Walden Street School

I've had 3 out of 4 kids attend this school. 2 of the 3 received IEPs that they likely would not have received at other schools. As a result, all my kids have flourished at Thoreau. The teachers, assistants, staff, and administration are all wonderful and truly care about your kids. Test scores are secondary, even though they are quite good as well. Teachers and staff want what is best for your kids and are willing to help your kids get to the next level. We have loved every teacher we've had so far and hope that continues. We've had experiences at other elementary schools that have not been nearly as positive so Thoreau is a pleasant change for us.

We’ve had children attend Willard Elementary for five years . This is a wonderful, warm environment that supports students in every way; social/emotional development and academics. They have an amazing reading progress team that will seek out areas of weakness and support students in small groups that may otherwise fall behind. I wish I could say they have the same setup for math services, but maybe one day in the future. The faculty and staff at Willard are wonderful (from front office to school counselors and specials teachers) and we feel very fortunate to have our children attend this school.

We had an exceptionally negative experience at the Smith School, and we’re not alone. Our neighbors and a number of our children’s friends had similar poor experiences, predominantly because of bullying. The school is notoriously unresponsive about the bullying behavior of the children. In many cases, the parents of the bullies are never notified of the behavior, and so they’re shocked when other parents reach out about it. In other cases, the concerns of parents of bullied children fall on deaf ears, with the abuse - both physical and verbal - continuing. We were, fortunately, able to pull our kids out and put them in a private school. However I know that’s not an option available to everyone, and so worry about the students forced to continue to endure the effects of this unresponsive school’s administration.

Working at Nashoba was for the most part a wonderful expierence. I worked there for over 5 years. In that time I made some friends that I now consider family. The families and the teachers that work there and attend are lovely, and will always have wonderful memories. However, I will give Nashoba a one star for their very flawed higher administration. The administration is full of nepotism, and if you are connected through that, you are all set. However, if you are not, in a moments notice, you can be dehumanized and gaslit. Nashoba needs an administration change and with that, they will fulfill their school motto.