Bezos Academy Opens Tuition-Free Montessori Preschool Inside Glendale Senior Living Center

A tuition-free Bezos Academy preschool has opened inside the Glencroft Center for Modern Aging in Glendale, Arizona, offering Montessori-inspired classrooms for 3- to 5-year-olds and pairing students with senior resident volunteers in an intergenerational model.

Program Details

Founded in Washington state in 2020, Bezos Academy aims to expand access to early childhood education in underserved areas. The Glendale site is the network's first Arizona location not attached to an existing school. The program enrolls children ages 3–5 and provides free tuition and meals for households earning at or below 400% of the federal poverty level (about $132,000 for a family of four).

Why The Model Matters

Arizona ranks 45th nationally in public preschool enrollment for 4-year-olds, according to the 2025 State of Preschool Yearbook from Rutgers University's National Institute for Early Education Research. Meanwhile, Head Start serves families at or below 100% of the federal poverty level, and the Arizona Department of Economic Security reports child care assistance waitlists involving roughly 15,000 children and 9,000 families. School leaders say the higher income cap is intended to reach children who might otherwise be missed and help them develop kindergarten-readiness skills.

Intergenerational Approach

Instead of a traditional school site, the preschool is housed inside a senior living community where leaders hope residents will volunteer as reading partners, garden helpers, lunchtime assistants and more. Tommy Medina, chief people officer at Glencroft, said volunteer roles may be especially meaningful for residents who face loneliness or depression, giving them a chance to act as "surrogate grandparents." Kresta Horn, head of school at Bezos Academy Glendale - Sahuaro Glenn, noted that residents can share a lifetime of experience with students.

"Every resident has something to share if they want to share it, and we need to build into that," — Kresta Horn.

Curriculum, Screening, And Supports

The site uses an Ages & Stages Questionnaire to assess each child's development before enrollment, and classrooms follow Montessori-inspired practices—sensory training, guided discovery, one-on-one lessons and practical life skills that promote self-directed learning. Staff are developing a resident volunteer program and screening volunteers for required permits, child-safety paperwork and the ability to work in a busy preschool environment. The school also runs family orientation and can connect families to services such as speech therapy at low or no cost, according to Kim Cortright, instructional and inclusion family specialist.

Capacity And Outlook

Horn said the academy expects to operate four classrooms by the end of the current month and plans to add a fifth in 2027, with a target capacity of about 100 students by the 2027–28 school year. Leaders view the Glendale model as one potential approach to addressing early literacy and developmental gaps—Arizona third-grade reading proficiency was 36% in 2025, roughly 10 percentage points below its 2019 pre-pandemic level, according to the Center for the Future of Arizona.

Broader Context

The Glendale campus adds to debates about large-scale philanthropy and education. Coverage of other Bezos-backed initiatives has raised questions about philanthropic influence on public agendas. Meanwhile, other trends in early-childhood education—such as nature-based preschools and international redesigns of daycare spaces in places like Finland—highlight varied approaches to improving child development and health through richer learning environments.