German-American School Manhattan - Elementary School vs Kennedy International School - Lower School

	G German-American School Manhattan - Elementary School New York, United States	K Kennedy International School - Lower School New York, United States
Snapshot	Snapshot
Fees / year	Fees / year $32,500 - 42,500	Fees / year $24,000 - 45,000
Age range	Age range 2 - 11 years	Age range 3 - 12 years
Type	Type Co-educational	Type Co-educational
Curriculum	Curriculum IB (PYP), American Curriculum, Bespoke Curriculum, German Curriculum	Curriculum American Curriculum, French Curriculum, Japanese Curriculum
Pupils	Pupils —	Pupils 201
Typical class size	Typical class size 12	Typical class size —
Instruction language	Instruction language German, English	Instruction language English, French, Japanese
Opened	Opened 2018	Opened 1964
Bus service	Bus service No	Bus service Yes
Essentials	Essentials
Location	Location German-American School Manhattan operates two Tribeca campuses: GSM Kita Preschool & Kindergarten at 85 Warren Street and GSM Dual Immersion Elementary School at 74 Warren Street. It is described as a Premier Tribeca Location with access via most subway lines. The Kita campus is at 85 Warren St and the Elementary campus is at 74 Warren St, New York, NY 10007.	Location Two campuses in New York City. Lower School Campus is at 225 East 43rd Street, New York, NY 10017. Upper School Campus is at 815 Second Avenue, 2nd floor, New York, NY 10017. Phone: 212-681-1877 (Lower School) and 212-682-3967 (Upper School).
Stages	Stages The program serves children from age 2 through 5th grade. GSM Kita Preschool & Kindergarten serves ages 3–5 (2 years German immersion) and GSM Dual Immersion Elementary School serves Grades 1–5.	Stages Lower School (elementary) and Upper School (secondary)
School type	School type Bilingual IB World School (Preschool and Lower School) in Manhattan.	School type International school offering bilingual French-English and bilingual Japanese-English programs
Pupil nationality mix	Pupil nationality mix —	Pupil nationality mix —
Additional learning support	Additional learning support Subjects are taught in German and English by native speakers; teachers address each child's individual needs with attention to language level and developmental skills.	Additional learning support English as a New Language (ENL) and French as a Foreign Language (FLE) support
Country affiliation	Country affiliation —	Country affiliation France; accredited by the French Ministry of Education and part of the AEFE network
Religious affiliation	Religious affiliation —	Religious affiliation —
School day structure	School day structure —	School day structure —
Bus service details	Bus service details —	Bus service details School Bus Service is being implemented with the NYC Department of Transportation for the 2025–2026 school year; Kindergarten through 6th grade students may qualify for free transportation; for interest, contact office@kennedyinternational.org
Fees	Fees
Fee details	Fee details Application fee - Application fee: USD 200 (one-time, required with application). Tuition fees (school year 2025/26) - Preschool & Pre-K (full program): USD 35,500 per year. - Preschool — half day or 3 days/week option: USD 32,500 per year. - Elementary (Grades K–5): USD 42,500 per year. Note: The school's published figures are given as annual tuition amounts for the 2025/26 school year; no published per-term (semester/quarter) breakdown of those exact amounts is available. Families are required to sign the school contract and pay a first installment to reserve a spot. Billing schedule and payment terms - A signed school contract and payment of the first installment are required to reserve a place after acceptance. Acceptance notices begin to be sent December 1 and enrollment is secured once the contract and first installment are received. - No detailed published schedule for remaining installments, due dates, late fees, or tuition refund deadlines is available in the published materials for the 2025/26 school year. Boarding fees - Boarding fees: Not applicable. The school operates GSM Kita Preschool & Kindergarten and a Dual Immersion Elementary School (Preschool through Grade 5) at day-school locations in Manhattan; no boarding program or boarding fees are published. Other costs and fees - After‑school care and camp programs are offered, but specific fees for after‑school care, camps, extended day, or extracurricular programs are not published. - Uniform fees: No published uniform requirement or uniform fee is listed. - Typical ancillary charges such as lunch/meals, classroom materials, field trips, technology fees, instrument or supply fees, or activity fees are not itemized in the published fee information. - Financial assistance: Financial aid is offered to qualifying families through SSS (School and Student Services). Refund information - No published refund policy for deposits, first installments, or tuition refunds appears in the school's published 2025/26 tuition materials. The only published procedural detail is that families sign a contract and pay a first installment to reserve a spot. Fee payment options - Specific payment methods (credit card, ACH/bank transfer, online payment portal, or checks) are not itemized in the published tuition materials. The main office contact details are provided for billing or admissions inquiries: phone (646) 869-1152 and info@germanschoolmanhattan.org. Brief summary of findings and gaps in published information - Published, load-bearing figures are: USD 200 application fee and annual tuition amounts for 2025/26 (Preschool & Pre-K USD 35,500; Preschool half day 3 days/week USD 32,500; Elementary K–5 USD 42,500). - The published materials confirm that a signed contract and a first installment are required to reserve an offered place, and that financial aid is available through SSS. - The published materials do not provide a full per-term instalment schedule, itemized charges for ancillary services (meals, materials, uniforms, trips), payment-method options, detailed refund policy language, or any boarding fees (the school is a day school). These items are not published in the 2025/26 tuition materials. (For billing or contract specifics not published above, contact the school's admissions/finance office at the provided phone number or email for the authoritative contract and payment schedule.)	