Carmel Academy

270 Lake Avenue

Greenwich, CT 06830

22 Reviews

School District
Grade

K-8
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on June 22, 2019

Our son attended Carmel for three years. He has just graduated the 8th grade. Unlike the first two years, the experience this year was horrible. He experienced classrooms where new teachers could not control students. There was constant talking by students and disrespecting the teachers. The principal was absolutely useless. Although I emailed her numerous times, she never did anything to change the horrible learning conditions. The Head of School was inaccessible. She never returned phone calls. Whatever Carmel once was--as indicated by high ratings in the past--it no longer is. Over 12 teachers in addition to administrators--including the Head of School, principal, school psychologist, and rabbi--left by the end of the year. I strongly recommend staying away from this joke of a school. I have filed a complaint against it with the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools.
Submitted by parent on March 12, 2019

We have loved Carmel. It has helped us shape our kids into thoughtful, soulful, well prepared people.
Submitted by parent on March 11, 2019

We have been extremely happy with our Carmel experience. The community is beyond diverse and warm. I was never considering a Jewish Day School- was always going to send my kids to public school. But after we tried out Carmel for our son (as our public elementary school we are zoned for isn’t so good), we were immediately hooked. The thoughtful curriculum, cutting edge pedagogy and great staff has really launched our kids into a journey of lifelong learning. They leave Carmel hungry for learning, not burned out or dreading school. Thanks to all the phenomenal faculty.
Submitted by parent on January 01, 2019

Carmel has been an unbelievable experience for our kids. Many schools claim to be progressive and rigorous, but Carmel fulfills it. Our daughters actually love math (!) and are becoming excellent writers, while also attaining a high degree of Jewish literacy. The school is progressive (ethics, social-emotional skills); yet emphasizes tech (robotics!) and also caters to the most prominent Orthodox families in the area. The administration is responsive and financial aid is generous. Kids with special needs have fabulous resources. The dream of the creators to provide an ethical, intellectual Jewish school has been largely realized. I am impressed with the degree of personal attention by teachers, who are passionate, learned, and kind. This school is a gem, and has given our kids an extremely sound foundation for high school. They are so self-assured and intellectually autonomous! It has been a true blessing.
Submitted by other on December 27, 2018

Poor. The administration is terrible. They discard the teachers very easily and treat them like garbage. They paint a pretty picture from an admissions perspective, but don’t live up to the hype. The PALS program is a prime example of false advertising.
Submitted by parent on October 10, 2018

Carmel Academy truly focuses on teaching the individual student. The community of CA students are taught in an environment that values compassion, respect, kindness and integrity. They walk the walk.
Submitted by other on March 03, 2018

Amazing experience, I went here and felt very prepared to high school and college in a secular environment. Other Jewish schools in the area focus too much on Judaic studies and haven't prepared friends for public high school and college to the same extent.
Submitted by student on August 29, 2017

I have been going to this school for a long time and in the end of every year I felt like I wanted to leave. I also agree with the last review. The teachers are ok, but the administrators were lazy and didn't care about anything. In my grade, there was a kid who was telling other kids in the grade that I did something really bad. I told the administration and also the school psychologist. The problem is that the administration said they will take care of it but they didn't even do one tiny thing to resolve it. Because nobody did anything about it, everybody in thee school started hating me. So I decided to leave this school for real now. And also, the education is so behind and the administrators don't care. Some kids graduate from this school and they are not ready for High School. So if you are a parent looking for a good school for your child, I highly do not recommend this day school.
Submitted by teacher on August 17, 2017

Serious problem s with administration at this school.
Submitted by parent on July 29, 2017

The kids love going to school. The teachers are very responsive when we have questions.
Submitted by teacher on May 18, 2017

I am a current teacher at this school and believe that Carmel has a rather unique program for families who want to send there children to a Jewish Day School that is sensitive to the individual needs of all students. All of our classes are small with opportunities for individual academic and social support. As a teacher, it is a great fit for teachers who are self motivated. I have been supported by the administration in all of the new initiatives I have proposed. This year my kids wanted to build birdhouses so we studied the process from how to work as a construction crew to how to shop, fundraise, and use the tools needed to create the birdhouses. The only downside to the school is the cost, which is a little high, even compared to other schools in the area.
Submitted by parent on May 10, 2017

My graduate is an engaged, active learner who can self-advocate and has the key foundational skills to succeed in high school and beyond. With other students still at Carmel Academy I continue to experience the benefits of a school that is innovative, rigorous and caring.
Submitted by teacher on April 26, 2017

