Private Schools in Cedar Park, Leander & Liberty Hill
A relocating family's guide to the northwest Williamson County corridor — every school verified against its own records, with the one question that decides everything: does the accreditation actually transfer?
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If you're relocating into the northwest Williamson County growth corridor — Cedar Park, Leander, Liberty Hill and the far-northwest Austin edge — you're moving into strong public-school territory. Leander ISD and Liberty Hill ISD are both well-regarded, so private school here is rarely an academic rescue. It's a worldview choice, a fit choice, or a specific-program choice: classical education, a Catholic high school, authentic Montessori, or a learner-driven micro-school.
That changes what you should shop for, and it puts one question above all others: does the school's accreditation actually transfer? In Texas, that's not a formality — and this corridor is where it matters most, because the schools here run the full range from cleanly transferable to not-recognized-at-all. That's the spine of this guide, so let's start there.
The accreditation question that decides everything
Texas stopped accrediting private schools directly in the 1980s. Recognition now runs through the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission (TEPSAC), which approves the 19 agencies allowed to accredit private schools in the state. The rule that matters to you: credits earned at a school accredited by a TEPSAC-member agency transfer to Texas public schools. Credits from a school accredited only by a non-member agency — or from a school that isn't accredited at all — do not automatically transfer.
For an elementary family, this is mostly abstract. For a family with a teenager who might move between private and public school — or who cares about Texas's top-10% automatic college-admission rule, which runs off an accredited public-school transcript — it can cost a transferring student a full year.
Here's the honest picture for this corridor, and it's the thing no aggregator will tell you: most of these schools are TEPSAC-accredited and transfer cleanly — but three prominent ones are exceptions, for three different reasons. The Master's Classical (Cedar Park) is accredited only by CLSA, which isn't a TEPSAC member. Invictus (the Acton micro-school on the Georgetown/Leander line) is accredited through IALDS, also not a TEPSAC member. And Fellowship Academy (Liberty Hill) doesn't list any accrediting agency on its site at all.
| School | Town | Grades | Accreditor | Credits transfer? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Dominic Savio | Cedar Park area | 9–12 | Diocese of Austin / TCCED | Yes |
| Summit Christian | Cedar Park | PreK–12 | ACSI | Yes |
| The Master's Classical | Cedar Park | PreK–12 | CLSA | No — not TEPSAC |
| Sapientia Montessori | Cedar Park | Toddler–Elem | AMI | N/A — no HS |
| Sterling Classical | Leander | PK3–12 | Cognia | Yes |
| Divine Savior (Santa Rita Ranch) | Liberty Hill | PreK3–10* | Cognia / Middle States | Yes |
| Fortis Academy | Liberty Hill | PreK–12 | Cognia | Yes |
| Fellowship Academy | Liberty Hill | K–12 | Not listed | Confirm directly |
| Invictus (Acton) | Liberty Hill line | Ages 3.5–11* | IALDS | No — not TEPSAC |
*Divine Savior and Invictus are still adding upper grades — see each school below. Verify every figure directly with the school before enrolling; tuition and grade spans change year to year.
Cedar Park (the anchor)
St. Dominic Savio Catholic High School
Savio is the regional Catholic-high-school magnet — a genuine college-prep program with 40+ Pre-AP, AP, and dual-credit courses, and one of the few private high schools in fast-growing Williamson County. It draws relocating Catholic families from across the corridor.
Two honest notes: its address (9300 Neenah Ave) is technically just over the line in north Austin, not Cedar Park city limits — minutes from most of the corridor, but check it against your drive-time math. And accredited through the Diocese of Austin's Texas Catholic Conference pathway, it's fully TEPSAC-recognized. If your relocation timeline includes high school and Catholic education matters, start here.
Summit Christian Academy
Summit (2121 Cypress Creek Rd) is the established full-K–12 Christian option in Cedar Park — biblical worldview, real athletics, small classes (~300 students), and the kind of graduated-with-the-same-kids-since-kindergarten community families seek for continuity. Operating since the late 1990s and ACSI-accredited, tuition includes textbooks and scales by grade from about $12,200 (5-day Pre-K) up to $15,577 (11th–12th).