Fee details Application fees - There is no application fee for Kennedy International School (NO APPLICATION FEE). One-time enrollment / new-student fees - Pre-K 3 & Pre-K: One-time new student fee USD 1,000. - Kindergarten through Grade 8: One-time new student fee USD 3,000. - High School (Grades 9–12): One-time new student fee USD 3,000. Annual tuition by year group (2026–2027 academic year: September 2026 through June 2027) - Pre-K 3 & Pre-K (Full‑time, full day 8:00am–3:30pm): USD 40,000 per year. Includes extended aftercare between 3:15pm and 6:00pm for the full‑time Pre‑K option. - Pre-K 3 (Part‑time options): USD 24,000 per year (available as 5 mornings or 3 full days for Pre‑K 3 only). - Kindergarten through Grade 8 (K–8): USD 42,500 per year. - High School (Grades 9–12): USD 45,000 per year. Overnight trip and exam/registration fees - Overnight school trips (charged as 60% of total trip cost, school lists estimated contributions): - 4th & 5th grade contribution listed as USD 350 (60% of total trip cost). - 8th grade contribution listed as USD 700 (60% of total trip cost). - 9th & 10th grade contribution listed as USD 700 (60% of total trip cost). - International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma registration fee for Grade 12: USD 900. Downpayment and installment (service) fees — billing structure and common payment plans - Non‑refundable downpayment required for all tuition plans: USD 4,000. - Installment plan service fees (applied when choosing those plans; do not apply to governmental organizations): - 2‑installment plan service fee: USD 400. - 5‑installment plan service fee: USD 700. - Example payment-flow calculation (numbers shown are arithmetic examples using the published tuition, the published non‑refundable downpayment, and the published service fees): - Example for K–8 (tuition USD 42,500): - Pay non‑refundable downpayment USD 4,000 at enrollment; remaining tuition balance USD 38,500. - If choosing the 2‑installment plan: two equal installments of USD 19,250 each; add the USD 400 2‑installment service fee as charged by the school. - If choosing the 5‑installment plan: five equal installments of USD 7,700 each; add the USD 700 5‑installment service fee as charged by the school. - These example calculations assume the USD 4,000 downpayment is applied toward the annual tuition balance; the school's enrollment/contract documents define exact due dates and how payments are posted. The published figures above (tuition, downpayment, and service fees) are the basis for these examples. Billing schedule and payment terms (what is published) - The school states tuition covers the full academic year (September 2026 through June 2027). A non‑refundable downpayment of USD 4,000 is required for all tuition plans. The school publishes service fees for 2‑installment and 5‑installment options, indicating those installment options are available. Exact invoice dates, installment due dates, and the full enrollment contract terms are processed through the admissions/enrollment portal and enrollment contract documents. Boarding - Boarding is not offered; Kennedy International School operates as a day school with Lower and Upper School campus addresses in New York City (day‑school locations listed for Lower School and Upper School). Boarding fees are not applicable. Other costs and typical additional fees - Uniforms: A uniform policy is in place and required items are purchased through the school's designated uniform supplier (Untold Horizons). Families should expect a separate cost to purchase required uniform items; the school provides division‑specific uniform guides and an online uniform ordering site. Specific uniform pricing is handled by the supplier's ordering portal. - Overnight trip contributions (listed above) are additional when trips occur; those contributions are published as the family portion (60% examples). - IB registration fee for Grade 12: USD 900 (listed above). - Financial aid processing fee for the aid application (Clarity platform): USD 65 submission fee for families applying for financial assistance. Refund information (what is published / how refund details are handled) - The school's publicly posted pages list tuition, the non‑refundable downpayment amount, and installment service fees, but do not publish a general, detailed tuition refund schedule or full withdrawal/refund policy on the publicly viewable pages. Refund specifics and any pro‑rata or withdrawal refund calculations are handled through the school's enrollment contract and admissions/enrollment portal documentation. Parents should expect the USD 4,000 downpayment to be non‑refundable as published. Fee payment options (what is published) - The school publishes available installment options (2‑installment and 5‑installment plans) and associated service fees; the publicly visible pages do not list an explicit set of accepted payment methods (for example, credit card, ACH/wire transfer, check). Enrollment and billing arrangements (including accepted payment methods and any online payment portal details) are managed through the admissions/enrollment portal and the family's enrollment contract. Discounts and special cases - United Nations staff discount: a 30% tuition discount is published for United Nations staff enrolling children in Pre‑K 3 and Pre‑K. - French Government financial aid (bourses scolaires) may be available to eligible French citizens enrolled in Pre‑K 3 through Grade 9; that program is administered separately by the French Consulate/AEFE. Concise note about publicly unavailable details - The school's public pages provide annual tuition amounts, the required non‑refundable downpayment, one‑time new student fees, published trip contributions, IB registration fee, installment service fees, and the absence of an application fee. The public pages do not publish a complete line‑by‑line, per‑term invoice schedule with exact due dates, a full tuition refund timetable, or a published list of accepted payment methods; those operational details are contained in the school's enrollment/contract documents and the admissions/enrollment portal.
