Tuition Assistance

Lake Country School awards grants that do not need to be repaid to families who demonstrate financial need, as funds are available. The school expects families to finance their children's education to the extent they can. Priority is given to re-enrolling families. Grants are awarded annually and families must reapply each year.

If you feel that you are unable to afford full tuition, you are encouraged to apply for tuition assistance. In 2022-23, 50% of the families receiving assistance had a gross income of less than $91,000 and 50% had incomes over $91,000. Every family's financial situation is unique. Therefore, income alone does not determine need. Other assets, family size, and unusual expenses are all additional factors, which affect the decision-making process. When you apply for tuition assistance, the SSS will let you know your eligibility or proven need. If admitted and depending on availability of funds, LCS will make an award of up to 70% of proven need.

We hope that families who begin by paying full tuition to the school will continue to do so unless unforeseen circumstances make that impossible. We advise families not to go to extraordinary lengths to pay full tuition their first year in hope of receiving tuition assistance the next year. However, if your financial situation has changed significantly since you joined the school, you should apply for assistance.

The Tuition Assistance Committee makes decisions that help the school honor its commitment to building an economically diverse and inclusive community. Criteria considered include families who are receiving assistance who continue to demonstrate need, siblings of current students, returning families who demonstrate need for the first time, and newly admitted families. All information is confidential.

We use information from the School and Scholarship Service for Financial Assistance (SSS), along with materials each family sends directly to us as the basis for calculating the size of the award. SSS makes a need assessment using information that families provide through a standardized form. The school and SSS consider the family primarily responsible for financing a child's education.

The amount of tuition assistance requested sometimes exceeds the amount we have to offer. If we do not have assistance available when awards are made, you will be placed on a waiting list. If money becomes available later, you will receive notification of your award.

The amount of money you receive depends on your need and the number of other families requesting assistance. If your financial circumstances remain the same, you can generally expect to receive approximately the same size award each year. For example, if you initially received half the total tuition and there is no change in your financial situation, you will most likely receive half of the total tuition again the next year that you apply.

• First, make an admissions application. When applying for tuition assistance, the system will automatically waive the enrollment application fee.
• Complete the Parents Financial Statement (PFS) by March 1 before the following school year. Our school code is 2988. This fee cannot be waived.
• Email (via secure email) or mail a paper copy of your IRS Form 1040 to Lake Country School by March 1.
  • Lake Country School
    Attn: Business Manager
    3755 Pleasant Ave S
    Minneapolis, MN 55409

The school requires financial support from a child's legal guardians and encourages financial support from other caregivers a child lives with. Tuition assistance applications will be processed only when complete information is received from all parties, regardless of marital status.

The application and related forms are available online by February 1. Both admissions application and tuition assistance application must be completed and submitted by March 1. Applications that are submitted by the March 1 deadline are considered before those that are turned in late.

If you are offered admission, Tuition Assistance Award letters are sent in early May indicating either the amount of your award, that you are on a waiting list for an award when funds become available, or that you do not qualify for an award. If you are on a waiting list, you will not be asked to make a commitment to enroll unless you receive an award. 

1. File your income taxes by March 1
2. Submit complete all associated forms and the application by the deadline
3. Provide all necessary information so your request can be processed immediately after submission

If your completed application arrives after the deadline, you will be placed on a waiting list for consideration after initial awards are made.

If you have any questions that are not answered here, please contact Katie Haag, Admissions Director, at khaag@lakecountryschool.org or Onaida Whitney, Business Manager, at owhitney@lakecountryschool.org. You can also call LCS at 612-827-3707 or School and Student Services (SSS) at (800) 344-8328. Forms must be returned by March 1.

Your County's Child Care Assistance Program helps families pay for childcare while parents work, look for work, or attend school. Families must be below the income limit in order to qualify.

Call your County's Child Care Assistance Program (Hennepin County - 612-348-5937). You will be asked a few questions to determine if you are eligible to receive Child Care Assistance. Based on your answers to the questions, they will mail you an application form and place you on a waiting list, or explain that you are not eligible.