The Master's Classical Christian Academy
The Master's (3003 Blue Ridge Dr) braids the classical Trivium with a martial-arts "black belt excellence" culture — distinctive, and families who want it want it specifically. It offers an honor rate (7% off) for full-time pastor, law-enforcement, fire/rescue, active-military, and teacher families.
But this is the school where the accreditation question is not theoretical: CLSA sits outside the TEPSAC umbrella, so a family who might later move a high-schooler into a Texas public school needs to understand what that means for a transcript before enrolling. Ask the direct question, and weigh the answer against how classical and how permanent your plan is.
Sapientia Montessori
Sapientia (1220 Cottonwood Creek Trl) is the corridor's authentic-Montessori option. The AMI (Association Montessori Internationale) recognition is the credential to know — only a small fraction of U.S. Montessori schools hold it, and it signals a genuine Montessori environment rather than a marketing label. Because it tops out at elementary, the high-school credit-transfer question doesn't apply. If you want real Montessori for the early years, this is the name in Cedar Park.
Leander
Sterling Classical School
Sterling (12800 Angel Side Dr) is a university-model school — a Charlotte Mason–inflected classical program where students are on campus part of the week (2–4 days depending on grade) and learn at home the rest, with parents as co-teachers. That model appeals to families wanting a middle path between full private school and homeschooling, and it costs meaningfully less than five-day private tuition.
Because pricing genuinely varies by how many days and classes a family takes, think of it as a range: roughly $6,050 for grammar-school core up to about $10,750 for the full rhetoric (high-school) core, with electives and campus days on top. Cognia-accredited and listed in the TEA accredited-nonpublic-school directory, so credits transfer.
Liberty Hill
Liberty Hill has quietly become a real private-school market — four distinct schools now, spanning models and a wide price range. Relocating families in Santa Rita Ranch and the other master-planned communities out here cross-shop these alongside the Cedar Park schools a few minutes south.
Divine Savior Academy — Santa Rita Ranch
Divine Savior (23857 Ronald W Reagan Blvd) is the corridor's larger, full-service Christian college-prep option — a modern 13-acre campus in the heart of Santa Rita Ranch, exactly where a lot of relocating families are landing.
One important, honest caveat: the school is building out its high school grade by grade. Its own site currently lists studios through 10th grade, with 11th and 12th "coming." A family with a rising junior or senior needs to confirm their specific grade is available before counting on it. Accreditation is solid — Cognia and Middle States, both TEPSAC-recognized, displayed on the school's own site — so credits transfer, and it's a TEFA-approved school.
Fortis Classical Christian Academy
Fortis (15611 W SH-29) is the low-cost classical option, and genuinely low — a full-time high-schooler runs about $6,382, less than half of Savio, Summit, or Divine Savior. It's a university-model classical Christian school (on-campus core Monday–Thursday, at-home Friday) with a clear grammar/logic/rhetoric Trivium structure and 20+ dual-enrollment college credits offered.
For families drawn to Liberty Hill's more rural, small-town feel who want classical Christian education without a five-figure tuition, Fortis is the local answer rather than a drive into Cedar Park. Cognia-accredited (also an ACCS member and NAUMS-certified), so credits transfer, and it's TEFA-approved.
Fellowship Academy
Fellowship (3600 RM 1869) is a hybrid "4+1" Christian school — students are in the classroom Monday–Thursday and work off-site on Fridays through teacher-planned lessons. It's a genuinely distinct option for families wanting a lighter in-seat schedule with more parental involvement, at a modest price point (~$6,000), and it runs a full K–12 program with named secondary faculty across the core subjects.
