By GRAHAM BROOKS / Staff Writer

MT LAUREL – The expansion to Hilltop Montessori School has been given the green light and now the fundraising process will start Thursday, Nov. 6, beginning with the gardening dinner fundraiser.

The dinner will be held at Stones Throw Bar and Grill in Mt Laurel beginning at 6 p.m. and will feature a live auction with Jack Granger, a sit down dinner and models and plans showing the new expansion of the school.

The school is expecting approximately 150 people to be at the dinner and 20-25 businesses to sponsor the event.

Head of Hilltop Montessori School Michele Wilensky is excited about what the expansion will bring to the town of Mt Laurel and how the expansion will improve the school moving forward.

“We really foresee the expansion as the last piece to the campus of the school,” said Wilensky. “The fact that we will have our own school lunches from our gardens will be great because the students will be able to grow and harvest their own food. We are excited about the new gym because it will benefit the kids as well as the rest of the Mt Laurel community because they can use the gym as a community center during non-school hours.”

In addition to a new garden and gymnasium, other new additions will include a teaching kitchen to cook healthy lunches and additional classroom space. Renovations will also be done to the current building, which will include a media center, science lab, new toddler, preschool and lower elementary class, as well as updated music and art areas. “The partnership between Mt Laurel and Hilltop Montessori School has been a great one and once again, their help will be invaluable as we move forward,” added Wilensky. “This is a great day for us, and so we wanted to share our great news with you!”