Exploring Wingra

Prospective Wingra families,
At Wingra, students and adults explore what it means to truly be in community with one another while learning to thoughtfully listen to others’ perspectives, to see and seek connections, to critically analyze, to collaborate, to create, and to take risks. Our research-based approach prepares the whole child for the whole world.
We want to give you every opportunity to look deeply at our classrooms, to meet our leadership team and teachers, and to make sure you have an authentic sense of our progressive mission. We’ll work closely with you as you embark on this important process of finding a school for your child and a community for your family.
Thank you for considering Wingra. We look forward to meeting your family soon.

Christine Stocke
Director of Enrollment

Open House

Join us for conversations with teachers, students, parents and staff. Explore our classrooms, and tour our historic building.

Open House dates for 2019-2020 are December 7 from 10am-12pm and January 30 from 5:30-7:00pm. Our January Open House will be followed by a Q&A with our alumni from 7-8pm. Please email christine@wingraschool.org with any questions!

Would you like to receive our monthly newsletter for families considering Wingra?  Click here.

Admissions Process at Wingra

We are honored you are considering Wingra for your family. We are excited to share our school, community, and educational philosophy with you. Through this process, we will get to know each other and identify how Wingra can meet your educational goals.

School Tour

Begin your exploration with a visit! Schedule an individual school tour by emailing christine@wingraschool.org to see our community of learners in action, or attend an Open House in December or January. Tours are available year round on most school days.

Application

Fill out the online application. It includes a parent questionnaire, a comment form that should be filled out by your child’s current teacher, and an application fee of $100, which is also able to be paid online.

Student Visit

Nothing can replace the opportunity for us to meet your child and for them to experience Wingra in person! Upon receipt of your completed application, we will coordinate with you a school-day visit for your child.

Admissions Decisions

We will communicate with you throughout this process and be here to answer any questions you may have as we partner to determine if Wingra meets your educational goals and dreams. Following your child’s visit, we will share options for enrollment of your child.

See Wingra’s community of learners in action and email christine@wingraschool.org to  schedule a tour today!

What do our graduates have to say about their experience at Wingra?

Ilana Rosen
Ilana RosenWingra Grad 1998
Wingra taught me unrelenting compassion for others, critical thinking skills, and to value education and learning.
Ethan Witkovsky
Ethan WitkovskyWingra Grad 1998
Wingra School was one of the best things that ever happened to me. I would not be where I am today without the care, education, and values that I internalized during my time at Wingra.
Lily Sasse
Lily SasseWingra Grad 2000
Wingra was idyllic in many ways – little to no bullying, unconstrained learning environment, and encouragement from peers and teachers.
Mihkail Kazi
Mihkail KaziWingra Grad 2008
A Wingra education both advances your creative skills and your imagination. It helps you see problems from different angles that your peers do not see.
Emily Ptak-Pressman
Emily Ptak-PressmanWingra Grad 2009
From Wingra I gained the tools to learn, communicate, question, collaborate, create change, and be confident in myself and my community.
Maddy Brazas
Maddy BrazasWingra Grad 2013
The value of the education I received is huge! You don’t just get fed information, you get to understand it!
Lauren Mazur
Lauren MazurWingra Grad 2011
Wingra has taught me the most important lesson of all, how to advocate for myself and navigate for success.
Olivia Dregne
Olivia DregneWingra Grad 2014
When you get to high school you realize the greatest resources are your teachers. At Wingra you learn how to access that resource. We have learned to see teachers as allies. They want us to succeed.
Collin DavisWingra Grad 2009
Wingra gave me a notably wider and different set of academic experiences than many of my peers, which was a substantial advantage.
Anna ThalWingra Grad 2009
With my Wingra education I have tried to learn and understand everything taught to me instead of just memorizing to pass the test. This mindset makes class more interesting and helps you a lot more in the long run.

Wingra School had an absolute impact on who I am. It takes a lot of early encouragement to feel confident enough to take creative risks in comedy. It’s hard to imagine that I would have found affirmation for such a nonstandard focus anywhere else—and it’s hard to imagine a school that values the particular talents and interests of individual children more than Wingra. — Ben Wikler, former Wingra student who wrote for The Onion, was the Executive Vice President of Change.org, and is currently the chair of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin.

2020-2021 Tuition

Wingra is an independent school and our tuition-based model provides us the independence to create curricula, schedules, and assessment practices that honor development of the whole child. Your tuition payment is an investment in, and a gift to, the future.

Wingra School offers three payment plan options to better accommodate our families and the range of economic resources available to them.

One-Payment Plan

$16,520

Due June 2020

Two-Payment Plan

$16,610

$8,305 (due June 2020)
$8,305 (due December 2020)

Monthly Plan

$16,680*

$1,390 (due each month)
12 payments: June 2020 through May 2021
*plus annual TADS processing fee of $45 for each household

Are there additional costs? An annual activity fee of $75–$150 is due at the beginning of the year. Optional pizza and hot lunch are offered two days each week. Our Extended Day Program is offered daily at an additional cost (daily Early Care at 7:45 is free!).

Tuition Assistance

Joyce Perkins
Former Wingra School Director

Wingra School is committed to a tuition assistance program that ensures families of all economic means can afford a Wingra education. To fulfill this commitment, we offer needs-based tuition assistance.

Named after a former Wingra School Director, the Joyce Perkins Tuition Assistance Fund has provided more than $2.8 million in tuition assistance over the last 30 years. The Wingra community has contributed generously over the years to continually increase the amount of assistance available.

Approximately 25% of our families currently receive assistance. Applications for Tuition Assistance are due by March 15 of the year preceding enrollment. A committee reviews applications and sends out tuition assistance offers in April.

How To Apply For Tuition Assistance At Wingra School 2020-2021

Apply for tuition assistance here.

Please also fill out this Tuition Assistance Acknowledgement Form so that you are immediately added to the tuition assistance pool of applicants.

  • Families new to Wingra need to submit an Application for Enrollment prior to applying for Tuition Assistance. Both processes may occur concurrently and enrollment may be accepted contingent on tuition assistance awards in April without penalty.

  • Assistance is awarded to all Wingra families on an annual basis; families re-apply for tuition assistance each year.

  • Prior year tax documents are requested as part of the tuition assistance application. Please plan to complete your taxes early to help expedite the process.

  • Questions about tuition assistance? Please contact Bonnie Schey, Business Manager, by email or at (608) 238-2525.