Montcrest School is a K-8 co-ed independent school located in the heart of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1961, the school is situated in five historical buildings on 1.4 acres of land backing onto the Don Valley Ravine. An enrollment management team of two supports a student population of 335 and enrolls about 85 new students each year.
Five years ago, the enrollment management team started using Finalsite to support admissions, enrollment, and re-enrolment and was able to develop an intentional, personalized, and high-touch process and workflow to maximize the limited resources of a small team.
Montcrest School’s admissions cycle is similar to many schools. There is the inquiry phase, which includes several admissions events (e.g., info session, campus tour); the applicant phase, which includes applicant visits and admission decisions; the onboarding phase; and the stewardship and retention phase. At every step of this process, we focus on people and relationships, which reflects our People Principle, a belief that relationships are a powerful influencer of learner success and that learning happens best when people feel safe and have a sense of belonging within a collaborative community.
Inquiry Phase
At Montcrest School, we don’t have formal parent or student interviews. Instead, parents are invited to “Book A Chat” with a member of the admissions team during the inquiry phase. This is intentional as we want the title to be an invitation and feel personal - you “chat” with someone you know. The chat is informal, open and authentic. Keeping it virtual is convenient for busy parents, and having a video call instead of a phone call is warmer as we see each other’s faces.
Our campus tours are led by trained Student Ambassadors in Grades 6, 7, or 8. Visiting families are intentionally paired with an Ambassador. They come away from the tour with a true “feel” for Montrest through a student's eyes.
We used to have three larger-scale open houses per year but have moved to more niche events tailored to specific groups (e.g., Middle School Info Session, Meet the Parents Virtual Event) that allow us to further develop our relationships with prospective families.
Applicant Phase
We host Activity Mornings for applicants with intentional groupings by grade from January through early February. We have found this approach equitable, keeping the applicant experience in mind (as well as yield). In addition to internally developed academic assessments for each group, we craft activities to assess applicants’ social and emotional responses. Faculty are invited to participate as well and join a debrief afterwards; we include all voices.
Leading up to each Activity Morning, we develop a personalized video for each group using a tone and approach that is age and stage appropriate explaining what applicants can expect during their morning. We use Prezi Video which allows us to customize the content of each video in a meaningful yet efficient way and add fun graphics! We share the video with each applicant before their visit. Here are two examples:
JK/SK Day Video
Grade 4-7 Activity Mornings Video
When it comes to admissions decisions, parents receive a customized and personalized email. (When the decision is waitpool or deny, we always precede the email with a personal connection - usually a phone call. This consideration keeps the relationship strong should we have a space become available later or if the family wants to roll the application forward and try again for the next year.) Included in each offer email is a personalized video for the student from the member of the enrollment management team who worked most closely with the family. Here are two examples:
Hi Jack!
Hi Emmy!
We have regularly received feedback from applicants and their families that they felt the most “known” through the application process at Montcrest School. This has resulted in higher yields than the industry average which helps as we are in a very competitive independent school market.
Onboarding Phase
The time between accepting an offer to Montcrest School and the first day of school is an opportunity to continue building relationships and to ensure that our new families feel welcome and feel a sense of belonging in our community.
In early spring, we hand-deliver to each home a personalized “swag bag” for every new student that includes a handwritten card from a Student Ambassador. The swag includes a stuffed bear for younger students and a water bottle for older students.
We then launch our Montcrest Buddy program wherein each new student is paired with a Moncrest student buddy (and their parents) entering the same grade. Montcrest student buddies attend Buddy Club where they learn what it means to be a buddy. Each Montcrest Buddy writes a postcard to the new student they are paired with and records a special video which they share. They also make a friendship bracelet to give to the new student they are paired with at Move Up Morning (more on that below).
We also host a New Parent Reception in the spring. All our faculty and staff and new parents are invited. It is a wonderful opportunity to build community. The conversations and connections are organic and informal among parents and faculty and staff. Parents leave with a welcome gift and house t-shirt for their child.
Move Up Morning takes place in June during the last week of school and is a full school celebration of moving up to a new grade in September! All grades participate (even incoming JKs). We invite all the new students to join their grade as they “move up”. At this event, new students get to meet their Montcrest Buddy, other students, teachers, and staff. Teachers design fun community-building activities.
Stewardship & Retention Phase
We have an engaged group of Montcrest parents who act as Parent Ambassadors. With word-of-mouth being the most powerful marketing tool independent schools have, a strong Parent Ambassador Program plays a key role in recruiting and retaining families. Our Parent Ambassadors act as a meaningful touchpoint and resource for prospective and new families. During the inquiry phase, Parent Ambassadors lead the Meet the Parents virtual event. Parent Ambassadors also attend the New Parent Welcome Reception in the spring, send out a personal email to new parents in August, and attend the first Coffee Morning of the school year.
The school hosts New Student Lunches for Grade 3 and up that take place several months into the school year. During each grade-specific lunch, new students are invited to join the homeroom teacher and school counsellor to connect and share feedback about their experience so far.
Starting in January of each school year, our Head of School hosts New Family Breakfast events organized by grade group. During these new family breakfasts, parents can connect with the Head of School, the Head of Community Relations, the Director of Advancement, and other new parents and share feedback about the school experience so far.
Conclusion
It takes a village to recruit and retain students and foster stewardship with parents! When your school has a small enrollment management team and an ambitious enrollment target to meet each year, developing an intentional, personalized and high-touch process and workflow that maximizes limited resources is a game-changer.
Natasha Estey
Enrolment Management Coordinator
Montcrest School
Andrea Mercer
Director of Enrolment Management
Montcrest School
Ajla Bilajbegovic
Director of Advancement
Montcrest School