Growing Education In Corte Madera

Class sizes are expanding and enrollment is growing at many local schools — and that's not always good news as the State tries to tighten its belt.

It's good news, though, for private schools like Marin Montessori School, which is asking the Town of Corte Madera to allow it to increase student enrollment from 209 to 250 students. The Planning Commission will meet Tuesday, March 24, at 7:30 p.m. to discuss the proposal.

The school is not asking at this time to expand its campus or to establish more buildings. Marin Montessori's 2.1-acre campus is bordered on one side by the bay, by Marin Country Day School's parking lot on another side, by a house to the east and by an apartment complex to the north.

The student body ranges from 1½ years old to 6th grade. Marin Montessori, founded in 1963, already has 220 students after administrators increased the enrollment "without knowledge of the cap" at 209 students. That hiccup stalled an application process that began in 2008.

While traffic can get bogged down on Paradise Drive with parents dropping off and picking up their children from the various daycares and schools in the area, a report to the Planning Commission suggests there is already sufficient parking space so even an increased enrollment would not significantly affect traffic flow.