CHAPTER VII ADMISSIONS

CHAPTER VII. ADMISSIONS

The legal entity that owns Colegio Bolívar is a private nonprofit association dedicated to providing public education services, protected by the constitutional guarantee contained in Article 38 of the Political Charter and by the legal provisions that establish the institutional autonomy of private entities.

As an autonomous, independent, and private entity, the school has the right to establish its own statutes and regulations, set criteria and priorities for the admission of students to be enrolled in the educational institution, and implement its educational policies in accordance with its criteria and values, all under the supervision of the competent authorities.

Based on this fundamental autonomy, the Admissions Process at Colegio Bolívar begins when the applicant's family submits the duly completed Application for Admission form, along with all the required documentation, to the school's Admissions Office. This procedure per se does not imply the acceptance of the applicant into the school program offered by our institution.

The Admissions Process conducted by the school consists of several stages during which the following aspects are evaluated, among others: the qualities of the applicants and their families, the availability of spaces for each grade level offered, the belonging and seniority of families in the school community, personal references, the parents' ability to pay, and other additional criteria that are important to get to know the applicants and their families. These stages must be completed in their entirety before the school makes the final decision to accept or deny the applicant's admission to the institution.

Article 121. Admission Criteria: The school carries out the student selection process based on the following criteria:

1. Review of the duly completed application for admission and the additional documents requested, according to the guide for completing the application for admission.

2. Analysis of data collected from the following sources of information:

• Meetings with small groups of parents who wish to enroll their children in the school.

• Information from the applicant's nursery or educational institution (School Report).

• Observations of the applicants in playgroups.

• Interviews with each family and parents' report on the family context (Profile of the Child).

• Required letters of recommendation.

3. Availability of spaces for each grade level offered.

4. The admission of the applicant to the school shall not be denied based on considerations of nationality, race, or political or religious creed.

5. The admission of the applicant to the school is approved or rejected by the Admissions Committee, which is a committee delegated by the Board of Directors of the school. The specific names of the members of the Admissions Committee will be kept confidential for security reasons. The applications of the applicants are reviewed by the section director and academic counselor, with the endorsement of the Admissions Committee, and the following are determined:

• The potential of the applicant to benefit from the available educational services.

• The school's ability to meet the educational needs required by the applicant.

6. Additionally, the following aspects will be taken into consideration, prioritizing the admission of an applicant:

• Applicants from families with children already enrolled in the school.

• Children of individuals working for the Bond Holding Companies of the school who are sponsored by these companies.

• Children of the school's teaching staff.

• Applicants returning to the school after a period of voluntary absence (reentries).

• The order and date of receipt of the application, as availability of spaces allows.

7. The aspiring student must take admission exams established by the school. All applicants for grades one to twelve must undergo assessments in basic math, English, and Spanish skills. They must also submit academic records from their previous institution, demonstrating good academic performance as well as good discipline.

8. To be accepted into the school in a grade other than Kinder 4, the applicant must demonstrate a level of English bilingualism equivalent to that of students enrolled in the corresponding grade at the school, unless the candidate meets the profile requirements for entering a specific program, taking into account the student's profile in relation to the program's requirements.

9. Applicants who meet all admission criteria and requirements will be admitted to the corresponding grade level, subject to space availability.

Article 122. Admission and Continued Enrollment Conditions: The admission of families and applicants to the school is subject to the following conditions:

1. Parents and the applicant must accept the considerations indicated in the Application for Admission form.

2. Parents and the applicant must accept the conditions established in the Enrollment Contract, this Code of Conduct, and the Institutional Educational Project (PEI), from the moment of enrollment and throughout their tenure at the institution.

The student must demonstrate adherence to the principles and values of the school, comply with discipline rules, and respect the traditions of the Educational Community.

Applications for enrollment in eleventh and twelfth grades will only be accepted if the applicants are:

A. Children of individuals associated with the Bond Holding Companies.

B. Children of professional and teaching staff.

C. Children of families who have recently moved to Cali from another country or city.

Such applicants must meet all the requirements of the regular admissions process. These applications must be directly approved by the Board of Directors of the school.

Once the entire admissions process described here has been completed, the Admissions Committee of the school will decide. The school reserves the right to admit or not admit a specific applicant or their family based on the considerations and criteria mentioned in this chapter. The decisions made by the school's Admissions Committee regarding the admission or non-admission of applicants are final and cannot be appealed, and the reasons for reaching such decisions are completely confidential. Therefore, no explanation will be provided in any case.

Article 123. Admission Ages: Through the Early Admission Program, the school offers aspiring families the possibility of obtaining priority in the admission process for applicants under four (4) years old who wish to enter the school. The Nido (Nursery) offers its services starting at 18 months of age.

Students entering the first year of schooling, Kinder 4, must have turned four (4) years old no later than June 30th of the year of enrollment, and so on. Students are assigned to class groups based on their age. However, factors such as their history, aptitude and achievement measures, physical and emotional development, and other determining factors are also considered.

