Are you required to pay entire preschool tuition if you move or switch schools mid-year?

[Anonymous]

I am about to sign a contract for preschool for my 3 year old son. I noticed that in the contract it states that if we pull our child out of school anytime before the school year finishes, we would still be responsible for the remaining tuition. Our situation is one where we don't know if we are going to move.

I am new to this so I am not sure what to expect. I would have thought that you pay until your child leaves the school (ex. moving, etc).
Is this procedure standard? What are the procedures for your school? What if the school is just not the right fit for your child and you want to move him/her to another school? Are you still required to pay the whole year?

Thanks very much!

[Anonymous]

At our school, you pay unless someone else takes the open slot. Ours is a co-op, so there is a strong incentive to fill the space due to the need for parent involvement. As a result, there's a good chance that a family who left would not have to pay for the whole year. That said, the school has a tight budget, which relies on having full enrollment, so if the slot isn't filled, the leaving family would be responsible for the tuition.

[Anonymous]

It is standard at many schools, but many schools also offer an insurance-type program that will pay for the remaining cost if you have to break the contract for some reason. Ask at the school or check their website.

[Anonymous]

Yep, pretty standard.

[Anonymous]

Most of the preschools operate on a tight budget and require nearly 100% enrollment in order not to lose money. Hence, the member agreement stating you are responsible for a full year of tuition.

[Anonymous]

Ours had a 'pay-in-full' option; pay by semester option and a monthly option. When we were in the situation that you were--we went by the monthly option for that reason. The contract did state we were responsible in full if we left..but it seemed less risky to pay by the month than have them holding a few years of tuition.

We ended up staying at the school for 3 years...and during that time got to know the Director so well. She was reasonable. She also had a long waiting list. If she could fill the space no problem (which she did do a couple times) not holding somebody to the tuition was not something she did.

However, if the contract states you are responsible...you are responsible. Honesty has always been the best approach. Before you sign or turn anything in---have a frank conversation with the Director.