Westbrae

Ruth Acty is amazing. Principal Mary is an excellent principal. All the teacher and assistants care so much about the kiddos. I feel so support, my kid feels supported, and we are lucky to be there.

I have a 5th grader at Crowden who started in third grade, and we are very happy with the experience. While Crowden is most known for its excellent music programs, we came to Crowden for the top notch academics, and we have found that the level of academics in third, fourth, and fifth grades has been consistently excelling. My daughter's interest in science, art, math, social studies has soared through hands-on projects that bring our her creativity and critical thinking skills; and her highly dedicated teachers inspire her daily. She is an excellent writer. Having taught English at UC Berkeley, I am amazed at the number of students at Crowden whose ability to write and organize an essay surpasses what I witnessed in college freshmen. My daughter's executive functions are highly developed. She completes her homework and practices her instrument without input from me; she keeps her materials organized and ready The art, science, and home room teachers are fantastic, and the social emotional discussions are helpful in that they challenge the students to be leaders in understanding and explaining what it means to be kind to one another. I value the small class size, particularly since the classes are so diverse. Rather than engaging in lip service to diversity, Crowden actually welcomes a truly diverse body of students. In my daughter's class, all of her classmates come from different backgrounds and have at least one parent born overseas. This is representative of the school at large. This actual diversity brings a richness of different mindsets, and the small class size allows each student to voice their unique perspective on the world. Crowden truly celebrates the unique character of each student.