The Village School

The Village School has no religious affiliation.

The Village School is located in Houston’s “energy corridor,” just west of Dairy Ashford between Memorial Drive and Westheimer. The campus sits on 18 acres of land, with a 70,000-square-foot facility for PreK-8th grade and a 50,000-square-foot facility for the high school program. 8 of the 20 acres are reserved for future developments, apart from an already-constructed 30,000-square-foot facility. The school’s athletic complex is located just northwest of the school on Briar Forest Drive.

The Village School offers a rolling admissions policy. PreK and kindergarten applicants must participate in a group visit and take the WPPSI Assessment. 1st grade applicants must also participate in a group visit and take the WISC. Students applying to grades 2-4 must take the Stanford Achievement Test and the OLSAT, while students applying to 5th through 12th grade must complete the ISEE and OLSAT. The Village School asks all applicants to complete the admissions tests with an accredited testing agent at The Village School, although permission may be given to complete a test at an approved facility outside of The Village School.

Applicants must submit teacher recommendation forms along with their application. PreK-5th grade applicants must submit one teacher recommendation, while applicants to grades 6-12 must submit two recommendations, one each from an English teacher and a math teacher. All students are also required to submit transcripts and school records to The Village School. 6th-12th grade applicants additionally participate in a student interview that will be scheduled by The Village School’s faculty after reviewing the student’s application.

For the ISEE for grades 6 and 9, we recommend that applicants target a stanine of 6 or better in all test sections.

General Academic has more than 16 years of experience helping thousands of students prepare for the ISEE. Inquire about private tutoring or register for ISEE prep courses starting December 21st at our Rice Village Study Lounge.

The Village School develops a Personal Learning Plan for each student. This is a goal-oriented process that requires the student to become more responsible for his/her own education. Teachers utilize differentiation in the classroom, a method of instruction which puts students into small groups to work on specific activities.

The Village School offers the International Baccalaureate Programme to its 11th and 12th grade students, and students in 9th and 10th grade follow a curriculum that is designed to be similar to the IB Programme. Before their junior year, students must choose one of five Honors Houses: Math, Science & Technology (MST); Comparative Languages & Literature (CLL); Markets, Entrepreneurs & Globalization (MEG); Arts – Studio or Performing (ASP); or International Studies (SB). Once a house is chosen, students must complete their chosen Honors House’s courses, Humanities I & II, two credits in Athletics and the Arts, English 11 & 12, and additional credits in electives. For the sciences, The Village School has modified the traditional order and has its 9th graders begin with physics. Its 10th graders complete chemistry, and its 11th and 12th graders choose from advanced courses in biology, chemistry, and physics.

No information concerning The Village School’s accommodations for students with special needs is available at this time.

The Village School offers French, Spanish, Chinese and Norwegian.

Students attending The Village School have the opportunity to participate in a number of fine arts programs. For the musical arts, students may join the band, the choir, the orchestra, and/or the jazz band, and they may participate in the Meritas European Band Tour, the Meritas International Theater Festival, and the Meritas Music Festival. For the visual arts, students may take courses such as Sculpture, Digital Photography, and Ceramics. For the theater arts, students may join the STARS Performance Group, which consists of a troupe for the lower and middle schools and a troupe for the high school. The Village School also hosts a dance program for PreK through the 12th grade, with opportunities to participate in the Meritas European Charity Tour and the Meritas Dance Festival.

The Village School’s facilities include three computer labs, and each classroom is equipped with a SmartBoard. The school also uses the Touchpoints program, which connects all Meritas schools via video-conference for debates on a variety of subjects between their students.

Students of all ages have access to a number of clubs and organizations at The Village School, including several fine arts and athletics programs. Lower school students may join the Chess Club, the Destination Imagination program, and the Private Schools Interscholastic Association, which provides various competitions between students of different private schools. Middle School students may join the Math and Science Team, the Speech and Debate Team, the Student Council, the Pep Club, and the National Junior Honor Society. High school students may join a larger assortment of clubs than their younger classmates, including Viking Way, in which high school students interact with lower school students, and Be the Change Leadership, a community service club.

Students have the opportunity to participate in The Village School’s athletics program as early as the sixth grade. More than 85% of students participate in at least one sport. The school fields more than 19 teams in 12 sports: cross country, football, basketball, soccer, baseball, lacrosse, tennis, golf, track & field, volleyball, cheerleading, and softball. The Village School’s middle school division is a member of the Houston Junior Prep Conference, and the high school sports teams compete in TAPPS in the 4A classification.

The Village School Parent Association (VSPA) coordinates parent involvement at the school through volunteering opportunities, special events, and fundraising.