One thing to know and ask about directly: Fellowship does not list an accrediting agency anywhere on its site. Its curriculum is TEKS-aligned, but curriculum alignment is not accreditation. For families where credit transfer or TEPSAC recognition matters — particularly with a high-schooler — confirm the school's accreditation status directly before enrolling. This isn't a knock on the school; it's simply a fact a relocating family should establish for itself.
Invictus: An Acton Academy
Invictus (10000 W SH-29) sits right at the Georgetown/Leander/Liberty Hill convergence and is part of the Austin-born Acton Academy network — learner-driven, Socratic, project-and-apprenticeship-based, with no assigned homework and mixed-age studios. It's a genuinely different model that a specific kind of family loves.
Two honest facts to plan around: it's currently elementary-only — its own FAQ lists just two studios, Spark (ages 3.5–6) and Discovery (ages 7–11), with middle and high school "planned for the future," so there's no operating middle or high school yet. And Acton schools are accredited through IALDS, which isn't a TEPSAC member, so credits don't automatically transfer — a non-issue at elementary ages, but worth knowing as the school grows.
Two schools you may still find in a search — but they've closed
- Apogee Cedar Park, an Acton Academy–model micro-school founded by Tim Kennedy, closed in mid-2026 and is not enrolling. You'll still see it in directories and older listings, but it's no longer an option.
- Warriors Christian Academy (Cedar Park) has also closed. It comes up in searches as a K–12 Christian martial-arts school on Blue Ridge Drive, but it's no longer operating.
You'll find these in search — but they're public charters, not private schools
Relocating families constantly hit these in a "schools near me" search and assume they're private. They're not — they're tuition-free, open-enrollment public charter schools. They may be excellent fits, but they don't charge tuition, they admit by lottery, and they belong in a different column from everything above:
- Harmony Science Academy (Cedar Park and Leander campuses) — STEM-focused public charter
- BASIS Cedar Park — liberal-arts/STEM public charter (the "classical liberal arts" language reads private, but it isn't)
- NYOS Charter School — public charter serving the area
- Cedars International Academy — public charter
If tuition-free is what you're after, these are worth a look. Just know what they are before you build a relocation budget around one.
Frequently asked questions
Does Texas accredit private schools directly?
No. Texas ended direct state accreditation of private schools in the 1980s. Recognition now runs through the Texas Private School Accreditation Commission (TEPSAC), which approves the agencies that accredit private schools. Only credits from a school accredited by a TEPSAC-member agency automatically transfer to Texas public schools.
Is there a Catholic high school in Cedar Park?
The Catholic high school serving the Cedar Park corridor is St. Dominic Savio Catholic High School (Diocese of Austin), just off RM 620. It serves grades 9 through 12 and draws from across northwest Williamson County. Tuition for 2026-27 is $15,464 for a first student.
Why are some schools flagged on accreditation in this guide?
Three schools here are accredited by agencies outside the TEPSAC umbrella, or do not list an accreditor at all: The Master's Classical (CLSA), Invictus (IALDS), and Fellowship Academy (none listed). Their programs may be excellent, but credits from a non-TEPSAC-accredited school do not automatically transfer to Texas public schools. Families who might move a high-schooler between private and public school should confirm each school's accreditation status directly.
Which Liberty Hill private school is most affordable?
Fortis Classical Christian Academy is the low-cost option. A full-time high-schooler runs about $6,382 for 2026-27, well under half of the corridor's traditional private schools. Fellowship Academy is similarly modest at about $6,000. Both are university-model or hybrid schools, which is part of why they cost less.
Is Apogee Cedar Park still open?
No. Apogee Cedar Park, an Acton Academy-model microschool founded by Tim Kennedy, closed in mid-2026 and is not enrolling.
Are there private schools actually in Liberty Hill?
Yes, four of them: Fortis Academy (classical, low-cost), Divine Savior Academy at Santa Rita Ranch (larger college-prep, building out its high school), Fellowship Academy (4+1 hybrid), and Invictus (Acton microschool, currently elementary-only). Many Liberty Hill families also shop the Cedar Park schools a short drive southeast.
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