We are accepting applications for the 2025-26 school year in select grades. Plan your visit to Bennett to learn more.

Curious. Confident. College-Ready.

Bennett students don’t have to choose between an engaging, purpose-driven education and strong college outcomes—they can have both.

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Project-Based Learning

Learning is driven by student interests, not textbooks.

Internship

Internships with Impact

Every Bennett student participates in an internship.

Reggio Emilia learning icon

Future-Ready Starts Here

Real-world learning for tomorrow’s leaders.

Connect With Us.

Complete the form below to learn more about our PreK-12 program, plan your visit, or connect with a member of our admissions team.

PREK-12 PreK-12 Private School in the West Loop

Project Based Learning

Project-Based Learning (PBL)

At Bennett, learning comes to life through student-driven inquiry, real-world problem solving, and cross-disciplinary projects that build adaptable, collaborative, and socially conscious thinkers.

Competency Based Assessment

Competency-Based Assessment

Your student is more than a test score. Our individualized assessment model moves away from the standard grading scale to provide each learner with specific feedback based on their strengths and areas of challenge.

Test Prep

Test Prep

with Academic Approach

We have partnered with Academic Approach to offer every student a dedicated opportunity to prepare for the SAT through an extension test prep program that begins in 11th grade.

More Than College Ready

More Than College-Ready

Bennett sudents receive unparalleled one-on-one support, personalized college counseling, and the freedom to pursue meaningful, purpose-driven academic paths—without the stress and anxiety.

WHY BENNETT What Makes Us Different?

Engaged Educators

Every Bennett Day School teacher spends hundreds of hours on professional development and cross-subject collaboration each year.

Project-Based Learning (PBL)

Learning is driven by student interests (not textbooks), which helps them connect to the world in authentic, relevant, and meaningful ways. Our focus on process and overcoming challenges cultivates a growth mindset and the essential skills needed to thrive in an ever-changing world.

Internship Experience

Every Bennett student participates in at least one major internship during their time here. This experience fosters responsibility, builds confidence, and empowers them to make informed decisions about their future. Bennett is the only high school in the Chicago area that offers a daily, 12-week internship program.

School Starts at 9:00 AM

At Bennett Day Upper School, school starts at 9:00 am. Research shows that a later start time more closely aligns with the adolescent “biological clock” and can boost academic performance.

Travel Opportunities

Each year, all Upper School students go on a trip that is related to a project they are working on. During the 2019-2020 school year, for example, students traveled to San Diego to interview recently arrived immigrants as part of that trimester’s project-based learning theme of migration.

BENNETT DAY We Are Bennett Day.

About Us Our Story

Co-founder and CEO, Cameron Smith, was inspired to create Bennett Day School after the birth of his first son. As new parents, he and his wife, Erica, recognized that there were few options for progressive, independent schooling in Chicago. While reflecting on his own education, Cameron thought of his time in business school at Kellogg, where the process of learning was about creative problem solving, project-based inquiry, collaboration, and teamwork. Determined to build a school that mirrors this learning experience for children, Cameron began researching forward-thinking PreK-12 educational approaches. In this exploration, he gravitated toward the Reggio Emilia philosophy developed in Italy, which emphasizes key life skills like inquiry, innovation, teamwork, resilience, perseverance, and critical thinking.

Through bold action, thoughtful leadership, community support, and commitment to the vision, Bennett Day School opened its doors in 2014 with 23 students. 10 years later, we have 350 students in preschool through 12th grade, and this is just the beginning. We hope you’ll join our community and be part of the incredible story we’re writing.