Article 124. Renewal of Enrollment Contract: For the renewal of the enrollment contract, returning students must present a certificate of clearance for all fees issued by the school and meet other requirements indicated in the relevant enrollment guide.

Article 125. Loss of Student Status: The status of a student at the school is lost due to:

A. Expiration of the enrollment contract term.

B. Non-renewal of the enrollment contract.

C. Cancellation of enrollment and withdrawal from the institution.

D. Events of force majeure or duly proven fortuitous events.

E. Other causes established in the Institutional Educational Project, the enrollment contract, and this Code of Conduct.

Article 126. Readmissions: Any student who has voluntarily withdrawn can apply as a reentry following the regular admissions process. Students who withdraw under the DEFINITIVE WITHDRAWAL / EXPULSION category cannot initiate the reentry process.

Chapter Viii

Educational Costs

CHAPTER VII I. EDUCATIONAL COSTS

Article 127. Enrollment Contract and Payments: The Enrollment Contract, signed by the student's parents and/or guardians, establishes, among other aspects, the criteria governing tuition payments, fees, periodic charges, and other established fees, as stated in the Institutional Educational Project (PEI). Each school year, the amounts for enrollment, tuition, periodic charges, and other established fees are approved by the Board of Directors in accordance with the guidelines provided by the Ministry of National Education and the Education Department of the Municipality of Cali.

The payment of the annual fee must be made in monthly installments before the first fifteen (15) days of each month, as follows:

Enrollment: One annual payment.

Tuition: Eleven monthly payments (August to June).

*Note: In an Extraordinary General Assembly of the Association of Parents of Colegio Bolívar held in the second semester of the 1995-1996 school year, at the request of the parents, it was agreed to defer the annual cost of education into twelve (12) payments: one payment for enrollment and eleven (11) payments for tuition, in order to reduce the monthly fee. This explains the August installment.

Enrollment: This is the amount paid when formalizing the student's enrollment in the school or when renewing the enrollment each academic year. Its value is equal to ten percent (10%) of the annual fee. This amount must be paid once a year.

Tuition: Represents 90% of the annual fee paid as consideration for the student's right to participate in the educational services offered by the school during the respective academic year. This cost includes books and school materials. The form and payment methods are established in the respective enrollment contract.

As an additional benefit, the school offers families the Asobolívar Education Fund. This fund is backed by an insurance company authorized by the Financial Superintendence through a group insurance policy. Its purpose is to provide a long-term solution in case of the insured parent's death or total and permanent disability. Detailed and complete information about the Asobolívar Education Fund is available to all parents at the Development and Community Welfare Office, as well as the Financial Department of the school. If a parent decides to send their child on an exchange program, they must bear a percentage of the costs for the school year in which the student is absent if they wish to maintain the coverage of the Asobolí var Education Fund.

Article 128. Voluntary Costs:

A. Extracurricular Activities: This extracurricular program enriches the comprehensive education offered by Colegio Bolívar and incurs an additional cost for the institution and the parents. The program takes place after school hours and is voluntary.

B. Transportation Service: The school offers transportation service to families who require it and are within the coverage area of the school routes

C. Pedagogical and Sports Outings: Pedagogical and sports outings complement the comprehensive education of our students, allowing them to discover and develop different interests and talents in areas parallel to academics. These outings provide our students with pedagogical, cultural, and sports options, among other areas.

D. Inclusion Teacher or Shadow: When a student's needs require it, the school will provide an inclusion teacher or shadow who will accompany the student during the school day to provide academic and pedagogical support.

E. Others: Any other voluntary cost, different from those mentioned above, will be established with the parent's acceptance.

The rates for enrollment, tuition, periodic charges, and other established fees are determined based on the study of costs and educational services conducted by the Administrative Directorate, specifically considering the results of the Self -Assessment and Classification process required for private educational institutions, which the school must carry out annually. The increases applied to these rates are approved by the Ministry of National Education and the Municipal Education Department.

Article 129. Conditions for Enrollment Renewal:

A. Enrollment is renewed each year only when the student demonstrates satisfactory performance and good behavior.

B. The school reserves the right not to renew enrollment in cases of non-compliance with the current enrollment contract (Article 201 of Law 115 of 1994):

1. The student experiences continuous difficulties in the English learning process that affect their performance in other subjects taught in that language (reading, comprehension, oral and written production).

2. The student has not been promoted for two consecutive school years.

3. The student fails a second year, even if not consecutive, and their case will be analyzed by the Evaluation and Promotion Committee based on their academic performance, behavior, and attitude, and said committee may recommend whether the student continues at the school or not.

4. After receiving a warning letter from the School Director, the student fails to comply with its stipulations or fails the academic year.

5. Parents fail to comply with improvement plans, requested tutoring sessions, external referrals suggested for their children, or assigned duties in the Code of Conduct.

Additionally, it should be noted that the school reserves the right to withhold or issue any type of official document to a student or their parents if they are not in good standing, academically, disciplinarily, or financially, in accordance with the guidelines of the Ministry of National Education.