Wise School

15500 Stephen S Wise Drive

Los Angeles, CA 90077

21 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-6
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on December 05, 2024

My husband and I regularly talk about how sending our kids to Wise School was the best decision we ever made! We have one child graduating this year and another in fourth grade. We have been a part of the school since mommy and me and could not be happier with our experience! Wise School feels like one big family and all of our closest friends are school families. The teachers, administrators and head of school are PHENOMENAL!!! They really get to know your family and go above and beyond for the success of their students. The academics are very impressive and we love that the school partners with USC on the curriculum. We are confident that our daughter is prepared for middle school next year. We absolutely love Wise School and highly recommend it!!!
Submitted by parent on December 05, 2024

The absolute best school you can imagine for your children. From the amazing community to the stellar academics and sports. We are beyond pleased with Wise school. The campus is so beautiful and my children love it.
Submitted by parent on December 05, 2024

Our Family has been at Wise for over 10 years (since our kids were in pre school) and we truly couldn't be happier!! Wise school has given our children an incredible education, in a safe, loving and caring environment. They have wonderful teachers, admin and the best head of school who are always there ready to listen and make things better if ever needed. Wise school has an amazing curiculm (in partnership with USC), wonderful sports, debates odyssey of the mind and many many more programs to fit each individual. Over they years, Wise has provided our family with a wonderful sense of community. The families that attend Wise have similar values and goals for their children and bring diversity and warmth to the community. Wise is a leader and your family is lucky to be part of this wonderful community and school.
Submitted by parent on December 05, 2024

Bringing my 3 kids to wise was one of the best decisions we had made for our family. Wise gave us a true community that was not just a place our kids learned but they built friendships that became cross generational. With 2 kids graduated and the last one there, the bonds built last even after they left. The school supports strong community building and bonding with many in person events so parents really get to know the other families well. The teachers at the school are amazing. Every teacher has been caring and so easy to communicate with. Each was so concerned about my kids social emotional state and their academic learning. Math and English are differentiated to meet kids at where they are at academically. My kids thrived at wise and the 2 that graduated were well prepared for their next school.
Submitted by parent on November 09, 2021

We currently have two children attending Wise School and feel very lucky to be providing them with an incredible educational experience. Our boys are thriving and look forward to going to school every day. From the nurturing and caring teachers to the endless array of high-caliber sports (including swimming) and extracurricular opportunities (#1 debate team amongst competing schools), not to mention the beautiful park-like grounds, Wise has it all. Wise also provides our family with a wonderful sense of community. The families that attend Wise have similar values and goals for their children and bring diversity and warmth to the community with their cultural backgrounds. The administration has been extremely supportive during the pandemic, with a flexible and balanced approach to ensure as normal as possible of an elementary school experience for the kids. The head of school communicates with parents on a weekly basis to ensure transparency as well as to accept feedback from the community. Wise is a leader amongst other schools, tuned-in with the needs of like-minded families and operating from a place of reason. I know our children will leave Wise with a strong sense of self and confidence as kind young adults armed both academically and socially to handle whatever lies ahead.
Submitted by parent on August 07, 2021

I’ll start by saying there are a few totally good teachers. Not in every single grade, but the ones who are amazing really knew what they were doing and treated each child as an individual. We pulled our daughter out because the other kids in the grade did not mesh well with our family’s way of accepting everyone and being open minded. Unfortunately, the families are not what we hoped they would be because so many of the parents are super close minded. mostly they run really right-wing. So you can imagine there wasnt a lot of emphasis placed on teaching kids to know about the meaning of empathy and all of the things that most other schools in Los Angeles do to get students ready for middle school and high school. That’s even more true if you’re looking to go outside of the Jewish world after 6th grade. That kind of thing just wasn’t for us. The other thing that seriously surprised me and my husband was that while we were at the school, every single family was pressured in a letter by the school senior leaders to donate an additional minimum of $2500 per child !!, to the school’s yearly donation drive. That was on top of the already super high tuition. The tuition is top dollar for Los Angeles, and we already knew we weren’t getting the best “bang for our buck” regarding preparation for the next phase of schooling for our child. So those are the main resons we left. We only stayed in touch with a couple of families after we left, because the rest are very conservative and don’t like to think about different opinions or cultures, they are much more conservative than in other schools and really different idea of morals.
Submitted by parent on May 06, 2021

