Mayapple School

Who We Are

We are The Mayapple School, a nonprofit early childcare provider for children ages 3-6 in the New River Valley that focuses on using the outdoors to help young minds and bodies grow. Using an integrated, playful curriculum with a focus on outdoor discovery, our students build an awareness of themselves, each other, and the world around us. The Mayapple School nurtures joyful, connected, and resilient children who are masters of their own learning and have a zest for life.

The Mayapple School also offers a rich summer camp curriculum for a wide range of ages, including camps to explore printmaking, dairy cows and farming, engineering, and even fairies and gnomes!

Fundraising Needs

Recent estimates suggest that over 400 additional childcares slots are needed in Montgomery County.  We are actively looking to expand our offerings with a multi-step plan.  

How we used the 2022 funds raised through Give Local NRV: 

The Mayapple School used the funds raised in 2022 to implement a portion of our expansion plan by expanding our summer camp offerings by four weeks! The funds allowed us to hire a full time summer camp director, and we have been able to gain access to unique locations including Falls Ridge for a Caves & Waterfall camp! We are thrilled to be able to meet this community need.

2023-2024 Goals to Meet the Needs of the Community:

• Additional scholarships for childcare
  • For the 2023-2024 school year, Mayapple anticipates offering up to $6,800 in scholarships for families in need of childcare. However, Mayapple was unable to award scholarships to meet the needs of all of our applicants. Providing childcare for all families in our community has always been a high priority, and we intend to use funds raised here to better meet those needs.
• Finding a permanent home for our school for future generations
  • Mayapple has been searching for a permanent site for over two years. While there have been some opportunities, we know that being able to purchase a permanent location will require that we increase our fundraising.
  • The Mayapple School is at capacity for enrollment in the location we currently rent and the school has recently lost the ability to use much of the outdoor space due to storm water drainage issues. Now more than ever, being able to purchase a permanent site is of utmost importance.
  • Purchasing a location will allow Mayapple to: 
    • Increase enrollment numbers
    • Increase the age range served
    • Increase the opportunities to create outdoor learning spaces by having agency over the property

Thank you for taking the time to consider donating to The Mayapple School. Your donation will help Mayapple continue to serve our community for generations to come!