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August 2023 by Her M.
The staff is amazing, they love the children. It is the administration that is going to be the fall of MacDonald Montessori. Staff that have been there for years, almost decades, are fleeting fast because of how they are treated by administration. Here they do not care for their staff and push their staff over the limit and turn around and say it is staff's fault for administration falling short. The turn-over rate is concerning to the point your child could have a new teacher every 1-2 weeks. When they are understaffed it is on administration to help in the classroom. When they do they are rough physically and verbally with the children. Snatch things from them, yell and ostracize the ones that "are too difficult." Which is concerning considering administration doesn't spend much time with the children as is. They only care about money and aesthetic and not feeding into the children. Do not send your child here, please.
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June 2021 by Amy O.
We love MMS! The teachers and support staff are awesome, the building and classrooms are beautiful, and their philosophy/approach/curriculum builds our daughter's independence. She loves it and we love it too. And, during this last year of Covid, MMS has been our one constant saving grace.
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December 2020 by Tommy G Richter
Beth, the owner, has created an empire for herself in which her power is absolute. However, to call Beth an example of how absolute power corrupts absolutely would credit her unduly by implying she had ever not been corrupt. Aside from all the misfortune Beth is, the teachers are all superheroes of awesomeness.
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December 2019 by Kathryn Brown
Love this school. Engaged and caring teachers, great hours for working parents, and my kids love it. Have been coming for the last 5 years and have two children enrolled
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December 2017 by Anne McGuire
We've had two kids at MMS since they were babies. We have had a fantastic experience overall. The teachers in each room have been wonderful - very caring, patient, creative and focused on helping the kids learn. They integrate so much art, nature and variety in their daily programs & lesson plans that I feel like my kids are always learning something new.
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December 2016 by Anissa G
Sending our son to Macdonald Montessori has been one of the best parenting decisions we have made. The teachers genuinely care about the students, and the administration listens to and addresses our concerns. No school that deals with the care of young children can be perfect all the time, just as no parent can be perfect. At Macdonald they are constantly evaluating and improving and our son is happy and thriving. We couldn't ask for a better place to have him.
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December 2014 by Sarah Forss
My son spent two and a half years at MacDonald and we couldn't have been happier with the experience. We found the teachers to be extremely loving, understanding and patient. Our son blossomed under their care. I never had any reason to deal with the director herself, but all of my encounters with the other administrative staff were pleasant and helpful. I recommend the school without reservation.
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December 2014 by Joe Hasday
Great teachers, horrible owner. We had our daughter here for 3 months and really liked it. She ended up being hospitalized for a month because she wasn't eating well. When we informed the daycare that she may need a feeding tube, we were coldly told (by email) that we weren't welcome back. The owner refused to meet with us or even speak with us over the phone. I have never been treated worse in my life. This place seems caring on the surface. Just make sure your kid doesn't get sick - they will drop you in a heartbeat.
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December 2014 by Jenifer O
MacDonald Montesomething, but not Montessori. The teachers are generally caring and nice but relatively untrained in either Montessori or any other early childhood education. The owner, Beth MacDonald, is fairly incompetent at communication and administration. Expect her or her anointed admin staff to systematically ignore your concerns and exude an unapologetic, dogmatic disdain if you disagree with them. We tried to deal exclusively with the classroom staff for any issues that arose as Beth's reputation for poor communication precedes her, but when we experienced an issue that had to "go up the chain" we got a hefty dose of her general attitude of "my way or the highway" which prompted us to seek out a new Montessori school wherein we came to find out that she has a terrible reputation in both the local Montessori and Reggio Emilia communities. In short, she and her admin keep written policies that they do not disclose in the policy manual that they disclose to parents/on the website. When a parent voices concern on a subject that has a secret written policy, they produce the unpublished policy and hand it out as a way to squelch any exchange on the issue and then say things like "we don't publish that policy because we don't want parents to unnecessarily focus on that issue." Classic dictatorial behavior. While the school is basically devoid of any Montessori curriculum or Montessori trained staff, they do have an art director who is pretty fantastic and the level of creative outlets for children is the most impressive aspect of the school's "curriculum." If you dare to enroll your child there, keep your concerns to yourself or deal directly with classroom staff, collect your child's fantastic art and hope that you have no reason to interact with the administration for any reason.
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December 2013 by Jarick Losey
It bugs me to see the negative reviews. My son has been attending the school since he was an infant and we've had nothing but positive experiences. The teachers named are no longer there. Staff is wonderful. Kids are constantly learning and doing a variety of activities inside and out of the classroom. Very limited TV time. The children are all very well behaved and happy. It's expensive and open spots are hard to come by, but all the other parents I've talked to really like the place.