We have an older boy who graduated a few years ago and a daughter who graduated after him, and they were both academically and socially unprepared for middle school and high school. We had to hire tutors to get them up to speed, and after that, they were ahead. For the past few years since new leadership has taken over, the school has earned a well known reputation in the greater Los Angeles area as being overrun by families who do not uphold the values of the Jewish faith that the school teaches. We found out the hard way that this reputation is based on truth. The ongoing bullying issues are swept under the rug by the administration and the rabbis at the temple, and there are never any consequences for bullying behavior, only attempts to hide or twist the facts. Overall, a negative experience. Several of the best teachers have left, and even though some strong teachers are still there, we would not recommend this school to anyone we care about.
Submitted by parent on January 28, 2020

We have a child in the First Grade and have had the most positive experience at WISE school. It is the most loving and caring environment. They truly care about each individual and their family and supporting your needs. Academically it is progressive and has partnered with USC to provide cutting edge learning models that is preparing our children to become critical thinkers and problem solvers. It has such a rich curriculum and the most amazing facilities. The campus is incredibly secure and safe with a capable and impressive security team. The physical setting up on Mullholland allows the kids to be among nature and experience beautiful vistas all over campus. The art lab, project studio, music lab and gym are state of the art. The Jewish foundation it is instilling in the students is one of joy and love. The teaching staff we have experienced offers a loving yet firm approach - acknowledging our child’s strength and pushing in the right direction. They also offer the best after school enrichments from Robotics, Yoga, Chess, Cooking, Sports, Tennis, Dance, Science and many more. The music program is led by the most talented musicians. The clergy is dynamic and incredibly cool for being clergy. The community is so strong and shares so many values with the schools core values. The Parent Association hosts many events to appeal to a wide range of people and also offers a parent lecture series with esteemed speakers.
Submitted by parent on June 13, 2018

Our whole family loves this school. We have been a part of the school and community for over 18 years and the younger generation of our family is starting pre-school... Thank you for the Wise School administration and staff for all the wonderful resources that you provide for the students and parents.
Submitted by parent on June 12, 2018

We are thrilled at this school. There is a mind-spirit connection here for both parents and students alike that you will not find anywhere else. The kids look out for one another and are learning to be kind people, while they're also learning all the most important skills in innovative ways. The campus is stunning and allows for whatever interests our children have from sports to Lego robotics to art enrichment to swimming. We feel lucky to be part of this community.
Submitted by parent on April 18, 2018

Great. We have 2 kids in the school and couldn't be happier!
Submitted by parent on May 08, 2017

As a parent, you couldn't ask for a better community committed to Jewish values and a solid educational foundation. Teachers work tirelessly to empower their students and motivate them to do their best. We are truly blessed to be a part of it!
Submitted by parent on May 14, 2015

Every parent's ultimate goal should be to raise their child as a happy and well-adjusted member of society. What a blessing it is when your child's school is on the same page, and even more importantly, effective in this endeavor. As a parent of two Wise School graduates and a current second grader, I have witnessed the care and effort that the administrators and staff put into producing a stellar academic program as well as good citizens. The school is a haven for kindness, caring and compassion as well as gifted education and rigorous learning. I can clearly remember that one of the reasons that we chose Wise School for our children, more than 12 years ago, was that it promised strong academics and that the students appeared joyful. So many years later, I am so pleased to honestly say that my Wise graduates received a fabulous education that truly prepared them for the highly rigorous middle school and high school that they now attend. But more remarkably, both my older children always say that they want their children to attend Wise School as well so they can have as much of a wonderful experience as they had.
Submitted by parent on May 13, 2015

