The Kinkaid School

Location · Memorial (Piney Point Village), Houston

Sources: Kinkaid, About Us; Affording Kinkaid; 2026-27 Tuition Schedule; Academics; History; Leadership; 2026-27 College Admission Profile (enrollment of 1,532; the About page shows 1,469). Accessed October 28, 2026.

Kinkaid's mission is to promote educational excellence and balanced growth in a challenging, safe and inclusive environment, for intellectually capable children of sound character whose talents, interests and uniqueness the school sets out to encourage, so that they can lead, serve and contribute to Kinkaid, the country and the global community. Four core values (honesty, respect, responsibility and kindness) and founder Margaret Kinkaid's ideal of educating "the wholly healthy child" run through everything the school publishes. Read the full mission.

What to know first. Kinkaid has four natural entry points: Pre-Kindergarten, Kindergarten, 6th grade and 9th grade. Every other grade depends on attrition, and the school does not publish seat counts or acceptance rates. Expect a competitive process at every entry point. The 6th and 9th grade files are thorough: an essay, the ISEE, four recommendations (English, math, a school administrator and a required special-interest recommender who speaks to arts or athletics), a transcript and an interview.

Key dates, 2026-27 cycle (fall 2027 entry). PK and K applications were due September 18, 2026, so that deadline has passed; if you are just starting, call the admission office. Applications for grades 1-12 are due Wednesday, December 2, 2026. Kinkaid gives the ISEE on campus on Saturday, December 5, 2026, for its own applicants (submit the application by November 20 to register; early registration closes November 13). Recommendations, transcripts, essays and ISEE scores for grades 5-12 are due January 11, 2027, and K-4 materials January 13, 2027. Financial aid applications (SSS by NAIS) close January 8, 2027. Decisions: PK on December 18, 2026; K-12 on March 5, 2027. Fees: $150 application, $325 CATS testing, $170 ISEE, $89 ATS. The Visual & Performing Arts Preview is November 13, 2026, and campus tours run September through April (PK and K tours only in September and October).

How to prepare. For PK and K, the WPPSI and the group visit reward a rested, comfortable child. For 6th and 9th grade, plan the ISEE early so your child can test with confidence, and line up recommenders before the request forms open on December 1, 2026. Choose the special-interest recommender with care: a coach, director or teacher who has watched your child commit to something over time will say more than a famous name. If your child has a real record in the arts or athletics, the optional portfolio is worth the effort. Interviews for 6th and 9th grade can be held online for families outside Houston.

Sources: Kinkaid, Apply; Admission FAQs; Application Materials; Admission Events; 2027-2028 Admission Requirements, Testing Dates & Fees; Affording Kinkaid. Accessed October 28, 2026.

Upper School students carry at least five graded courses each semester, four of them academic. There is no cap on AP courses, every AP student sits for the exam, and entry to Honors, AP and College Level (CL) courses requires a department recommendation. The CL courses are post-AP: Linear Algebra, Differential Equations, Multivariable Calculus, Algorithms and Structures, French Literature and Latin V. In all, the school lists 42 advanced courses (19 AP, 6 CL and 17 or more Honors). One detail worth knowing: English offers no Honors or AP until senior year, while history, math and science have Honors or AP options in every core course. New for 2026-27: Data Science, Video Game Development and Nutrition Science, among others.

Signature programs. Interim Term is the signature program. For the first three weeks of January, Upper School students leave the regular schedule for about 50 faculty-designed courses, school trips, independent study, an exchange network of more than 20 schools and, for seniors, three-week internships across Houston industries. Three centers extend the curriculum from PK through 12th grade: the L.E. Simmons Family Center for Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Finance (CLEF), where juniors and seniors on the Falcon Investment Managers oversee about $150,000 of the school's endowment; the Sheedy Family Center for STEM, with a new Upper School makerspace; and the McGuyer Family Center for Wellbeing and Success.

Grading and graduation. Kinkaid does not rank students and uses an 11.0 weighted GPA scale that is explained on the transcript. Graduation requires 4 credits of English, 3 each of history, math and science, 2 of world language, 2 of visual and performing arts and 1 of physical education, plus Interim Term, community service and the ninth-grade course Decisions for Healthy Living & Leadership.

Source: Kinkaid, 2026-27 College Admission Profile; also About Us; Academic Counseling & Support; Interim Term; CLEF; Center for STEM. Accessed October 28, 2026.

Athletics. Sports sit near the center of Kinkaid life. The school fields 49 Upper School teams across 24 sports in the Southwest Preparatory Conference (SPC), counts 156 SPC titles and reports that 72% of Upper School students play on at least one team, coached by more than 100 full- and part-time coaches. The Class of 2026 contributed to 12 SPC championships and 3 state titles and includes 16 NCAA athletes, and more than 80 Falcons have gone on to NCAA programs in the last five years. Middle School teams compete in the HJPC.

Arts. The arts carry real weight too. The Upper School offers 56 arts courses, with Honors arts open by portfolio after four semesters. Each year brings about ten theater productions, four dance productions and ten concerts, many in the 62,500 sq ft Katz Performing Arts Center. The orchestra program has about 150 string players in grades 7-12, Encore is an auditioned choir, and the Dance Company performs and choreographs. Kinkaid's 2024 musical won Outstanding Musical at the Tommy Tune Awards, and the school reports that nearly 90% of Upper School students study the arts for at least three years.

Community and service. Traditions run deep: Interim Term (founded 1971), Spirit of Kinkaid (founded 1974 and now one of the largest clubs), a Book Fair the school describes as the largest school-held book fair in the city, the Margaret Kinkaid Holiday Concert, and the Falcon Family Feast before the annual Kinkaid-St. John's football game. Every Upper School student joins a Community Group of 10 to 12 students and one faculty member that meets weekly until graduation, and ninth graders are guided by senior Peer Mentors. The Upper School lists about 50 clubs plus Model UN, Robotics, Quiz Bowl and Esports, and the school has a Director of Culture and Belonging. Upper School students completed 2,854 service hours in 2025-26.

Facilities and construction. The All In Campaign, whose working goal was raised to $200 million in May 2025, has rebuilt much of the campus. A new fieldhouse opened in January 2024 and the new Upper School building was completed in summer 2025. Phase III (summer 2025 through summer 2026) turned the building along San Felipe into an expanded Lower School, an admissions suite and administrative offices, with renovations to the Lower and Middle Schools. Ask on your tour what, if anything, is still under way.

Leadership and the school day. Dr. Ed Harris, a longtime Kinkaid history and government teacher and the founding director of CLEF, began his first year as Head of School in 2026-27. Afternoon pickup runs from 2:15 p.m. for PK and K through the afternoon by division, and Kidventure extended day runs until 5:30 p.m. for Lower and Middle School. Lower and Middle School students wear uniforms; the Upper School has a dress code. Morning start times are not published.

Sources: Kinkaid, Athletics; Excellence; Arts; Music; Dance & Theatre; Students; Center for Wellbeing; Middle School; Back to School; Extended Day; All In and All In FAQs; 2026-27 College Admission Profile; The Buzz Magazines, October 16, 2026. Accessed October 28, 2026.