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St. Catherine's Montessori

CatholicCo-EdMontessoriGrades 14 months–12th (Montessori)Mascot: Owls

Braeswood / Meyerland area · Southwest Houston

9821 Timberside Dr, Houston, TX 77025Map ↗Established 1966

About this information
SchoolPodium uses information published by each school and links to original sources. Information shown as unavailable means we could not verify it from published school materials; it does not necessarily mean the school does not offer it.

$20,560

Tuition · 2026–27

14 months–12th (Montessori)

Grades

22

Enrollment · 14 months–12th (Montessori)

14.4:1

Student–teacher

At a glance

Academic Model
Montessori · Integrated Studies

An AMI-accredited Catholic Montessori adolescent program that replaces separate subjects with integrated areas and builds a body of work through independent study and outside experiences.

AMI Montessori Program

An AMI-accredited Catholic Montessori adolescent program, rare at the secondary level.

Integrated Curriculum

Coursework is organized as Integrated Humanities, Sciences, and Mathematics rather than separate subjects.

Body of Work

Independent study and hands-on projects build a body of work instead of a transcript of AP scores.

Internships & University Partners

Internships with Houston Methodist and design and law firms, plus University of St. Thomas and Texas A&M AgriLife partnerships.

Tuition & financial aid

2026–27 Tuition

$20,560

2026-27 rate · 9th grade; grades 10-12: $20,753

Estimated First-Year Required Cost

$24,710

$20,560 tuition + $4,150 mandatory freshman fees

Tuition deposit

$750

Non-refundable, due with Enrollment Contract · applied toward tuition

TEFA (Texas Education Freedom Account)

Accepted

Sibling discount

10% off for each younger sibling

Need-based aid

TEFA participant, but may reduce school aid when TEFA funds received.

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 25, 2026

Additional & conditional costs

Required and potential costs beyond published tuition

Mandatory freshman fees

Included in estimated first-year required cost

New Student Fee

$850

Facility fee

Annual

$800

Program fee (9th grade)

Annual · High School (grades 10-12) rate is $2,750/yr

$2,500

Application / pre-admission costs

Not included in estimated first-year cost

Application fee

Non-refundable

$150
Sources

Source last checked: Sep 25, 2026

Admissions

Admissions Timeline

2027–28 cycle
  1. Jan 15, 2027

    Priority Application Deadline

  2. Mar 5, 2027

    First-Round Decisions

  3. Mar 24, 2027

    Common Reply Date

What's required

  • No entrance exam required

Good to know

Priority consideration
When applicants are otherwise equal, priority goes first to siblings of current students, then to students from other Montessori schools, then to all other applicants; a waiting pool is maintained

Visits & Events

Campus Tours

Multiple dates available

Parent only

2027–28
Sources

Source last checked: Sep 25, 2026

Academics

AP Courses

7

Dual Credit

Offered

Dual credit courses at the University of St. Thomas or Arizona State University, beginning in 10th grade.

Grading

4.33GPA Scale

None

Class Ranking

Not Ranked

St. Catherine's Montessori does not rank its students

Graduation Requirements

32.0 total credits
Integrated Humanities6.0
Language Arts/Writing/Speech6.0
Integrated Mathematics5.0
Integrated Science5.0
Theology4.0
World Language3.0
Electives2.5
Senior Capstone0.5
Total32.0

World Languages

Spanish

Latin

Via independent study & university partnerships

French

Via independent study & university partnerships

American Sign Language

Via independent study & university partnerships

Portuguese

Via independent study & university partnerships

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 22, 2026

College Prep

College Counseling

Director of College Counseling, works with counselor, student, family & Guides

College counselor arranges campus visits and attends college fairs/conferences to advocate for SCM students · Regular communication with Guides and College Counselor encouraged throughout

Testing & Test Prep

PSAT practice (sophomore); PSAT/NMSQT (junior); SAT/ACT (junior spring)

SAT/ACT prep begins junior summer with a recommended tutor/study-guide list · SAT/ACT taken junior spring, with option to retake in summer or fall

College Planning

Naviance; published grade-by-grade timeline

Naviance used for resume-building and tracking colleges · Named fairs: Colleges That Change Lives (CTCL), Catholic College Night, NACAC fair · Reach/Target/Safety school-list framework taught junior year

College outcomes

100%

College Acceptance

Faith & community

Catholic identity

Independent Catholic (St. Catherine's Montessori, Inc.)

Founded 1966 by Dominican Sisters; independent Catholic with Dominican charism; Catechesis of the Good Shepherd

Mass & prayer

Monthly all-school Mass

Daily student-led prayer · Weekly Atrium (Catechesis of the Good Shepherd)

Service

Service-learning

54 partner organizations (Houston Food Bank, Catholic Charities, Houston Zoo)

International Travel & Mission Trips

A 9th-grade immersive trip to Costa Rica concludes Spanish studies; the Adolescent Community (gr 9) takes annual domestic trips tied to humanities themes like civil rights, peace, and immigration; seniors plan an international trip before graduation

Retreats

Community service trips and retreats in the Adolescent Community and High School

Sources

Athletics

TCSAAL — not TAPPS

League / Classification

GHCAA covers the broader middle/upper varsity teams; TCSAAL is the high-school-specific league per the school site

6 sports offered

Varsity/interscholastic offerings

Volleyball • Flag Football • Cross Country • Soccer • Basketball • Track & Field

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 22, 2026

Arts

Orchestra / Strings

Beginning & Intermediate Strings Lessons during the school day; Chamber Orchestra (4th-12th, 2+ years experience, violin/viola/cello/bass) after school; Electric Ensemble for electrified instruments

Musical Theater

Upper School Musical Production — part of the Adolescent Community (gr 7-9) Music curriculum

Choir / Vocal

Acapella Choir for 7th- through 12th-grade singers, after school Mondays

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 23, 2026

School life

Campus & Setting

Main Campus

Timberside campus, Houston (since 2006) — the school's daily campus for all grades

Japhet Campus (supplemental)

Japhet Campus — a 3-acre land-based learning site in Houston's Greater Fifth Ward, used periodically by the Adolescent Community (gr 7-9)

Gifted to the school in Feb 2019; renovated and expanded in summer 2025. Not a second daily campus — students attend Timberside full-time.

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 24, 2026

Daily Life

School Day

8:00 AM - 3:45 PM (extended care available)

Sources

Source last checked: Sep 25, 2026

Freshman Transition & Success

Getting Started

Goal-Setting Conferences

Individual goal-setting meetings between students, families, and guides — Adolescent Community (gr 7-9) students meet with their guides as the school year begins, and rising sophomores meet individually with High School guides each May to discuss personal and academic goals.

Sources
Commute from home

About our dataInformation comes from official school sources. Availability reflects what we could verify from published materials.