Montverde Academy

17235 7th Street

Montverde, FL 34756

19 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK-12
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on August 05, 2023

Awesome school. Students are the priority and very cared for. Academic program meets the needs of a variety of student interests.
Submitted by principal on May 16, 2023

A great school for students of all ages. My daughter attended from grade 6-12 and was more than prepared for college. The college counseling team helped here to learn about available funds and scholarships and was with her during her entire Upper School experience. She's made lifelong friends, and is doing well in her career.
Submitted by other on June 11, 2022

School is good if you are there for sports and not solely academics. The fact that the school is just NOW understanding the importance of integrating technology into their education is appalling (we are just NOW getting an “innovation center”?!?!). Several promises related to such place have been made and not have been delivered. The communication to students about this space is good, but ONLY if you are involved in an extra curricular activity/club that will actively use this space upon completion and opening. The school (admin) only cares about the academic focused extra curriculars/clubs when we win or perform well. If not, it’s almost like we don’t exist on campus. Several teachers are good, but there are also other ones that engage in verbal belittlement and abuse almost daily. Several teachers there use their “seniority” (they have been at the school for longer than their colleagues) to their advantage, having denied to recommend students for higher/more advanced classes because they “know what it best for said student”. And don’t even get me started on the Dining Hall. There is constantly things spilled on the floor (usually liquid), and the food is oftentimes not cooked well enough for consumption. A focus group between the staff there and a select group of students was created last school year, but it most certainly has not been helping. The school really only caters to athletes, and the rest are left hung up to dry.
Submitted by parent on January 26, 2022

Beautiful campus and on the surface looks like a good school but it is terrible academically, all they are Interested in is sport. Very liberal leaning and if they don’t like you questioning their Marxist views, you will be asked to leave because you are not a good fit for the school (that’s the parents not the child). If you are conservative and expect great results then keep your child away from this school. We discovered that some of the teachers are not even qualified as teachers when we questioned their ability so research before you decide to enroll your child because you will be shocked. I was warned by another person x students parent not to enroll my child but ignored them thinking this was exaggerated, I should have listened because they were exactly right. If you are liber however you will love this school.
Submitted by parent on October 25, 2019

The best education we could hope for our son
Submitted by parent on August 23, 2015

Excellence is key at this school. From top notch instructors to professional looking uniforms this school is A #1. The new Music Conservatory has amazing instructors, and we were especially impressed with Mary Mincy.
Submitted by parent on April 04, 2015

I have 3 kids there in different grades. Academics are rigorous and success is mandatory. The sports are of course awesome (can you say national champs!!). But most critical is the diversity of the school with students from over 49 countries gives my children a global experience second to none.
Submitted by parent on March 22, 2015

As a parent of an alumni of Montverde Academy who was also the Senior Head Prefect in his senior year, I rate the school on all levels as one of the top if not THE top Academy in the whole of the USA and even with us living in south Africa, I have not found an Academy that equals what Montverde Academy offers for the child. Wholeness - physically, emotionally and spiritually, Wellness, a GREAT personalized education and an opportunity to perform athletically and academically on an international and national level. THE BEST !
Submitted by parent on November 13, 2014

Extremely rigid school. Blanket approach to education no personalized attention. In the middle of no where and mostly foreign students.
Submitted by parent on November 04, 2013

Montverde Academy is the premiere school in central Florida. The parent (same one by the way) who complained about fees is ludicrous. If you did your homework, you would discover that MVA's tuition and fees is among the lowest among independent schools on the east coast and the schedule of charges is pretty clear before you enroll. What does it teach our kids when parents get on a site, hiding behind a keyboard, and spew ridiculousness. I know who the PK3 parent is too and I can say is be honest with the school before you enroll with regard to your child's needs. Also on fees, I think I know who this one is too....when your child has additional academic needs unable to be met through traditional means such as OT and PT and educational assessments, every school would be in the same situation of recommending services which may require funding and that is putting the educational needs of the child first! With 27 AP courses and a passing rate of 80% on the AP exams, SAT/ACT scores that exceed the state and national scores and 100% college acceptance rate to some of the most competitive colleges and schools in the USA, I would say the curriculum speaks for itself.
Submitted by parent on October 24, 2013