"Learn deeply. Be creative. Experience wholeness. Make great happen." This is the motto at Wise School and this is what occurs daily at this amazing school. Wise has become a home for our three children. They are loved and nurtured, and all the while exposed to an unbelievably strong academic curriculum and a wide variety of other disciplines. I am consistently impressed by the level of critical thinking and complexity our children are exposed to and the tools they are given with which to express their creativity. Truly an incredible elementary school experience!
Submitted by parent on October 11, 2013

Wise School is an amazing place for my child to learn, grow and excel. The principal is HANDS ON. She opens the car door at carpool with a warm smile on her face as she welcomes each student to school. She is on top of everything and is very approachable. The teachers are dedicated and hard working and the small groups (12:1) for math, reading and Hebrew are perfect for young kids. Wise School is not just a place to come to school but more of a community with a wonderful and active parent body. Not only has my child made life-long friends but we have too!
Submitted by parent on October 10, 2013

We have been attending Wise School for the past 10 years and we LOVE it. We couldn't have made a better choice for our two kids. We currently have a 9th grader and a 6th grader. Our 6th grader loves her teachers and the whole sense of community, and our 9th grader emerged from middle school incredibly well prepared for high school (in fact, he commented that the transition for him into high school appears to be smoother than it's been for some of the other kids from other middle schools). But best of all, Stephen S. Wise has always seemed to us not just a school, but a community -- and one that's filled with administrators who actually seem to care about the kids, and families that are genuinely nice! As you can tell, we love it there!
Submitted by parent on October 10, 2013

Both of my kids attend Wise School and our entire family couldn't be happier. We made the switch after two years at public school. At Wise School each of my children, who couldn't be more different academically or socially, have blossomed into happy, creative, inspired, and thoughtful students. The staff is not only highly qualified, they are like family. They are incredibly responsive. I truly feel that the staff wants my children to soar as much as I do. There are myriad opportunities for the kids to shine, and if the right one doesn't exist the staff is willing to create new opportunities. It is a beautiful mix of academics, creativity, social awareness, ethics and family. Wise School is our partner as we raise two amazing citizens of the world.
Submitted by parent on October 09, 2013

We currently have two children attending the Wise school and we feel very lucky to be providing our kids with this incredible educational opportunity. My family has been part of this incredible community since my Daughter was 9 months old which makes this year our 11th year of being part of wise family. Our entire family feels supported and a part of a bigger community at Wise. Our children are thriving and look forward to going to school each and every day. I cannot say enough positive things about Wise from the nurturing and caring environment to the endless extra-curricular opportunities, the sports program is phenomenal and the arts and science programs are stellar and on top of it all the campus is one of the most beautiful campuses. I know our children will leave Wise as strong, confident and kind young adults.
Submitted by parent on October 09, 2013

I'm writing to rave about my kids school, Wise Elementary, formerly Stephen S. Wise Elementary. We have 2 children that have been enrolled there since Nursery School and we continue to have wonderful and enriched learning experience there. The schools academics are top notch, offering small class sizes that also break down into smaller groups to move at your child's speed Their recent partnership w/ USC Rossier School of Ed. is further broadening the teacher & student minds with regard to problem solving. While attacking the std. CA curriculum, they're learning critical & creative thinking skills in all subjects that I truly believe will make them incredible contributors to our society. This is evidenced when I converse with them about any subject. It's in the questions they ask, b/c of the way they are being taught to think. While there is more religion offered than we personally need as a family, it is taught and approached in a beautiful nurturing way where the clear message is giving back. Our state test scores have proven my suspicions are correct, they are by far excelling. The best money I've spent on my kids to date, has been this core edu. here at Wise. #llovemyschool
Submitted by parent on October 04, 2013

My 3 children attend Wise School. They are thriving, and are very happy, well adjusted kids. The administrative team is hands on, professional, and simply amazing. I feel lucky to able to a part of this community.