Our Lady of Grace School's Frequently Asked Questions:
What is the school's telephone number?
(818) 344-4126. Please listen to the prompts, which may help you to obtain the information you need more quickly.
To speak to the secretary, please press “0” to be connected with the secretary or her voice mail system.
Where is Our Lady of Grace School located?
OLG's address is 17720 Ventura Boulevard, Encino. The school is next to the church located on the southwest
corner of the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and White Oak Avenue.
What are the directions to get to OLG School?
If driving on Ventura Boulevard, turn south at the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and White Oak Avenue.
Drive south a short distance on White Oak and enter the first driveway past the church on the right (west) side of
White Oak.
If driving on the 101 freeway, take the White Oak Avenue off-ramp and travel south. Staying on White Oak,
go through the intersection of Ventura Boulevard and White Oak Avenue. Drive a short distance until arriving at the first driveway past the church on the right side of the street. Enter the parking lot by turning right into this driveway and park.
Where will I find the school office?
Enter the church/school parking lot using the first driveway just south of Ventura Boulevard on White Oak
Avenue. Facing the church/school buildings from the parking lot, the school building is to the left of the
patio area of the church. (There are also directional signs posted near the top corner of the school building
to assist in locating the office.)
The front doors of the school are located directly across from the church patio. At the school’s front
doors, press the entrance “buzzer” to the right of the doors. The doors will be automatically unlocked
for entrance into the school. The office is located directly inside the school’s front doors on the left.
All visitors to the school must enter through these front doors and come into the school office to sign-in
and receive a visitor pass before they can proceed into the school.
How old does a child have to be to attend OLG?
A pupil entering Pre-Kindergarten must be four years of age on or before June 30 (corrected 11/08) of the current school year.
A pupil entering Kindergarten must be five years of age on or before August 31 of the current school year.
A pupil entering First Grade must be six years of age on or before August 31 of the current school year.
Are school tours available?
Yes. Beginning in February, school tours are conducted by the principal on Wednesday’s at 8:15 a.m.
by appointment only. Please call our school office at (818) 344-4126, extension “0”, and ask the school
secretary to set a school tour appointment for you.
Are school tours available?
Yes. Beginning in February, school tours are conducted by the principal on Wednesday’s at 8:15 a.m.
by appointment only. Please call our school office at (818) 344-4126, extension “0”, and ask the school
secretary to set a school tour appointment for you.
How much is the tuition to attend OLG during the 2009 – 2010 school year?
Grades 1 – 8 Parish rate
$4,000 per student
Grades 1 – 8 Non-Parishioner rate
$4,500 per student
Kindergarten
$4,500 per student (no parish rate discount available)
Pre-School
$5,000 per student (no parish rate discount available)
Tuition Payment Plans
- Payment in full: Paid directly to OLG. $100 discount if paid by July 3rd.
No discount thereafter.
- FACTS Tuition Management Company:
Automatic withdrawal from your checking or savings account, OR via credit
card (2.5% convenience fee applied to credit card payments. MasterCard, American
Express, and Discover Cards accepted; no VISA accepted).
- Payment options with FACTS:
- 11 monthly payments - begin in the month of July - $41 FACTS enrollment
fee
- Grade 1-8 Parish Rate $364
- Grade 1-8 Non-Parishioner Rate $410
- Kindergarten $410
- Pre-Kindergarten $455
- 10 monthly payments - begin in the month of August - $41 FACTS enrollment
fee
- Grade 1-8 Parish Rate $400
- Grade 1-8 Non-Parishioner Rate $450
- Kindergarten $450
- Pre-Kindergarten $500
- Other payment plans available -
- Quarterly plan - $41 FACTS enrollment fee
- Payment schedule: August, October, January, and March
- Semi-Annual Plan - $15 FACTS enrollment fee
- Payment schedule: August and January
Are there any other fees?
Yes, as follows:
Non-Refundable General Fees
Application and testing fee
$150 - per student, due when submitting application
Student fee
$200 - per student, due upon acceptance at time of registration or by June 1st
FACTS enrollment fee
$ 41 - per account, payable upon account set-up
Yard Duty fee
$ 50 - per family, due June 1st
Locker fee
$ 25 - per student, grades 6, 7, and 8 only, due in September
Graduation fee
$150 - per 8th grade student, due end of January of graduation year
Extra Curricular Fees
Sports fee
$ 50 - per student; per sport, due at sport try-out
Cheerleader fee
$740 - approximate cost: Uniform - $450 (new to team); competition fee - $190; Cheerleader Camp fee - $100.
Swim Team fee
$385 - approximate cost: Monthly practice fee - $270 from Oct. – Nov. (additional practice optional $90/month);
meet fees - $65; swimsuit costs vary - $35-$50; mandatory swim cap - $3.50.
Parent Participation Fees
Family Fundraising Obligation -- $ 550 per family
A commitment of $550 per family is required. This obligation can be met through participation in
PTO-sponsored fundraisers (such as the magazine drive, spring raffle, “Scrip” purchases, etc.),
or by direct payment to the school. If you plan to pay the $550 over time ($50 each month for
11 months, or $55 each month for 10 months) the first installment must be paid in July (11 month plan)
or August (10 month plan) in order to finish by May. Family Fundraising may be included in your
FACTS automatic debit, upon your approval to do so.
