FAQs

Students are required to have one Jewish parent to be eligible for admission. Those affiliated with the messianic movement are not eligible to apply.

Sometimes extenuating circumstances mean families apply for admission to Denver Jewish Day School after the February 1 deadline. Post-deadline applications for admission and financial aid are reviewed on a space-available basis. We require a complete application file for all students and cannot waive application components, even when applications are submitted over the summer or during the school year. Student visits to the school are a critical component of the application process. If a student applies over the summer and it is not possible to schedule a school visit before the start of the school year, we will request an opportunity to observe the student in a group setting (day camp, summer program, etc.) If that is not possible, you may be offered a provisional admission.

No. There are additional fees for school trips, sports, before/after school care, and hot lunch. In addition, we ask that all families, regardless of income or financial aid status, contribute to our Annual Campaign. (We ask families to give what makes sense for their situation.)

Lower Division (grades Pre-K - 5)
8:05 a.m. - 3:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday
8:05 a.m. - 2:45 p.m. on Friday

Upper Division (grades 6 - 12)
8:10 a.m. - 3:40 p.m. Monday through Thursday
8:10 a.m. - 2:45 p.m. Friday

Please click here to view our Preview Calendar.

Labor Day
Rosh Hashanah (2 days, with early release on erev Rosh Hashanah)
Yom Kippur (early release on Kol Nidre)
Sukkot (first 2 days)
Shemini Atzeret
Simchat Torah
Thanksgiving (entire week)*
   *Parent Teacher conferences Monday and Tuesday
Christmas (during Winter Break)
New Year’s (during Winter Break)
Martin Luther King Day
President’s Day
Passover (all 8 days)
Shavuot (2 days)
Memorial Day

For a complete calendar, click here.

There are 172 school days per year at DJDS.

Regardless of enrollment, which can change from year to year, the instructional ratio is 15 to 1 or less in the Lower Division and 23 to 1 or less in the Upper Division. This holds true for core subjects. There are occasions during the course of the school year in which the student to teacher ratio might be higher.

Denver Jewish Day School does consider applications for students with identified mild to moderate learning challenges, with currently-enrolled students who have learning differences who thrive in our program with the support of our Learning Resource Center. We require a completed application, including all documentation of learning challenge diagnoses, existing IEPs, and existing 504 Plans in order to make an admission decision.

If you are interested in being part of a caring community rooted in our Divrei Chaim (Words to Live By), Denver Jewish Day School is a great fit for you! We welcome students who represent the wide array of Jewish expression that exists in the world around us and encourage our students to understand and respect the varying lifestyles of their peers.

Denver JDS is a welcoming community that embraces a diversity of life experiences and Jewish journeys and fosters connections and support among our members. In alignment with our middot and mission, Denver JDS welcomes all Jews, regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity, as full participants in all aspects of our school community. 

No, but we do help to arrange carpools through a partnership with Way to Go, a program of the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG)

Yes. Before School Care and After School Care is available for students in grades Pre K-6. Fees are as follows:
Before School Care: $10/child/day
After School Care: $20/child/day

Click here for more information about this program.

Students in grades K-5 may also opt to sign up for an after school enrichment class through our BLAST program.

Late starts, when both our Lower Division and Upper Division begin later, allow our faculty to engage in professional development opportunities. Before School Care is offered for Lower Division students on these mornings. Late start arrival times are as follows:
Lower Division - 9:45 a.m.
Upper Division - 9:55 a.m.

Information about our admission criteria can be found on our How to Apply page.

All prospective students are required to apply for admission. After a thorough review of an applicant’s completed admission file, our admission team determines whether or not our school is a programmatic fit for each applicant. Applicants for whom we are not a good fit (meaning we do not believe our program will lead to student success) are declined admission. We do not waive application requirements for any individual or group of students (e.g. siblings, students of staff). Applications submitted after the application and/or notification deadline are considered on a rolling basis and can take several weeks to complete and process depending on the time of year they are submitted. We are unable to “fast track” admission decisions in the absence of a complete application file.

No. Financial aid does not cover other costs such as books, hot lunch, school trips, sports, before/after school care, etc.

No. Financial aid decisions are entirely independent from admission decisions.