Diving deeper	Diving deeper
Boarding arrangements	Boarding arrangements —	Boarding arrangements —
Uniform requirement	Uniform requirement —	Uniform requirement —
Food options	Food options —	Food options —
House system	House system —	House system —
Governance and ownership	Governance and ownership —	Governance and ownership —
Academics	Academics
Curriculum details	Curriculum details GSM is a bilingual IB Primary Years Programme (PYP) offered for Preschool (2s–4s) through Grade 5, with two campuses at 85 Warren Street (Kita Preschool) and 74 Warren Street (Dual Immersion Elementary). The curriculum blends German grade-level competencies with New York State Education standards and is aligned with IB principles. After establishing a solid bilingual foundation in kindergarten, instruction in grades 1–5 is split evenly between German and English, with native German teachers guiding German reading, writing, math, social studies, and ethics and native English teachers guiding English reading, writing, social studies, science, and math. Art, music, and movement are taught in both languages, and Spanish is introduced in Grade 3. Classes are small (maximum 20 students per class) to support personalized instruction, reflection, independence, and collaboration within an inquiry-based learning framework. The Kita/Preschool program (ages 2–4) uses a bilingual approach to early childhood learning. The school operates across two campuses: Kita Preschool at 85 Warren Street and Dual Immersion Elementary at 74 Warren Street.	Curriculum details The curriculum integrates the French Ministry of Education guidelines, the Japanese Ministry of Education guidelines, and New York State Next Generation Learning Standards. It offers a balanced bilingual program for students from preschool through 12th grade. The program is registered by the New York State Board of Regents. In the Upper School, a Pre-IB Track for 9th–10th grade prepares students for the International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IBDP) for 11th–12th grade. The IB Diploma Programme comprises six subject groups and DP core including Theory of Knowledge (TOK), Creativity, Activity & Service (CAS), and the Extended Essay (EE).
Student teacher ratio	Student teacher ratio Class sizes are small. Maximum class size is 20 students per the Academics page; another page notes a maximum of 16 with an average of 12.	Student teacher ratio —
Exam results	Exam results —	Exam results —
Higher education progression	Higher education progression —	Higher education progression The IB Diploma Programme is widely recognized by more than 2,000 universities in 100+ countries worldwide; many universities offer advanced placement, scholarships or other incentives for IB students.
