More public Montessori is on its way to one of the fastest growing areas in the country, as a new charter school has been approved in Wake County, N.C.
Encompass Montessori received approval to begin its “Ready to Open” process from the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) on Sept. 8. Encompass had originally applied for approval last year, but that application was denied, with NCDPI asking for revisions and structural changes.
This time around, Encompass received unanimous approval from the NCDPI Review Board.
“This is an example of an applicant who no doubt was disappointed last year with the vote that we made,” Bruce Friend, vice chair of the NCDPI Review Board, told the Raleigh News & Observer. “But they kept true with what they wanted to do and they said ‘Ok, we’re going to improve.”
Encompass drew on the resources of the National Center for Montessori in the Public Sector (NCMPS) to design the school, and worked closely with Epic Change Education, a Las Vegas-based charter school incubator and support institution, for the planning of facilities and operations.
“We recruited a whole new board of people who largely are local and do have significant involvement and investment in Eastern Wake County, which is where we hope to open the school,” said Encompass Board Chair Dr. Katie Brown. Brown is also the Director of Research and Professional Learning at NCMPS. Board members include Karyn Farmer, a non‑profit executive and Wake County community leader, Alexis Weddings, a charter school finance expert, Rachael Shaw Marshall, an experienced Montessori educator and head of school, and Kelly Bradford, a scholar of charter school leadership.
Brown said that she and the board are confident that Encompass will meet its enrollment goals, given the fast-growing area the school is targeting. Of counties with greater than 1 million residents, Wake County is the third-fastest growing country, according to U.S. Census data. And the school choice landscape is healthy there, with 26% of Wake County’s students enrolled in charter, private, or home-school options.
Encompass Montessori is slated to open in Fall 2028. The board is The Board of Directors is currently seeking an Executive Director and will participate in a year-long NCDPI training in advance of 2028-29 school year.
Andrew Marshall is an award-winning journalist and visual artist.
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