Hawthorne Montessori School

Our daughter attended the school for a year and a half. While pleased with a few of the teachers, we were deeply troubled by the high rate of turnover and the lack of Montessori certified and/or early childhood degreed staff. We assumed, based on the advertising of the school and the pricing, that this is what we were getting. We attempted to work with the school owner privately and as part of a small group of concerned parents. Nonetheless, the staffing problems persisted. It took us a year to find another school for our daughter. We would have stayed, but it was apparent that the decisions being made were not child-centered and were often erratic. When we finally gave our 6 weeks notice, we were told that we had to leave the school immediately. This had happened to other families and staff, so we weren't surprised. However, it was a malicious & unforgivable decision in our case because we are two working parents. We urge great caution in considering Hawthorne Montessori.

We pulled our child out of the school. There are many problems with the school, including an extremely high staff turn over rate. The Director sells you one program, but delivers nothing more than a glorified day care with the Montessori name attached to the name of the school.The amount of tuition is the highest in the city, and you will NOT get what you paid for in any manner. The Director shuts the parents down and does not like strong, involved parents, and discourages you from observing your child during the school day.I would rather enroll my child in a public school before I would send her back to Hawthorne. Luckily we are able to send her to an actual Montessori school with a stellar reputation that is a Parent owned Co-op.Stay away from Hawthorne, it is not a good place for your child or your peace of mind.