Counterpane School is one of very few Montessori programs in the United States that extends the Montessori philosophy from preschool through upper school. At the Upper School level, the curriculum is exclusively college preparatory. The community closely resembles a workplace with individual contracts, group projects, team meetings, class discussions, and student/teacher appointments. With a fully integrated arts program, the academic work is rife with visual and performance components. Creativity and diversity go hand-in-hand throughout the fabric of the Upper School experience. Our task is finding the gift within each individual - grasping at the threads of potential passion each student has within them - while challenging the mettle of that person. Independent study, joint-enrollment with local colleges, and professional internships are incorporated as achievement, commitment, and maturity permit.

Counterpane is philosophically aligned with the Coalition of Essential Schools (CES), and is accredited by the Georgia Accrediting Commission (GAC).

Counterpane graduated its first seniors in 1991. All of our graduates have enjoyed acceptance to four-year colleges or universities. Among the colleges and universities from which our graduates hold degrees are: Auburn University, Boston College, Bowdoin College, Brown University, Carnegie Mellon University, Claremont McKenna College, Colorado State University, Columbia University, Cornell University, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Georgia State University, Macalester College, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), New Mexico School of Mining and Technology, Penn State University, Princeton University, Sweet Briar College, University of Georgia, and University of North Carolina.