Santa Monica Montessori School — a community staple for 66 years — is abruptly closing at the end of next week. It will be replaced by the AI-powered Alpha School, The Sun has confirmed.
Parents and staff were blindsided earlier this week when they were informed by executive director and owner Pamela Crisman that the school, which has operated at 1909 Colorado Ave. since 1990, would discontinue operations on Friday, July 17.
Crisman did not show up for a pre-arranged interview with The Sun on Thursday afternoon to discuss the sudden displacement of her students and staff. However, in a note to parents obtained by the Santa Monica Observer, she said the decision to walk away was made “due to family circumstances that now require my full attention.”
The real story behind the sudden closure appears to be more a mix of shifting public school demographics, a lucrative Westside real estate deal and an urgent scramble by a tech-backed school to find more space.
First, some background
Santa Monica Montessori School first opened in 1960 at the corner of 20th Street and Arizona Avenue. Crisman became the school’s third director in 2003. Records indicate she purchased the 9,841-square-foot building for $2.9 million around the same time under the name Pelican and Company.
Alpha School is the new kid on the block. It currently operates more than a dozen locations nationwide with new cities being added regularly. Alpha famously uses artificial intelligence to teach students core subjects in just two hours each day. A location at 3002 Main Street was announced earlier this summer.
The TK factor
Private preschools in Santa Monica were dealt a massive blow when SMMUSD began offering Transitional Kindergarten (TK) at all Santa Monica and Malibu elementary schools for the 2023–24 school year.
The expansion was driven by the California Universal Prekindergarten (UPK) legislation, which required public TK services to be available to all age-appropriate children.
Many independent schools, including Garden of Angels on 18th Street, were forced to close. As the market continued to shift, Crisman quietly began looking for someone to take over her space.
The real estate swap
Kids need to run around in fresh air, regardless of how they learn. After signing a lease on Main Street, Alpha realized it required more space –– indoors and out –– than what that campus could offer. Representatives quickly began looking into alternate locations, leading them eventually to Colorado Avenue.
Rather than abandoning the Main Street site, however, Alpha plans to operate both campuses concurrently for the upcoming school year.
According to Alpha leadership, surging local enrollment and “family demand” are driving the need for a dual-location footprint in Santa Monica. The long-term lease deal for the Colorado Avenue campus was finalized just days ago, while the Main Street location will continue to run its scheduled programming.
The victory lap
For Crisman, 78, the transition marks a well-deserved exit from the grueling, day-to-day demands of running a school.
According to sources close to the deal, preliminary inquiries regarding the availability of the Santa Monica Montessori property began over a year ago. Having a new tenant in place ensures Crisman can retire while still retaining ownership of the physical property.
Alpha entered into a market price lease, says company representative Anna Davlantes, who emphasized that the transition was a mutual, planned agreement and that Crisman was actively seeking a new tenant.
“Alpha Schools was looking for a second location to respond to strong interest from local families,” she tells The Sun. “We were told that space was available and the owners agreed to offer it to us. We look forward to serving our growing Santa Monica family community, helping kids learn life skills and preparing them for limitless futures.”
Never miss a single story!
