Melania Trump will move into the White House this summer after having remained in Trump Tower in New York since her husband took over the presidency in January.

The couple’s 11-year-old son, Barron, will attend St Andrew’s Episcopal school, a private preparatory school in Potomac, Maryland, after finishing fifth grade at Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School in Manhattan, a White House spokeswoman said, and the two will join Donald Trump in Washington.

In a statement, Melania Trump said she chose St Andrew’s Episcopal school because “it is known for its diverse community and commitment to academic excellence”.

“The mission of St Andrew’s is ‘to know and inspire each child in an inclusive community dedicated to exceptional teaching, learning, and service’, all of which appealed to our family. We look forward to the coming school years at St Andrew’s,” she said in a statement. The school declined to confirm the announcement, citing privacy concerns.

The school, founded in 1978, describes itself as an “independent, coeducational college preparatory school” that educates 580 students from preschool through 12th grade and boasts a college enrollment rate of 100%. Annual tuition for students in grades six through eight is $38,590, according to the school’s website.

Rumors had swirled for months about whether Melania and Barron would remain in New York permanently after it was confirmed that they would continue to live in Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue for at least the remainder of the school year.

The move should relieve law enforcement agencies saddled with the task of protecting a first family divided between major US cities and satisfy New York City officials and Democrats who have raised concerns about the significant cost of protecting the family. The New York police department has estimated that it costs the city between $127,000 to $146,000 a day to protect Melania and Barron while they reside in Trump Tower, according to a memo by the department’s commissioner. The NYPD did not return a request for comment on how their relocation would affect the daily costs.

There has been some media criticism claiming Melania Trump has been unable to fully play the role of first lady from New York.

Trump’s daughter Tiffany announced recently that she would be joining the family in Washington soon. Trump’s youngest daughter and his only child with his second wife, Marla Maples, will attend law school at Georgetown in the fall.

It is believed Barron will be the first presidential child to attend the school, which is located roughly 20 miles from the White House in suburban Maryland. The Obamas, like the Clintons, the Nixons and the Roosevelts before them, sent their children to Sidwell Friends school, the private Quaker-run academy that has long educated Washington’s elite.

Despite St Andrew’s religious affiliation, its website states that the school does not want to “‘make Episcopalians’ out of our students”. Instead, the website says the school teaches “respect for other religious traditions and even for those periods of life when a person is not identified with a particular tradition”.

Not since John F Kennedy’s presidency has a first son called the White House home. The White House has not confirmed a moving day yet but the school year begins on 5 September.