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Admissions

Bridges Academy is a school designed specifically for twice-exceptional students where strengths, talents, and interests are recognized, leveraged to support skill development, and nurtured in their own right. We focus on providing a safe, intellectually vibrant learning community with opportunities to enrich students’ experiences and develop their abilities and talents. Applications for the 25-26 school year are now open, and spots still are available for the 24-25 school year — inquire today!  ​
WHO SHOULD APPLY: WHAT IS TWICE-EXCEPTIONAL? THE GIFTED NEURODIVERSE STUDENT
  • Intellectually gifted and highly gifted children come with a certain set of needs. The same is true for students with learning challenges or disabilities. But what about kids who fall into both groups? These children are known as twice-exceptional (2e). 2e kids display amazing gifts, talents, or potential in some areas while also being challenged in other areas with learning differences, such as ADD/ADHD, Asperger’s or autism spectrum disorder, sensory issues, and more.
  • In looking for the right fit, we generally look for an overall IQ score of around 120, but we do not employ a full-scale IQ number cut-off. For many twice-exceptional individuals, the full-scale IQ on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V) is considered invalid, as they tend to present with a “peaks and valleys” profile that can affect their overall score. Instead, we examine each index and subtest to look for areas of exceptional strength, and our admissions process is further informed by the applicant’s achievement testing, transcripts, teacher and administrative recommendations, parent reports, information from professional support professionals and most importantly, the student interview and visit day.
  • The admissions office is happy to review any/all documentation a parent feels comfortable sharing prior to applying to determine whether a student may be a good fit for our program. As part of the application process, we ask for all current and historical private psychoeducational or neuropsychological testing. If you have not had your child privately tested, we ask for any psychoeducational testing that was done either when the IEP was initiated or when your child had their most recent triennial review. If a WISC-V was not administered as part of the testing, you may be required to have one done if we feel we do not have sufficient evidence of your child’s cognitive or academic abilities.
AFFORDING BRIDGES
  • Regular tuition for the 2024-25 Academic Year is $54,550. New families are required to pay a fee of $2,500 (Grades 4-6); $2,025 (Grades 7-11), or $2,325 (Grade 12), due at the time the enrollment contract is submitted.
  • Bridges is committed to making our program available for all 2e students. Roughly forty percent of our families receive some level of financial support. As part of the application process, you can formally apply for financial aid which is available to qualifying families. Visit our Financial Support page for more information.​
DEADLINES AND MIDYEAR APPLICATIONS
  • For the 2025-26 School Year: Applications are due by 5 p.m., January 31, 2025. If you are applying for financial aid, applications are due on or before this date. Families will be notified of acceptance (with any applicable award) by Friday, March 14, 2025, and responses must be received by Friday, March 21, 2025. After the deadline, Bridges will consider late applications. In these instances, the admissions committee will review completed files and families will be notified on a rolling basis and subject to available space.
  • For the 2024-25 School Year: Bridges considers midyear applications. Please contact the admissions office as soon as possible to inquire about spaces available!

THE ADMISSIONS PROCESS

Here are the steps to becoming a student at Bridges:
INQUIRE
As Bridges Academy has a unique mission to serve the twice-exceptional population, we like to know as much as possible about a student before an application is submitted to ensure your child is a viable fit. During this exploration phase, we have an initial consultation and ask to review your child's documentation to provide us with a better understanding of their profile and to help us determine fit. Inquire now to contact our admissions office to visit or schedule a time to speak.
VISIT
  • Morning parent tours will occur every week, beginning September 2024. To access registration, please submit an inquiry. 
  • Students will have two opportunities to see the campus: first for a tour and informal interview with admissions, which can be scheduled before or after an application is submitted, and again at the end of the application process when they spend a full school day on campus.​
APPLY
  • You can access our application here. Applications for the 25-26 school are now open! Bridges Academy utilizes the TADS system for submissions so you will be required to create an account and submit all documents through this platform. The deadline to submit is January 31, 2025.
  • You will need to upload the following items to the application hub in order to complete the file. If any of these items do not apply to your student, please let us know. We require: 
    • A recent school photo.
    • Student Confidential Information and School Records Release Forms — These forms allow us to speak with your child’s neuropsychologist and other critical providers, and allows us to speak with and request report cards or transcripts from your school. We understand you may not be ready to tell your child’s current school about your decision to apply out, so we will work with you to time these conversations.
    • The following links be sent directly to your child’s teachers and administrators. Their responses will be automatically submitted directly to Bridges:
      • Teacher Recommendation - one from humanities, one from math or science. If your child only has one teacher for all core subjects, please consider an electives teacher, resource teacher, or other adult who works closely with your child.
      • Administrator Recommendation - from the principal, vice principal, school counselor or other non-teaching administrator who knows your child best.
    • Transcripts or progress reports for at least the past two years. These can be provided by you and do not have to be official transcripts. If your child is accepted and you enroll, we will need official transcripts to be sent prior to entry.
    • Standardized test results, if applicable.
    • All current and historical private psychological testing, including a Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children (WISC-V), if applicable (Please see "Who Should Apply").
    • Any school district psychological testing, such as part of the initial IEP process or as part of a triennial, if applicable.
    • IEP/504 Information, if applicable.
    • Any additional specialized assessments or evaluation, if applicable.
    • While not required, we welcome work samples and testimonials from individuals who know your child well.
  • Please schedule a student interview and tour for your child, if you have not already done so.
  • If we feel your child is a viable fit for Bridges, we will schedule them for a shadow day. A shadow day is a full school day where the applicant can experience a typical day, get a sense of our program and environment and feel what it might be like to attend Bridges. It also gives us the chance to see how your child interacts with staff and Bridges students. We only schedule one student visit per division each day, so while this is a vital part of the process, visit days are limited.
  • Families will be notified of acceptance by Friday, March 14, 2025, and responses must be received by Friday, March 21, 2025, in the TADS system.
  • For late or midyear applications, the admissions committee will review completed files and families will be notified on a rolling basis and subject to available space.
We look forward to hearing from you and learning more about your exceptional child! ​

Submit an Inquiry to the Bridges Academy Admissions Office

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Kayla Franklin Waesche
Director of Admissions
Bridges Academy
[email protected]
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Kim Vargas
Director of Admissions
​Bridges Academy Online
[email protected]
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NOTICE OF NONDISCRIMINATORY POLICY AS TO STUDENTS
​Bridges Academy is committed to building and sustaining a community that is free from discrimination of any kind. Bridges admits students of any race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, disability, sexual orientation, and national and ethnic origin (ancestry) to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, disability, sexual orientation, or national and ethnic origin (ancestry) in the administration of any of its school programs, its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, or athletic and other school-administered programs.    
REVIEW BRIDGES ACADEMY'S DIVERSITY STATEMENT