Unless otherwise informed, we assume at the time you enroll your child(ren) at HCMS, you are committed to keeping your child(ren) at our school for the entire coming year. Most of the decisions regarding staff, room assignments, curriculum, and equipment purchases are made on the basis of an estimate of the number of students enrolled for the coming year as of April 1, of the preceding year. The following financial policies were formulated for this reason. Please read the following very carefully. If you have questions regarding this policy, feel free to contact the school office for clarification.
Enrollment fees are due and payable when the application is submitted. Enrollment fees are non-refundable. If you are interested in enrolling but are not unsure you have enough to pay the non-refundable fees, we encourage you to have your child(ren)'s name be put on a waiting list. The office staff will make an effort to keep you informed about the availability of open slots.
These fees partially cover textbooks and other materials used in the classroom. They are non-refundable, and do not give ownership to classroom texts.
Because of the financial commitment made by the school in the spring for the following year, anyone withdrawing from the program after June 1 prior to the school year, is required to pay a pro-rated tuition amount based on the school's 20 day withdrawal policy. To avoid this penalty, parents must officially notify the school of a withdrawal prior to June 1 for the coming school year.
In order to keep our tuition at a minimum and continue to provide our students with quality care and a safe positive environment, the following requirement is being made for all HCMS parents. Our desire is that the partnership developed from this policy will foster a spirit of unity within the school. Families are required to choose one of two options:
Option #1: Working a minimum of 30 hours per school year in a variety of positions. e.g.: Hot lunch program, classroom helpers, organizing fund-raisers, annual work days, extra curricular activities, and sports programs. Please refer to the HCMS Parent Partnership Agreement for a full list of ways to get involved.
Option #2: Pay a $250.00 work fee (per family) to help cover the cost of on-going grounds and building maintenance and improvements, due at the time of registration
Payments are due by the 1st of each month. These payments begin July 1st for the 12 month plan, July 1st for the 10 month plan and July 1st for the 9 month plan. Payments are considered past due after the 10th of the month if left unpaid.
A $35.00 late fee will be assessed on all accounts past due on the 11th of the month. If the 10th falls on a weekend, the payment needs to be made by the Friday before the due date to avoid a late fee.
When a student starts school after the beginning of the school year, the tuition charge will be determined by dividing the annual charge by the number of active days left in the school year. The payment schedule on the pro-rata tuition balance is set monthly from the time of registration until May 1st.
We understand from time to time financial circumstances necessitate special arrangements. Please call the business office by the 1st of the month if you anticipate problems with making your payment on time. Horizon Christian Middle School reserves the right to revoke any special monthly arrangement with 30 days prior notice.
If there is a problem in making your regular payment on time, please make every effort to work with us to bring your account up to date. Referring accounts to collection or discharging a student from school are our last and least desired way of dealing with past due charges. However, the costs of operating the school program requires us to hold those who have enrolled their child(ren) in our school to their commitment to make regular and timely payments.
In this regard, if our office has made reasonable attempts to contact or to establish an alternate payment plan for those behind in their school tuition payments, and these efforts have proved to be unsuccessful, the school administration will consider referring the account to collection. In these cases, those with payments in arrears will assume the responsibility for payment of all fees associated with the collection of the debt. These fees may include but are not exclusive to: attorney fees, court costs, late fees, and other administrative costs.
The 30 day withdrawal policy goes into effect June 1 of the current year for the coming school year. Those who might withdraw after June 1 for the coming year will be billed for 20 school days from the date the HCMS Early Withdrawal Form is received, regardless of whether any school days in fact exist in the thirty (30) days immediately after withdrawal.
Any outstanding fees owed, including the fees for the school days after withdrawal, are due and payable immediately upon withdrawal. This policy is in effect to protect the school from the financial harm caused by late withdrawals.
September through January 15 of the current school year, a thirty day prior written notification is required if a parent wishes to withdraw a student without being charged for an additional 20 school days. For withdrawal with less notification, one month's tuition will be charged.
Students who withdraw after the final withdrawal date will be charged the remainder of the tuition amount for the school year, regardless of the 30 day notification. From September to the final withdrawal date, a 30 day prior written notification is required if a parent wishes to withdraw a student without being charged for an additional 30 day period. For withdrawal with less notification, one month's tuition from the day of notification will be charged. After the final withdrawal date of the current school year, the remainder of the year's tuition is required, regardless of the 30 day notification. Exceptions are made to this policy when circumstances warrant special consideration and prior administrative approval has been granted.
A student may be discharged from school if payments are more than 30 days in arrears.
Reinstatement will be considered on a case by case basis by the administration and/or the school board, or the elder board of Horizon Community Church. A reinstatement fee of $75.00 will be charged per occurrence.