Registration for the Fall 2026 semester begins with the in-person registration on Saturday, September 12 from 7:30 to 10:00 a.m. at Smith Vocational and Agricultural High School, 80 Locust Street, Northampton, MA. Registration will be held in the gymnasium. Classes will begin on September 28. (All classes will be held at Hill Institute, 83 Pine Street, Florence, MA.)
Go to the Classes for the list of classes being offered.
When you arrive on September 12, look for the Hill staff who are distributing tickets.* They will ask you which class you are interested in taking. If they still have tickets for that class, you will receive a ticket which is redeemable between 7:30 and 9:15 a.m. If there are 8 spaces available in a specific class, they will start the day with 8 tickets. Once they have distributed all 8 tickets, they can advise people that there are already enough people in line who intend to sign up for the class. This gives people an opportunity to consider other class options and keeps them from waiting in line for a class that is likely going to be filled by others already in line. The instructors will register only people with tickets from 7:30 to 9:15 a.m. Sometimes people take tickets for several classes, and they are unable to register for all of them by 9:15 a.m. This opens up an opportunity for people without tickets to register for classes that still have spaces from 9:15 and 10:00 a.m. The in-person registration on September 12 ends at 10:00 a.m. Read further to find out how to register after September 12.
*Note the following: Registration starts at 7:30 a.m., but the distribution of tickets will start earlier. Staff will arrive at 5:00 a.m. to set up the gymnasium. As soon as the space is ready, they will begin distributing tickets. Once people receive their ticket(s), they may go to their instructor’s table/line in the gymnasium. A line will form in front of each instructor’s table. When the instructors arrive at 7:30 a.m., they will register people who are in their line. As mentioned above, they will register only people with tickets from 7:30 to 9:15 a.m. They may register people with or without tickets from 9:15 and 10:00 a.m.
Due to the popularity of our classes, it has become necessary to implement a One Ticket Per Class Per Person Policy. This means that a person may take one ticket for each class** (as long as tickets are still available), but no one may take more than one ticket per class.
**Note the following:
- Some classes have prerequisites – please be sure to read the class/workshop details to learn more.
- Some mixed level classes have a limited number of spaces for beginners.
If a person is unable to attend registration, they may send someone (a proxy) on their behalf. Please be aware that the proxy is unable to register both the other person and themselves for the same class due to the One Ticket Per Class Per Person Policy.
A person may also register after September 12 as long as there is space and registration for the semester has not yet closed. For 7- to 15-week adult classes, one must register before the second class meeting. For 1- to 2-day adult workshops, and youth/teen classes, fall registration closes on October 9. All registrations are done in person.
Students must be 18 years or older to register for the adult classes and workshops. All classes and workshops are for adults unless the class name and/or accompanying information indicate that the class is for youths and/or teens.
Tuition fees are to be paid upon registration. Payment must be in the form of cash or check only. If a person is signing up for more than one class and is paying by check, it is preferred that the person write a separate check for each class.
Tuition rates are subject to change without notice prior to Registration.
Supplies are not included in the tuition fees unless it is otherwise noted.
Class dates and times are subject to change.
All courses are governed by the Rules & Regulations of Hill Institute. (Copies of the Rules & Regulations are available on this web site and at registration.)
Hill Institute is a private school serving the public regardless of race, color or creed.