Cedars Montessori School

Our kids attended Cedars from ages 4-12. We loved the natural environment, the connection to outdoor spaces, as well as the individualized care and respect that was shown to both kids throughout their educational journey. They both absolutely thrived at Cedars, each in their own way, and are now on to middle school with a sense of capability, independence, and agency over their education that I credit entirely to their time at Cedars. I honestly could not have asked for a better elementary school for them.

We love Cedars. We have been at this small, family run school for over 10 years. Our oldest son graduated two years ago and youngest son is in the Rockwood classroom. This beautiful school, situated among oaks and junipers, has been their second home. Any issues we have had (as things are always going to come up in a school) have been dealt with swiftly and satisfactorily. The administration is accessible and responsive. The new director is doing a fabulous job. Our boys are inquisitive, confident, and engage in conversations with children and adults alike. I attribute a large part of this to this lovely school and fabulous teachers, especially in primary and upper elementary.

We spent three years here: one in primary and two in lower elementary. We felt so grateful to find this place our first year. We were very happy with the teacher and the programming, and the school offered many opportunities to build community. At the end of the first year, there was a large change in leadership, and conditions have deteriorated considerably. It became apparent to our family that the administration was no longer acting in the interest of the children. The school is owned and run by a family. It is a for-profit institution with no oversight or accountability. The current leadership’s actions indicate the school’s purpose is to support themselves and maintain a bizarre class structure for the benefit of the family’s children. The nepotism has become so overt that even our young children are expressing examples. Funding favors advertising and recruiting new students over recruiting and retaining qualified staff or providing quality programming. All community-building opportunities have been undermined or dismantled. Parents are shut-out. Communication is abysmal, unprofessional at best. Concerns are gas-lighted. Grownups behave poorly and do not lead by example. There are no benchmarks for academics and children are assessed as behind at other institutions. The teachers withhold recess as punishment. The focus on the outdoors, how much time the children spend outside, the children interacting with animals, how nature is incorporated into the curriculum: it’s a facade. Now that we have begun anew at a new school, we remember the excitement and hopefulness that we once had for our children at Cedars before we became habituated to wild disorganization, dysfunction, and dread. Some really amazing families and staff have held on through some very challenging times with memories of what it once was and with hope that things would get better, that our children could still thrive there. Yet the school is rehiring failed staff and even more family. There is now a mass exodus of both students and quality staff, with the realization that our children don’t have any more time to waste on selfishness, greed, and gross ineptitude.

Our son has been at Cedars in the primary program for the past two years. We have seen him grow immensely emotionally, socially and academically. He loves the gardening time, open ended creative time and lessons from his guide. At age four he can sew crafts, count to 100 by ones and 10s, basic addition and subtraction, recognize letters with sounds and starting to sound out words. We are thankful for the nurturing environment Cedars has created for learning.

Choosing a school for your child is such a deeply personal decision that can feel very fraught especially when selecting your child’s first experience with formal education. As parents, we do our research on teaching philosophy, staff to child ratios, cost, and other important variables. Those things matter. But, at the end of the day, I think what we all want is a place where our child can be seen, heard and understood. Cedars has given my children exactly that. A place where they are deeply seen and encouraged to be exactly who they are. All while learning letters and numbers yes, but more than that, while learning to explore the world around them with curiosity and confidence that if they don’t know something yet, they can, and will, learn. In short, Cedars fostered a sense of wonder and has given my kids the tools to never stop exploring the world around them.