Mary Institute and Saint Louis Country Day School (MICDS)

101 North Warson Road

Saint Louis, MO 63141

29 Reviews

School District
Grade

PK, K-12
Type

private

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Reviews

Submitted by parent on March 29, 2023

My boy girl twins attended MICDS from senior kindergarten through high school graduation. It was an exceptional experience. As a male single parent, who was deeply involved, I could not have asked for a more supportive and educationally challenging academic and social environment. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat!!
Submitted by parent on August 22, 2022

MICDS is such a fantastic school. After joining the community four years ago, I've only grown to appreciate it more and more. The teachers are extraordinarily creative and they strive to sincerely know every child really well. The curriculum is deeply intentional across the entire school from Junior Kindergarten through 12th grade. The opportunities are endless for growth in interacting with others in class, sports, clubs, and more. I've never experienced a more thoughtful, purposeful school and kind community.
Submitted by parent on August 08, 2022

There are not enough teachers who truly engage the students' interest and make learning fun. Also the school follows rigid guidelines and is not responsive to individual requests even when their guidelines have not been applied equally/fairly to all students.
Submitted by other on April 29, 2019

What a letdown. We came in from a smaller and much less heralded private school on the east coast, yet that school blew MICDS away in every meaningful category: teacher quality, college preparation, academic rigor, character of students, humility, you name it. This school really rides on its high horse, with an laughably smug and snobby attitude prevalent among its community. I really don't get it. We found the academic rigor to be lackluster compared to what we had seen elsewhere. Maybe it beats a public school in a bad neighborhood, but it falls painfully short of what you'd expect from the accolades this school is given.
Submitted by other on September 26, 2016

At MICDS, parents get their "whole child". Your evenings and weekends aren't centered around hours of homework. The academics, athletics, and the arts programs at MICDS are modern, high tech, and amazing! Check out everything our Head of School has brought to the school and her plans for the future...it's exciting!
Submitted by parent on September 20, 2016

My child joined the MICDS community this year, as an incoming HS student. As a family, we recognized that we wanted more for our child than what the local public sector could offer. Over the past two years we visited countless day and boarding schools across the Country, including some of the best East Coast boarding schools. Ultimately, we chose a day school close to our home and could not be more pleased with the experience, so far. If you are considering an independent day school, think no further – MICDS is an amazing school. Sports, extracurricular activities, community engagement, and most of all, an exceptional academic milieu that includes: an environment that not only encourages the use of technology but fosters and supports its use, a multimillion dollar STEM center that is virtually one of the best in the Country, ultramodern classrooms, first rate theatres and art department, and an incredible sports center that is currently under construction. Most important is the professional and support staff at the school and finally, the welcoming community. I could go on and on about the academic resources, time management strategies, academic and personal support systems, and college preparation; however, this all needs to be experienced firsthand.
Submitted by parent on March 09, 2015

We highly recommend MICDS where all of our children attended middle and upper school. The school provides an excellent academic foundation with many opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. The facilities are outstanding, the campus and athletic fields beautiful, but it is the kind community and extraordinary teachers that are key. The teachers are not only well qualified, but they care about helping each individual student succeed and they convey that belief. There is a strong parent teacher partnership that helps the school and families work closely together on behalf of each student. There is a wholistic approach that focuses on helping the student think critically, act responsively and live compassionately. Our children were well prepared for top level colleges, graduate school and life after college. MICDS really is teaching the leaders of tomorrow.
Submitted by parent on February 28, 2015

Our children have received an excellent education at MICDS. The faculty is outstanding and go out of their way to ensure their students are understanding and retaining the material they teach. When my son was struggling in Calculus, his teacher met him after school to review the material. His commitment to my son was astonishing. Yes the school has wonderful facilities but it's the faculty that makes it great.
Submitted by parent on February 18, 2015

The Beasley School (the Lower School) is a wonderful learning environment, filled with teachers are friendly and incredibly responsive to both the parents and the students. From the very beginning of school (Junior Kindergarten, which is one year pre-kindergarten), the children regularly attend a host of different classes in addition to the Reading and Writing that is focused on in Homeroom. The staff also sees the importance in teaching the whole person, and they talk with the children about different social concepts that heavily support analytical thinking and empathy. As a parent, volunteer opportunities are plentiful and varied. I find it a wonderful treat to be able to see my children during the school day as a volunteer, or to stop in whenever I can to have lunch with them. As a non-native St. Louisan, my husband and I toured many area schools before finding a home at MICDS. I would encourage you to do the same! See what is out there, and find the best fit for your family. I have nothing but positive feelings toward MICDS, and have received the same since we started here: love and care from the faculty, friendship and inclusion from the students and other parents.
Submitted by parent on February 18, 2015

All three of our children attend MICDS. We are so thrilled with the education that they are receiving. Also, the teachers and administration truly care about the students and their families. There is an emphasis on school/parent partnership which helps to foster excellent communication between the school/families. The teachers and administration care about our children and want them to succeed. I am always amazed at how much our kids are learning to be caring, conscientious and sensitive world citizens. I cannot imagine sending our kids anywhere else in St. Louis!
Submitted by parent on February 18, 2015

