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"It was like somebody dropped a bomb," parent Rachele Cummings said of the announcement that Rapid City Elementary School's Pre-school Montessori Program could close.

But those parents are working to ensure the program stays open for the rest of the year.

Cummings has two sons, Levi, 3, and Caleb, 5, in the program. The school has hosted the non-state funded, tuition-based Montessori program for three years. Parents pay $11 per morning for their children to attend.

"It had been running in the red," Cummings said.

According to the Kalkaska Public Schools Web site, "Montessori is a childcentered program in a language immersion environment, providing loving support and gentle academics for growing minds, as well as movement-based activities for growing bodies." Cummings explained more.

"The program lets kids be drawn to the things that interest them," Cummings said. "It's not that a kid doesn't want to learn math so they don't take math. They just get to learn it differently."

Janie Shier has son Aidan, 3, in the program, and has become involved with fundraising.

"Kids advance at their own comfort levels," Shier said.

Some parents prefer this type of learning for their children, but if Rapid City's program is unable to get consistent funding, it will close Cummings said. She said she believed it was the only pre-school Montessori program in the area outside of Traverse City. Elk Rapids schools do not have Montessori programs.

Rapid City's program currently houses about 12 students from ages 2 and half to 5 years old. It may have lost some students with the school's adoption of three tuition-free Head Start programs, Cummings said. Some schools have waiting lists for such programs, she explained.

Recent snow days have also meant less funding for Rapid City's Montessori program.

Cummings refers to the program as "the best kept secret in Rapid City today" because she said, until recently, advertising for the program was primarily by word of mouth.

"I don't think a lot of people even realize it's here," Cummings said. But concerned parents have stepped in to raise funds, pay for print advertising and have also agreed to pay for the snow days students missed, Cummings added.

Shier said advertising has attracted three new students so far. Parents have really shown their commitment to keeping the school open for the year, she added. One parent who owned a massage business sold gift certificates over the holidays, raising around $250 by donating a percentage of the profits to the Montessori cause, Shier said. The parents also plan to feature items in a silent auction during Rapid City Elementary's Winter Festival, taking place from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 9. Montessori teacher Deb Hobbs plans to have an informational table set up for parents to learn about the program from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. during the festival.

A fund-raiser is also planned to coincide with a PTA-sponsored spaghetti dinner sometime in May, Shier said. Items like bird feeders, baked goods and student-designed potted plants may be sold.

Shier said she is also excited about the possibility of a reusable grocery bag fund-raiser where "Rapid City Elementary School Montessori Program" would be printed on the bags.

Cummings said she is fairly optimistic that parents can help to increase program enrollment, but she is uncertain if it will be enough to continue it beyond this year.

Securing a full-time teacher may also be a factor in the final decision, she said.

To register a student or for more information about the program, call the school atÊ231-331-6121. Montessori parent contacts Janie Shier at 231-331-4361, and Corrie Dewey at 231-331-6191, are also available to answer questions about experience with the program.

Megan Taylor can be reached for question or comment at mtaylor @michigannewspapers.com or by calling 231-264-9711.