We are excited to announce that Tuckahoe Presbyterian (TPC) will soon begin leasing space to the elementary program of Tuckahoe Montessori School (TMS). Last week, the TPC Administration and Human Resource (A&HR) Committee as well as Session approved this new lease contract. The lease will begin in April, the school will begin moving in June, and classes will begin this fall. The lease is a five-year lease that will be reviewed annually.
Our primary point of contact is Amanda Edmondson, Head of School. Her mother was the prior Head of School, so Amanda has grown up closely connected to the Tuckahoe Montessori community and continues the legacy of thoughtful and intentional education. As described by Amanda, Tuckahoe Montessori began in 1972, “welcoming twenty eager children into a carefully prepared one-room schoolhouse. Over the past fifty years, many classrooms have been added, but our thoughtfully designed program, filled with kindness and kinship, remains the same.”
Tuckahoe Montessori’s elementary program (1st– 6th grades) will move into the second floor of our education building, except for Rooms 209 and 210. Room 209 will become our primary storage space for TPC, and Room 210 has already transitioned to being the Youth Room. TMS’s elementary program will have about 35 students this year and will grow to no more than 50 students.
As additional background, Tuckahoe Montessori reached out to TPC in January 2023 about renting space. In October 2024, after several months of thoughtful conversations with representatives from A&HR, Property, Fellowship, Christian Formation, and Stewardship & Finance, we determined we were ready to begin exploring sharing our space again, something we haven’t done in this capacity since Dogwood Preschool. We entered a collaborative process that involved several meetings with TMS as well as ministry leaders at TPC to ensure clear communication at the beginning of this relationship.
Tuckahoe Montessori’s Toddler and Primary programs will remain at Christ United Methodist Church on West Grace Street (near Charles and Horsepen). This proximity to TPC makes it ideal for having their programming at two different churches.
While Tuckahoe Montessori is not a Christian organization, they read through TPC’s Mission Statement and recognized a lot of shared values. We hope to find ways for our organizations to engage with one another- and how we may partner to engage with our broader local community.
You can expect to see some facility upgrades to provide better security for the school area and the church. We are also working to broaden our Wi-Fi capabilities throughout the entire church. And finally, ministry leaders here at the church will enter a spring-cleaning mode to prepare for this new addition. We will continue to keep you all updated as we go through this transition. Please let us know if you have any questions or considerations.
For more information about Tuckahoe Montessori School, see: www.tuckmont.org
Peace,
Rev. Keli Shipley Cooper, Pastor and Head of Staff
Pat Macaulay, Chair of A&HR
