Al-Iman School

Incredible school and thats why we are willing to drive 30mins to send my kids to this school.

uhhhhhhhhhh i love cheesballs in my room and stomach

School is 100 years old and thriving. Wonderful neighborhood school. Love that we can walk.

Trigger Warning for POC & all allies of injustice.I’d like to start by saying that the principal of the school once mentioned she was more American than my Blackfoot boyfriend.I’m not sure where the competitive pride came from, but I digress. My daughter (the only POC in her class, 1 of a handful in her school) reported getting hit 3 days in a row by a boy about 1.5yrs older than her in her class. The principal stated that she was making it up since no other adult witnessed it. However, the mother of the boy confirmed that he was diagnosed with dyslexia, & resorted to hitting first, since using words to express himself was difficult. She also revealed that he had the same issue last year. My boyfriend, a previous sports director for 200+ kids, expressed the necessary protocol of a meeting. When it was once again dismissed, he emphasized that we will be telling our daughter to defend herself, since telling an adult was being overlooked. I did not bring my daughter to school the next two days awaiting a response about having a meeting. She had been increasingly anxious about going to school. Her cues of putting her head down while approaching the school, slowing her pace while walking towards the entrance, ect, confirmed that she was indeed stressed. Thankfully I didn’t bring her to school, because the principal mentioned that she contemplated calling the police for the morning drop off assembly. She feared that two reasonably concerned parents were going to fight the boys parents and her, since we were so adamant about a meeting

We attended this school for preschool- 3s a couple years ago. Going into the year I met with my son's teacher and the preschool director at the time and expressed concerns my son might be autistic. They reassured me they were "experts" at spotting and recognizing neurodivergence. They assured me they would let me know. Fast forward through the year and his teacher at our conferences told me my son was just anxious and needed more playdates. My son would come home unhappy a lot from preschool, but I thought it was just the transition. His teachers told me he was a model student who followed the rules. I knew he wasn't happy though, so we switched to Arts Together for the following year. Within a month of school starting his teacher pulled me aside and thought he should be evaluated. It turns out he's twice exceptional (level 1 autism and gifted/high IQ). In hindsight a lot of things at the Raleigh School are not set up for neurodivergence. I just didn't know it at the time. The bathrooms have no privacy. The children all crowd around in the bathroom where there is only a curtain to shield them. It became a situation when I was in the classroom where I had to actively shield my child with my body so he could have privacy going to the bathroom. After that year he was so affected that he won't use the bathroom at school. I reached out to the school to let them know about his diagnosis, so that next time a student like my son is in their classroom they can believe the parent and support them rather than dismiss their concerns. I did not receive a response. I don't think this preschool is set up for kids with sensory sensitivities or neurodivergence of any kind. I did not feel seen or supported as a parent. I looked long and hard to find a preschool for my son and thought Raleigh School was great on paper, but the reality did not match up.

Our family has been at Follow the Child for three years, and our experience has been nothing short of outstanding. We have one child in Toddler House and another in the Children’s House, both of which have exceeded our expectations across the board. I love that the school’s administrators are out front every morning greeting students as they arrive, always warm and welcoming. All of the teachers and staff are kind, respectful, and genuine, and it is very clear they care deeply about each child’s development. I have seen them go above and beyond to foster each child’s unique strengths and abilities, and as a result, we’ve seen incredible growth in our children during our time at the school.Our children feel safe, nurtured, and supported, and it shows in how much they love going to school each day. I truly believe Follow the Child has instilled a love of learning in our kids that will stay with them for life. Enrolling our children in the school is one of the best decisions we’ve made as parents, and we feel grateful every day to be part of such a thoughtful, caring, and close-knit community. We could not recommend the school more!