Thomas Jefferson Middle School

Extremely high turnover for teachers, staff in general. In the last few years the school has lost more than one of their main teachers each year. Only two good ones remain. Unstable environment and constantly changing plans/layouts. They come up with new ideas each year, test them out, then realize these ideas don’t work, change again, etc. Very disruptive for the students to be in such a constantly changing environment. Controversial ideologies are implemented in the curriculum and parents are not given a choice to opt out. If the parents decide to pull their children due to the controversial curriculum, the school steals their $1500 deposit. Families have to pay a $450 “field trip” fee during enrollment for the next school year. During the school year, they cancel field trips left and right , basically stealing the money that the families paid for the field trips in advance. Refunds are never offered. They “charge” for certain field trips for example the Shedd Aquarium and then end up taking the students on a “Illinois resident free day” to the Shedd, which does not cost the school anything, except for the bus fee. They charged families for an overnight field trip to one of the museums ($85) and notified parents later that the museum was under construction and they could not attend the field trip. Nobody ever got their money back! Instead they hosted a “sleepover “ at the school to compensate. The school is run by an emotionally unstable Head Of School, with an enormous ego, who is not interested in any feedback, constructive criticism.

Our family’s experience with Holy Family Catholic Academy has been truly exceptional. Our kids were happy and excited to attend each day, and both grew tremendously in confidence, knowledge, faith, and character.HFCA offers a rare combination of private education, a strong faith-based foundation, and the International Baccalaureate program. As we prepare to move to California, we have realized how difficult it is to find another school that provides all three at the same level.We are a multiracial and multinational family of White and Asian heritage, with Italian, Greek, Montenegrin, and Thai roots. From the beginning, we felt welcomed, respected, and embraced by the HFCA community. Our children were encouraged to be proud of who they are while learning the importance of faith, kindness, compassion, and respect for others.Our daughter formed wonderful relationships with Ms. Coombs and Ms. Hames, and an especially strong bond with Ms. Michal. She became so attached to her teachers that she regularly drew pictures for them at home. She always looked forward to school and grew more knowledgeable, confident, and secure through their support and encouragement.Our son developed equally meaningful relationships with Ms. Fabi and Ms. Sgroi. He was always excited to see them and often made saying goodbye a special moment. He would run to us, hand over his backpack, and then run back to give his teachers one final hug before leaving. That simple routine showed us how safe, loved, and connected he felt.Both children were engaged in the classroom, in school activities, and in church. They also greatly enjoyed the aftercare program. While we believe additional supervision and structure could make it even stronger, their overall experience was very positive.HFCA is far more than a school. It is a caring community that educates the whole child academically, emotionally, morally, and spiritually. Leaving HFCA is one of the hardest parts of our move. We will always be grateful for the love, patience, guidance, and education both our kids received, and we wholeheartedly recommend HFCA to families seeking academic excellence, strong values, cultural respect, and genuine care for every child.