Virginia Village

Ellis was an amazing experience for our child who had incredible teachers, consistent and outstanding support, and life changing special education interventions. We never expected such skill, care, and advocacy from public education.

In our experience, the curriculum and overall rigor have not met expectations, and there is a lack of standards and oversight from the administration to ensure a strong academic foundation. While the student-teacher ratio looks appealing, it doesnt translate into a richer learning environment. Another issue that’s difficult to ignore is the level of turnover among lower elementary teachers. My child has 5 lead teachers in the 2.5 years she has been in lower elementary at MSD. We’ve also noticed a broader pattern of families choosing to leave in lower el, sometimes in the middle of the year. In our child’s current class, only about half of the students are expected to return next year, which clearly shows low satisfaction among families. Ultimately, we’ve made the decision to enroll our children elsewhere next year. I share all of this in the hope that the school’s leadership and Board take a close, thoughtful look at these trends and consider meaningful improvements, including holding current lower elementary administrators accountable for their shortcomings.