Drive. In 2009, MHS was recognized as an International Baccalaureate World School (IB), and has since offered the IB Diploma Programme. In 2009, a third house was added on the south side of Magnolia to accommodate steadily expanding enrollment. The first graduating class consisted of 8 students in 2010. By Fall 2011, 80 students were enrolled at MHS, open to grades 9th through 12th. MHS went on to maintain approximately 100 students, 20 percent of whom lived on campus. In May 2017, MHS reported that ownership of Lillard Hall, Ferris House, and the Otis Boarding House would be transferred to the school. The following year, on May 4, 2018, Montessori High School announced in an email to parents that they would be ceasing operations at the end of the 2017-2018 school year. The reason for closure was that the school had been operating at a significant deficit, and that the board had realized the school could not continue operation with accumulating deficits. Tuition deposits and prepaid tuition for the 2018-2019 school year were refunded, and students, faculty, and staff were forced to find new schools and employment for the following school year. The final school day was June 1, 2018, and the school officially shut down on June 30. Tempe Union proposed opening a Montessori High School by 2013. According to an article in the Arizona Republic, "[Superintendent Kenneth Baca] is looking at Montessori High School at University Circle in Cleveland as a model for ideas, and he hopes to take district staff, a school-board member and interested community members to visit the school in the fall." Other Montessori schools throughout the country have used MHS as a model. Notes and references External links Education in Cleveland High schools in Cuyahoga County, Ohio University Circle Private high schools in Ohio Montessori schools in the United States