Enrollment FAQ

AMES shares space at Cottonwood High School. AMES provides several bus routes through a private, licensed provider.

AMES has attracted a committed and professional staff of highly qualified licensed teachers. Combining decades of experience in both public education and the private sector with enthusiasm for a small high school program, AMES teachers are eager to support each student’s individual unique learning interests and needs.  

No. Base intelligence will only get you so far here. The students who succeed at AMES work hard, ask questions, work together and actively participate in their learning.

As a public charter school, AMES aligns with the state and federal policies that determine our operation. This includes conducting a blind lottery for all eligible 9th grade applicants. This gives any interested student an equal chance at acceptance. 

The application is opened at the beginning of January and remains open until mid February every year. The lottery is conducted at the end of February and accepted students are notified within a few weeks of the lottery. 

Upperclassmen applicants are notified in the summer and will be asked to meet with school officials before acceptance.

We have a good partnership with Cottonwood High School and you may participate in Cottonwood sports and extracurricular activities. Many of those activities are well represented by AMES students. As an incoming freshman you may compete in sports at your boundary school or with Cottonwood, however, once you establish where you are playing you may lose a year of eligibility if you try to transfer at a later date.

We have traditionally offered Spanish and Arabic at AMES and we currently offer Russian. Cottonwood High School provides the opportunity to take French, Chinese, Advanced Spanish and American Sign Language.

One of the principles of an early college program is that students may earn an associate degree or up to two years of transferable college credit. Our higher education partner the University of Utah does not offer associate degrees. Students may earn up to 43 semester hours of University of Utah credit while attending AMES, which is the equivalent of two years of college.  

AMES offers all the classes you need to graduate from high school. Additionally you can take classes from Cottonwood High School that will diversify your high school experience. You will graduate from AMES with four credits each of math and science, you will be prepared for college when you graduate and you will have done it in smaller classes and in a supportive environment.

Talk to your current school counselor or MESA advisor for more information. Or feel free to contact AMES directly.

View our Course Catalog.