We have 3 children who have different strengths, weaknesses and personalities and they are all thriving at MICDS. The excellent faculty make a real effort to get to know each child individually and elevate them to the next level through challenging curriculum and personal encouragement. My husband and I appreciate the fact that many teachers are also coaches. This gives teachers an opportunity to get to know the kids outside of the classroom and contributes to the student's continued success. While the beautiful campus is large, it is broken down into easily navigated divisions - none of our children felt overwhelmed when they started. The community is warm and inclusive . The Parent Association is open to all parents and encourages family participation with various events such as the Fun Run, Homecoming, the International Expo and welcoming events for new families.
Submitted by parent on February 16, 2015

We moved to St Louis from NYC and were unaware of various schools' reputations as we searched for the best environment for our kids. After looking at a wide variety of independent and public options we chose MICDS. It's been 5 years now and we couldn't be happier. I was surprised to hear some people thought it was a "fancy" school of rich people. While it certainly has an extraordinary campus and facilities, we've found the community to be very diverse, inclusive and down to earth. We have a boy and a girl with very different abilities and personalities yet the school has been great fit for both. The teachers are passionate and go above and beyond to help the kids learn. The school is also great about teaching to individual abilities and readily puts kids in classes appropriate for their skill level regardless of grade. It's also been a great community for our family as we have made many close friends through the school. Lastly, we have tremendous confidence in Lisa Lyle our head of school. She has great vision, is focused on the student experience and balances academic, athletic and community service rigors with aplomb. We couldn't be happier!
Submitted by parent on February 15, 2015

I just want to put our experience out there with the teachers at MICDS. They are AMAZING. They go above and beyond....they are more than willing to meet a student before or after school, during lunch or a free period, and they are also in email contact. I don't know how they could be more accessible!!!! The teachers at MICDS are top-notch.
Submitted by parent on February 10, 2015

We have been very happy with MICDS and the quality of education. Academic rigor is the priority. However, the school offer so much more: exceptional sports; robust and strong arts offerings; STEM opportunities; leadership opportunities; summer and spring break travel around the world as part of the foreign language curriculum; and education/ information/ curriculum around responsible digital citizenship. Plus, and so important to my husband and me, the school is mission driven. Everything the school does is to not only prepare children for college but importantly, for life. The teachers, faculty, administration are thinking beyond college to preparedness for life. The teachers are exceptional, and this makes the school. They go above and beyond for the children as teachers in the classroom, mentors in after school activities and coaches on the athletic fields. They teach the kids how to think for themselves, how to be good problem-solvers and how to develop and clearly articulate/ present their thinking.
Submitted by other on January 08, 2015

All this school truly cares about is money. It's all about the money. Such an unhealthy environment for students. It's a shame. What a waste.
Submitted by student on December 23, 2014

I am a graduate and have a great amount of pride in MICDS. For co-ed suburban day schools, it should be considered Top 10 in the US. The objective facts bear this out. Opportunities for academic advancement and rigor are exceptional. I recall the school offering more AP courses than any other in the Mid-West. The campus and resources are objectively among the best in the country. Class sizes are the smallest you could want. And, of course, college placement is exceptional, especially for a school in the Mid-West. Specific placements always vary year-to-year with the interests of the students. But MICDS consistently places across all the Ivies, MIT, Stanford, etc. with significant portions of the class. About half of my graduating class went to a Top 25 school either undergrad or grad (10%+ WashU, ~5% Harvard, 10%+ other Ivy). Many friends not near the top of the class still went to a top school. Alumni include 3 US Senators, a Federal Reserve Chairman, numerous Fortune 500 CEOs, movie stars, professional athletes, entrepreneurs, authors, professors, top surgeons, Navy SEALs. MICDS is exceptional and perfect for the student and family seeking that.
Submitted by parent on May 26, 2014

Great school with plenty of support and willingness to work with you. Just to correct, "Quick comments" is an additional way to communicate - the vast majority of what we see are positive and give a useful pulse of how our children our doing. To "We have twins," if you are seeing negatives in the main you need to be working with the school and your child as these updates are to help you. If that is too onerous then take your other child to Burroughs as a short way to make yourselves happier - it is also a good school and no need to stay where you are not satisfied.
Submitted by parent on April 22, 2014

We have twins--one that goes to Burroughs and one MICDS. Now, unlike as others have said, if money is not a constraint, still do not put your child in MICDS. There is a definite difference between the two schools, both in Academics and Athletics. I will not digress so I will only talk about MICDS. The school in a general aspect lacks to help their students out, aside from a select few teachers. On top of this, it runs a crooked system called "quick comments" which basically is when a student does something academically or behaviorally wrong, instead of working the issue out with the student, the teacher will simply send a message to the parent of what the child has done. Not only does this provide a great amount of stress on the parents, it also gives a bad reputation for the student because EVERY single teacher is notified. Now moving on to my second point, I cannot agree more to a previous comment regarding the school prioritizing themselves over the student. This statement is clearly evident by the actions of upper management in the school, including Lisa Lyle, head of school. Now admittedly, the teachers are adequate and some are even extraordinary.
Submitted by student on February 09, 2014

I graduated from MICDS last year. I agree with one of the reviews that during the last few years, the school is all about money. I also know that many terrific teachers were asked to leave from the school. If money is not a problem and you are an overachiever with a high IQ then this school is probably right for you, and you should be able to handle the school demands. Otherwise, there are good public schools nearby that you can go to.
Submitted by parent on February 01, 2014

The school has been of late just focussing on $.There have been conversations wherein the motto is to look in the interest of school and not the students.If money is not the constraint and want to say"my kid goes to" then good option otherwise sheer waste of money with substandard teachers.If you are from elite class then best school to be in since there is a huge untold differences in judgements passed to kids.