Gifted and talented	Gifted and talented —	Gifted and talented —
Academic calendar	Academic calendar —	Academic calendar —
Wellbeing & support	Wellbeing & support
Social & emotional learning	Social & emotional learning —	Social & emotional learning —
Special educational needs (SEN)	Special educational needs (SEN) —	Special educational needs (SEN) —
English as an additional language	English as an additional language —	English as an additional language —
Mental wellbeing	Mental wellbeing —	Mental wellbeing —
Safeguarding	Safeguarding —	Safeguarding —
Safeguarding policy	Safeguarding policy —	Safeguarding policy —
Facilities	Facilities
Facilities overview	Facilities overview —	Facilities overview —
Sports facilities	Sports facilities —	Sports facilities —
Academic facilities	Academic facilities —	Academic facilities —
Extra curricular facilities	Extra curricular facilities —	Extra curricular facilities —
Parent experience	Parent experience
History	History —	History —
Community	Community —	Community —
Parent teacher association	Parent teacher association —	Parent teacher association —
Extra-curricular	Extra-curricular
Academic & intellectual	Academic & intellectual —	Academic & intellectual —
Arts & creative	Arts & creative —	Arts & creative —
Cultural & language	Cultural & language —	Cultural & language —
Social & hobbies	Social & hobbies —	Social & hobbies —
Community & service	Community & service —	Community & service —
Leadership & professional	Leadership & professional —	Leadership & professional —
Lifestyle & wellbeing	Lifestyle & wellbeing —	Lifestyle & wellbeing —
Language provision	Language provision
Language provision	Language provision —	Language provision —
Bilingual teaching	Bilingual teaching —	Bilingual teaching —
Immersion programs	Immersion programs —	Immersion programs —
Reputation	Reputation
Awards	Awards —	Awards —
Accreditations	Accreditations —	Accreditations —
Admissions	Admissions
Admissions	Admissions 1. Apply: Request our application form any time. You will be asked to include the birth certificate, report cards of prior schools and a $200 application fee. Enrollment is rolling for the 2025/26 school year for Preschool through Grade 5. 2. Interviews & Playdates: For Grade 1 or higher, schedule an interview with the child and parent(s)/guardian(s). The interview should be scheduled after submitting the application two days prior. Please request an appointment from the admissions team. Prior knowledge of German is not a prerequisite for admissions K-2; students with strong academic records can be admitted without German language into Grades 3-5. For Preschool or Kindergarten (ages 2-4), open-format playdates are offered; playdates typically occur on Tue/Thu/Fri at 4 PM. 3. Acceptance: Acceptance letters of preferred admissions are sent starting December 1. Families sign the school contract and pay the first installment to reserve a spot (first come first served). 4. Admissions Timetable: For the 2026-27 admissions season, two cycles are used: Early Admissions for siblings and partner-school students; Regular Admissions across all grades. Application Submission Deadline: December 1; Acceptance Notification Date: December 15. Rolling admissions apply for the current year. 5. Current Admissions: We are currently accepting applications for the 2025/26 school year for GSM bilingual Kita Preschool (ages 2-4), GSM bilingual Kindergarten (age 5), and GSM Dual Immersion Elementary School (grades 1-5); interviews are required for the elementary. 6. Open Houses & Tours: In-person open house tours are held at 74 & 85 Warren Streets. Spring tour season includes dates such as 3/5, 3/9, 3/12, 3/26; sign up for open houses online. Virtual Zoom tours are available; community playdates are scheduled on dates such as 3/12, 4/16, 5/14, 6/11; sign up for playdates online. 7. Tuition & Financial Information: Tuition for School Year 2025/26: Preschool & PreK $35,500/year; Preschool half-day 3 days/week $32,500/year; Elementary K-5 $42,500/year. Financial aid is available to qualifying families through SSS.	Admissions Application (Rolling Admissions): Submit online application via the admissions portal. After submission, complete the checklist of supporting documents needed to move forward in the admissions process. Rolling admissions allow applications at any time. The admissions team will review the submission and guide you to the next step. Interview: After the application and supporting documents have been uploaded and completed, the admissions office will connect with you to schedule an interview and any further assessments needed. The interview assesses readiness and fit with the bilingual program and may include language assessments. Additional information or materials may be requested. Enrollment: After the interview and assessments take place, the admissions office will contact you with a final decision via email. If admitted, you will receive instructions to enroll and any remaining forms or deposits. You may contact the admissions office with questions as needed.
Scholarships	Scholarships GSM offers financial aid to qualifying families through SSS.	Scholarships United Nations Preschool Grant: This grant offers a 30% reduction in tuition costs for United Nations staff members enrolling their child in Pre-K 3 or Pre-K programs (ages 2–4). Eligibility is confirmed upon verification of United Nations staff status at the time of inquiry. French Government Financial Aid (Bourses scolaires): If your child is a French citizen and is registered with the Consulate General of France in New York, your family may be eligible for financial aid from the French Government. Applications and award decisions are handled exclusively by the Consulate General of France. Students enrolled in Pre-K 3 through 9th grade may be eligible for financial aid. Students enrolled in 10th through 12th grade are not eligible. Apply for Financial Assistance: A Clarity Application is used to assess each family's financial profile, taking into account assets, income, expenses, and debts. New families must complete the enrollment process prior to the evaluation of their financial aid application. Current families who have not previously applied for financial aid are not eligible unless a significant change in financial circumstances can be demonstrated. Families currently receiving financial aid are required to reapply each year. A $65 submission fee applies. Assistance is available directly within the Clarity application.
Waitlist	Waitlist —	Waitlist —
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