Elon Musk is not only trying to raise the population of the U.S. by impregnating workers at his companies, but he’s also building schools for children. Musk’s private school in Texas started accepting applications on Wednesday, according to a tweet from the Ad Astra School. Opening in the fall, applications are open to all kids aged 3-9, according to the school’s website.
Ad Astra was founded in Los Angeles in 2014 to serve Musk’s own children and the children of a handful of employees from his companies like SpaceX. The school reportedly shut down in 2020 during the covid pandemic but is restarting for the 2024-2025 school year in Bastrop, Texas.
Musk’s tunneling firm The Boring Company is based in Bastrop, Tesla’s headquarters is based in nearby Austin, and SpaceX will soon be officially moving to Starbase, Texas, about five hours to the south.
Musk’s approach to learning has been unconventional, to say the least. Shortly after the launch of the school, the billionaire told an interviewer that he didn’t believe in separating kids by grade.
“I’m making all the children go through the same grade at the same time, like an assembly line,” Musk was quoted as saying back in 2015. “It makes more sense to cater the education to match their aptitude and abilities.”
The school’s website notes that 18 kids aged 3-6 (dubbed primary level) and 30 kids aged 6-9 (dubbed lower elementary level) will be admitted for the coming school year. And while it’s not entirely clear why you’d make 3-year-olds and 9-year-olds try to learn the same material at the same time, or if that’s still the plan, we’re sure Musk has his reasons.
“Ad Astra’s mission is to foster curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking in the next generation of problem solvers and builders,” the school says on its website. “Ad Astra’s approach to education is centered around hands-on, project-based learning, where children are encouraged to explore, experiment, and discover solutions to real-world problems. Ad Astra offers a progressive learning environment that emphasizes the integration of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) into its curriculum.”
It’s not clear how Musk’s personal politics may impact the school, as the tech mogul has really leaned into a far-right version of the world lately. From promoting extremely racist conspiracy theories to spreading anti-trans bigotry, Musk is probably not the kind of guy any average American would want teaching their kids. But Musk won’t be the teacher, of course, just the guy who’ll be forever associated with the school.
For its part, the Ad Astra school has plenty of disclaimers about how it doesn’t discriminate based on “race, color, national and ethnic origin.” Discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity doesn’t appear to be mentioned.
As Forbes notes, Musk has been buying up land in Bastrop since at least 2021, riling locals who are concerned about his presence in the community, including the environmental impact of SpaceX launches and the way the company handles wastewater.
The Ad Astra school didn’t immediately respond to questions emailed Thursday morning. Gizmodo will update this post if we hear back.
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