Frequently Asked Questions

Bright, capable students in kindergarten through twelfth grade who need more explicit, structured, or multisensory teaching than a typical classroom provides. That includes students with ADHD, dyslexia, autism spectrum profiles, anxiety-related learning needs, and language-based or processing differences. Most of our families arrive after a stretch of school not working, and they are usually surprised by how quickly that changes.

It means brains work differently from one another, and that difference is variation rather than defect. A dyslexic reader is not a broken reader, and a student with ADHD is not a student who is not trying. What they need is teaching built for how they actually process information. We have written about this at more length on What Is Neurodiversity.

Just over 100 students across all grades, in three divisions: Lower, Middle, and Upper. Classes are small on purpose. Our model depends on a teacher being able to watch how each student works, not just what they turn in, and that is not possible in a room of thirty.

Yes. Our current accreditation and the standards behind it are detailed on the Accreditation page.

All the same institution. We are now The Royce School. If you knew us as Chatham Academy or Royce Learning Center, nothing about the work changed, only the name over the door. The full history is on Our Story.

Submit an inquiry form. It takes a few minutes and it goes straight to our admissions office. From there we will reach out to talk about your child. The full sequence is laid out on the Admissions Process page.

Earlier is better, because our classes are small and seats in a given grade are limited. That said, we know that the decision to change schools often arrives in the middle of a hard year rather than conveniently in the spring. Reach out whenever you are ready and we will tell you honestly what is available.

Recent educational or psychological testing helps us understand how your child learns and place them well, so we ask for whatever you have. If you do not have testing, say so during your inquiry rather than delaying the conversation. We will talk you through what is needed and what it is for.

Please do. Reading about a school tells you very little. Watching a classroom for twenty minutes tells you almost everything. Schedule a visit, or start with the virtual tour if you are out of town.

When there is space and it is the right fit, yes. Sometimes a family cannot wait until August, and we understand that. Contact admissions and we will give you a straight answer about the grade you need.

Current tuition for the school year is published on the Tuition page, along with what it includes. We publish it openly because we would rather you know early than find out late.

Yes. Need-based tuition assistance is available and families do receive it. Details and how to apply are on the Tuition page. Please do not rule Royce out on price before you have talked to us.

Royce participates in Georgia’s Qualified Education Expense tax credit program through the Apogee Scholarship Fund, which turns Georgia taxpayers’ state tax dollars into scholarships for our students. See Apogee. Ask admissions about any other programs your family may qualify for, since eligibility rules change and depend on your circumstances.

Not as a rule. Royce is an independent school and most families pay tuition, with assistance where it is needed. Arrangements involving a public district are uncommon and depend entirely on the district and your child’s situation. If you think yours might be one, tell admissions early.

Every Royce teacher is trained in the Orton-Gillingham Approach and in Marilyn Zecher Multisensory Math. Instruction is explicit, structured, and multisensory, and it is guided by what a student actually produces rather than by where a pacing guide says the class should be. More on the Royce Approach and Curriculum pages.

Support services available through the school are described on the Services page. Which supports a particular student receives is decided with the family, not assigned by default.

An IEP is a public school instrument created under federal law by a district. Independent schools do not issue them. What Royce does instead is build the individualized plan into the ordinary school day, so a student is not waiting on a document to get the teaching they need. If your child has an existing IEP or 504 plan, bring it. It tells us a great deal.

We start from the assumption that behavior is communication, usually about something that is too hard, too loud, or too fast. Our teachers are trained to read it that way. Expectations are clear and consistent, and they are paired with teaching students the self-management and self-advocacy skills to meet them. The full policies live in the Student Handbook.

Closely, and often. A school this size does not need a formal process to notice that a child had a rough week. Reporting, conferences, and communication expectations are described in the Parent Handbook, and families can always reach a teacher directly.

Some do. Between 20 and 30 percent of our students successfully transition back to a traditional school setting. Others stay through graduation because Royce is simply where they learn best. Both are good outcomes, and we do not treat one as a win and the other as a consolation.

Yes. Juniors and seniors can participate in dual enrollment with Georgia Southern University, Savannah Technical College, and Middle Georgia State College, earning college credit while still in high school.

Yes. Royce high school students are eligible for Georgia’s HOPE Scholarship, subject to the state’s academic requirements. This surprises families more often than it should.

Yes, and it matters. Athletics, clubs, and the arts are part of the Royce day, not an afterthought. For many of our students this is the first place they have been picked for a team or cast in a show. See Student Life.