James W. Hennigan School

We are in our third year at the Mendell and have had nothing but a positive experience! The members of the staff are thoughtful, friendly, and engaged and there is a strong parental community that really cares for the school. The teachers are excellent and Ms. Bott, the principal, really cares about her students. We are looking forward to our younger child hopefully starting K1 there in the Fall.

Excellent cirriculum and access to higher levels of academics. Majority of teachers are easy to communicate with and have rapid channels to speak within a reasonable timeline. Safety is the upmost importance and unfortunately, from personal experience, multiple kids feel unsafe and have been victims of conflict amongst their peers in alarming circumstances and at such a close distance from the school grounds. Currently policy has been allegedly to that both parties, the suspected attacker(s) and victim along with their parents will receive mass punishment from the school without legal precedence. These actions have been expressed by superintendent and principles alike, that theres is issues of understaff and opinions of other parents suspect that this is in the hope that the informal actions do not get disputed where formal process would have to begin only when legal actions are discussed agaonst the school. I would not recommend this school unless you are in a position to hold the administration accountable and ensure their upholding the standards. Every month theres something new where our kids and their friends are getting injured in some shape or fashion and currently is out of control. There are mentally disabled children amongst the kids that show irrational behavior towards them and do receive punitive action or extra guidance from the staff. Eventually this will lead to further injury for both staff and families.

Its truly a hidden gem in Boston. The school believes in developing a "whole child"- socially, physically as well as academically. With a considerably low teacher turnover, they seem very dedicated towards providing an enriching and fun-filled experience for kids from K0-1st grade. A big Thank You to the Principal ,teachers and staff for making it a memorable schooling experience for our twin girls in their early school years.

This school is the very reason as to why i had an IEP. No, i never have been diagnosed with any autism, adhd, or anything neurodivergent related. My only issue was focusing in class. When i was in kindergarden, my teacher would have ZERO patience for me. When ever i would have trouble understanding in class, she would email my mother, call her, telling her that i have disabilities, and that i need a doctor, and that i need an iep. And soon enough, they had my mother go and sign these papers that allowed me to be pulled out of class by these teachers before and after transferring from this school. The worst part about all of this is that this specific teacher still teaches in this school, and sadly i cannot release her name. These teachers have no patience whatsoever. It was a hassle to get me out of this iep. It took until the 10th grade to get rid of it. So no, i do not recommend this school, especially if your child has issues focusing. Not everything is neurodivergent related. Everybody learns in different ways.

My granddaughter has only been going there since September but I am so impressed with this school. There is a low student/teacher ratio, it is racially diverse, the teachers are well educated and promote an environment of healthy living and learning. Most important to me....they are king, available and my granddaughter loves the school and the chickens!