NAPILI – Maui Preparatory Academy, West Maui’s only private and secular preschool to 12th grade college preparatory program, has several important announcements to share with the community about the upcoming 2017-18 school year.

First, Maui Preparatory Academy announces the reconstitution of its early childhood program into the Early Childhood Discovery Center (ECDC). The ECDC, which includes preschool and kindergarten, will be offering flexible attendance options in the preschool and new competitive pricing in both preschool and kindergarten for the 2017-18 school year. The preschool is now accepting applications for its two-day and three-day options, with limited spots available, as well as its traditional five-day program. Furthermore, without sacrificing the quality and breadth of Maui Prep’s programs and curriculum, tuition for both preschool and kindergarten in the ECDC is being reset for the 2017-18 school year to be more in line with other West Maui options.

To inaugurate these developments within the Early Childhood Discovery Center, Maui Prep will host an Open House for families interested in preschool and kindergarten next year. This will take place on Saturday, Feb. 25, from 9 to 11 a.m. on the Maui Prep campus at 4910 Honoapiilani Highway. Families can meet the teachers, tour the classrooms and campus, and enjoy light morning refreshments. Maui Prep will waive its application fee for any new families who attend the Open House, and there will be a special drawing for those new families in attendance for one 5 percent Tuition Remission award for the 2017-18 school year.

Second, Maui Prep announces that it is adopting a much more substantive, needs-based multi-child financial assistance program for qualifying families. Maui Prep is doing the very best it can to support Maui Prep families who wish to enroll all of their children at the school.

Third, contingent on demand, Maui Prep will be inaugurating morning transportation service from Maalaea, Launiupoko and Lahaina. The Maui Prep bus has 14 belted passenger seats; transportation service will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Fourth, Maui Prep announces the return of its very popular Pueo Pilot Scholarship Program, a merit-based, four-year full scholarship geared toward new, incoming high school students. The application deadline is Feb. 22. All applicants will also sit for a formal, in-person interview with the Pueo Pilot Scholarship Committee. Interested families and students may e-mail admissions@mauiprep.org or call 665-9966.

In its 12 years of operation, Maui Prep has grown from a “little, sleepy day school on a hill” into one of Hawaii’s best college preparatory institutions. In its first few years of operation, Maui Prep was recognized as a “Leading School of The Future.” Since then, Maui Prep has established its Center for Creativity, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CCIE), out of which Maui Prep now produces, among other things, county and state champions in science and robotics. Maui Prep has firmly established itself as a global educational organization with the opening of its international boarding program in 2014 for students in grades 8-12. And, most recently, Maui Prep has taken steps to become the leading K-12 organization on the island for marine studies with the establishment of its Moana Institute.

With Maui Prep’s new initiatives in early childhood education, morning bus transportation option, and the Pueo Pilot Full Scholarship Program, the 2017-18 school year is the perfect time to become a member of the Maui Prep ‘Ohana.