Big Sky Montessori School Cuts Middle And High School Programs Amid Financial Challenges, Decreased Enrollment

BIG SKY, Mont. — A local Montessori school announced it will eliminate its middle and high school programs for the upcoming school year due to financial pressures.  

Discovery Academy in Big Sky made the difficult decision earlier this week to discontinue programming for older students. Students and their families were made aware of the decision during a conference call on Monday.  

The change comes as families have left the Big Sky community in the years following the COVID pandemic, creating financial challenges for the school that stem from decreased enrollment. While the school previously had 32 high schoolers, they now only have 13.  

Beth Marlington, head of school at Discovery Academy, says the decision to shift focus away from offering high school education was not easy. 

"The hard part about it for has been that students aren't dollar signs, and so making decisions based on money is important, but at the end of the day, it's about making sure that all the students in Big Sky are thriving, and this decision doesn't support that goal," Marlington said.  

Despite the shift, Discovery Academy will not close its doors entirely, as the school still plans to teach pre-kindergarten through fifth grade.  

The change in programming is a way for the school to continue providing high quality education to students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade, who make up more than two-thirds of their student population.  

While Discovery Academy only sees 60 total students, the 13 high schoolers who are part of the school are feeling the impact of these changes.  

Maren Sigourney, a Discovery Academy high school student, says these changes make planning for the future more of a challenge.  

"I had a lot of plans of like 'Oh, this is what I was going to do over the summer, this is what I'm looking at going into next year, I was going to graduate early. So, you know, trying to recalculate what's going to happen with that is a little difficult," Sigourney said.  

Maeve Bevan, another Discovery Academy high school student, was caught off guard by the announcement.  

"I was really surprised and kind of sad because I've been going to this school for a couple of years," Bevan said. "Some of my friends are going to other schools and stuff, so I won't get to see them as often and I don't know about seeing the teachers."  

While this change may seem jarring, Marlington says it's not the end of the road for older students to receive their education from Discovery in the future.  

"I think that there is a version of the future where we can regrow these programs from scratch, and really be very intentional about how we do it, and think about the best ways to make sure that those students receive all the enriching support that they need, and do it on a sustainable level," Marlington said.