My review is a bit mixed... First of all this is a very well run school. My child attends currantly, and is safe. There are very nice parents and children. Mrs Shackelford, Dean of the lower school is just wonderful. Within 2 weeks every teacher knew the name of every child. It truly feels like family. However... I am not able to elaborate on this site, but let's just say we are not overall happy with our PreK3 teacher.
Submitted by parent on October 03, 2013

Truly the best choice in Lake County all the way around. If Lake County had a high school with an IB program it would be a tie...but they don't. Montverde offers the most AP classes, the highest passage rate, and the best curriculum of the middle and high schools in the area. Not everyone will be happy there because its strict--they don't keep around kids who either can't handle the academics or violate the code of conduct. Guess what--OK with me! That's why I send my kids to private school. Are there fees? Yes, all private schools require you to pay fees for books, technology, the PTA, graduation, etc. It's all outlined in your contract. But they don't charge a lot of fees throughout the year and the fees are a fraction of what the largest Orlando private schools charge. At Montverde lunch is included in tuition! Not many private schools cover lunch. Do your homework before you complain!
Submitted by parent on September 12, 2013

I strongly advise you not to send your child to this school. The priority is on earning as much money as possible, not on your child's education, health or happiness. The only imagination this school demonstrates is in their ability to find new ways to charge the parents fees. I am apalled at the way they put the finances of the school ahead of the welfare of the students. Stay away, I urge you!!!!
Submitted by parent on September 10, 2013

The administration was very unhelpful and non-responsive. This was extremely difficult as I am living outside of the United States and I would have appreciated a call back from multiple messages left by phone and email on multiple occasions. It seemed like the only time I spoke to an administrator was when they were looking for more money. I have to say that I was not very impressed with the curriculum either.
Submitted by parent on August 22, 2013

Our kids are entering their seventh year at Montverde. This is an incredible school environment for children. In addition to the high level education they provide, they place a strong emphasis on character and community. Everyone on campus knows my children. The accountability factor plays a huge role in my son's and daughter's confidence and independence. Other than our home, we can't imagine a better place for our children to learn and grow. The staff and teachers are second to none.
Submitted by parent on May 05, 2013

As a parent of one of those "athletes"....Montverde Academt has done wonders for my child academically, socially and athletically; I couldnt be happier with the experience he has received and the caring and nurturing teachers and coaches he has had the privilege of learning from is outstanding. I am sacrificing a great deal to pay tuition, but it has been worth every bit of it...thank you Montverde for all you have done for our family!
Submitted by teacher on May 04, 2013

We love our school community and this parent obviously has an axe to grind. Our teachers are all compensated at or above LCPS and many have housing and meals on top of that plus retirement, medical and tuition remission for our children to attend the school; I feel treated very fairly. I think we have nearly 27 AP courses with an 80% passing rate, 30% higher than LCPS and higher than the national and state average. Our SAT scores exceed the state and national average too. We have a girl going to Princeton in the fall and a boy going to Carnegie Mellon and UC Berkeley, none of those are "athletes." Lots of kids going to some great tier one schools. If it weren't for Dr. Kesselring we would still be a school of 100 kids known as the school where you send your kids if they are bad...so if we are known for athletics, I will take that any day over a place for bad kids...plus many of our student-athletes are great kids doing really amazing things in and outside of the classroom. Oh, and our math team and academic team won the Lake & Sumter County tournaments and the academic qualified for nationals and our programming team placed in the top 10 in the state! We love our school!
Submitted by parent on April 23, 2013

Kasey Kesselring has turned the school into a sports machine. It is all about recruiting kids for sports and offering them "financial aid" so the school can be #1 in basketball and soccer. No student has got into an ivy league school from academics. Hopefully the school will get new leadership and change course. Unfortunately finding top coaches and paying them huge salaries is more important right now then finding the top teachers in the country.
Submitted by other on April 10, 2013

If you want to be ready for college, go to it. If you want to spent all the day doing homework go there.
Submitted by parent on April 09, 2013

everyone should know that its the #1 school on every category ! they have everything that you would want for a great school.