A private school in Manhattan that was developed to combine elements of Spain”™s education system with that of the U.S. would like to open a second location ”” this one in Yorktown Heights.
The Maryel School, located at 28 E. 35th St., is a bilingual English and Spanish co-educational day school for children from the nursery school level to fifth grade. It would like to establish a second location at 2405 Crompond Road in Yorktown Heights in a former school it would be leasing from St. Andrew”™s Lutheran Church, which is located on the property. Maryel is seeking special permit approvals from the town of Yorktown to enable it to open.
Pastor Dave Dockweiler of the church has written to the town stating his interest in leasing the space to Maryel.
“Our Montessori School (OMS) was the prior tenant that rented the space we are looking to rent now to the Maryel School of New York,” Dockweiler said. “OMS rented this space from us over 40 years through June 15, 2020. OMS rented additional space not included in Maryel”™s proposal. At its peak (1989-1990), OMS used the large room to educate 64 children under the supervision of four teachers.
“The proposal from Maryel School reflects usage of our building that is very similar to the way in which it was used by OMS,” Dockweiler said.
OMS closed during the Covid-19 pandemic. In announcing the closing, OMS said: “Despite herculean efforts to avoid this outcome, ultimately it was not in our control.” OMS said that all tuition deposits had been refunded.
The existing facility is reported to have seven classrooms, a reception area, a combination gymnasium and indoor playroom, bathrooms, school offices and a kitchen.
The Maryel School has created a five-year strategic plan for its Yorktown Heights operation. During the initial school year, 2022 to 2023, four classrooms would be used for 16 preschool students, eight kindergarten students and eight first-grade students.
The strategic plan calls for an additional grade to be added each year until, in the fifth year, the school would be accepting students in pre-K through the fifth grade. It expects total enrollment would be 70 to 80 students in the 2026-27 school year.
Maryel projects that it would need to put an addition onto the school building to accommodate the expansion of grades and associated increase in enrollment.
According to prices published by Maryel for its Manhattan location, the tuition is $20,750 for a preschool child attending a half-day, Monday through Friday. A full day, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m, is $29,870. Kindergarten through fifth grade is $34,150 for five days a week, 8:15 a.m. to 3:15 p.m.
Maryel was originally founded in Seville, Spain, in 2004. It took the approach that each child has a unique gift and talent, which they express in a special way, and that educators must help students discover and explore those gifts and talents.
The school also believes that a bilingual education is important because when children are exposed to two different languages they learn to be more tolerant and respectful of other cultures and traditions. Spanish is used all day in preschool, while English and Spanish are used equally in the other grades.
