no personal connection and those from which she receives no advertising fees) are good choices for some kids, each for different reasons.
