About Us
About The Independent School
The Independent School is a college-preparatory private school in Wichita where high expectations and personal attention go hand in hand.
Students are challenged to think deeply, communicate clearly, and take ownership of their learning. Small classes allow teachers to recognize when a student needs support, when they are ready for more, and how to help them keep growing.
Beyond the classroom, students are encouraged to participate, lead, create, compete, and contribute. TIS is a welcoming community shaped by purpose, accountability, and high expectations.
What Guides Us
Our values shape how we teach, learn, lead, and show up for one another. They reflect our commitment to academic excellence, strong character, personal growth, and a community where students are known and valued.
Belonging & Community
We believe students learn best when they feel known, supported, and connected. Our community celebrates success, works through challenges together, and creates meaningful opportunities for every student to participate, contribute, and belong.
Academic Excellence
We believe excellence grows from curiosity, effort, and meaningful challenge. Students are encouraged to ask questions, think critically, take intellectual risks, and work toward their personal best.
Integrity & Character
We believe honesty, responsibility, and respect are the foundation of strong character. Students learn to make thoughtful choices, take ownership of their actions, and do what is right even when it is difficult.
Confidence & Independence
We believe students grow when they are trusted to think, choose, lead, and learn from setbacks. TIS helps students develop the confidence, resilience, and independence to take ownership of their learning and their future.
Individuality & Respect
We believe every student should be known and valued for who they are. By learning alongside people with different experiences, ideas, and strengths, students learn to listen well, collaborate respectfully, and approach the world with curiosity and empathy.
Jean Garvey
Our Story
Jean K. Garvey founded The Independent School in 1980 because she believed Wichita families needed a different kind of school: one where students would be known personally, challenged academically, and cared for as individuals.
TIS began with eight students and a small group of families willing to build something new. As the school grew, Willard Garvey helped create a larger campus where that vision could continue to take shape.
More than four decades later, Jean Garvey’s vision remains at the heart of TIS. Students from the Early Learning Center through Upper School are encouraged to discover their strengths, think independently, and grow into confident, principled people prepared for what comes next.
A Place to Find Your Strengths and Build Them
At TIS, students have room to discover what interests them, what challenges them, and what they are capable of achieving.
Some are drawn to science, writing, art, athletics, music, service, leadership, or several at once. Some arrive ready to lead. Others build confidence through meaningful challenge, steady practice, and opportunities to participate.
In every division, students are encouraged to ask thoughtful questions, take intellectual and creative risks, pursue excellence, and learn from teachers who know when to support them and when to push them further.
Students are welcomed as they are and challenged to become more.
Come See TIS in Action
An About page can only tell you so much. Visit our campus to experience the classrooms, conversations, and community that make TIS feel different.
