Yeshiva Schools

Aa a parent I know there are many great teachers at this school, but there is a lot turnover in math in the upper school and some teachers are not qualified or certified. Young students are yelled at for misbehaving by a teacher who doesn't teach anything and is always on the phone. The principal doesn't value quality teaching and doesnt require some teachers to improve. The principal is not consistent with discipline and some kids never get in trouble. The parents who complain are not valued. The parents who only want their kids to get out of trouble are the only ones the principal listens to. There are lots of nice kids there and my children have made good friends. There are some teachers that are great but the school has too many that are bad, they bring down the rest. I don't want my youngest child to be yelled at all day by a bad teacher so I will not send them back

To start with we LOVED the teachers and atmosphere for our toddler. But, we had to pull our child out due to negligent and lax COVID policies that have resulted in weekly exposures and illness among the children too young to be vaccinated. These policies are an outgrowth of the lax policies being exhibited at local shuls where masking and distancing are non-existent. This has exposed vulnerable children and adults to a cycle of disease and the administration have not only ignored parental concerns but have further relaxed rules. On two occasions we were told to get PCR tests but no one ever actually looked at them. The last draw was that they waited several days after an exposure to let the parents know and then put into place a testing schedule that would have exposed children to any additional COVID positive children for up to 4 days. The principal only responded to concerns when outed on public facebook discussion pages and refused to participate in any sort of forum with the parents the doctors who are allegedly consulting with him (no evidence of their consult has been shown to parents). This is not a school that takes health seriously.

SEA is a really special place. My younger child is off to a great start with beginning reading skills, and has already grown so much in learning about her own feelings and getting along with others. She even has advice for me sometimes on how to calm my body when I'm frustrated with traffic haha! My older child has completely transformed as a reader--from absolutely dragging his feet to read anything at all, to reading without being reminded to. He loves school and says it feels more like summer camp, even though he's writing 5-paragraph essays and practicing cursive! They both love developing their artistic skills, and are eager to show off what they can do in math. Most importantly, I'm amazed how quickly they have absorbed the Core Values in really practical ways that I see at home and when they're out in the community. I am so grateful for this community of dedicated teachers and staff. The teachers are just second-to-none, and their passion for teaching and their affection for the kids is so clear.

I graduated from Ellis, and the single year I attended was one of the best of my entire education, including college and law school. It has rather shocked me to read the negative reviews placed here, but from the poor level of literacy in the reviews themselves, I suspect they are written by a jealous and bitter person who could never make the grade at Ellis. That's life. Some of us are fortunate enough to always remember our time at this truly extraordinary school with something approaching awe.

Supportive environment for social and academic learning. Excellent parent network. Very caring staff and teachers. Sports are present, but weak.