# The admin systems a new Montessori school needs

Source: https://www.futurenerds.dev/guides/start-a-montessori-school
Last updated: 2026-10-14

A new Montessori school needs admin systems for six things: enrollment, child and family records, billing, communication with families, a school calendar, and written policies. Set each one up before the first family applies. FutureNerds runs all six from one app.

## The six systems at a glance

| System | What it must do | Needed by |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Enrollment | Take applications, track each family's status, send offers and agreements | Before your first tour |
| Records | Hold each child's contacts, pickup permissions, health details and consents, plus attendance and observations | Before the first day |
| Billing | Send invoices, take payments, track who owes what | Before the first invoice date |
| Communication | Reach one family, one class or the whole school | Before you offer the first place |
| Calendar | Publish the school year, closures, events and conferences | Before families sign agreements |
| Policies | A handbook families read and sign | Before families sign agreements |

Your licensing body will have its own list of records and policies for your state or country. Get it before you write any forms.

## Enrollment

Decide how many places each classroom will have, your age range, and your enrollment dates. Then build one application form and one list of every applicant with a status: submitted, visit scheduled, offered, waitlisted, not offered. Write the enrollment agreement your families will sign, with the tuition, deposit and withdrawal terms. [How to run admissions and a waitlist](/guides/admissions-and-waitlist) covers the process.

## Records

Every child needs a record with guardians, emergency contacts, who may pick up, allergies and health needs, and the consents you collect, such as photo consent. Add daily attendance and, for Montessori classrooms, observations and lesson records. Pick one home for each and decide who updates it. [Getting family records in order](/blog/family-records-setup) has a checklist.

## Billing

Set tuition from your real costs before you publish it. [Setting next year's tuition](/blog/setting-tuition) has a worksheet. Then decide:

- the billing period (monthly, by term or yearly) and which months you bill
- the due date, payment methods and late-payment rules
- sibling discounts, deposits, application fees and any financial aid
- a separate bank account for the school

## Communication

Choose one channel for school-wide news, one for classroom news and one for messages about a single child. Decide who answers messages and how fast, and tell families in your first-week letter.

## Calendar

Publish the full school year before families sign: first and last days, holidays, teacher work days, early dismissals, conference weeks and the enrollment dates for next year. Give families a way to add it to their own calendars.

## Policies

Write a handbook that covers, at least: hours and the drop-off and pickup procedure, illness and medication, tuition and payment, withdrawal, photos and privacy, and how families raise a concern. Have each family sign that they've read it, and keep the signature with their record. [Writing an illness policy families can follow at 7am](/blog/illness-policy) has a model for one section.

## How to set up a new school's admin, in order

1. Get your licensing body's list of required records and policies.
2. Set the school year, your classrooms and the number of places in each.
3. Write the handbook and the enrollment agreement.
4. Set tuition, fees, discounts and the billing calendar.
5. Open a school bank account and set up the ways families will pay.
6. Build the application form and publish your enrollment dates.
7. Publish the school calendar.
8. Choose your communication channels and tell families how to use them.
9. Collect each enrolled family's records, signed agreement and signed handbook before the first day.

## Doing this in FutureNerds

FutureNerds covers each of the six systems on the web, iPhone, iPad and Android, in 14 languages.

| System | In FutureNerds |
| --- | --- |
| Enrollment | A public application form with 9 question types, an application fee through Stripe, and statuses from submitted to approved or waitlisted |
| Records | Family records, attendance, and observations against an AMS or AMI curriculum loaded when you create the school, or your own |
| Billing | A price list for tuition and fees, school sessions that set which months are billed, sibling and pay-in-full discounts, and card payments through Stripe Connect |
| Communication | Posts, classroom boards, direct messages, and per-family choice of in-app, email or push |
| Calendar | Holidays, closures, conferences, field trips and events, with calendar feeds families add to Apple or Google Calendar |
| Policies | A handbook PDF parents read in the app, documents that require a typed signature by a due date, and checklists for new families |

Classrooms are set by age level: infant and toddler, primary, lower elementary, upper elementary or adolescent.

FutureNerds is free for your first 10 students, then $0.50 per child per month with no setup fee, and standard Stripe fees plus 1% apply if you collect family payments through it ([pricing](/pricing)). See [admissions](/product/admissions-and-applications), [billing](/product/billing-and-invoicing) and [calendar and events](/product/calendar-and-events).

## Related pages

- [Admissions and applications](/product/admissions-and-applications)
- [Billing and invoicing](/product/billing-and-invoicing)
- [Calendar and events](/product/calendar-and-events)
- [Forms and e-signatures](/product/forms-and-signatures)
- [How to stop chasing late tuition](/guides/collect-tuition)
- [Preparing the classroom before the children arrive](/blog/prepare-classroom-environment)
- [An enrollment timeline for next year](/blog/enrollment-timeline)

## Questions and answers

### What software does a new Montessori school need?

At minimum, tools for applications, family records and attendance, invoicing, messages to families, and a shared calendar. FutureNerds covers all of these in one app, on the web and on iPhone, iPad and Android.

### Is there free software for a new Montessori school?

Yes. FutureNerds is free for your first 10 students. After that it's $0.50 per child per month, with no setup fee.

### Can FutureNerds use the AMI or AMS curriculum?

Yes. When you create a school, FutureNerds loads an AMS or AMI curriculum of areas and competencies. You can also build your own.

### What should be in a Montessori school handbook?

Hours, drop-off and pickup, illness and medication, tuition and payment, withdrawal, photos and privacy, and how families raise a concern. Check your licensing body's list for anything else it requires.

### When should a new school set up billing?

Before you send the first enrollment agreement, so the tuition, due dates and payment methods in the agreement match how you'll bill.