Volunteer Hours
Each family is required to volunteer 35 hours annually, to be completed by June 1. Any volunteer
hours not completed by June 1 will be billed to you at $25.00 per hour. Nine (9) hours of the 35
hours must be volunteered during the Parish/School Fair.
School Improvement Drive
Participation in the drive is mandatory with a suggested donation of $100. The obligation is due June 1.
Yard Duty
Each family may work five (5) days of yard duty during lunch time and forego a $50 yard duty fee.
How do we apply to attend Our Lady of Grace School?
Application packets are ready to be picked up in the school office by the fourth week of each
January, or they may be downloaded from this parish website after the fourth week of January.
Applications may also be picked up at our annual Open House, which usually takes place on the
last Sunday in January at 10:30 a.m. (This date and time may be subject to change, so please
call the school office in January to inquire about the actual scheduled date.)
To pick up an application packet from the school, please come to the school office
(location and directions noted above) and request an application from the school secretary.
Fill out all applicable application paperwork legibly and completely and return it to the
school office as soon as possible. The first page of the application packet is an “Application
Process Checklist”. Please read this information carefully, as only complete application packets
with all required applicable documents attached will be accepted for consideration.
What happens after we return the application packet with all requested documents?
An appointment will be made by the school secretary for your child/children to take an entrance test.
The test will be administered by the applicable grade teacher. A meeting will also be scheduled for you
to meet with the principal. That meeting is your opportunity to ask the principal any questions you may
have about curriculum or the school. After the testing with the teacher and meeting with the principal
have been completed, a decision will be made as to acceptance. A letter from the principal informing
parents of acceptance status will be sent to your home shortly after your meeting.
What is the testing like?
For Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten, the test is a “one-on-one” developmental exam with the teacher
and prospective student in the classroom. The test will be administered verbally, with the teacher
asking simple questions and the child answering them. Parents wait outside the classroom while the
child is tested. The test will take approximately twenty minutes to one half hour to complete.
For grades 1 through 7, a written test will be administered by the applicable grade teacher.
More than one student may be tested at the same time. The prospective students are given one and
one half hour to complete the test. The test will include math, science, language arts, and reading
comprehension questions.
Is there a waiting list for applying?
There is no waiting list before the application process begins in January. Waiting lists
are only begun once a classroom has reached the capacity number of students. (That number varies,
depending on the grade.)
How many students are currently enrolled in the school?
The enrollment varies from year to year, but remains fairly constant at between approximately
280 to 300 students.
What is the number of students in each grade?
Pre-Kindergarten: 18 students, maximum
Kindergarten – Grade 8: 30 students, average
(Enrollment in each grade may not reach these numbers, but will not exceed 35.)
How many classrooms are there for each grade?
There is one classroom per grade.
Do we have to be Catholic to apply to OLG?
No. There is no requirement that your family be Catholic in order to attend school at Our Lady of Grace.
How can we get the parishioner discount tuition rate?
Become registered members of Our Lady of Grace parish by contacting the church office at (818) 342-4686.
Ask how to become a registered member of OLG parish, and they will inform you of the steps to be taken.
To obtain the parishioner discount tuition rate you must be registered at this parish for at least six
months and regularly attend Mass. Mass attendance is reviewed twice a year and your attendance should
be at least fifty percent during a six month period. Your church attendance record is determined by
church envelope counts received from the church office.
What are the hours the students are in school?
7:50 a.m. – 2:45 p.m. (2:00 p.m. dismissal for Pre-Kindergarten), Monday through Thursday
7:50 a.m. – 12:35 p.m. (12:00 noon dismissal for Pre-Kindergarten), each Friday
Is there before and after-school Day Care available?
Yes. OLG offers morning and afternoon extended Day Care. Day Care fees vary for your usage and number
of children attending Day Care. Drop in rates are $5.00 per hour, per child. All families needing regular
or drop-in Day Care must register separately with a $10.00 registration fee. Please be advised, by state
regulation, before and after-school Day Care is only available to children turning 5 years old on or before
December 1 of the year they enter our Pre-Kindergarten program.
2009 - 2010 Yearly Day Care Rates
Day Care Rates
What are the hours of Day Care operation?
The hours of Day Care operation are from 7:00 a.m. to 7:50 a.m. (start of school) in the morning; and
in the afternoons from dismissal until 6:00 p.m. Day Care is available every school day (with some
exceptions).
Is there tuition assistance available?
A small amount of scholarship money is reserved for the needs of struggling Catholic families active
in our parish who meet the following criteria:
- Arrange a formal appointment with the principal to discuss your situation
- Submit a financial assistance application and financial records to FACTS Tuition Management Co.
- Attend Mass each Sunday
- Donate to OLG parish each Sunday by means of the numbered church envelope system
- Fulfill the required hours of volunteer service to the school
- Pay monthly tuition bills on time
For answers to other questions you may have, you can also refer to the wealth of information
contained in the Parent/Student Handbook found elsewhere in the “school” section of this parish
website.
Our school secretary will also be happy to answer any of your questions. You may contact her
by calling the telephone number noted at the top of this FAQ page. Thank you!