As a former employee I agree with the negative reviews. The head of school makes promises and does not keep them, the associate head of school only cares about $, and is extremely rude. Certain parents/children are treated like gold while other's are treated like they are nothing. The price of the program especially for PALS has gone up has gone up an INSANE amount and you are not getting 1/4 of what is promised. Certain staff members who are treated as royalty hardly put any effort in and the ones who do genuinely care about the children are given hard times. Favoritism is huge. Certain children are treated with kids gloves because of who their parent's are. No help whatsoever from the 'head' administrators. Since I have left I have kept in contact with a lot of the other teacher's who have either left or been let go for one reason or another and they all say the same thing- the are extremely happy to be gone. I saw some AMAZING teachers leave and people who had dedicated an extreme amount of time and energy into CA and it was brushed off like it was nothing. I feel bad saying this because there are still a couple amazing teacher's at CA but parent's don't waste your money.
Submitted by parent on May 28, 2015

Carmel Academy, although a very warm and inviting place that has taught my son how to be a good person with excellent morals and values, has greatly changed for the worse this year. My son is in the special education program, PALS, and under its new director, it is a failing program that is on the steep decline and fast. I am sorry to say that I now have to pull my son from the program. If there is not a change made in administration, and QUICKLY, the PALS program will probably exist no more in the upcoming years. The current director does not know how to speak to children with special needs, or children in general. She does not seem interested in bettering the program and lacks not only tact but a sincere excitement about being the director of a very esteemed program. Since September, it is evident that the moral on campus is horrible. The teachers seem miserable under this new director. In addition, she has mistaken my child for another multiple times, leading me to learn classified information about other students that I should never have been privy to. MANY other families feel the same sentiments and are pulling their children out of the PALS program due to this reason as well. If the administration (and if the board is also involved, I am not sure) decided to replace this director, I might have kept my son in the program for at least another year. However, it seems that nothing is being done to make a positive change to save the program. It is evident that the once incredible PALS program will untimely fail under the current leadership. It will fail and ultimately lead to irreversible damage that will most likely lead to the program's demise. It is the head of school who should be spearheading the hiring of an experienced, well-versed, understanding, and most importantly, a true leader like the program used to have. Nobody is expecting the director to "replace" and/or "fill the shoes" of the former director, but this current replacement is completely and totally unacceptable. Again, MANY parents and I are extremely disappointed with the fact that she is staying on staff while quite obviously single- handedly destroying this program's success. It was a sad day when I had to tell my son that he would no longer go to the school that once shaped him into the person he is today, a boy who we once thought wouldn't excel in the way he has at Carmel.
Submitted by teacher on March 09, 2015

This school is a warm and inviting place for teachers and students. Students are excited to be there, and teachers are very supportive of eachother. My criticism is that the curriculum coordinator lives in israel. With no collaboration or real understanding of the ongoings of the classroom, the school really suffers. Teachers are not given any direction, only confusing words by email occasionally. This aspect of the school is hurting an otherwise warm and welcoming environment for all.
Submitted by parent on May 01, 2013

I have three children at the school and each of my children have been pushed to maxamize their potential, including ranking within the top 5th percetile nationally on standardized assessments. Unlike schools which only teach to the middle, Carmel Academy has been able to address a wide array of learning styles and teaches each child and his/her level. It is a warm, caring environment, which encourages ease of access and communication with teachers and administration. The excellence in both their secular and judaic studies is unparalleled. This is the only Jewish day school in the area that actually encourages families from all different walks of life to come together and be united. You should go see the school fo yourself because it far exceeds the other Jewish day schools in the area with respect to important skills like critical thinking, working together with peers, and gaining the skills necessary to be strong learners.
Submitted by parent on July 28, 2011

Our kids have had a wonderful educational experience at the school. Our son had some learning challenges, which the school identified and corrected with a well-conceived plan. Our daughter loves the school, particularly Hebrew classes, and at age 9, her accent and fluency are amazing. I have found the teachers to be well-trained and amazingly caring. Thank you for such a good experience for our kids.
Submitted by parent on May 26, 2011

Now Carmel Academy, the school does not live up to its mission for children who fall in the middle of the bell curve. Although they recognized my daughter's issues, the procedures put in place to work with her were the polar opposite of what they should have been. The head of school was insulted when I suggested the wrong tack had been followed. We are changing to another school next year. I have literally been told not to "bad mouth" the school. And for a school that prides itself on community building - I am treated as a leper when I go on campus with teachers turning their backs on me. So now I have no problem with stating that they are in need of a great number of changes to be a top rated school.
Submitted by parent on April 12, 2011

Disappointing. Our hopes and expectations for your kids education were, generally, not met at WFHA. While the lower school education is competent, and runs smoothly, the upper school was a major disappointment. With a couple of notable exceptions, the teachers were incompetent, and correspondingly, there is a high turnover rate. For whatever reason, there is a consistent failure to attract and retain quality teachers.
Submitted by parent on November 16, 2010

Our daughter was one of the only nine students who graduated last year. Overall, we were happy with the school while she was there. She brought home very good grade and was considered a strong student. Unfortunately, over the last couple of months we had to spend a lot of time and money on tutoring in order for her to catch up. It was clear from the first day of this school year that academically she was very deficient and was not prepared for high school.