Yes. Prospective families may apply for financial aid prior to or simultaneously with submission of an application for admission. There is a $35 fee to apply for financial aid through FACTS Tuition Aid, and the school cannot offer a financial aid award until admission is offered. However, the director of admission can look at your financial aid application to let you know whether you demonstrate need for a financial aid award. If you have questions about how your family may fit into the program, please contact our Director of Admission Shayna Friedman at sfriedman@denverjds.org or (720) 449-9550. We strongly encourage prospective families interested in our financial aid program to have a conversation with Shayna as they consider Denver Jewish Day School for their children.

There are a few questions you can ask yourself to help determine whether financial aid is right for you.

• Am I able to fit the entire amount of tuition into my budget without sacrificing core expenses like housing, vehicles, groceries, clothing, healthcare, and childcare?
   
• Is there discretionary spending currently in my household budget that I could allocate toward tuition?
   
• Is there a potential wage earner in our household who is choosing to stay at home?
   
• Are there family members who plan to help us with tuition?

Further information can be found here!

Yes. Denver Jewish Day School stresses confidentiality in all matters relating to tuition, including financial aid. Only administration personnel directly involved in the review of applications have access to families’ financial aid application information. The information is never shared outside of this small team. We uphold the highest standard of confidentiality in management of each and every family’s case. The identities of families who receive financial aid are not shared with faculty, board members, or any other members of the Denver JDS parent community.

No. Just as we trust that families present a complete and accurate financial profile in their applications for financial aid, we also trust that families will consider their financial aid award to be confidential and avoid sharing any information with friends inside and outside of the school community.

Denver Jewish Day School uses a third party company called FACTS Tuition Aid to evaluate the demonstrated financial need of financial aid applicants. FACTS Tuition Aid considers family size, income, and other financial resources as well as core and discretionary spending. Denver JDS’s financial aid team reviews every application processed by FACTS Tuition Aid and will consider certain extenuating circumstances that may affect the family’s ability to pay. Get started on the application here.

We are committed to helping our enrolled students continue at Denver Jewish Day School. Financial aid is awarded annually and is based on demonstrated need. Therefore, returning families must complete a new application annually and submit all required documentation to be considered each year.

Our program is designed to provide stability and predictability for families, year over year. Most families in the financial aid program remain in the program throughout their children’s years at Denver Jewish Day School. If your financial profile remains approximately the same from year to year, you will continue to qualify for aid. Some families do experience a positive change in circumstances, and will find that they no longer qualify for financial aid. Families apply for financial aid annually so that we have the most current and complete picture of overall need.

Many families who pay full tuition when their first child enters Denver Jewish Day School demonstrate need for for financial aid when younger siblings are admitted. If you think this may be the case for you, we encourage you to apply for financial aid when bringing a sibling(s) to Denver JDS.

For the best educational experience of each child, Denver Jewish Day School expects that both parents (if at all possible) will participate fully – academically and financially – in their child’s education. Denver JDS requires both parents to complete an application for financial aid. We are happy to assist both parents, together or individually, in understanding how the program works for divorced or separated parents. This requirement is not applied in the case of single parents who do not share custody or guardianship with another parent.

If all students are elementary school age or older, both parents are expected to contribute to tuition expenses. Should one parent choose not to work, program guidelines impute an income for the non-working parent. Exceptions may be made in cases where responsibilities (such as medical care or elder care) effectively limit a parent’s ability to commit to regular work.

The FACTS Tuition Aid application deadline for new families is February 1, 2025, with supporting documents due no later than February 1, 2025. For returning families, the FACTS Tuition Aid application deadline is January 5, 2025. Click here for key dates for applicants.

We consider financial aid requests in the following order:

1. Returning Students
2. Siblings and students of Faculty/Staff*
3. New Students
4. Post-deadline applicants

*Denver JDS offers an automatic 50% discount for children of full-time Jewish Professionals, including Denver JDS faculty & staff. This discount can be combined with financial aid. 

Your cooperation in meeting the deadline assists us in distributing financial aid fairly to all families who apply to the program. However, we do consider applications filed outside of the regular cycle on an aid-available basis. Families new to the school and those who are unable to file by the deadline should contact our Director of Admission, Shayna Friedman, at sfriedman@denverjds.org or (720) 449-9550 to discuss aid availability.